Laura's cooking and other works of art

I've now been here in Yerevan for over two weeks. On one hand it feels like I've been here for much longer than that, but the time has gone quite fast. Our schedule continues to be packed. I work at ICHD two days a week and the Women's Resource Center three, plus language class twice a week and forums once or twice a week as well. This week we met with staff from Unison, a local NGO advocating for disability rights and accessibility.

My favorite part of the day continues to be dinner. Some pictures of Laura's amazing soups - full of garlic, greens, cilantro and what looks to me like red pepper tapenade:

Also Lusine made me something I have truly never seen before: a beet and potato salad pie. Folks in Yerevan tend to use a lot of mayo, and I've been glad that Laura doesn't, so I was a little wary at first. But this turned out to be pretty delicious. Lusine shredded cooked potatoes, fresh beets, home made pickles and carrots, and then mixed it with mayo and herbs and layered it like a cake. Then topped it off with shredded hard boiled eggs. She was very proud of it.

Speaking of interesting food, I completely forgot to mention my most interesting meal, even for me: beef heart and lungs. I had it at a traditional Armenian restaurant, grilled and served with bread and herbs. It was not actually all that weird though. Mostly tasted like liver.

In other quirky news, I learned from a friend that two of the most important status symbols in Armenia are your telephone number and your license plate. Apparently you can tell a lot about a person based on these two things and people will pay good money for "better" or particular numbers. Who knew.

I've enjoyed walking around Yerevan and getting lots of tips from locals and ex-pats on the best music venues, restaurants and places to buy crafts and jewelry. Tonight I'm checking out a favorite restaurant that is apparently in a local woman's home, which sounds fantastic to me. Tomorrow is the weekend excursion to Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia (and one hard hit by the earthquake). We'll be taking a tour of the city and also doing some work in an orphanage there. I'm feeling really happy to be here and actually more comfortable than I am in most new cities. Some pictures below of the sculptures throughout Yerevan and also the mountains - not the best visibility, but still incredible. The spider reminded me of Louise Bourgeois.