One month down

I've now been here in Armenia for over four weeks. Time really seems to be flying. This was another busy week - work, class, a community service project and also some more meetings for my research. More on that later. I also added something else to my schedule - yoga, aka badly needed physical exercise. A friend introduced me to a great local studio, and I'm even bringing my host sister with me tonight (after convincing her it was not actually a religion class).

The community service project was recycling flower petals from the Genocide Memorial - there are thousands of flowers placed at the site during the Memorial, so a local conservation group decided to use the flowers to make recycled paper. A very pretty assignment.

The day trip Saturday was to a chocolate factory (mmmmmm) and then hiking along a gorge. It was pouring rain, which made for interesting hiking, especially over some of the less stable rocks or pipelines we actually walked on, but beautiful views.

Speaking of day trips, for any archaeology enthusiasts, here is a blog about our trip the prior week to the Areni wine caves: http://www.wineterroirs.com/2011/05/oldest_known_winery_areni_armenia.html Some interesting (and gory) details.

This week I also had a drink on a rooftop in the center of Republic Square and went to a birthday party at a famous old jazz club, frequented by Russian politicians and other colorful characters.

So a bit more on my research, if you're interested. I've met or set up meetings with Armenians working at the university, the British Embassy, the British Council and now the National Democratic Institute (which also happens to be an organization I interviewed with last year - the local representative just invited me to a conference they're holding on women and politics this month). I've also started reaching out to the women parliamentarians and I'm trying to track down people at the US Embassy and USAID. I'm trying to organize my interviews by politicians, opinion leaders, funders, academics and activists. I'm finding the interviews fascinating, but also discouraging at times. Not a huge surprise because I hear similar comments in the US, but there's real fear and rejection of the word and (mis?)conception of "feminism." In one interview the very first thing that was said, before I even asked a question, was "To be clear, I'm not a feminist." And this came from someone who is young, progressive and implementing gender projects locally. Of course there is also a very common emphasis on the "natural differences" between women and men and a high value on women's roles as mothers and wives. There is also a lot of resistance to quota laws or affirmative action for women in politics, because I often hear that the women politicians are "just like men" (often the comment is that they look like men) or because they are perceived to be just as corrupt as men. There is less of a perception of gender representation as a social justice or rights issue, likely because there is this acceptance of a public and private divide.

Something else that comes up frequently in my interviews is the legacy of Soviet rule. People have commented that the Soviet regime made people more complacent, apathetic or even fearful of activism. One interviewee told me that her parents do not engage in politics or activism because they are still genuinely afraid of the KGB. Also activism has been met with violence even in recent years. But there is a belief that the younger generation of Armenians, particularly those who are more engaged with social media and have spent time abroad, are becoming more politically active and demanding better government. However, others have noted that the Soviet influence provided a more gender equal society; women's work outside the home and political equality was more valued. Now, in a rejection of those values and as a return to more "traditional" society, there is more acceptance of women's roles in the home.

Job wise, this week I'm leading strategic planning workshops for the Women's Resource Center and continuing research for ICHD. Stay tuned for the feature story on the Women's Resource Center later this week.

Final thoughts. No one can understand or pronounce my name here, which is something I found in Italy as well. They think it's a boy's name, and there are frequent references to The Godfather. In Armenian, "djan" is a term of endearment that people use constantly, so I am often called "Don Djan." I also love that Armenian is a language of both different words and sounds. To say "uh huh" here in agreement, the emphasis is on the first syllable rather than the second: "AHHHHH huh." I love noticing the small gestures and sounds that are unique to Armenians.