It's my park, keep it clean!

We woke up very early, as usual and after sending the older kids to school and cuddling for a while with baba, Yeprad, my 2-year-old and I went out for our regular walk down Baghramyan street towards our favorite park. After greeting every single dog, cat and bird, on our way and waving to the "babik" on his horse (Marshal Baghramyan) at the corner of Proshyan and mimicking the police car sound effect, we finally entered Lover’s Park. I was following my little guy quietly, enjoying the peaceful morning when we approached one of the benches. Suddenly, Yeprad got upset, changing the tone of his voice, pointing with his finger  to something on the floor and calling it: "amot, amot, badij!"(shame, shame on you, punish) - Finally I realized that he was pointing at chocolate wrapper on the floor near the bench and was angry at the people who might have thrown it on the ground, dirtying "his" park. We usually teach him not to throw waste on the floor and keep nature clean. His babysitter had also taught him the word "amot", unfortunately, so he uses it whenever something bothers him or make him angry:) 

    

So, with my camera at hand, I asked him what he was going to do? He continued his angry blabber and like an old little man complaining about life in general, he picked up the dirt to throw it in the garbage not far from the bench and continued his walk. He repeated the same actions while we approached another bench on our way to the play area, again picking up all that he found on his way, not belonging there and putting it in the garbage.

Children are born with a sense of wonder and care towards nature around them, we need to cultivate it, encourage it and gradually help them be ecologically aware and responsible. It is never too early for that process and sometimes we need to start with ourselves; by giving importance to these small but important spontaneous gestures that our children offer us every moment of the day. 

Khnko Aper Children's Library

"We are homesick most for the places we have never known." - C. McCullers

It was too cold today to go skating at the open air skating ring near the opera, so we decided to spend some time at our favourite children’s library, Khnko Aper. Vayk, my son was very excited, he likes the big format books in French and the enormous chandelier hanging in the middle of the high ceiling between the staircase. The old lady who has been working at the reception since the soviet times shows him how the lights on that magical chandelier are turned on to gradually illuminate the whole floors.

Although I never had a soviet Armenian childhood, going back to this library is always a kind of reminiscence to something I have never known; yet it felt so familiar and homey.  

The Library is named after the Armenian children's author Khnko Aper (1870-1935). I have been going there since 2003, with my older kids. At that time the library was not renovated yet, and since there was not much to do for younger kids at that time, we used to spend hours with my little girls (1 and 3 years old at the time) watching short soviet Armenian cartoons and partaking in Heqiat Morkur’s (fairytale Aunt) long story hours. 

It is among the magnificently decorated walls of that library, filled with magic and innocence, embedded with Tumanyan-inspired adventures that we had an easy and charming introduction to eastern Armenian storytelling. We were addicted to the smell of old bookshelves filled with worn-out hardcover albums of dogs and cats and little children dressed in 1950s dresses.

Over the years, Khnko Aper became one of our favourite places in Yerevan, and we often go back as if visiting an old family member or a grand-parent's welcoming house. 

Recently they renovated most of the floors, but the books stayed the same. Some new collections are added occasionally. The Library needs more books, especially in the international cornerThey accept donations from abroad.

The building has 4 working floors; the basement hosts a small arts and crafts center, the 2^nd floor (also main entrance) has a very nice story hour room and a small theater where book discussions and short events are held throughout the year. On the 3^rd floor, you can find activity rooms (activity groups; theater, origami and crafts). 

On the 4^th floor, the rooms are divided by age groups (or class level) as well as the international language corner with books in English, French, German, Russian, Italian and Spanish ( for children and adults). The Library has also a large study room for older students to read and do research. We usually hang out at the international corner reading French books or watching movies and sometimes end up at the storytelling room.

Upcoming story time in Armenian for January 2013:

24 January at 1pm for 6-7 year olds

25 January at 1:30 pm for 8-10 year olds

30 January at 12 pm for 6-7 year olds

Some rules:

The Library is open from Monday to Saturday from 10-5pm, but on Saturdays they close around 4:30. To take out books, you can get a library card for 300 AMD per year per child but you need to have a local address or a registration address.

To get an updated schedule of the educational activities and story hours you can call: 010-54 75 48
Address: Teryan street 42/1, Yerevan, Armenia

La Maison Verte - Green House

When I moved to Armenia in 2003,  Amassia, my oldest daughter was 3 at that time and Varanta, my second, almost one.

It was quite challenging in the beginning to adapt to the new country with 2 babies and no family support. While my husband was trying to figure out things at his new workplace, I was exploring the city, searching for services, places, interesting spots for my kids to grow and develop.

It was during one of those random exploration days that we found ourselves by chance in front of this old soviet building at the end of Abovyan street with a sign that caught my attention immediately : "MAISON VERTE (Green House) for preschool children."

It was a very hot summer day, Varanta was cranky, tired of sitting in the backpack  the whole day and Amassia was exhausted from the heat and walk. So we all agreed to make a final effort and climb those scary and crooked stairs to arrive to the Green Floor and ring the long bell.  Amassia was intrigued and when the door finally opened, an old Tatik (grandmother) with a friendly smile greeted us followed by a young woman who invited us in.

The main area

From that moment, a magical place just opened up in front of our eyes. At exactly that time we felt that this familiar place will become soon part of our home. Now, many would disagree, saying that “oh well it’s just another indoor playground” but for us, roaming the streets for the past months desperately searching for a child friendly and safe place with almost no results, this was a groundbreaking discovery! Green House looked like a peaceful haven for an almost-depressed-and-on-the-verge-of-losing-her-mind young mom and 2 eager kids still reminiscing the green parks and indoor colourful playgrounds of Montreal.

I still remember that first day. I rested on the green couch watching my kids play for hours, while chatting with the psychologist of the center about my life in general and  our move to this country.

The little cabin with a 2nd floor reserved for drawing

I was not a big fan of Francoise Dolto but this center, initially founded by her team after the collapse of soviet union, was a place where my kids and I found refuge during the long Armenian winter days and through different experiences. 

Water toys area

Tamara Tatik, the old lady that greeted me the first day, lived in the Maison Verte since its foundation, sometime at the beginning of the 90s. She cleaned and cooked everyday for the children coming to the center. She was the guardian of the place. Although she had weird approaches to education and sometimes exaggerated advices to young mothers, I loved to visit her and listen to her stories.

The tricycles room 

The center had also educators and one psychologist present to observe children and their parents and help them if needed. People came for different reasons; sometimes young children experiencing social-developmental problems were referred to the place for further observations and early parent-child intervention. But most often, kids were brought to adapt slowly to prepare for an easy transition from home to nursery/kindergarten and some, like me, came to experience life and connect with others in this new country.

The Rules are simple:

1-    The child should be accompanied the whole time with one of the parent or a close person.

2-    You don’t need to register or give your name, you can come whenever it’s convenient for you between 11-3pm Monday to Saturday.

3-    It is for children from 0-4year olds

4-    There used to be a box at the entrance so you can leave a small donation each time, now they are asking for 1000 AMD to be able to sustain themselves, since they have no more funding from abroad.

Benefits:

• -       Good selection of toys and activity corners
• -       Social place for both kids and parents
• -       Safe environment
• -       Small homemade lunch offered to the children
• -       Clean
• -       Changing area
• -       Friendly staff
• -       affordable

Disadvantages:

• -       Old toys
• -       situated on the 5^th floor and no elevators, so a little challenging for parents with strollers
• -       not accessible to people and children with physical disabilities
• -       sometimes Tamara Tatik can be intrusive but she is nice in general
• -       breastfeeding in the play area was not very much tolerated years ago, allowed in kitchen and dining place.

Here is how it all started:

In 1979, accompanied by a small team, Dolto founded the Maison Verte, a “nurture center” for the social education of infants from birth to three or four years old. It is a place where the child, accompanied by one or both parents or grandparent(s), will find a professional team of three, one of whom is a psychoanalyst. A Maison Verte is a place for talking, playing, and reducing tension, even as constructive prohibitions are inculcated. The success of this approach has led to the spread of Maisons Vertes, and a great many now exist in most countries in Europe. ( http://www.dolto.fr/archives/siteWeb/english/bio-en.htm)

This place was an important part of our life at different stages and today, after a long break of 4 years; I finally took my youngest there.  The place looked a little different, old but neat, and most importantly Tamara Tatik was there with her smile and never-ending conversations.

Address : 44 Abovyan street - Kanach Hark