Lake Sevan, day 1: Wishup Shore

I was avoiding Sevan lake for the past couple of years. The major part of the area had become over the years a barbecue joint with little space left in nature to enjoy swimming and rest on the shore. An overflow of poorly designed restaurants with a bad taste of music had taken over most of the touristic parts.
Being born near the mediterranean and now living in a land-locked country for the past 13 years surrounded mainly by mountains, i often feel the urge to be near the sea. So a trip to lake Sevan remains the only alternative for the moment.

Last year, my 10 year-old son attended a summer Waldorf camp at the Wishup shore, near Shorja (lake Sevan) and when i visited him, I immediately fell in love with the place.  It was nothing like the lake Sevan I knew. It was far away from all touristic areas, isolated, with a magnificent shore and view of the lake. A family from the Waldorf School was running the place. There was a nice small cafe/bar on the shore, with excellent music and cute wooden sitting areas. The Camp had the options of sleeping in tents or cabins. During the 10-day summer Waldorf camp, many activities were offered and kids had a blast experiencing canoeing, building their own raft, sleeping in a tent, making fire, learning knots, etc.

We decided to come back and stay with the whole family for 2 nights. We rented one of the cabins near the shore.
The first day was excellent! we spent the afternoon swimming in the lake, walking around, playing with sand. The older kids enjoyed canoeing. We ended the day with a nice supper of fresh fish from the lake served at the bar on the shore and relaxing under an amazing sky full of stars.
This place is unique and amazing both for kids and adults. The best way of experiencing lake Sevan!

Lake Sevan, day 1: Wishup Shore

I was avoiding Sevan lake for the past couple of years. The major part of the area had become over the years a barbecue joint with little space left in nature to enjoy swimming and rest on the shore. An overflow of poorly designed restaurants with a bad taste of music had taken over most of the touristic parts.
Being born near the mediterranean and now living in a land-locked country for the past 13 years surrounded mainly by mountains, i often feel the urge to be near the sea. So a trip to lake Sevan remains the only alternative for the moment.

Ayrudzi

Summer is really hot in Yerevan!

It is quite challenging to find good summer camps for teenagers and older kids in Armenia. There is a good number of summer schools, camps for 6-11 year-olds, even play groups for 4-6 year-olds but if you are looking for summer activities for 11+ year-old kids and teenagers, your options are limited.
Ayrudzi is one of those few places where older kids have the opportunity to be away from the city heat and rest in the serenity of nature surrounded by amazing horses and friendly dogs.
The camp is situated in Ashtarak and is founded by a phenomenal person, known as "Keri Gagik". He is a passionate of anything related to nature, animals and more specifically horses. He has been teaching kids for the past several decades how to understand, care for and love horses. Kids respect him and listen carefully to his valuable lessons about nature and life. He is also a great storyteller and knows how to help children to face their fears of animals. A couple of years ago, he helped my second daughter to get over her fear of dogs. It took him a day and she was already happily integrated in the camp life and playing with the dogs.

The Ayrudzi Club is open throughout the year on specific days and offers horseback-riding lessons to kids and adults. Keri Gagik teaches also children with disabilities to ride and appreciate being close with horses.
In the summer, the Club is open as a camp. Kids can stay in small cabins/tohmiks that can accommodate up to 4 at a time. There is a central toilet and bathroom operated where water is heated with solar system. Healthy food is provided during the day, but kids can also bring their own snacks if they want. During the day, they organize games, hiking trips, workshops, cleaning, free time and swimming. But the most fun parts are being together among friends, listening to Keri Gagik's legendary stories and singing and gathering around the camp fires.
My kids have being going there over 4 years, they have a special relationship with the owners, the horses and the other kids who regularly attend the camp. It has become an important part of their childhood and life adventures. Every time i pick them up after a long stay, i see how much they are re-energized, happy and full of stories to tell.
Keri Gagik and his family have been able to create a small haven for kids among the horses, away from the hectic life of the city, away from TV and electronics, closer to nature and simple pleasures of life.

Ayrudzi

Summer is really hot in Yerevan!

It is quite challenging to find good summer camps for teenagers and older kids in Armenia. There is a good number of summer schools, camps for 6-11 year-olds, even play groups for 4-6 year-olds but if you are looking for summer activities for 11+ year-old kids and teenagers, your options are limited.
Ayrudzi is one of those few places where older kids have the opportunity to be away from the city heat and rest in the serenity of nature surrounded by amazing horses and friendly dogs.
The camp is situated in Ashtarak and is founded by a phenomenal person, known as "Keri Gagik". He is a passionate of anything related to nature, animals and more specifically horses. He has been teaching kids for the past several decades how to understand, care for and love horses. Kids respect him and listen carefully to his valuable lessons about nature and life. He is also a great storyteller and knows how to help children to face their fears of animals. A couple of years ago, he helped my second daughter to get over her fear of dogs. It took him a day and she was already happily integrated in the camp life and playing with the dogs.

Train ride to Batumi

After 10 years since my first visit to Batumi, I decided to take another trip there this summer for a week, to see how much has changed since the last time.

We decided to travel with the train and take the South Caucasus Railroads’ 15 hours trip passing by several towns in Armenia and then Tbilisi and finally to arrive in Batumi at 7:30 in the morning.

Adventures in France: Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, La Ciotat

After spending a night in Toulouse, we woke up early to continue our drive to Marseille. We rented a nice house in the Anse of Malmousque, in Marseille for us and the grand-parents. We were planning to be there before 2pm to settle down and pick up the grand-parents from the airport. We safely arrived a little later than expected and right in the middle of Marseille traffic! The landlady greeted us with a nice smile and gave us a short introduction of the area and which beaches were best.

It was a nice little house with creative designs, a small well organized garden and a swimming pool. The main problem was to find a parking space in the Really tiny streets around the house. It was almost impossible! People were parked on the sidewalks. It is a miracle how they fit their cars in such small spaces.

Adventures in France: Les Maritimes, La Rochelle and l'Atlantique

After a 5 hour drive, we finally reached La Rochelle and the Atlantic shore of France. On the way, we were greeted by a beautiful scenery, well maintained green lands, old and unique houses(some castles).

When you travel with kids, you discover things that you wouldn't see otherwise, like the cloud sculptures, the imaginary wolfs hidden behind the trees, the magic of bridges and many more. 

The Charentes region, on the west coast of France has amazing sceneries of vast green and golden prairies, historical castles and sandy beaches. 

French kindergarten in Armenia...Ah, oui!

Vayk, my youngest goes to the french kindergarten, known as the "Ecole Maternelle d'Erevan". I found this place by chance years ago, through an article in an Armenian journal, just before our move to Armenia and i was so happy. Coming from a francophone background/education myself, I wanted my kids to learn french from an early age and this was a good start-up place.

I visited the place once I arrived with my 2 daughters (aged 8 months and 2 and half). I was really impressed. The kindergarten had started up in 2000 by a french couple living at that time in Armenia and a collective of Armenian parents took over, looking for better options for their children's education. I volunteered for 6 months there, while my oldest one was accompanying me. I wanted to be sure that it was the right place for us and the kind of approach we were looking for. Since then, all 3 of my kids went there and we had a great experience. The language used was french mainly, taught by local Armenian teachers/educators with some classes in Armenian and Russian. The idea was to fully immerse kids in the French language while they were already fluent in Armenian or other languages. This worked perfectly for us. Beside the language issue, I really appreciated the wonderful approach they had to children. The teachers are constantly trained, prepared and follow a well established program. children learn songs, develop their creativity, learn to play with others and all this in a very secure and well organized environment.

The director, Madame Arminee is a very conscious and dedicated  person. She is also very demanding from her staff, always making sure that the kids are in a safe and friendly environment.

The kindergarten has about 100-120 students from 2-6 years old and follows the french program with slight variations to adapt it to the Armenian environment. Each class has 15-16 children with one teacher and one assistant. The kitchen staff is also amazing, providing kids with well balanced menu (breakfast, lunch and snack).

My daughters graduated from there and they still go back whenever they get a chance to help out during their vacations. My son, is still going there, he is 4 and can speak very well in French now. We, as parents are often invited for school yearly performances and enjoy the time spent there.

A typical day schedule at the Maternelle:

8-9:30 - Breakfast and arrival of the children
9:30    -  Door closes and opens back only at 12 (so if you are not there before 9.30 then you have to wait until 12)
10:00 - 12:00 - thematic activities: discovery, language, environment, numbers...(with small breaks)
12:00 - 1:30 -  Lunch (Soup, main dish and cheese)
1:30 - 3:30  - Nap time (3rd floor is reserved for nap, small beds curtains closed, a story and relaxation time)
4:00pm - Snack (usually fruits with cakes)
4:30 - 6:30pm ---- games, reading, playing in the garden (this is when you can pick-up your kid, depending on your work schedule)


The kindergarten is open every day except saturdays and sundays, from september 1 to july 1st. Sometimes they offer a summer camp for the month of july, but in august, everyone is taking a break and preparing for next year. The majority of the children are local armenians from diverse backgrounds, a minority of expat's children and a group of diasporan.

Location: kilikia district in Yerevan, right behind the Ararat cognac factory
cost per child: 150 Euro per month (everything included) which is an average price for a private kindergarten in Yerevan.

Yerevan parks tested by my kids(continued)

Lover’s Park: Very nice but not very suitable for very young active kids. Lots of restrictions (no playing on the green, no throwing pebbles in the water…). Unless you have a child who likes sitting on a nice bench and reading a book or taking a nice walk, it is not a place where children can play freely. I think it is mostly designed for adults or quiet and calm kids. My daughters enjoyed the art corner very much though. There is toilet facilities and the park is really clean and you can find good sandwiches for your little ones.
Disadvantages: not very big or no large areas to play active games (with ball).


Santa Fe’s playground(near cascade, facing Tumanyan statue): For the past couple of years, this place was a lifesaver for us. It has the most secure (relatively to others) play equipment for kids older than 3. Very interesting slides, climbers and swings. They also have real sand covering the play area, so children can go barefoot and enjoy playing with it. Last year they also added a craft corner (ceramics) in the afternoons. They also have a green area where kids can run freely and play ball. Near the playground you have the café and adults can sit and enjoy a drink or food while watching the kids. Toilet costs 100Drams per use.
Disadvantage: Gets too crowded especially in the evenings and not very fun for the younger ones. Service sucks at the café, so you have to be very patient.

Luna parks: I personally don’t like them at all, too noisy, artificial and very bad quality. We go there very rarely, on occasions to do something different. My kids enjoy some of the rides. The one on the corner of Khandjian and Tigran medz has rides for all ages. Toilets are very dirty and service unfriendly.

Freedom Park (monument): still very soviet era rides, weather is nice and is spacious. My kids have usually lots of fun there and you could spend almost half a day or more, nice shady areas. Usually packed in the weekends. It is nice to go there with a group. Toilet dirty but don’t have lots of choice.

Summer

If you are in Armenia during the summer, you have to be very creative to find good, fun and safe entertainment for your kids. The challenge was bigger a couple of years ago when even the basic necessities (baby food, milk, diapers...) were hard to find and activity centers for kids was almost non-existent.
Today you still find some good choices:

Public park: In Yerevan, there is a couple of nice spots, but if you are looking for nice well equipped and safe playground, that would be real hard. Most of the parks have nice green areas, colorful benches but rarely a playground for kids. Some of the parks have old soviet iron playground not very safe for small kids. The other disadvantage is that most of the public parks don't have bathrooms and that could cause a problem for newly potty trained kids and older ones.
In general, kids in Yerevan need more playground public safe spaces, something that no one is investing in right now.

the parks tested by my kids (4, 7, 9 yrs old):

The italian park (near the Sundukyan theater): very nice, shady, lots of trees and green spaces and cool water fountain in the middle. Kids play with sand near the fountain and you can sit near them on a nice bench reading a book and enjoying the breeze.
disadvantage: no toilet (unless you go to the nearest cafe or ask the theater), no playground-slides, swings, you need to bring your own toys.

The park near Poplovok: This is a very small park near the famous cafe Poplovok, and surrounded with many other cafes and is usually very crowded after 6pm. Here you have some playground equipments (not very safe) you have to be near if your child is too small. Slide, Climber and a swing. The interesting thing is that the park has a craft area where children from 3and up can buy their little ceramic statues and paint them. This is not expensive and usually children enjoy it a lot.
disadvantage: the slide is a little broken, you need to be careful. No toilet, unless you go to Poplovok.

The park on Khandjian (near swiss chalet): We went once to this park and did not like it. from far it looks so nice and colorful but once you approach it you see how badly maintained it is. The slide has a big hole in the middle, someone can cut itself if not careful. The swings are not attached very well and the park was very dirty with bottles on the floor and also too noisy (near a big street).

(to be continued)