The Road to Beautiful Armenia

Hello, My name is Talin Orfali and I am here to introduce to you my motherland, my culture, my heritage, The Beautiful Armenia and its rich history. Armenia is located in the South Caucasus, which is bordered by Georgia, Iran, Azerbaijan, and Turkey. The Official language of Armenia, is Armenian, However you can hear some Russian being spoken, road signs, store signs in Russian, and of course you can hear English as well.

the year 301, Armenia is the first country in the world that has adopted Christianity. The Armenian Church goes back many centuries ago and was founded by 2 Apostles, Thaddeus and Bartholomew. St Gregory the Illuminator was our first Catholicos (Our Pope), of the Armenian Church. He was held in a Hole for 13 years at church named Khor Virap(Khor Virab), which is located close to Mount Ararat, then he had finally be rescued and escaped the Dungeon. Our First ever Church built is the Holy See of Etchmiadzin in the city of Etchmiadzin. It is the oldest Church in the World.

Armenia is mountainous, with rivers, forests, ravines, and it is located mostly at 1800 meters above sea level. The highest point is Aragats Mountain at (4092m), and the lowest is Debed Valley at (400m). We also have our square, Yerevan square, which is Hrabarag. Yerevan is our capital.

The road to beautiful Armenia is incredible, the beauty of our hills and valleys, The Statues, Monuments, Churches, from our great and rich history include, the David of Sassoun, Vartan Mamigonian, Akhtamar, Garni, Geghard, Noravank, St Mary’s, Haghardzin Monastery, Mesrob Mashtots who is the Inventor and creator of The Armenian Alphabet which we have 38 letters, The Madenataran which is our Library with Saint Mesrob Mashtot’s Statue with our Alphabet in the front, There is St. Hripsime, St Gregory the Illuminator Church, You may or may not have heard about our writer William Saroyan. We have many authors, and important figures in our history, past and present.

Some of our Armenian’s include, Atom Egoyan, Andre Agassi, Andrea Martin, Charles Aznavour, Ross Baghdasaryan, Cher, Arshile Gorky, Steve Jobs, Kirk Kirkorian, Aram Khatchaturian, Alex Manougian, David Nalbandian, Raffi, Seymour Skinner who is from the Simpsons, Zildjian Family, System of a Down, Eric Bogosian, Capital Cities group (one of them is Armenian) , the inventor of the MRI ( Magnetic Resonance Imaging), Machine is also Armenian named Dr. Raymond Damadian.

Armenia is just so rich in history, culture, and so much more. Armenia’s flag consists of 3 colours, Red, Blue, Orange. Our currency of money is Dram’s. Check your local Currency for the difference. There is just so much history, so much to know about Armenia, the history, and everything else. If you are more curious, You can definitely search online for more information on our culture, beliefs, religion and so much more.

I had the pleasure of visiting my motherland the Beautiful Armenia in 1999 for the first time. I kissed the ground of Armenia when I first got off the plane. It was a feeling that was beautiful and I was crying with happy tears. It was an amazing journey that really touched my heart. I had gone to Armenian Saturday school and everything I learned came to life, and knowing that and feeling the presence of our history makers, ancestors really made me feel so incredible, knowing that where I may have walked, that several hundred and thousands of years ago, there may have been those people walking the same very steps, as I have took. It was a feeling I will never forget. To this very day, I never forgot the moments when I was there. I will never forget when I took a swim in our lake Sevan, where we put delicious and juicy watermelon in the water so it stays cool where we can eat it by the water.  I had gone to Armenia with my fellow classmates, and couple of my cousins, teachers and volunteers after graduating Armenian School in grade 8. It was a trip I never forgot and I still remember it like it was yesterday.

After returning from Armenia, I began to volunteer and utilize my time in the Armenian community as much as possible. I was in the Armenian community centers here in Toronto and the country more than I was at home. I have just recently began to come back into it all and it feels amazing. It feels great to give back to my community as much as possible.

If you ever have the opportunity to visit Armenia and make that part of your travel plans to see the world, it is a must. You can obtain a tourist visa at the Airport, and you do not need any vaccinations or anything. Follow up with your travel agent, tour operator to obtain more information and your preferences. Also if you have any other questions of Armenia, do not hesitate to contact me. I really hope you enjoyed the Road to beautiful Armenia.

I am so proud to be an Armenian.

The Armenian Genocide Demonstration In Ottawa, Ontario Canada – Parliament Hill April 24, 2012

For Several years now, People from All over the place such as Montreal, Toronto, Laval, Cambridge, Ontario, From other provinces and countries take a trip every year on April 24th to participate and take part in the demonstration of The Armenian Genocide Commemoration and to raise awareness about other Genocides on how history should not be repeated. This year marks the 97th anniversary since the Armenian Genocide happened in 1915. In April we hold many commemorations, remembrance, vigils, and programs to honor the Armenian Genocide Victims of which 1.5 Million Armenians were massacred by The Ottoman Empire of Turkey and of which they stole our lands, churches, cities, and as well as MOUNT ARARAT which belongs to Armenia and they stole it from us and they tried to wipe out a whole nation and its people but could not succeed. The Armenian Genocide is a constant struggle for us and now in less than 20 days we will be embarking on a journey to Ottawa, Ontario Canada on April 24th, 2012, to commemorate once again.

In Ottawa, we get together at the Parliament Hill in between the West and East Blocks right in front of the Parliament building. This year we will be meeting at 12 noon and the procession will begin with speeches from dignitaries, politicians, Armenians, Fellow guests, Parish priests, and more. Then after the speeches and thanking Canada for Recognizing the Armenian Genocide, we gather up with our Genocide Prevention signs, Armenian, Canadian, Quebec, Province Flags, Banners and everything then we start to march down to the Turkish Embassy not so far away and we protest and raise our voices to the passerby’s on the street and we say, No More Genocide, Eastern Turkey is Western Armenia, Denial Is A Crime, Admit Your Crimes Turkey, all the way until we reach the Turkish Embassy. Now there is a Park right in front of the Turkish Embassy and thousands of Armenians and Armenian supporters are there to protest and to talk to the Ambassador of Turkey to recognize their crimes, and to admit what they have done to us. It will be my 17 year in a row attending and I have never missed a commemoration of all those years. I started going when I was 10 years old and it never stops there. Its very important to me that I am there with my fellow Armenians and to raise my voice and voice my opinions on Genocide.

If You are in the Ottawa, Canada area or close to it, in the vicinity, please come out and join our demonstration and protest. If you would like to meet with me, I will be there. I will not be that hard to find. I’ll post a couple of recent pictures of myself.

Thank you.