Participants of 2016 “Diaspora” Summer School Program: “Every moment here is becoming part of a fairy tale called Armenia”

Ten days ago, Australian-Armenian Colette Mardirosian and Kazakh-Armenian Piruz Baghdasaryan didn’t know each other. Today, they are close friends. Mardirosian and Baghdasaryan are among the several other young Armenians who are in the homeland to participate in the “Diaspora” Summer School Program of the RA Ministry of Diaspora. Hayern Aysor’s correspondent met and talked to the two after their regular master class devoted to Armenian songs and dances.
Piruz Baghdasaryan says she has a dance group in Kazakhstan, but mainly teaches Oriental dances. She had always dreamed of visiting Armenia and improving her knowledge of Armenian folk and national dances and her skills, and now she has that opportunity. “Foreigners also love, learn and dance Armenian national dances. I have seen it with my own eyes. I also know people who come to Armenia to learn more about our culture. This inspires me, but also obliges me to disseminate the ancient Armenian culture abroad and let the world know who we Armenians are and what civilization we have,” Piruz stated.
Collette, who is from Australia, has been dancing Armenian national dances for many years. She dances and teachers, but it has always been her dream to dance on her native land and receive the strength and energy from the homeland. Her dream has come true, and the young Armenian feels happy.
“The feeling that this is my country, my land and my water, make the Armenian inside of me feel alive. It is the Armenian who lives thousands of miles away from the homeland, but has always longed for the homeland and has tried to do her best to preserve the type and gene of the Armenian nation,” Colette says. She also mentioned that Armenian children who are born and raised in Australia learn Armenian dances with pleasure and want to preserve their national identity. According to the participant of the “Diaspora” Summer School Program, the only problem is the low level of Armenian language proficiency, which keeps Armenian children of Australia away from establishing and maintaining ties with Armenia.
One of the links is this summer school program, the participants of which have great expectations that were met on the very first day. Piruz couldn’t even imagine that she would learn, know and feel so many things in one week. “We are taught by Armenia’s best dance instructors, who have helped instill more love for Armenian dance. Besides all this, meeting new people is also a great achievement. There are Armenians from all corners of the globe. We have already met and grown to love each other,” the Armenian girl from Kazakhstan said. Colette added that she would keep in touch online and return to the homeland, if possible.
“For us, Armenia is the center of the world. We Armenians are scattered across the globe, but the center, the heart always beats in one place, and that place is Armenia. Each Armenian feels the heartbeat and lives,” Colette added.
The Armenian girls are impressed with the homeland and the reception of the people in Armenia. What also impressed them were the warmth, tactfulness and generosity of the people in Armenia. “We feel precious, though the environment is sometimes so familiar that it seems as though we have always been living here,” the girls said. The girls have such great emotions and have experienced such great moments that they can’t imagine how they will share their impressions with their students upon their return. “The first thing that I will tell my students is that they need to preserve everything that is Armenian. I am not just saying this. I have always felt this, but I especially realized this and attached more importance after visiting the homeland. I really want every Diaspora Armenian to understand this,” Colette said.
“I will first talk about Yerevan, the nature in Armenia, the kindness of people and Mount Ararat. Of course, I need more time to get to know the homeland better, but the moments that I experienced here are becoming a part of a fairy tale called Armenia,” Piruz added.
Besides improving their professional skills, the Armenian girls also discovered the real homeland and the warmth and beauty of it.
Amalya Karapetyan