#80 Travelogue Armenia: Soviet Yerevan
▶️ Welcome to 🇦🇲Armenia, a landlocked country in the South Caucasus region. Landlocked countries and societies of mountain dwellers are usually more conservative and slower to develop. Armenia’s capital Yerevan is a vibrant city that offers all the modern comforts but doesn’t hide its Soviet past:
Architecture and ornaments
To honour the state and society, socialist architecture is all about extravagant buildings in city centres and boring standard greyish buildings everywhere else. Ornaments celebrate the big themes in small details.
A familiar metro
Like other Soviet-built metro systems, Yerevan’s metro is deep, dark, beautiful and has heavy machinery. It is so noisy that having a conversation during the ride is sheer impossible and the distance between stations is quite big.
Abandonment
Old iron stuff lying around? Like in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan people feel no hurry to get rid of it. Maybe they’re at peace with the past.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
▶️ Welcome to 🇦🇲Armenia, a landlocked country in the South Caucasus region. Landlocked countries and societies of mountain dwellers are usually more conservative and slower to develop. Armenia’s capital Yerevan is a vibrant city that offers all the modern comforts but doesn’t hide its Soviet past:
Architecture and ornaments
To honour the state and society, socialist architecture is all about extravagant buildings in city centres and boring standard greyish buildings everywhere else. Ornaments celebrate the big themes in small details.
A familiar metro
Like other Soviet-built metro systems, Yerevan’s metro is deep, dark, beautiful and has heavy machinery. It is so noisy that having a conversation during the ride is sheer impossible and the distance between stations is quite big.
Abandonment
Old iron stuff lying around? Like in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan people feel no hurry to get rid of it. Maybe they’re at peace with the past.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
#3 Travel Notes: Mount Ararat
▶️ Borders are weird sometimes. Mount Ararat is the national symbol of 🇦🇲Armenia although it is entirely in 🇹🇷Turkey. The sight of the mountain is truly impressive and graces (=make sth more attractive) the Yerevan cityscape (=landscape of a city), especially when there is less air pollution. The mountain is 5,137 metres high. Read more about it on Wikipedia.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia #turkey
▶️ Borders are weird sometimes. Mount Ararat is the national symbol of 🇦🇲Armenia although it is entirely in 🇹🇷Turkey. The sight of the mountain is truly impressive and graces (=make sth more attractive) the Yerevan cityscape (=landscape of a city), especially when there is less air pollution. The mountain is 5,137 metres high. Read more about it on Wikipedia.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia #turkey
#81 Travelogue Armenia & Georgia: European Cities
▶️ In 🇦🇲Yerevan and 🇬🇪Tbilisi I somehow felt like I was in Europe. But what makes a city feel European actually?
Pedestrians rule
European cities are walkable and as a pedestrian you have the power. Driving a car is a bad idea because roads are narrow, traffic is maze of traffic lights, zebra crossings and one-way roads, and finding somewhere to park your car is a major headache.
Art for the sake of art
Works of art in public places don’t have a purpose to honour the state, glorify heroes or celebrate the nation. It’s just art that makes a place more interesting and brings a smile to your face.
Old buildings
There is a sense that modern-day architecture is efficient but soulless. Old buildings are protected by law and are carefully maintained. They are usually much more expensive to buy or rent than new buildings.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia #georgia
▶️ In 🇦🇲Yerevan and 🇬🇪Tbilisi I somehow felt like I was in Europe. But what makes a city feel European actually?
Pedestrians rule
European cities are walkable and as a pedestrian you have the power. Driving a car is a bad idea because roads are narrow, traffic is maze of traffic lights, zebra crossings and one-way roads, and finding somewhere to park your car is a major headache.
Art for the sake of art
Works of art in public places don’t have a purpose to honour the state, glorify heroes or celebrate the nation. It’s just art that makes a place more interesting and brings a smile to your face.
Old buildings
There is a sense that modern-day architecture is efficient but soulless. Old buildings are protected by law and are carefully maintained. They are usually much more expensive to buy or rent than new buildings.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia #georgia
#4 Travel Notes: Culinary journey to 🇦🇲Armenia
▶️ New country, new food! Okay, I didn’t try all of these but which one would you like to try? I have three foods and three drinks for you:
1. Khinkali – dumplings filled with meat or cheese or both or other stuff. You hold them at the knob of dough which you shouldn’t eat.
2. Cheese bags – made of cheese with a cheese string and a cheese filling.
3. Chicken feet – I thought only Chinese people were into that.
4. Cones compote – something different!
5. Tesla – Armenia’s favourite energy drink.
6. Fizzy basil drink – why are Uzbeks doing so little with all their basil?
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
▶️ New country, new food! Okay, I didn’t try all of these but which one would you like to try? I have three foods and three drinks for you:
1. Khinkali – dumplings filled with meat or cheese or both or other stuff. You hold them at the knob of dough which you shouldn’t eat.
2. Cheese bags – made of cheese with a cheese string and a cheese filling.
3. Chicken feet – I thought only Chinese people were into that.
4. Cones compote – something different!
5. Tesla – Armenia’s favourite energy drink.
6. Fizzy basil drink – why are Uzbeks doing so little with all their basil?
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
#5 Travel Notes: Christian Armenia
▶️ Think what you want about religion but I find it fascinating to observe people at their most spiritual moments. 🇦🇲Armenia is situated in the mountains. Mountain dwellers (=people who live in the mountains) around the world have always been more likely to preserve (=keep) ancient traditions and not follow current changes around them. Visiting an Armenian church or monastery (=religious building where monks or nuns live) therefore feels a little bit like travelling through time as well. It is quite unlike anything you find in the hustle and bustle (=noise and activity of a crowded place) of Europe or America.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
▶️ Think what you want about religion but I find it fascinating to observe people at their most spiritual moments. 🇦🇲Armenia is situated in the mountains. Mountain dwellers (=people who live in the mountains) around the world have always been more likely to preserve (=keep) ancient traditions and not follow current changes around them. Visiting an Armenian church or monastery (=religious building where monks or nuns live) therefore feels a little bit like travelling through time as well. It is quite unlike anything you find in the hustle and bustle (=noise and activity of a crowded place) of Europe or America.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #armenia
#82 Travelogue Georgia: Ukraine is in Georgia
▶️ Everyone talks about Ukraine, so let’s do that as well! Many people support Ukraine but what you can see in 🇬🇪Georgia is really on another level. How come?
A troubled history
Despite being the home country of Stalin, Georgians see themselves as victims of Russian aggression. That’s mainly because Russia is controlling the two breakaway republics inside the country – Abkhasia and Southern Ossetia – and Georgians see how Russia is trying to do the same in Ukraine.
Wannabe Western
Georgia is somehow in Asia but it feels like Europe and Georgians are eager to join the EU. They are also heavily pro-American. Being against Russia is one way of expressing this. And as in Europe it’s also fashionable to show support for Ukraine even when you don’t care about it deeply.
Funny situation: A random young guy in Tbilisi comes up to us to ask where we are from. So we ask him back and the answer is …? – “I’m from f***ing Russia.” 😳
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
▶️ Everyone talks about Ukraine, so let’s do that as well! Many people support Ukraine but what you can see in 🇬🇪Georgia is really on another level. How come?
A troubled history
Despite being the home country of Stalin, Georgians see themselves as victims of Russian aggression. That’s mainly because Russia is controlling the two breakaway republics inside the country – Abkhasia and Southern Ossetia – and Georgians see how Russia is trying to do the same in Ukraine.
Wannabe Western
Georgia is somehow in Asia but it feels like Europe and Georgians are eager to join the EU. They are also heavily pro-American. Being against Russia is one way of expressing this. And as in Europe it’s also fashionable to show support for Ukraine even when you don’t care about it deeply.
Funny situation: A random young guy in Tbilisi comes up to us to ask where we are from. So we ask him back and the answer is …? – “I’m from f***ing Russia.” 😳
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
#6 Travel Notes: Old Town Tbilisi
▶️ Let’s take a stroll (=take a walk) through the less polished (=made shiny and beautiful, esp. shoes) neighbourhoods of 🇬🇪Georgia’s capital Tbilisi.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
▶️ Let’s take a stroll (=take a walk) through the less polished (=made shiny and beautiful, esp. shoes) neighbourhoods of 🇬🇪Georgia’s capital Tbilisi.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
#83 Travelogue Georgia: Where am I?
▶️🇬🇪Tbilisi is a hotspot of international youth culture and there are places in the city that make you feel like you’re in no particular country at all. You can’t even tell by people’s looks – they come from all corners of the globe. What are these places?
Co-working spaces
These are the natural habitat of digital nomads, i.e. where they get to “work”. Some old factories get turned into a co-working spaces, retaining a charmingly industrial atmosphere thanks to cables, pipes and rough concrete walls.
Hostels
Digital nomads and backpackers live on a modest budget and obviously don’t choose expensive hotels. Hostels have dormitories with bunk beds, and they can be really cheap, like $5 per night. They usually have a common area and shared kitchen where people can socialise.
Georgia can have these places because it is a very open country.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
▶️🇬🇪Tbilisi is a hotspot of international youth culture and there are places in the city that make you feel like you’re in no particular country at all. You can’t even tell by people’s looks – they come from all corners of the globe. What are these places?
Co-working spaces
These are the natural habitat of digital nomads, i.e. where they get to “work”. Some old factories get turned into a co-working spaces, retaining a charmingly industrial atmosphere thanks to cables, pipes and rough concrete walls.
Hostels
Digital nomads and backpackers live on a modest budget and obviously don’t choose expensive hotels. Hostels have dormitories with bunk beds, and they can be really cheap, like $5 per night. They usually have a common area and shared kitchen where people can socialise.
Georgia can have these places because it is a very open country.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
#7 Travel Notes: Wannabe Europe
▶️ 🇬🇪Georgia was recently hoping to become an official candidate country to join the 🇪🇺European Union but – oh no! – was refused. Maybe it will take another 10 years, who knows. That doesn’t stop Georgians from expressing their enthusiasm (=strong feeling of interest and enjoyment) for Europe.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
▶️ 🇬🇪Georgia was recently hoping to become an official candidate country to join the 🇪🇺European Union but – oh no! – was refused. Maybe it will take another 10 years, who knows. That doesn’t stop Georgians from expressing their enthusiasm (=strong feeling of interest and enjoyment) for Europe.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
#84 Travelogue Georgia: Oh My Dog!
▶️ If Turkey is a country of cats then 🇬🇪Georgia is for dogs. You can see dogs everywhere in the country. They don’t do much really and aren’t much of a nuisance but you do hear some howling at night. Most but not all of them are vaccinated and neutered by the government. Those dogs have a tag on their ears. Anyway, why dogs?
Laissez-faire
Georgia is a very liberal country. People are quite free to do and say what they want. Hence there is no heavy-handed policy about anything, neither drugs or crime nor street dogs.
Religion
Muslim countries rarely have a problem with street dogs because dogs are considered dirty animals in Islam. Christianity doesn’t say much about dogs but it does preach mercy and tolerance towards the weak.
Westernisation
Georgians have a deep dislike of their Soviet past and their big bully neighbour Russia. They are looking to the West instead and want to dissociate themselves from the cruelty of the East.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
▶️ If Turkey is a country of cats then 🇬🇪Georgia is for dogs. You can see dogs everywhere in the country. They don’t do much really and aren’t much of a nuisance but you do hear some howling at night. Most but not all of them are vaccinated and neutered by the government. Those dogs have a tag on their ears. Anyway, why dogs?
Laissez-faire
Georgia is a very liberal country. People are quite free to do and say what they want. Hence there is no heavy-handed policy about anything, neither drugs or crime nor street dogs.
Religion
Muslim countries rarely have a problem with street dogs because dogs are considered dirty animals in Islam. Christianity doesn’t say much about dogs but it does preach mercy and tolerance towards the weak.
Westernisation
Georgians have a deep dislike of their Soviet past and their big bully neighbour Russia. They are looking to the West instead and want to dissociate themselves from the cruelty of the East.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #georgia
#8 Travel Notes: Love yourself
▶️ Flags are magical things. They are powerful symbols that express the essence (=innermost quality or character) of a nation. However, it’s not that easy if your feelings towards your nation are so incredibly overwhelming (=making you feel so strongly that you cannot think clearly) that one simple flag is not enough. So what can you do if you know you live in the world’s best country, i.e. 🇹🇷Turkey? You can a) put up lots of small flags, b) go for (=choose) one huge flag, or c) let Atatürk help you out once more.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
▶️ Flags are magical things. They are powerful symbols that express the essence (=innermost quality or character) of a nation. However, it’s not that easy if your feelings towards your nation are so incredibly overwhelming (=making you feel so strongly that you cannot think clearly) that one simple flag is not enough. So what can you do if you know you live in the world’s best country, i.e. 🇹🇷Turkey? You can a) put up lots of small flags, b) go for (=choose) one huge flag, or c) let Atatürk help you out once more.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
#9 Travel Notes: Déjà vu
(=sth you feel you have seen before)
▶️ There are a few things in 🇹🇷Turkey that look strangely familiar to someone living in 🇺🇿Uzbekistan. Here’s what:
🔹 Dummy police cars – Can’t control the traffic? Put up a few dummies (=fake object) to scare at least those who aren’t familiar with the local area.
🔹 Shops called “markets” – “Shop” doesn’t sound as cool and modern as “market”, which is derived from (=comes from) the globally used Anglicism (=English word in another language) “mini market”. Sadly, it’s a mistranslation.
🔹 Education centres – Uzbekistan is so full of education centres that there’s hardly room for anything else. Foreign tourists often have no clue what this IELTS thing is in Uzbekistan. In Turkey, however, it’s a thing (=it’s a phenomenon, sth that people know about) as well.
🔹 Big Bens – These classically designed modern-day clock towers are able to take any small town to the next level.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
(=sth you feel you have seen before)
▶️ There are a few things in 🇹🇷Turkey that look strangely familiar to someone living in 🇺🇿Uzbekistan. Here’s what:
🔹 Dummy police cars – Can’t control the traffic? Put up a few dummies (=fake object) to scare at least those who aren’t familiar with the local area.
🔹 Shops called “markets” – “Shop” doesn’t sound as cool and modern as “market”, which is derived from (=comes from) the globally used Anglicism (=English word in another language) “mini market”. Sadly, it’s a mistranslation.
🔹 Education centres – Uzbekistan is so full of education centres that there’s hardly room for anything else. Foreign tourists often have no clue what this IELTS thing is in Uzbekistan. In Turkey, however, it’s a thing (=it’s a phenomenon, sth that people know about) as well.
🔹 Big Bens – These classically designed modern-day clock towers are able to take any small town to the next level.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
#85 Travelogue Tukey: Try something new
▶️ Without the many new things to try, travelling would be half as interesting. Let’s explore 🇹🇷Turkey for some weird stuff:
Unripe melons
The taste is cucumber plus x, and it is eaten with a dash of salt. Quite special, especially when sold by unripe people!
Carob
Chocolate hanging down from a tree? Yes, this fruit has a chocolatey flavour indeed but think of it more as a wood-flavoured chocolate.
Mussels
This iconic Izmir street food is enjoyed with lemon juice. ‘Enjoyed’ of course only if you’re into seafood.
Atom Tea
Wipe out all the germs and viruses that trouble you in one go. Boom!
Situation
Apparently this refers to a drink. Hot or cold, alcoholic or not – maybe that’s up to the situation.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
▶️ Without the many new things to try, travelling would be half as interesting. Let’s explore 🇹🇷Turkey for some weird stuff:
Unripe melons
The taste is cucumber plus x, and it is eaten with a dash of salt. Quite special, especially when sold by unripe people!
Carob
Chocolate hanging down from a tree? Yes, this fruit has a chocolatey flavour indeed but think of it more as a wood-flavoured chocolate.
Mussels
This iconic Izmir street food is enjoyed with lemon juice. ‘Enjoyed’ of course only if you’re into seafood.
Atom Tea
Wipe out all the germs and viruses that trouble you in one go. Boom!
Situation
Apparently this refers to a drink. Hot or cold, alcoholic or not – maybe that’s up to the situation.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
#10 Travel Notes: Sights of Istanbul
▶️ Let’s forget about the touristy parts of the city and do sightseeing of a different kind today:
🔹 The Water
The city’s most spectacular views can be enjoyed from a boat – the silhouette (=dark shadow or shape seen against the light) of the big mosques and the bridge connecting Asia and Europe.
🔹 The Streets
Some of Istanbul’s streets are just nice places to be. That’s not because of one particular thing, it’s a combination.
🔹 Street Art
Graffiti (=writing or painting on walls in public places) and surreal (=unreal, like in a dream) paintings on house walls – this really gives Istanbul a European feel.
🔹 Cats
Erdoğan may be the president of Turkey but Istanbul is ruled by cats actually.
🔹 Living Walls
Along the many big roads you can find walls that are vertical (=up and down) gardens. Never seen that elsewhere!
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
▶️ Let’s forget about the touristy parts of the city and do sightseeing of a different kind today:
🔹 The Water
The city’s most spectacular views can be enjoyed from a boat – the silhouette (=dark shadow or shape seen against the light) of the big mosques and the bridge connecting Asia and Europe.
🔹 The Streets
Some of Istanbul’s streets are just nice places to be. That’s not because of one particular thing, it’s a combination.
🔹 Street Art
Graffiti (=writing or painting on walls in public places) and surreal (=unreal, like in a dream) paintings on house walls – this really gives Istanbul a European feel.
🔹 Cats
Erdoğan may be the president of Turkey but Istanbul is ruled by cats actually.
🔹 Living Walls
Along the many big roads you can find walls that are vertical (=up and down) gardens. Never seen that elsewhere!
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #turkey
#86 Travelogue Greece: The Old Continent
▶️ Sometimes you can feel how global forces shape life on a local level. It is said that Europe is an old continent and that the 21st century belongs to Asia. You realise just how true that is when you cross the sea from 🇹🇷Turkey (Asia) to 🇬🇷Greece (Europe). Let’s take a closer look:
History
You’ll find ruins of lost empires all around the Mediterranean. Greece is full of protected ruins while in Turkey you don’t see them much. It’s more modern there.
Population
The Turkish side is quite crowded but in Greece you see fewer people, and most are old, locals as well as tourists.
Economy
Turkey is cheap, tourism is booming and there is lots of construction going on. On the Greek side it’s not like that at all.
👆 You can replace Greece with Europe and Turkey with Asia and it’ll be just as true.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #greece #turkey
▶️ Sometimes you can feel how global forces shape life on a local level. It is said that Europe is an old continent and that the 21st century belongs to Asia. You realise just how true that is when you cross the sea from 🇹🇷Turkey (Asia) to 🇬🇷Greece (Europe). Let’s take a closer look:
History
You’ll find ruins of lost empires all around the Mediterranean. Greece is full of protected ruins while in Turkey you don’t see them much. It’s more modern there.
Population
The Turkish side is quite crowded but in Greece you see fewer people, and most are old, locals as well as tourists.
Economy
Turkey is cheap, tourism is booming and there is lots of construction going on. On the Greek side it’s not like that at all.
👆 You can replace Greece with Europe and Turkey with Asia and it’ll be just as true.
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #greece #turkey
Forwarded from Hoffmann's Old Travelogue
#1 Travelogue 🇰🇿Kazakhstan: Xormanglar!
▶️ My Kazakh friend hired a bunch of (=some, a couple of) 🇺🇿Uzbeks to build his new house. Better quality and also cheaper, he says. Too bad I couldn't really tell him what they were saying to each other as their Xorazmcha (=the dialect of Khorezm in western Uzbekistan) left me (=made me) absolutely clueless (=not knowing, having no idea).
When they talk to my friend everyone tries to adapt and they basically understand each other. Usually Russian would be the language of interethnic (=between ethnic groups) communication but my friend is a Kazakh from China, so he doesn't really do (=use) Russian. And that works just fine! 🤓
#travel #kazakhstan
▶️ My Kazakh friend hired a bunch of (=some, a couple of) 🇺🇿Uzbeks to build his new house. Better quality and also cheaper, he says. Too bad I couldn't really tell him what they were saying to each other as their Xorazmcha (=the dialect of Khorezm in western Uzbekistan) left me (=made me) absolutely clueless (=not knowing, having no idea).
When they talk to my friend everyone tries to adapt and they basically understand each other. Usually Russian would be the language of interethnic (=between ethnic groups) communication but my friend is a Kazakh from China, so he doesn't really do (=use) Russian. And that works just fine! 🤓
#travel #kazakhstan
Forwarded from Hoffmann's Old Travelogue
#1 Travelogue 🇧🇪Belgium: The heart of Brussels
▶️ Welcome to Brussels, the capital of not just Belgium but the whole 🇪🇺EU.
Check out Grand-Place (French) or Grote Markt (Flemish) in the middle of the city. Belgium is bilingual, the northern half speaks Flemish, which is almost the same as Dutch, and the southern half speaks French. Brussels is mostly French-speaking despite being surrounded by Flemish-speaking areas.
Interestingly, no one speaks of an "Old Town" in Brussels. That's probably because the old part of town is too big and not separated enough from the rest of the city.
#travel #belgium
▶️ Welcome to Brussels, the capital of not just Belgium but the whole 🇪🇺EU.
Check out Grand-Place (French) or Grote Markt (Flemish) in the middle of the city. Belgium is bilingual, the northern half speaks Flemish, which is almost the same as Dutch, and the southern half speaks French. Brussels is mostly French-speaking despite being surrounded by Flemish-speaking areas.
Interestingly, no one speaks of an "Old Town" in Brussels. That's probably because the old part of town is too big and not separated enough from the rest of the city.
#travel #belgium
▶️ Afandi English is over 4 years old now and there’s a ton of stuff you’ve missed. Here are some hashtags for posts about knowledge:
#article
Stay informed about the world.
#economist
Grab information and vocab from the mother of news magazines.
#future
Feel the world of tomorrow even today.
#infographic
Let your eye travel across important topics.
#inspiration
See the world in a new light.
#know_your_world
Understand today’s world.
#know_yourself
Know thyself and live well.
#maps
Realise reality with maps.
#psychology
See the human nature so no one can fool you.
#talk
Hear what experts have to say in TED Talks, etc.
#talking_point
Sharpen your mind with controversies.
#travel
Travel the world while staring at your phone.
#uni_vocab
Get to grips with key concepts in higher education.
#wikipedia
Feel the weirdness of this world.
#world_englishes
Be sure you know really know the world’s first language.
#world_food
Check out some lovely meals that you may prepare at home, too.
#article
Stay informed about the world.
#economist
Grab information and vocab from the mother of news magazines.
#future
Feel the world of tomorrow even today.
#infographic
Let your eye travel across important topics.
#inspiration
See the world in a new light.
#know_your_world
Understand today’s world.
#know_yourself
Know thyself and live well.
#maps
Realise reality with maps.
#psychology
See the human nature so no one can fool you.
#talk
Hear what experts have to say in TED Talks, etc.
#talking_point
Sharpen your mind with controversies.
#travel
Travel the world while staring at your phone.
#uni_vocab
Get to grips with key concepts in higher education.
#wikipedia
Feel the weirdness of this world.
#world_englishes
Be sure you know really know the world’s first language.
#world_food
Check out some lovely meals that you may prepare at home, too.