more yerevan

Here i am at an internet cafe in yerevan. no pictures yet, as that requires one of two things: That I sucessfully get my laptop on-line, or that I get my camera connected to a computer at one of these internet cafes. i'm working on the first option, while option 2 is emergency plan B only.

anyway, while i'm here in yerevan on my second geekcorps tour there have been a few funny reminders of that incredible time i had in Accra, Ghana almost 2 years ago now.

First of all, the, by now infamous, picture of Lura and myself enjoying a beer after a monday night hash run (no drugs involved), has reappeared on ghanaweb.com. This time as an illustration for Sundays African Cup qualifyer with Burundi. A year and a half out of the country they still find it hillarious, the picture of the sweating obruni in the Ghana outfit. So do I....

The second item is explained here (from an e-mail i sent back to geekcorps HQ):

I just had an interesting experience here in Yerevan. For whatever reason
tonight is party/night in Yerevan. A large stage has been erected on
Republic Square right in front of Hotel Armenia. So I went to have a look,
and there, on the square, what do I see?

I was hungry, but not really wanting to sit down at some restaurant, so i
looked around for a food stall. there, right on republic square is a truck
that apparently sells food, so I go closer to see what they have on offer.
The logos seem familiar, but from the distance I can't really make out the
details. until i get close enough. There's a yellow and red logo of a
steamboat on white background. Can it be? A image of Ring road pops into
my head, and many a night spent eating pizza, fried chicken or the like.
At first i think it's a coincidence, but the closer i get the more sure I
am. It IS Southern Fried Chicken, right there in Yerevan on Republic
Square. The same logo. The same motto, expounding the glories of
"Sizzling" southern fried chicken.

And just a few hours before I was talking to Arman and a few IESC
volunteers, trying to explain just how huge the difference between Yerevan
and Accra is. But it's not that big, apparently :-)

Oh, well that was anecdote of the day.