Garen Yegparian
BYÂ GAREN YEGPARIAN
As the title suggests, this will be an atypical article. Since the Pilgrims arrival and survival at Plymouth Rock is being celebrated this week with the Thanksgiving holiday, I’ve made up a list of things I am grateful for.
Hiking leads the list. What else could be so refreshing, energizing, healthful, therapeutic, and still be helpful Armenian-wise? Armenian Hikers Association (AHA) – Armenia has been founded and will work on fostering eco- and adventure- tourism in the homeland. A key aspect of this is the building, regularizing, and providing consistent signage for trails.
Much work has been done by dedicated people working on parallel efforts, and the Janabarh Trail which is primarily located in Artzakh, is already in use. Already, mountain bikers have ridden it and in a few months it will be run-and-biked. Of course biking, especially in the mountains is another thing to be grateful for, and for many of the same reasons as hiking. These two pastimes/sports can do much for the Republic of Armenia’s economy. One day, the network of trails built there will extend into liberated Western Armenia, too.
Now that we’re in Gars, Sasoon, Van, Kharpert, Cilicia, etc., it’s time to acknowledge and express a “beginningâ€
