Today we skipped the hotel breakfast and went to the neighboring Marriott hotel where we sat outside on the square and enjoyed traditional Armenian coffee and a croissant. They served the coffee with a little sweet: a date ball covered in coconut.

At breakfast we met Armenian pop artist Elie Berberyan, who we have seen perform twice previously in the US, who was in Yerevan to perform at a wedding and is staying at the hotel. We also saw another Armenian from our church who is in Yerevan for a different wedding.

After brunch we went to Armenia’s Olympic training facility to watch the USA East A basketball team play Cairo. The Cairo fans brought an Armenian drum to the game but despite their enthusiasm, D and his teammates easily won the game.

For lunch we went to Abu Hagop Restaurant. not to be confused with Abu Hagop Sandwich where we went on our first night. We enjoyed glasses of raki, iced tea, hummus with warm, puffy pita bread, mixed olives, a platter of chi kofteh (raw meat flavored with tomato, bulgar and spices), falafel with tomato and pickle slices, cheese boeregs shaped like cigars, and a platter of kebab meats. It was all delicious!

Back at the Marriott our friend was able to get me into Elie Berberyan’s poolside concert even though we aren’t staying at the hotel. The music was so loud Paul could easily hear in the lobby area outside the pool deck. He didn’t have his keyboardist with him, and the show was fairly brief, but I was happy to be able to hear him perform and catch up with a few friends from MA who were staying at the hotel.

Tonight was the Opening Ceremony for the Pan-Armenian games, even though the games started two days ago. The athletes marched a mile through the streets before arriving in Republic Square. They were led by a police escort, flags for each country, drummers, and just like in the Olympics they marched grouped by country with a flag bearer. It’s very hard to capture the scale of the event, Armenia TV was interviewing athletes as they marched and broadcast the parade. Once the athletes reached the square, there was a stage set-up where they listened to several speakers and then a variety of entertainers performed. There were big screens broadcasting everything, lights flashing through the square, and dancing for four hours.

You can see D walking here…fast forward to 26 seconds into the video and he’s next to the tallest teammate.

The majority of athletes didn’t last through the speeches and instead returned to their hotel to get ready to go out for the night, but plenty of people stayed enjoying the entertainment. Paul and I joined our friend Michelle, and our contractor from Belmont, Raz, at the Hotel Marriott for cocktails, dessert and people watching…..essentially ending the day right where we started. We ordered watermelon and gata, a dense cake with almonds (i think), that we topped with a cherry sauce and clotted cream. It was sooo good.

At midnight the streets were still throbbing with people, cars zipping around everywhere, men smoking…it’s a mass of humanity just walking to and fro through the square. I wish I could stay awake and watch more, but instead we walked to a nearby supermarket to buy provisions for tomorrow. A few pics from the market which was packed with people and open 24/7.