I stayed in Stepanakert, and I couldn't have asked more hospitality than the one I received, the people who hosted me were amazing! But I really wanted to go to a landmark to know more about this beautiful place. So I went to Shushi (Armenian name) also know by Shusha (Azeri name). They told me that in that place the Armenians won one of the most important battles against Azerbaijan. So I took a bus, a crowded one... and I went. When I told my host family I was going back walking, they warned me not to do so, it was a bit more than 3 hours...anyway I thanked them and went.
I arrived at Shushi and I started walking, I was the only foreigner and I couldn't escape from the eyes of everybody on me. Until this point I was used to it. I took my camera out of my bag to take some pictures and I saw 2 kids running towards me, when they came they said hello and walked with me for a while, and then they asked me for money...only if they knew I was Argentinian...I gave them some coins and continued. My soul was touched when I saw ruins of the past war, it was only 21 years ago and there are things that cannot be rebuild, (mainly lives...). My time in the Caucasus really made my soul to move, I didn't know about these places and know I guess I know something I can share.
I wanted to go to Ghazanchetsots Cathedral also know as the Cathedral of Christ the Holy Saviour, I felt the need to connect my soul with the divine, maybe a church could help me. I finally arrived and gosh, I don't know, I had a mixture of feelings. Churches often do that to me, I saw this huge beautiful building in contrast with little houses and ruins, and my soul felt uncomfortable. This building was build to resemble Etchmiadzin Cathedral in Armenia, the oldest Cathedral in the world. I have to be fair here, people here are devoted to their faith, and when Shushi was under Azeri governance it was used as granary, garage and even as a munitions storehouse. So rebuilding the church was something very important for people in Nagorno-karabakh. I entered and I tried to connect with God, I could... but I have to say it was after a lot of effort. I didn't feel anything special, I just suffered inside me.
Time was playing against me so I decided to go back to Stepanakert, it was near 7pm and I didn't want the night to catch me while walking. So I started walking back to the capital and gosh, this place really captivated me, I saw a tank on a hill and I went there, as I left the town behind and entered in the route, many cars that were passing slowed down to look at me walking, they didn't say anything and the continued. After 40 minutes I arrived at the tank and it ended up being a memorial "the Shushi tank memorial", it is a T-72 tank that commemorates the capture of Shusha, while I was there, a family arrived there to see, kids were playing on the tank and I just wondered if that was a proper "toy", something that really shocked me was a cross on the tank, I never knew the meaning...
I left the memorial and I have like 2 hours and a half to get to the capital and it was getting dark already, but I wanted to walk, again in another heroic-stupid thing I wanted to do. But after walking 5 minutes a car stopped opposite to me, I recognised the faces, they were the family that were at the memorial, the man driving asked me if I wanted a lift to Stepanakert, I didn't want, but I couldn't refuse that. They told me they were from Yerevan but were on Holidays and decided to go there, they quite like their freedom, they quite enjoy not being slaves, I think that is normal, isn't it?
We talked for
about 8 minutes, I was the first Argentinian they met, they wondered why I was
there... I just am. I arrived at Stepanakert and we said goodbye. I walked
"home" and the lovely family that was hosting me where waiting for
me. My head was full of things, so was my heart. It was a day to rethink many
things in me. A day to try to
heal my heart
 |
| Leaving Shushi.... |
