NOVEMBER 11, 2010 at 7:30 p.m., ALMA's Contemporary Art Gallery (3rd floor)

A JOURNEY TO HISTORIC ARMENIA: THERE REALLY IS SOMETHING THERE
An Illustrated Talk by Edward and Mary Ann Kazanjian
Event co-sponsored by ALMA and NAASR

In May 2010, Edward and Mary Ann Arakelian Kazanjian of Belmont, MA, returned for the second time to the interior of Turkey (Historic Armenia) with tour guide Armen Aroyan of California.  A 2,000-mile journey was made through more than 50 cities and villages in Historic Armenia from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean (Cilicia).  Among their most memorable experiences were finding the places in Samson that Mary Ann’s father had described in his oral history and visiting the birthplace of Ed’s mother and her parents in Tarsus and Lampron.  Two additional highlights of the journey were the climb to the Monastery of Abarank near Ucpinar where they found the two 16-food high khatchkars and a visit to Hromgla, the fortress where Catholicos Nerses Shnorhali (Nerses the Graceful) wrote many of his liturgical pieces.  The pilgrimage included Amasya, Marsovan, Samson, Ordu, Shabin, Karahisar, Erzincan, Ucpinar, Pertek, Kharpert, Kuyulu, Yeghike, Malatya, Marash, Aintab, Berejik, Jibin, Hrumgla, Kilis, Antioch, Musa Dagh, Belen, Iskenderum, Tarsus, Lampron and Adana.

The Kazanjians will present over 700 annotated slides with embedded videos, musical excerpts and narration of their return trip to Historic Armenian lands in modern-day Turkey.

Bios:  Edward Kazanjian retired after a 41-year careers as:  a General Dynamics facilities engineer; an administrator in the Framingham, Brookline, and Billerica public schools; 16 years as Executive Director and Senior Consultant for a not-for-profit Educational Cooperative; and most recently as Assistant Superintendent of Schools in Westwood, MA.  He continues to do consulting and expert witness work part-time.

Mary Ann Arakelian Kazanjian is a former elementary school teach in Woburn, MA and has been the church organist for 46 years, first at St. James and currently at St. Stephen’s Armenian churches in Watertown.

Event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
Enjoy free Museum admission from 6 to 7 p.m.