President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian answered reporters’ questions at the Lori Fortress. He said that this was his first time in the Lori region as President, but he had been there many times before when he was a student. He said that it’s a unique and impressive location. “The atmosphere and the people here are different. They are much softer and more relaxed.”
According to the president, discovering the homeland was one of the ways he expressed his patriotism as a student. “I am referring to Armenia, not to the Soviet Union. I think that we need to do that again. I don’t have the opportunity to visit such lovely places while living in Yerevan. There are few places worldwide that have fortresses from the 10th and 11th centuries,” he said.
Regarding the bathrooms located at the 10th-11th-century fortress, the president emphasized, “Europeans had forgotten the art of showering… Armenians stayed clean during the Middle Ages.” He also said that Georgian aristocrats often visited Armenia for a vacation and were amazed by the beauty and nature.
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Aravot Daily asked Armen Sarkissian about what tourist attractions and other cultural-historical sites he intends to take his grandchildren to so that they can get to know their homeland.
“My grandchildren are still young, but if I let Armen come, for example, he would have explored the nature and crawled around in the grass and in between the walls. Knowing your homeland isn’t just factual; it isn’t a century or a church. Knowing your homeland starts with loving your homeland. It’s loving the land, the trees, the hills, it’s getting in touch with nature. Armenia is not just the Opera House,” the president said.
Gohar Hakobyan
