Bekaisa, a local blogger working in the NGO sector in Armenia, has another interesting post, but this time it is about the expat community in Yerevan. Well, even though the community is very small compared to other CIS countries, she raises some good points that I’m sure are the same everywhere.

What makes Armenia different, perhaps, is how the small number of Diaspora Armenians from abroad are lumped in with foreigners working here. Well, for most local Armenians, they are foreigners — and this is indeed the most common term used to describe them.

Then again, most foreigners and Diasporans do little to interact with the “riff-raff” that is most of the population, so the term is probably appropiate. Unfortunately, most are increasingly stereotyped as those from outside who have come to use their connections to make some quick money.

It is funny to observe how expats live/socialise/communicate in their imagined “small america” or “good old europe” in posh (or pseudo-posh) clubs and pubs e.g. on Sharden/Perovskaya streets in Tbilisi, in Dolmama or Phoneica/Mocca in Yerevan and anywhere else. And how local ‘golden boys’ and ‘dolly girls’ who have enough money and access to the “pillars of civilisation” are circling around in their sparkling dress and lustrous eyes, insuring indispensable indigenous decoration. And old friends who wanna do a big favour to you and for whatever reason get you introduced to some akhpar-armenians or “pure” expats.

It is just amazing how similar these expat communities are, and how resembling are reactions of locals in all the ‘developing countries’. […]

*Some bearers of the “white man’s burden” are just unique, talk to them and you gonna be blessed. talk to them and dispel your doubts (if you still have any) on state of affairs in your country when a total idiot and complete nonentity has a full right to criticise your damn government, corruption and dodisms…and you have nothing to oppose, and nothing to say except thinking “ara du ov es!!?”.. because of the simple reason: you perfectly know yourself- it is true…

On the other hand, remember the plight of the largest group of ethnic Armenians here? Anyway, would be kind of interesting to get a variety of opinions and comments from foreigners living in Armenia on Bekaisa’s post made over at her site so I’m turning off comments on my post. If you have something to say, please say it over there.