Gyumri was chosen as the city to host this years 8th Pan Armenian Games
What are the Pan Armenian Games?
Pan-Armenian games are a multi sport event, held between athletes from the Armenian diaspora and Armenia. They consist of various competitions in individual and team sports among the Armenian athletes. It takes place in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia
Going back to the last Pan Armenian Games in 2019, which was held in the now occupied Kharabagh, where SYDNEY won BEST CITY, below is a link to an article on Armenia.com.au
We bought train tickets for 5000dram return and it was a pretty comfortable and an interesting ride past the Turkish borders to Gyumri
First, Metro to the main train stationMetro was comfortable and cheap and easy to navigateOur train to Gyumri – looks faster than it is!Some of the way we were really close to the Turkish borders and saw the army barracks with tanks and guard towers along the border
There are many scattered little villages along the borders, there are just a small amount of homes and most have a guard tower and army barracks nearby
On the train we had good seats all together at the back of the carriage, easy & comfortable 2hr rideOne of the villages along the border of Armenia & TurkeyOne of the guard towers overlooking the border
THE OPENING CEREMONY
Because we were marching, we were told to be at the stadium at 8:45pm – there were thousands of athletes and when we got there, everyone was stuck outside waiting to be let in
Ceremony was at the Shirak Stadium just outside the city centre Guess where we are lolThe aussies had made it to the front and waiting to get in – we pushed past the crowd as we were late and waited another good 1hr to get in / everyone was just keen to get inside and out of the crowdThe security guards were having issues controlling the crowds! They were shouting and getting hot and bothered while the “politicians” and military donuts were standing upstairs watching just like they do in feudal times, looking down 🤦🏻♀️ this was the most badly organised opening ceremony… instead of welcoming the athletes and making them feel special, they make them all stand outside in a sweaty heap not letting anyone in for over an hour, people crushed and upset…
This is my 4th pan games and its never been like this before… by the time everyone got in they were frustrated and crushed – def not the special feeling we had being there during the other ceremonies
When we finally made it inside we were ushered to our specific areas for the start of the performancesFireworks exploding all over the place!
There were heaps of singers and dancing going on, flashbacks to past ceremonies and light shows
Masha was singing which is always a treat! 😍
The aussies are always one of the favourites because of the bright neon blow up kangaroos, this year we had 80 athletes, the biggest in history!Impressive lightening and token koalaWe started marching around the stadium towards the stage not knowing what to expect…We were led backstage and…Marched onto the stage!! We are always known as the country thats come from way way away, basically the aliens of the lot lolAnd thats us!Lighting the flame that stays on the duration of the gamesMore lights and celebrationsFireworks and explosionsAfter leaving the ceremony it was 12midnight and the partying continued at the town square
It was a little disorganised as a lot of people were still at the stadium and some teams had jumped on their buses and headed back to yerevan on their 2hr journey
But not us… We got a “take away” cognac from a pub 😄 and enjoyed the city and the weather
All in all – the location, Gyumri was beautiful… dont get me wrong, it was exciting but the whole thing was poorly organised with the athletes being left outside the stadium and then change of plans last minute where the performance was meant to be… I heard a lot of ppl were left upset… oh well, they cant all be awesome right? lol grateful to be here and experiencing this…
The Wandering Passport 