Despite the great pride Armenians express at being the First Christian Nation, the major winter holiday celebrated in Armenia is New Years. I imagine this is a hold over from the days when Armenia was part of the soviet union when, in a move strangely mirroring the ancient Romans in England, the secular communist government shifted holiday fervor from local tradition to a winter celebration more in keeping with their preferred ideology. But it's all just speculation, I have no history to back me up on that point.
What I can report is that school children's preparations for New Years in Armenia look very much the same as Christmas preparations do back home.
Snowmen bedeck the hallways...
Tinsel adorns doorways....
"Tonasarrs" or "Holiday Trees" are located in every classroom...
And balloons, banners, and streamers oversee all the classes...
The last day of classes is December 25th- which has nothing to do with the western Christmas, it just happens to be the last Friday before New Years. Sam and I will celebrate Christmas on our own. and a week later we'll celebrate New Years with the rest of Sisian. But in the mean time, things are looking similar enough that I don't really notice the change.
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