A walk around the decaying aspects of Socialism
Yesterday was mostly unproductive. A little bit of a migraine and feeling a bit tired. Some nights of poor sleep catching up to me. But in the evening I grabbed my camera and decided to go out and get a coffee from a nearby cafe, with the intentions of sitting at a nearby park. I walked through the park, but there was no sitting. I can't seem to relax in that manner. I love to walk and discover a little too much. And there was an area I hadn't yet been to near me. I hadn't seen it on the map, but the roads led into more dated looking streets. I sipped on the cappuccino with the sun beaming down for the last few hours of the day, shortly before a storm rolled in.
The light before that was beautiful though. Through the park and into the gardens and courtyards of the former modernist socialism concepts. Parks that were overgrown and untouched for far too long. Children playing in the parks anyway. Seating area faded in its colours and from bygone eras. The same with various playground equipment and basketball courts. The nets gone. The wood chipped and faded. Old fences and garages with nothing really going on within them. Schools tucked into the buildings and all hidden away. It was an odd atmosphere around here. It felt forgotten and sad in many ways.
The old Lada is still very much present in such areas, as well as the odd Volga that appears. The Lada usually quite a symbol of the hardworking still in Armenia with how often their rooftops are strapped with all sorts of objects. Usually driven by older looking individuals holding a cigarette that seemingly never comes to an end; something I need to figure out myself regarding the coffee side of things. At this point the coffee was already done, and I was propelled forward by a mixture of curiosity and caffeine. That migraine slowly dissipating.
I walked down an old street. An industrial zone that was full of barking stray dogs that quickly got up to kindly tell me to fuck off. Something in the area that I was definitely not to be seeing. No guards visible. But previous signs of the socialist ideology, beyond the previous signs from apartment buildings and parks. Here something different was unfolding. Watch towers, signs of things going underground. Another gate down the road had a guard at it. I didn't take any pictures for obvious reasons, but took a mental note of the incredibly old but near perfect condition of an ambulance from the 1950s. A beautiful blue and white coat of paint on it. It was odd to stumble across something hidden and active. Something that definitely continued underground from here, and only guarded by a few stray dogs and one man.
Back to to the architecture: I found it strange how empty this environment felt. Yet the attention to detail on the buildings was beautiful. Archways and pillars, columns and balconies with beautiful patterns to them. Many of these buildings showing their age but still lived in from those who had these buildings passed down to them from their relatives that would've received them for free for working in the nearby industrial zones that are now idle or no more. I wanted to walk around more, but I felt a but uncomfortable sticking around given the previous discovery. Especially given how remote this area felt, and that I was walking around with a camera.
Such textural environments. It feels like a movie set, from an era that a lot of people would have never seen with their own eyes.
The first image looks as though the entire building is constructed of timber, which seems ... dangerous at its height.
Many of the buildings back then would've been built with a type of stone that's very specific to Armenia (you can see it more in the last image). It's really cool given it gives buildings this very patchy sort of look to it, that's where much of that texture comes from. I love it! And it's also really cool to see that the Armenians are still using it to develop new high rises. Especially in the area I'm in, the new buildings look more grand, much larger. But the colours are the same.
That first picture is a good example of how these buildings have adapted to capitalism over the years. People just remove windows and brick them up, or switch the windows out for another type. But in their prime these would've looked really impressive. In smaller buildings people just straight up construct their own balconies or new rooms onto the buildings; it's illegal but nothing is really done to stop it.
It is Soviet concrete which is also more favoured in this part of the world. In my old place in Tbilisi, the neighbour joked that it was almost impossible to drill into the walls because the Soviets made them so strong; though the hallway was crumbling and looked like it'd give way any day now. In Georgia and Armenia these buildings do look like they're ready to drop at any moment, it's mostly exterior neglect. With a bit of care they'd be completely fine and will last many more generations.
That last part is what makes me so fascinated about it all. It's a completely different period in time, one that's so different to that I grew up in and around, especially regarding the ideology. It is like walking around a lost civilisation, or one that people don't remember despite living within the space. I really want to find more ways to document these areas as they inevitably grow and change to adapt to more modern ways of life.
This concrete pedestrian path in the park is probably more than half a century old. It is quite well preserved without repair.
That area I was in with the courtyard looked incredibly well kept, incredibly tidy. It was more the buildings that were a bit rougher, and the fact that the grass was so tall you couldn't really see much. I didn't share those pictures since it's basically just tall grass.
That park specifically is in quiet an industrial zone, right next to some old admin buildings. So I think the preservation also comes from its higher importance historically.
Greetings. Take care.👋
Hola my friend! I will not deny that this publication impressed me a lot, and these pictures, although great, do not show everything that is said about Europe here in Latin America. The places are still very beautiful, and surely with rich climates, but wow how neglected many areas look, especially the park. Anyway, I'm glad you ventured out, you captured some good moments here and I feel like I got to know a little bit more of your country here. Good job, I wish you a great weekend! ✌️
I wouldn't even consider this Europe. Armenia has a very distinct aesthetic, it's more eastern. Very Persian, even. So the Soviet style is mixed with the Persian/Armenin style. In some ways it even reminds me of old wild west films. It's quite unique!