Armenian Youth in the City That Never Sleeps That Big Apple, the same City of Lights, the city that Ol' Blue Eyes always wanted to be a part of, will never sleep. The place is a living breathing mechanism of old fashioned, dogged sweat and tears, hope and grief, success and shortcomings. There's art, creativity and culture. There's pain and there's hysteria, there's life and there's death. Some think another day brings another dollar. Others know that what is important is now, and not the dollar tomorrow might bring. What makes New York really New York, is the life anyone can live, if they have the courage to really live. It is the city of cliches, so excuse an article which to replicate the atmosphere it attempts to describe, makes use of those same old phrases.

Whether you’re rushing through the crowds somewhere on fifth avenue in Manhattan, on Northern Boulevard in Queens, or anywhere else in New York, the faces you see are different. This is a cosmopolitan, mish-mash of a city. If there's a culture in existence anywhere in the world, it will most probably have a representative of some description in New York. One such culture is Armenian. Naturally, it can not boast the sort of Armenian cultural density the likes of Los Angeles has but it gets by. New York has just about enough Armenians to make one feel part of something, and yet at the same time, offer the form of surprise and consternation at hearing another speak Armenian in the street that only the smaller diasporan communities can experience.

New York has an Armenian community large enough and strong enough to sustain several youth organisations. Firstly there is the AYF (Armenian Youth Association). An extremely dedicated organisation with strong international ties. It’s one of New York’s most active clubs. One of the biggest events it holds is the Senior Olympics. This past year, hundreds of Armos from New York went to Detroit, Michigan to party hard for Labor Day weekend. It’ s a great club to meet people in and have a blast. In AYF you can never be alone. Another organization is the ACYOA, which also has dances and weekends away for the youth. There are also sports weekends held for the youth. Homenetmen is one of these organizations.

If you’re in your twenties or thirties, and working as a professional in your field The best place to be involved is with the Young Professionals of New York (YPNY) at the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU). This group organizes lots of social events throughout the year for young Armos to meet and get together. This past year, the AGBU had about 30 interns come from all over the world to New York City. There were both career and socially centered events, making it easy for the interns to make connections with Armenians who are already successful professionals. For around the same age group, there is the Armenian Students Association (ASA). It’s one more organization that’s good to be in, involving social and artistic events.

Of course, “all work and no play” is NOT a characteristic of most Armenians. During adolescence, we want to eat, drink and play. Every Armenian is by nature 'Kefli'. A culture can not build from rubble without having the desire for life. This is the nature of being Armenian, and the Armenian youth is no different. All the afore mentioned organisations hold parties. However, in New York everyday is a potential day for a party. People rent a hall somewhere like at the Iranian-Armenian Society in Little Neck, and throw a bash. Every Armenian Apostolic Church has a hall. St. Vartan’s Cathedral in Manhattan has one of the biggest halls, where there’s events to go to. While going crazy at a party, sometimes it’s a little strange to think that you’re practically in a Church. But God did say “Eat, drink, and be happy”- it’s the one quote all Armos live by.

But where do we hang out? Where can you go to spend your evening Armo-watching? There are a lot of specific places that Armos go to hang out. A few of the most popular places with most young crowds are probably the cafes. We spend a lot of time at the Greek cafes. Any young Armenian- no matter who they hang out with- has probably been to Oasis. It’s a trendy place, and great if you want to go somewhere nice. Guys take girls there on dates, and friends go in groups. You can’t go wrong by going to Oasis. They do serve dinner, but most people usually just have some of their Mediterranean pastries and deserts. They’ve got a wide variety of wines and drinks, too. Another cafe that’s really popular is Byzantios. This cafe has two very different locations. One is on a busy street under the L-train, and another is in a more suburban area. This place is different from Oasis. There’s a lot of emphasis on the music. Being culturally diverse, young Armos like to go here to hear the best and most recent Greek music while they‘re checking out the guys or girls. The environment inside is much louder, so it’s not so much a conversational place.

So where can you find some of the wilder Armo males? Maybe you’d be interested in this true-to-life encounter. A bunch of young, Armenian guys went to a local strip club. No big deal, right? Well, that’s what they thought until they heard the name of the dancer/stripper. The guys looked at each other and said, “Oh shit, she’s Armenian”. The reaction from most parents would be, “Amaaannnnn, amot kezi!”. As most of you people from around the world would assume, it’s not everyday that you hear about a girl from our culture dancing on stage with men putting money in her g-string, but it just goes to show we are all over the world and in every profession. Fair play to her, Armenian girls have just as much right to exhibit their sexiness as any other girl.

How about the different cultural influences of Armenians? We’ve got the usual mixes of our people with all types of other cultural influence. Categorizing in this area is between the “Hayastansis” and the “Spiurkahyer” (some known as the Gor-gors). Of course, there are the “Hayastansis“. They are pretty much known for the same thing, no matter where you are in the world- leather jackets, traveling in groups, “rabiz” music, and professions in jewelry. It’s great. “Hayastansis” also have this great sense of kef. There’s something about “Hayastansis” here that makes you want to listen to that “rabiz” music, and talk the way they do. “Spiurkahyer” are more influenced by Middle-Eastern traditions. They speak “Arevmuta Hayeren”. This is pretty much all that separates the two categories. Armenians with all influences share common attributes. You know what I’m talking about... like the famous unibrow- Armenians alone probably spend the most money in New York on hair removal products! Sorry to say so, we are not just talking Razors, women are the prime conspirators.

The great thing about New York Armos is that at parties, concerts, dinner dances, or any kind of kef, we usually put aside the difference of influences. When it comes down to it, “Barskahyes”, “Hayastansis”, “Lepanahyes”, “Yekiptahyes” and every other type just wants to have fun. You don't even have to have a firm grasp of the language or IAN at the end of your name. Pride doesn't have a tag, and commitment has no bounds. An Armenian of any degree is still an Armenian, atleast in New York.

Tips On Hooking Up with Other Armos in NYC:

The best way to get into the Armenian swing of things in New York is to get involved with a club or group. They’re not as corny as you would think- at least not the events they hold. Having a lot of Armo friends definitely helps. If you know just one or two of them, chances are that between the two of them, they have some connection to most of the Armos in the area. After all, you can’t forget that gossip is the number one hobby among all Armenians... young or old, “Hayastansi” or “Spiurkahye”.

If you come to New York with a few friends, find out when and where there are some parties, you gotta go. Some dances are the best places to hook up with plenty of young Armos. There’s a lot of great people out here who are “martamot” and easy to meet.

As for Armenian-run businesses in New York, there are plenty of them. >From chiropractors to car mechanics to videographers, Armos are everywhere. Of course, there are the Armenian stores like Massis, Sevan, and Ararat Bakery. These are the places to go when you crave some lahmajun or maybe some of that good old basterma. Just make sure you don’t have a date that night! One more thing. Don’t go to any of these Armenian businesses looking for the “Armenian Discount”. Remember, Armos here are known for being warm-hearted, hospitable...and frugal. New York, The Big Dolma.