Axenia Levand moved to Dilijan from Bryansk. She’s a singer and songwriter, performs at the loveliest places in town and runs a cozy Instagram blog about the simple and funny moments of her life. Together with her husband, she’s bringing a 200-year-old family house back to life. We talked about becoming an extrovert overnight, being vegan in Armenia, and the creative space she dreams of opening.
Love brought me to Dilijan
I married an Armenian and became part of a mets haykakan entanik — a big Armenian family. My husband was born in Sochi, but his father’s side of the family originally comes from Dilijan — they all left in the ’90s.
My husband inherited an old house that was around 200 years old
It was built by his great-great-grandfather. The house had been abandoned for decades, slowly falling into ruin, until two redheads met, lost their minds and decided to bring this place back to life together.
I’m still figuring out the unspoken rules
I remember buying an expensive vegan chocolate bar for myself, only to turn around for one second and discover that my husband had already split it with the whole family. It’s basically an automatic response for him, you know — he’s Armenian, he does it without even thinking. I love him. And god, that ain’t easy!
Being vegan in Armenia is a whole other quest
From that perspective, moving to Armenia was probably the most impractical thing I could have done. Once, I told a ten-year-old Armenian boy that I didn’t eat meat, and I literally saw a 404 blank screen appear on his forehead. He simply couldn’t process the idea that such a thing was even possible!
At our wedding, my father-in-law ate soy lyulya kebab
Seeing that five years ago made me realize: maybe this is my destiny — to explore and bring different cultures together, while cherishing and preserving the very best of each of them.
My grocery basket has become much greener, but my mom still doesn’t understand why I buy beet stems, not beets
A bunch of beet greens, cute purple basil and a few bundles of spinach — that’s my dream lady bouquet these days. I’ve also been happily discovering all sorts of new grains whose names aren’t always the easiest to pronounce. Like dzavarrrrrr!
But the hardest part wasn’t food — it was becoming an extrovert all of a sudden
I’m constantly struck by the level of closeness and openness with which people live here. Oh, those chats about marriage and kids with random taxi drivers, everyday vonts ek with every neighbor and even grocery store cashiers, those big family feasts. I had never ever made coffee in a jazzve before, and now I serve like a dozen tiny Barbie cups whenever somebody drops by! I’m still so shy about it.
You’re never a stranger here
Sometimes, walking around Dilijan, I may not even know the names of local people around me, but somehow they know who I am, what I do for a living and whose grandson my husband is. I may feel a little awkward because of our cultural differences, but I know for sure that these people would always help me if I needed it. And the more I learn, the more I understand — and the prouder I feel to be one of them.
Life in Dilijan feels like a cozy little video game
One small-town map, the same familiar characters, and somehow I’ve started noticing all the tiny things and taking part in little side quests — like learning the names of all the wild herbs local grandmothers gather, visiting all the nearby monasteries and churches, and learning about local birds I had never seen before.
It’s hard to believe, but I discovered an incredible jazz pianist living right next door
There are all kinds of creative people in our town. We even studied at the same music college in Moscow, but never met back then — it was only here, in Dilijan, that our paths crossed. Now we occasionally perform together, with other musicians from Dilijan and Yerevan, and we’re always happy to meet new colleagues.
I’ve never found it as easy to make friends as in Dilijan
There are group chats here for literally everything you could possibly think of: moms’ groups, mushroom-picking groups, birdwatching groups. A chat for one street, a chat for another street! This kind of community ecosystem was brought here by Russian migrants, but locals are definitely getting involved too!
The first place I show friends is the Drunken Forest — it’s like a tiny Bryansk in Dilijan
The pine trees remind me of home — it feels almost surreal! The second is Fioletovo village. My husband’s grandmother was a Russian Molokan, so for us it’s a sentimental connection with our cultural heritage.
I love the winter version too, when so much snow suddenly falls that the whole town slows down
Everyone comes outside — children laughing, ladies gasping, grumpy men clearing their yards and roads.
Though during our first winter, we were paying more than 100,000 AMD a month for gas in our rental
Yeah, I started to understand why it’s so normal for local people to walk around the house in winter wearing sweaters and even jackets!
We have a mission: tourists always have something to do here, but what about us?
I constantly see local teens who don’t really have anywhere to spend their free time. Just smoking, wandering around. Dilijan needs a new park and more places for young people to hang out.
We’re going to make a creative space in our own house
We’re dedicating the entire first floor to it. We want to host little music and theatre performances there, offer art classes and give both children and adults a place to spend time surrounded by an atmosphere of creativity, warmth and the unique character of Dilijan. That’s our ultimate goal now, and we’re taking small steps towards it. Hope you’ll be hearing more about us soon!
Most absurd purchase after the move?
Oh, god. Two parrots.
Power spot
Vegan Budka.
A word you’ve started using more often
Homemade.
Thing to bring from the old life
VkusVill stores, please!!! Still can’t get over it.
Sound that replaced city noise
A jay’s morning cry and summer thunderstorms.
A song you’d dedicate to Dilijan
Jim Croce — “Time in a Bottle”
I realized I’d become a local when…
I came to Russia to visit my family and spent the whole time waiting for someone to bring up Dilijan so I could jump in.
Three words about Dilijan
Dilijan is… whimsical.
Dilijan is… earthy.
Dilijan is… healing.