Office of the Armenian MP Vartkes Mahdessian – The sailboat “Armenia” arrived at the Limassol, Cyprus new port on Thursday, 11 August 2011. Limassol was the final stop of its epic world journey, which started on 28 May 2009 from Valencia, Spain. The crew consisted of seven Armenians and the head of the expedition was Dr. Zori Balayan, a renowned Armenian author, traveller and human rights activist. Its mission was to increase world awareness about the Armenian nation, once a significant seafaring people with more than 1000 ships in 24 big ports of the Kingdom of Cilicia (1080-1375), which had special ties with Lusignan Cyprus.
The ship was dedicated to Saint Mesrob Mashdots, who “discovered” the Armenian alphabet in 405 AD and the 1700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia (301 AD), while its arrival here coincideed with the 20th anniversary of the Republic of Armenia, which became a reality after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The ship was adorned with the 38 letters of the Armenian alphabet, the Armenian cross and the Armenian symbol of eternity.
A special welcoming ceremony was held, followed by a cocktail reception, in the presence of Their Excellencies the President of the Republic of Cyprus Demetris Christofias and the President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan.
