We have just found the best bakery in LA!

My mom has been encouraging me to go to Old Sasoon Bakery, 1132 North Allen Street, in Pasedena since we arrived in town, but we didn’t have the time, that is until today…and oh, what an amazing place it is!  The owners, Anush and Harout, were neighbours and close friends of my mom’s back in Aleppo and they have kept in touch ever since.   They have been in LA for over 30 years now, operating this bakery…you must visit it if you are in town! The minute you enter in, you are captivated by the delicious aroma of fresh bread, bouregs, lahmajoun, manaish and other Middle Eastern delicacies…  and Anush and Harout are the sweetest most gracious people I have ever met!  They were so excited to meet me and shared some of their memories growing up with my mom, aunts, uncles and grandparents…  and they gave me mouth watering treats to sample… oh, how amazing!!

You must stop by and purchase something, anything from them…  Old Sasoon Bakery… my husband and I have decided that we need one in every city!

After our adventure driving around LA looking for Yatrika, we decided to find a place to eat… I was famished! My husband, always on the lookout for a great cafe, pulled up beside a place called Blu Jam on Melrose. He had this feeling that it would be the perfect place to unwind and grab a bite to eat…. and was he ever right!

Blu Jam is fantastic! Kamil the owner greeted us and told us a bit about the place…. and we ordered some delicious paninis… oh, wow, is all I can say… melt in your mouth delicious. Kamil also gave us a yummy cauliflower soup to try…amazing! If you are ever in LA, make sure you stop by this place…as my husband says in his Boston accent….it is off the hook!

Then off for some shopping in a couple of the stores on Melrose…. The owner of one store told me that everything in the store was an extra 15% off because of the rain. Yes, a rain sale! And honestly, the weather wasn’t even that bad…but she explained that even with a bit of rain, the stores here close early because no one will be coming by… and it is true. We were some of the only ones out and about.

My little one was getting tired, so went home, without buying much, which is fine with me… my little is my priority now…and I love it!

Another wet morning in Los Angeles… everyone has been apologizing to us for the weather here… it has been raining since Monday, but honestly, I don’t mind… I was born and raised in Vancouver, afterall! So a little rain doesn’t bother me… but our friends here keep hoping that we’ll see some warmer weather and sun….

All excited about my interview with Yatrika Shah-Rais today. She hosts an eclectic radio program here called Global Village on KPFK that features refreshingly wonderful music.

With our trusty GPS in hand, we headed out for the studio, driving out in the rain…we were told to drive more defensively in this kind of weather because folks in LA aren’t used to rain…

As we got nearer to our destination, I was a bit puzzled… I mean, we were headed towards a residential area… and there weren’t any radio studio looking type buildings there… and alas, we had arrived at Yatrika’s home! This was the only address I had had for her… not knowing that it was her home address… at this point, we knew we were going to be late for my interview… my husband quickly looked up the studio on the internet on his phone (thank God for this!) and realized that we needed to head over to the other side of town…

while driving to the studio we had the radio on in the car, and Yatrika was playing my songs… and telling her listeners that she was waiting for me…I had left her a message to let her know that we were running late… and she was so gracious…in the end, we arrived at the studio just as her show was ending… Yatrika came out to greet me and we gave each other a big hug… I apologized over and over again… told her how we had gone to her home by mistake… she was so understanding… we decided that we’d do another interview in the new year, but in the meantime, she said that listeners had been calling in about my music… and she told me how much she loved my album… I was so moved by her kindness.

Another adventure driving around Los Angeles…

We met up with our friend Tara Lang today… she is a makeup artist here in LA and it was so good to catch up with her! She is so talented and it was fun to hear about her journey in the world of actors and actresses, movie sets and stages as she helps people become more beautiful… she told us some great stories about people she has worked on (yes, we had to ask!) and we listened in awe! You have to check out her website at www.taralangmakeup.net

We also did some shopping (well, no actual buying today) at the new mall in Glendale called Americana...it is quite a lovely place, especially for me, because it is a series of fabulous stores outside… so you are not trapped inside a mall with no fresh air or access to natural light! I really enjoy being outdoors when I shop, going from store to store, and for that, Americana is super. They have decorated the trees with Christmas lights and have a beautiful show with the water fountains… even a train going around the entire place, transporting eager tourists… only in the US of A! You have to come see this place. It actually isn’t as over the top as you might think…

What I liked best about it here was that everyone is so friendly! The servers at the cafes and restaurants, the people working in the stores… everyone has been so great.

Tara bought a fabulous coat…she looks so good in it! I have to come back here after my show when I have less on my mind and I can spend some time shopping… I wish my sister was here!

I can’t believe it is already Monday!

Saturday we had a chance to see our surroundings, walk around Glendale where we are staying… the hills ahead of us, beautiful Spanish style homes all around us… it really is quite lovely here… I had a good rehearsal with my oud player here, Antranig Kzirian, a very talented musician who is one of the members of the amazing Armenian music group Aravod. I am so excited to be performing with him! Antranig and I have wanted to work together and now, it is happening! He came over to our place and we went through some of the tunes together… and also got to know each other… besides being a really talented musician, he is also a very kind person.

Sunday… we went to Armenian church - it is just across the street from us… how great is that?! It was so refreshing to be there and see people singing the liturgy with enthusiasm! At the end of the service, Father Vasken gave me and my husband a chance to speak to the youth and I told them about the story of how my husband and I met… how God used the music to bring us together… I love sharing this story… it reminds me again of how He is in control and how my life keeps unfolding in surprisingly wonderful ways… at first, things might seem confusing… but I just have to keep hanging on…

This evening we had our first rehearsal with the band… we maneuvered our way through the traffic to find our rehearsal space…almost got lost - LA is one crazy, large city!! … but again, we are so thankful for GPS!!

I arrived to the sweet sounds of Gor Mkhitarian’s music… they were at the end of their set… oh, it took me back to Yerevan when I first heard Gor play! We just danced to the music while he and the band played on.

My rehearsal went really well… Antranig was amazing, as always, and Jay on bass was fantastic, making us laugh… and we had a new percussionist, Mher who was subbed in at the last minute. I was expecting to work with another percussionist that I had been told about… but all of a sudden, Mher was on board and he was so gracious and so very talented… I love it when things work out so beautifully… we had such fun going through the songs… I really felt like we were a team and I can’t wait to play with these guys again!

We are getting closer…!

we are here!

after an intensely busy week of preparing for this trip, I cannot tell you how much of a relief it was to finally board the plane, and just sit and let go…I mean once you are on that airplane, there is nothing else you can do, nothing else that you can control… I love being on airplanes for that very reason… I just have to trust my Father in heaven and let Him really guide the way without trying to control the situation in any way… I can only depend on Him… which is where He wants me to be anyway…

So we woke up at 5AM to get ready to leave… my husband hardly slept the night before…. what a great man… he was catching up on work, doing last minute errands, even writing Christmas cards!! I am going to do mine next week….he got about one hour of sleep, I think I got about 2 or 3….it is hard to fall asleep when I know he is awake working away on important items.

We drive to the airport… but alas we were stuck in traffic… something that none of us counted on… and so… yes, it is true… we actually missed our plane! By a minute or two! Oh… I was going to get upset, but by now, I am learning that everything is meant for a reason, and there is no point in playing the “what if” game with myself… so I let it go… and we used the extra time at the airport to rest… me and our little one visited Santa even though she really wasn’t interested…

Finally boarded our plane some hours later and began our journey to Los Angeles… we were amused by the sweet smells of BBQ at the airport in Memphis where we landed, albeit briefly, waiting for our next flight. Who knew that an airport served BBQ! I am learning more and more about the South…

And then, enjoyed the last leg of our trip… made it here early evening… got our rental car and GPSed our way to where we are staying… my husband is an amazing navigator….and GPS sure helps! We were surrounded by massive traffic on the freeway… oh, I had forgotten what it is like here!! But we made it home in time to be welcomed by my relatives who had brought us some dinner… they doted over our little one who was an amazing traveler throughout this entire journey…oh, we are blessed…

okay… time to sleep… it is way passed our bedtime!

our Armenian musical adventure continues…!

We leave tomorrow for LA!

I have been living life through lists, endless, countless lists for the last couple of days… everything seems to be happening all at once, but then, why should I be surprised?! We had a great meeting with Jake yesterday, my friend and web guru… you should be seeing some new additions to this site soon and very soon… then, we are planning out the New Year with shows in February… we are this close to finalizing everything for our debut here in the South! Things are coming together: an amazing group of musicians here with whom we’ll probably be developing a long term relationship, a venue, a chance to share the beauty of Armenian music with a new audience…! I am excited.

I took a long walk in the pouring rain today, just to get out and breathe and pray… oh, it was so soothing…the warm rain falling over me… knowing that my Father has everything under control… yes, it is all good.

Gor just called to check in and wish us a safe flight… I am really looking forward to seeing him again…

Soon and very soon…

Wonderful news to share with you all…

I will be performing in Los Angeles on December 18th with my very dear friend, Gor Mkhitarian! Gor and I have been friends for years… and we have talked about performing together ever since we met. And now, it is actually happening… I can hardly believe it! This is my first time performing in LA too… I am excited.

I first met Gor during my second trip to Armenia. We were introduced at a party, and we instantly became good friends when we realized that we shared a passion for music. Gor became like a brother to me; he showed me around Yerevan and took me to some of the best places to listen to live music. One of the highlights of that trip was seeing him perform live on a number of occasions. He had just released his first solo album and was promoting it, and I was thrilled to be in town at just the right time! He has such a great voice, and his songs are so engaging… he is a natural storyteller and fantastic guitarist.

Once, he invited me to accompany him on a song during one of his shows… that was an amazing moment - I didn’t have an album at that time, just my demo, so it meant a lot to have his support… he loved my demo and encouraged me so much. Another time, I asked him if he’d come to the Children’s Centre where I had been volunteering… I knew the kids would love to hear him sing… and he agreed. Guitar in hand, he sang for those kids and stole their hearts… they were mesmerized by him… my favourite part was when all of us joined in together to sing some well known Armenian songs… his presence at the centre meant so much to those children who rarely had positive male role models…

Some years have gone by since our first meeting in Yerevan… but we have remained in touch and close friends… and now, we get to perform together… this is a dream come true for me.

Here are the details:

Thursday, December 18th
Zipper Concert Hall at the Colburn School
200 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles
8PM (doors open at 7PM)
for more info, visit www.inhisshoes.org

I have some great news to share with everyone, but before I do, take a look at this in the Telegram from the Canadian Folk Music Awards Gala in Newfoundland! You can read about the show at Mariam Matossian at the CFMAs

Enjoy!