I understand that this war has brought out and intensified a lot of stereotypes that the two sides had/have about each other. But I wanted to share some of my own experiences of personally meeting Azeris around the world. >>>

The first Azeris I met were some of my peers whom I met at a training abroad. We were only 20 and as per our age we shared some intense debates in the beginning. After some time we grew to realize that among the many foreigners there we actually seemed like we were family.

We liked the same films, we liked the same songs, we shared the same nostalgic memories about certain things. And of course we looked extremely alike, so much so that on the last day one of the girls showed me a picture of her cousin, whom I until now consider my doppelgänger.

Another young man who was extremely hostile in the beginning, asked for a loan when he was out of cash after some time (he returned it later). Later he shared stories of his family which I think wasn't easy to do and shared hope that one day we may become "true neighbors".

I moved to Tashkent in 2017 and on my third month there while taking a cab, the driver asked me about my strange accent in Russian, I told him that I was from Armenia and he became overjoyed "I am Azeri! My best friends are Armenians! What are you doing here?"

Once he learned that I was the first and only one in my family in Tashkent and that I knew almost nobody, he gave me his number and address. "Call me whenever you need anything at all. Also if anything happens come to our place, our kids moved away so we have plenty of room".

He also told me that if I needed to meet any Armenians in Tashkent, he would be happy to introduce me to the Armenian community there. To say I was taken aback is an understatement.

Another time while I was in Chorsu bazaar looking like a complete tourist and getting the highest prices on absolutely everything, this one lady called me up to her stall and said "you look like you're either from Yerevan or from Baku".

I told her I was indeed from Armenia she gave me a discount (it was indeed a discount, I got a silk dress for 5 bucks) and said that she moved from Baku in the 80s and told me about her Armenian neighbors who owned a cheese store and gave me their address.

There are many more stories that I will keep for next time. And the reason why I shared this stories was to illustrate that the "impossible to live side by side" thing is myth. It's a matter of goodwill and narrative.

I think and hope that in time we may shift the negative narrative.