Absolutely love Smithsonian.com! Many of the architectural wonders the Smithsonian brings to us are living arrangements; life styles, by another name; that demonstrate ways people around the globe have worked with nature and the materials locally available, to carve out a niche of their own in the world.
On our last trip to Armenia, our guide jokingly stated that “Rocks are Armenia’s greatest resource.” This article about Old Khndzoresk, a multi-level village built into volcanic rock, testifies to the underlying truth of his claim. http://tinyurl.com/kcjh4z5