Some Tidbits from Georgia for early 2016.

Hi Folks, I'm reading The Martian, by Andy Weir, and love his attention to small details that really are interesting.  So, in that vein... Last year I sent you  the David Letterman Top 10 Differences between Georgia and America  (click to review).  This year I've learned a little more. So here is  my early 2016 list of random info and pictures, for your enjoyment. 

our garbage men empty the outdoor bins
 and separate garbage right in the truck

Plastic bags: I have mentioned previously that in Georgia, and if you buy 5 things at the magazia, you get 6 bags.  Now, hold on a minute, let me explain.  One bag is for your eggs - yep, you really can take 5 eggs home in a plastic bag and not break them. Most things in the store are bought bulk and you put it in a plastic bag - no packaging to deal with, or worry about throwing out - macaroni, flour, sugar, coffee, frozen chicken legs, kingali (only want 3 of these meat stuffed dumplings tonight, just buy 3. Our freezers are VERY small!), all your produce that are weighed, cookies, chocolates, beans, cheese - all in little plastic bags.  Now for recycle... we do use these bags for everything, including take out the garbage.

Here we are with all the food PILED up in front of us

Entertaining: When we are invited to someone's house in the US for a dinner party, at least most of the time, you eat, you drink, you talk a lot, maybe a little music, then you go home.  Maybe it's just me and my friends.  But here one is expected to at least add to the enjoyment of the evening. Sing, dance, play an instrument, play a song through your nose, poetry is popular too. And Expected!  That is why every party (every party!) has a Tamada, a master of ceremonies. The good ones can give impassioned speeches, sing and recite poetry. Here is a fun party we attended in a small town in the wine country.  The locals from another Community Education Center - funded by the DVV Foundation that I have discussed -  went all out to entertain the 20 of us on our little excursion. Enjoy some pictures...

The guests jumped in to help make our khachapuri.
Women don't just sit and be served here!

And of course, the traditional georgian dances are performed.

A novel way to play a song with flutes

 Eight men sang in polyphonic harmony,
while one accompanied them

Poetry in motion

Real Estate:  I am on one of a main shopping streets in Tbilisi, the nation's capitol. And here is prime real estate, just sitting empty, with junk piled up.  How can they do this?  Because they can!  People here own a lot of real estate. It seems they never sell it!  You inherit your aunts village home, a place to relax in the summer, your parent's home...  A shop front could stay empty for a long time.  They don't need the rental to pay a mortgage. In many cases, they just own it, and will use it or rent it when they feel like it. ROI doesn't enter the picture here.  

 January:  In January America leaps into action. Of course it has been more than five weeks since we were really productive,what with thanksgiving, etc. of course, year-end sort of  puts a damper on things, especially if you are in sales.  In Georgia,  the partying begins on New Year, when small gifts are shared. Then Christmas on January 7th. Now we have old New Years January 14th. The decorations will still be up for a while longer, but January is a very laid back month - no kickoffs, quotas, goal and strategy session. We drift into February amidst a choir of "jer ara, kimi" (not yet, Kim).

Coka Cola Local Customization:  I just thoughts this was interesting. Local customs targeted on their packaging. Good for them. People bring a bottle of Coke when they come to visit.

This says  - "for our Guests"

Fuel: Our President talked about gas under $2 in the US. WOW.  Here are our prices, per liter of course.  And remember there are almost 4 liters in a gallon!  They still have some leaded fuel as well.  And they sell some type of propane, and convert their gas line to intake from a large propane tank in the trunk. It costs about half the gas prices, but safety is a question.

Local Produce: I really like my favorite 'travelling magazias' now.  The same produce I find in a market in Tbilisi, I can buy for much less here... no overhead of course. :-) I love that vegetables can be so inexpensive and candy and sweets are so much more.  This is what I bought today - in multiple plastic bags. 

 All this for 4 lari ( $1.80)  

Christmas Decorations: Umbrellas to decorate for Christmas?  Why not? Just seems odd when we associate them with baby showers.

  

Church habits: Almost everyone crosses themselves one or three times when they pass a church. I find myself dong the old Catholic sign of the cross over the heart thing, just automatically now.

My sunrises:  Why are the sunrises so beautiful here.  Big sky I call it.  Well of course.  In Raleigh there are so any trees. One has to drive to even find a place where one can see the horizon.  And in Colorado the sun sets behind the mountain way before any show of colors appears.  Not that I will move to a flat state anytime soon, but I really have enjoyed this.

Knitters gone wild!:  And the #1 most interesting tidbit today...  People home asked me if I had woolen long underwear. Is this what they meant?

From the Tbilisi bazaar

Festivals are somewhat different in Georgia: Tbilisoba

Tbilisoba -The annual festival committee, in the capitol of Tbilisi, worked to improve the format this autumn, after 35 years.   The winner of a public competition to rejuvenate the Festival planned for more cultural events be part of the Festival, not just drinking in the streets.(I sort of liked the wine tasting, since it is a rarity here)  First place winner Nino Lelashvili was chosen by the Tbilisi City Hall commission and online voting. By winning the top prize she also received 14,000 GEL. ($7000 dollars - really good money here!) Lelashvili recently finished a Master’s degree in Marketing Management at the Rotterdam School of Management at Erasmus University in the Netherlands and has since returned to Georgia.  I point this out because it is indicative of the many young people are being educated all over the world, yet seem loyal and ready to come back to Georgia. I like the diversity of events at the Tbilisoba. Game tables everywhere, gymnastics, dancing, music and performances, craft booths, new food sample booths, and international food court.  

Above right was one of the ancient Queen's palaces

This 16 year old girl challenged seven chess players, at the same time. And she beat them all.  It was amazing to watch. And sometimes she would instruct and not allow her opponents to make a bad move.  I also played chess with a local young man a while back.  He was world champ when he was 9, for that age group.  I learned so much.  Chess is very popular here. And good to see the girls compete as well.

gymnastic demonstration

Nardi, or backgammon is a popular, and testosterone driven game in Georgia. 

Who knows why? I played a fellow and he wouldn't even compete.

 Like he was being polite by not playing aggressively. How boring!

I love how they celebrate fresh fruit and
vegetables. Kids even love raw broccoli - a rare treat. 

Dance demonstrations

Peace Bridge - a very modern design surrounded by 9 + centuries of
historic buildings.  Oh well. The past president, saakashvili, named this
for the crossroads from the old way to Peace and liberty. 

More games for everyone to play

Street Vendors

kids were entertained all day

Food booths from many nations were on the river walk:
Georgian pork BBQ, Israeli, Ukraine, Greek,
Kazakhstan, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Turkish

My Art-Koda Social Enterprise colleagues: Ilia and Nunu

a successful and fun day

It's a Small World: Georgians in Greece too.

BBC recently reported on the effect that the Greek debt crisis will have on Georgia. This ripple effect is exacerbated by the EU structure today, but Georgians have been moving to Greece to find employment, both seasonal and long term, ever since the Soviet collapse.  I know of  many friends and acquaintances here in Georgia who have a parent working in Greece for many years, and sending money home when they can. They say about 200,000 Georgians live in Greece now, which is just under 5% of its population. Greece is also the most popular destination after Russian for Georgian migrant laborers.  But since Greece is in the news, let me tell you my personal experience...

A Little R&R in Greece

I took a little R&R to Greece, a while ago, responding to cheap tickets before it gets too late in my Peace Corps service. I had been in Georgia for almost a year at this time. It seemed like a lifetime and a minute at the same time.

I downloaded Rick Steves guide to Greece, from my favorite on line Vail library free Marmot service.  I love that service and most libraries in the US offer something like this. We had been busy at the Koda Community Education Center, trying to launch our new on-line catalog for our women's traditional handicraft items. Check it out at Art-Koda.com. If you want to order something, just "check out " and we will respond with the shipping costs and payment options. It's not automatic here, but still effective.  

I felt I needed a little break   My great world-traveled friend, Barbara, recommended Athens as a nice place before the tourist season begins.  And I stayed with new friends in Galaxidi for two nights to be near the water, and toured Delphi to learn my future.

I'm busy enjoying my R&R!

                                                        

Splurging on breakfast buffet

 But first, I splurged with one night at an upper scale hotel, the Divani Caravel, with a pool and a bathtub!  I was not sure of which I was more excited about or if I would ever leave my room. And after all those years complaining about living  in those Marriotts on IBM business trips.   Eventually I did pull myself away and ventured out to see Athens and I moved to Hotel Adonis, a lovely little family inn near Plaka, the cool old town... 

It's a Small World After All

The first evening I decided to walk down to the main center in old town, Athens. Of course I took a wrong turn and got lost, as darkness was falling.  There were very few people around and I was getting a little nervous. Finally I saw a young woman, approached her and asked her if I was going in the right direction, in English.  She motioned "sorry, no English," and I motioned that I  didn't speak Greek, but a little charades got me pointed in the right direction for town Central. 

I automatically said " Madloba"  (Georgian for Thanks) and started to move away. 

She paused and then ran up to me.

"Raton laparokob cartuli? ( Why are you speaking Georgian?)

I responded, " Ratom itsi cartuli?  (Why do you know Georgian?)

To which she answered, "ME VAR CARTVELI!  ( I AM GEORGIAN!)

It was so funny, and so out of the blue. How would the first person I spoke to in Greece be a Georgian?

We had a great conversations -  thanks Peace Corps intensive language classes.  She had moved to Greece to get work, as had many Georgians, as we discussed.  She was living there alone, missing her family.  She was taking care of an older woman.  I explained that I was living in Koda, helping the IDPs from S. Ossetia.  It was so good to talk to her, and connect the dots between Greece and Georgia on a more personal level. And we talked about Georgian men vs. Greece men too.  ( Of course Georgian men are better, she said, amazed I would even ask such a question!)

Culturally it was so nice to see men and women together,enjoying each other, socializing over a drink and meal.  I still find the sexes so separated in Georgia. And Athens, being such a cosmopolitan city, there were great, inexpensive restaurants of all types.  I also bumped into a few women from Charlotte, NC.  Imagine their surprise tat I could place their hometown so easily, but you just can't forget that accent.

History

The history of Greece is as amazing as that of Georgia.  I saw 5000 BC statues of female gods from the Cycladic islands, harp and flute from 5000 years ago. Of course the Acropolis, but I won't bother you with words.  Here are my personal pictures. You can see all the famous stuff on google. :-)

I walked around the Acropolis a while with a Spanish couple.
They had classical music blaring, they said, to
get in the mood.  :-)  Neat couple. 

 I asked several people about this big hill, prominent in Athens. But it's not in the tour books I guess so no one seems to notice it.  Finally I ascertained that is was from this hill that the Acropolis was fired upon, during one of the sieges.  Not too popular now; it is a evening disco.

Quick sidebar: In our local youth leadership class we shared the TED Talk  by Amy Cuddy, about feeling more confident by holding this posture for a short time. I thought the Acropolis was a good place to try it.  It is a great experiment; check it out. 

They start the Greek archaeology students early here

They were mesmerized!

Acropolis Museum restaurant was as lovely as they say

I also enjoyed the ancient ruins one just trips over, wandering through town.

Galaxidi and Delphi

These ripe oranges are sour if you pick them from the road, and sweet
if you pick them from someone's yard.  I tested it - TRUE.

Galaxidi - Fabulous

Galaxidi from downtown with Mt. Parnassus

Galaxidi with Mt. Parnassus 

The locals figured these had to be Russians students swimming
when it was still cool on the beach.  

Delphi - wow, how could I not know
all this great history! Glad I have no TV
and thus time to read and research more.