Georgia: A very brief summary
Given the lack of time, I've been forced to adopt this format. Sorry.
The general situation:
Since the revolution, the government sacked most of the corrupt police officers and put others in their place. Hence there are now few problems with bribes. Supposedly the power-station on the Abkhazian border is being rendovated. Consequence: some parts of the country have had no power for a month, 25% of Tbilisi has no power, water or gas as I write this. Sometimes you can see people burning tyres on the street to keep warm. Unemployment in the provinces is the norm, and not the exception. Aged pensions are about $15US per month.
Things I did:
Spent the first two nights across a river from Vardzia, a medieval cave city in the middle of nowhere. The lower Caucasus range was stunning, and I could hike in the mountains around the city and hang out with the caretakers of the place.
Then I went to Tbilisi, the capital, and stayed with my father's friend, Maria - a university professor. The city definitely hasn't yet recovered from 15 years of Shervanadze, civil war, revolution and the 2002 earthquake. Most of the lovely old houses are crumbling, but it's quite pleasand to just stroll through the narrow decrepid streets, occassionally munching on the very addictive Katchapuri (Georgian cheese pie). The museum has some awesome gold finds from Colchis (home of the Golden Fleece), and the incredibly under-funded Art Gallery also houses a couple of gems. Another thing I grew fond of, was visiting historic churches around 4 pm, when mass begins. Most of the more significant churches also house a choir, and this allows you to appreciate the bizarre Georgian polyphonic choral tradition in a very pleasing setting.
Sighnaghi - sown on top of a small mountain range overlooking the Great Caucasus and Azerbaijan. Saw my first Stalin portrait on someone's balcony. Otherwise the day was a mess thanks to bad transportation.
Gori - Stalin's home town. The house where Stalin grew up is well-preserved, as is his personal, bullet-proof train carriage. The museum was freaky. No light (another black out), we were lead by candle light to view Stalin's death mask in otherwise complete darkness. Aside from quotes and photos making Stalin seem like a nice guy, the museum featured personal accessories and birthday presents.
Mtskheta - The sprititual "heart" of Georgia, this is where St. Nino converted the country to Christianity in the 4th century. The Jvari church, perched up on a mountain was stunning (although it required a 6 km climb). The cathedral in Mtskheta was definitely the most awe inspiring building in Georgia for me, with a very stern Jesus gazing down from above the altar.
People I met:
The first thing I noticed in Georia was that people were a lot more reserved towards stangers than in Turkey. The "where are you from" question (spoken in Russian), was often not forthcoming, and when it was, it wasn't the first question in a conversation.
Generally speaking, the biggest arseholes in society seemed to be the marshrutka (private minibus) drivers. One day I even saw one kicking the crap out of a customer in the middle of central Tbilisi. The politicians on TV seemed to have similar personalities.
Maria was very kind, if wonderfully detached from reality, as was her son Levan, who is studying film direction. A lot of people made their way through their house and it was cool to chat with them. Tamula, a 20yo student, spoke excellent English, and could tell me about Svaneti, having travelled there. David, a writer, took me round the Tbilisi museum. I also got drunk with some of Levan's musician friends. I met one foreigner - Junko from Japan, on the marshrutka to Gori. On the same marshrutka we met, Jakub, a law student who kindly took us around the town.
Finally, I have to say that I'd love to come back here one day, preferably in summer when going to the Greater Caucasus is possible. Despite the poverty and resultant the difficulties in travel, the atmosphere here is great, and there is a lot to do and see.
The general situation:
Since the revolution, the government sacked most of the corrupt police officers and put others in their place. Hence there are now few problems with bribes. Supposedly the power-station on the Abkhazian border is being rendovated. Consequence: some parts of the country have had no power for a month, 25% of Tbilisi has no power, water or gas as I write this. Sometimes you can see people burning tyres on the street to keep warm. Unemployment in the provinces is the norm, and not the exception. Aged pensions are about $15US per month.
Things I did:
Spent the first two nights across a river from Vardzia, a medieval cave city in the middle of nowhere. The lower Caucasus range was stunning, and I could hike in the mountains around the city and hang out with the caretakers of the place.
Then I went to Tbilisi, the capital, and stayed with my father's friend, Maria - a university professor. The city definitely hasn't yet recovered from 15 years of Shervanadze, civil war, revolution and the 2002 earthquake. Most of the lovely old houses are crumbling, but it's quite pleasand to just stroll through the narrow decrepid streets, occassionally munching on the very addictive Katchapuri (Georgian cheese pie). The museum has some awesome gold finds from Colchis (home of the Golden Fleece), and the incredibly under-funded Art Gallery also houses a couple of gems. Another thing I grew fond of, was visiting historic churches around 4 pm, when mass begins. Most of the more significant churches also house a choir, and this allows you to appreciate the bizarre Georgian polyphonic choral tradition in a very pleasing setting.
Sighnaghi - sown on top of a small mountain range overlooking the Great Caucasus and Azerbaijan. Saw my first Stalin portrait on someone's balcony. Otherwise the day was a mess thanks to bad transportation.
Gori - Stalin's home town. The house where Stalin grew up is well-preserved, as is his personal, bullet-proof train carriage. The museum was freaky. No light (another black out), we were lead by candle light to view Stalin's death mask in otherwise complete darkness. Aside from quotes and photos making Stalin seem like a nice guy, the museum featured personal accessories and birthday presents.
Mtskheta - The sprititual "heart" of Georgia, this is where St. Nino converted the country to Christianity in the 4th century. The Jvari church, perched up on a mountain was stunning (although it required a 6 km climb). The cathedral in Mtskheta was definitely the most awe inspiring building in Georgia for me, with a very stern Jesus gazing down from above the altar.
People I met:
The first thing I noticed in Georia was that people were a lot more reserved towards stangers than in Turkey. The "where are you from" question (spoken in Russian), was often not forthcoming, and when it was, it wasn't the first question in a conversation.
Generally speaking, the biggest arseholes in society seemed to be the marshrutka (private minibus) drivers. One day I even saw one kicking the crap out of a customer in the middle of central Tbilisi. The politicians on TV seemed to have similar personalities.
Maria was very kind, if wonderfully detached from reality, as was her son Levan, who is studying film direction. A lot of people made their way through their house and it was cool to chat with them. Tamula, a 20yo student, spoke excellent English, and could tell me about Svaneti, having travelled there. David, a writer, took me round the Tbilisi museum. I also got drunk with some of Levan's musician friends. I met one foreigner - Junko from Japan, on the marshrutka to Gori. On the same marshrutka we met, Jakub, a law student who kindly took us around the town.
Finally, I have to say that I'd love to come back here one day, preferably in summer when going to the Greater Caucasus is possible. Despite the poverty and resultant the difficulties in travel, the atmosphere here is great, and there is a lot to do and see.
posted by nekonote1903 at 10:03 pm
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