tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56522022011-05-06T02:04:33.132+04:00LivingWithCaucasiansA journal from Tbilisi, Georgia.Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comBlogger971100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1089905435203561752004-07-15T22:29:00.000+04:002004-07-15T19:30:35.203+04:00This is the way the blog ends,
This is the way the blog ends,
This is the way the blog ends . . .
Mary Neal writes: I'm posting from Washington, D.C., where we are attending the Fulbright orientation. We have been brought back to talk about our experiences to the outgoing Fulbright scholars and fellows. It's one of those amazing things where you can be exactly where you were a year ago, and Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1084789938231693752004-05-17T15:31:00.000+05:002004-05-17T15:32:18.230+05:00The Magic Mountain
This Saturday we went to Abastumani via Borjomi, a group of 12 in three cars. Abastumani is a village full of pre-revolutionary houses and sanatoriums for tuberculosis patients, as well as a giant telescope and observatory. Borjomi is a huge national park, full of hills and paths and home to the spring that produces this sulphery healing water, famous all over the former Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1084126178785159322004-05-09T23:08:00.000+05:002004-05-09T23:12:55.110+05:00Giorgoba and The Revolution of Fertilizer
They are showing Abashidze's possessions he left behind in the territory of Adjara. Houses full of champion Caucasian sheepdogs, with marble baths for them to play in and showers for bathing them. A huge stable for his horses and, inexplicably, a collection of expensive bearded goats. They showed his factory that was producing helicopters with the Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1083742807104889062004-05-05T12:36:00.000+05:002004-05-05T12:54:37.466+05:00Update: Adjara
There are several groups of opposition members on the border with Adjara, but some kind of Adjaran spetsnaz started shooting when they decided to cross into Adjara. The TV is showing a whole group of people waiting at the Choloki Bridge - one of the ones that was blown up. The protesters are on one side, the spetznaz and Abashidze supporters on the other side, with the ruined Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1083675299183207902004-05-04T17:50:00.000+05:002004-05-04T18:08:18.623+05:00The God out of the Machine
It has been raining steadily for what seems to be at least three weeks now, well after April showers should have taken a hiatus to give the darn May flowers a chance to dry off. Tbilisi in the rain is a miserably depressing thing. The holes in the sidewalk become puddles of despair. Instead of the escaped plastic bags floating in balmy breezes, people are wearing Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1083603184516465682004-05-03T21:51:00.000+05:002004-05-03T22:00:11.153+05:00Paranoia in the Corners
So Adjara blew up the bridges connecting it to the rest of Georgia: two bridges and the railroad. Also, the leader of Adjara, Aslan Abashidze, has forbidden any of the parliamentarians in his party from participating in the functions of the parliament in Tbilisi.
Saakashvili has given him ten days to disarm, while military maneuvers take place in Poti; in the meantime,Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1082655580270185522004-04-22T22:15:00.000+05:002004-04-22T22:51:41.013+05:00Dinosaur baths
It has been a while, unfortunately, but I have three good excuses: 1. dealing with Georgian bureaucracy; 2. elections; 3. my first guest with almost no Russian.
Also, my phone line is off, so I can’t do email from home! This means that I must seek out the mysterious desk in charge of Vera phone lines in the giant post office, and find out to whom I owe money. But I’ll do that Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1080226376964768532004-03-25T18:43:00.000+04:002004-03-25T18:55:27.450+04:00Georgian Love Story #3
Today I met a Georgian man who owns and operates a hotel in a strange part of town - neither here nor there, but actually, if you think about it, convenient to a lot of places. I was in the company of a Finnish woman.
Halfway through the meeting we had a break, and spent some time in the courtyard outside the room. Beso emerged from the reception area to talk to the Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1079467092442827742004-03-16T23:44:00.000+04:002004-03-17T00:15:37.560+04:00Panning for Gold
The day before yesterday, President Saakashvili tried to travel to Adjara, the semi-autonomous region in the southwest corner of Georgia. Adjara borders Turkey and is the main port for Georgia, but is controlled by one Aslan Abashidze, descended from the former princely family of the region, who megalomaniacaly controls the region like a little fiefdom. Last election he threw Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1079106265055959612004-03-12T19:41:00.000+04:002004-03-12T19:53:04.093+04:00Georgian Love Story Number 2
(names have been changed).
Medea had been having an affair with a married man for about a year. She knew it wasn’t going anywhere, that it had no future; and yet she kept on, for no reason other than he was there and she was there and there he was, part of her life.
He had a wife and a disabled child, and the disabled child had to be taken to Czechoslovakia for Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1078779455228937082004-03-09T00:16:00.000+04:002004-03-09T00:59:48.936+04:00Dr Seuss
Today is international women's day, so I had the day off. Lado and I went for a three-hour walk across to the other side of the river and back again. But first we passed by the russian church, and there we saw a green dog.
We almost cried, the both of us. There are so many stray dogs, and so many people do mean things to them. Lado said that it was probably some kids who painted Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1078170058023964672004-03-01T23:39:00.000+04:002004-03-01T23:50:02.513+04:00Dancing about Architecture
On Saturday we went to an architectural exhibition in the craft museum on Rustaveli to vote for the ugliest new building in Tbilisi. The criteria was
1. Aggressive
2. Doesn’t fit in with the surroundings, out of proportion
3. Faceless
4. Looks like it was made by a crafty handyman
There are all these illegal buildings that have been going up, and loudly – I used to Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1077628571938230802004-02-24T17:15:00.000+04:002004-02-24T17:18:12.890+04:00Just So You Know . . .
That is a perfectly horrible picture of Elizabeth. Weighing in here, as is my prerogative.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1077123516305766362004-02-18T20:50:00.000+04:002004-02-18T21:33:04.233+04:00Orientalism
If I had to choose a word to describe Georgians, as I am unfortunately sometimes asked to do, I would choose the word "restless."
Having said that, I will now digress for several paragraphs. Having been the subject of the single most appalling piece of journalism I’ve ever come across, I want to clarify where I’m coming from. The field of journalism in Georgia is from most Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1076604897962850792004-02-12T20:52:00.000+04:002004-02-18T17:58:08.250+04:00High-rise life and Fashion
Today as I was sitting in my apartment waiting for a student to show up, I heard some really loud, tuneless singing in the carpark next to my building. I live in one of a matched set of Krushchev-era high-rises, with a canyon in between. Krushchev is not a bad era for building, if you can’t get in a Stalin-era wedding castle. After Kruschev people figured out that Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1076357129461894502004-02-09T23:16:00.000+04:002004-02-10T00:07:15.746+04:00Bazroba and Breadsticks
Today I went into school to collect my salary and talk to my boss about the school closing – six weeks. Six weeks to find a new job or leave the country! We got to talking about her kids, she’s got two, and the older one has the measles. Apparently, when you have the measles in Mingrellian country – that’s western Georgia – it’s called "Batonebi," implying that the handElizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1076352482472079462004-02-09T22:40:00.000+04:002004-02-09T23:13:05.403+04:00Regime Change
THUS Mary Neal and Clifton and Wilson ended their travels in the Caucasus, took a plane home in a snowstorm, and left us with a hole in important news reporting in the city of Tbilisi, Georgia and worse with a hole in our social circle (ok, honestly, they took the best part of the circle home with them in a bag with the CFT). Mary Neal asked me if I, as a recurring character on Elizabethnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1076200778627145432004-02-08T04:32:00.000+04:002004-02-08T04:41:22.780+04:00On the Way Out
Coming back from Armenia, I think Tbilisi looked so bad to me because I was a short-timer. You steel yourself to put up with the unpleasant aspects of anywhere, saying to yourself that it’s worth it. But once that little mental shift has taken place, once you know you’re on the way out, it’s impossible; you just can’t do it anymore. Later that night as we were sitting around the Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1076042463971952372004-02-06T08:40:00.000+04:002004-02-06T08:42:46.110+04:00The Rest of Transcaucasia
Clif was contacted by the Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, Armenia, just a couple of weeks ago, to see if he could come do a presentation to some graphic design students and professionals. No problem, he said, although we knew it would be sort of a tight scheduling thing, what with us leaving so soon. Anyway, he worked it out, and on Wednesday the Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1075578817641203462004-01-31T23:35:00.000+04:002004-01-31T23:55:14.216+04:00So Maybe I Was a Little Harsh
At least one Azeri has accused me of being (a) unreasonable and (b) evil because I gave his country a bad review. I have taken this opinion under advisement, and I agree that my harsh judgment of this perfectly un-evil country was a bit extreme. It's not Mordor. It's a member of the Former Soviet Union club--with all that entails--and one that has a bit of an Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1075056520188038982004-01-25T22:46:00.000+04:002004-01-25T22:50:10.996+04:00Write Governor Pataki
We have lots of fabulous, wonderful, Pulitzer Prize–deserving photographs we would love for the world to see, but there is something wrong with the server at the college. Once it gets fixed, we'll upload, I promise.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1075056141014452332004-01-25T22:41:00.000+04:002004-01-25T22:43:51.903+04:00The Coronation—er, I Mean Inauguration—of Mikheil Saakashvili
Actually, that’s not quite fair. The inauguration itself was quite lovely: tasteful, restrained, and a good time. It’s just that the lead-up to this afternoon’s ceremony involved being blessed by the Patriarch at Gelati monastery in Kutaisi, where David Agmashenebelis—David the Builder, the greatest king of united Georgia back in the Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1074699849290969902004-01-21T19:43:00.000+04:002004-01-21T19:46:16.686+04:00A Relaxing Long Weekend in Rivendell
Sorry it’s been so long since a new posting made its way here. First of all, we’re getting short. Only two weeks left. James will leave on Saturday, so we’re trying to pack as much FUN into our time left as we possibly can.
Part of this fun involved the boys—Clif, James, and Wilson along with friend Bill—going to Sapara Monastery for three days of . . . Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1074681238870905492004-01-21T14:32:00.000+04:002004-01-21T14:35:25.513+04:00Sapara Monastery
When we went to Sapara in December (on our way to visit Vardzia), my secret agenda was to see if we could arrange a longer visit, a stay with the monks. They seemed receptive to the idea, and eventually we worked out a time. I wanted to go after Christmas, to be there when their fasts were over, so we left on the ninth of January, two days after Christmas.
I figured that the Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1073730094138537312004-01-10T14:21:00.000+04:002004-01-10T14:22:48.873+04:00Some Lingering Questions Gnawed on, Again
Soon after we arrived in Georgia, we attended a party at the ambassador’s residence. I remember thinking a couple of things: (1) why is this taxi driver asking so many people how to get there? and (2) is this all the security there is? The house was on a regular residential street, and like most it had a high concrete wall out front. Walking up these Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1073257093533010732004-01-05T02:57:00.000+04:002004-01-05T02:59:24.216+04:00The Presidential Election
As of about 6 p.m. (GMT+4), the presidential election has been declared valid by the Central Election Commission. And according to exit polls, Mikheil Saakashvili has received about 85% of the vote. Eduard Shevardnadze voted, as did Aslan Abashidze, although the Revival party declined to participate. Their lips are sealed as to who they voted for. So that’s over, and weMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1072691591972774692003-12-29T13:22:00.000+04:002003-12-29T13:54:15.450+04:00More Merchandise
I did not actually see this, but I saw a picture of it on one of those ceramic trays where your change is put so the cashier doesn't have to make actual contact with the customer: a candy bar or choco-wafer thing called Doping.
Plus, we are now drinking "Final" brand tea because it's what our market across the street had.
WHAT ARE THESE PEOPLE THINKING??
Another weird Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1072257432912185372003-12-24T13:16:00.000+04:002003-12-24T13:18:11.950+04:00All My Chickens Back Together
After a week of final exams and associated end-of-semester projects, a day and a night in a friend’s empty apartment because the college calendar lied when we bought the ticket and the dorm was closed, no sleep for any of this, and then 36 hours either in the air or in Akbar and Jeff’s Pretty Good Airport World, James has finally landed in Tbilisi. He looks great.
Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1071828861224305112003-12-19T14:14:00.000+04:002003-12-19T14:18:11.420+04:00Things I Wish I Knew How to Say in Kartuli
Will you quit staring at me, already?
(and failing that . . . ) What, do I have a booger on my face or something?
Did the customer just before me pay this same amount?
Will you stop driving on the sidewalk? (Elizabeth thought of something to say the other day when she was nearly mowed down by a marshrutka on the sidewalk, but it didn’t involve Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1071388169280972292003-12-14T11:48:00.000+04:002003-12-14T11:50:18.060+04:00Happy to Oblige
Want to get rid of your president? Send us a plane ticket. Clif went to Baku this weekend, and guess what, the president (finally) died. We're batting 1000 on this trip.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1071317695144900172003-12-13T16:14:00.000+04:002003-12-13T16:15:43.483+04:00Consumer Culture in Georgia: Maybe You Should Rethink That Product Name
The desire to adopt Western consumer culture, as misguided as you and I might think that is, proceeds at a fair clip here in the former Soviet Union. Here in Georgia, there is a triple barrier: language. And not just language, alphabet, too. There are three distinct written languages here: mkhedruli (kartuli/Georgian), Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1071141058929573402003-12-11T15:10:00.000+04:002003-12-12T13:12:24.216+04:00And I'm Not Even Going to Talk about Her Hair!
Another fascinating (in the sense that a disaster is fascinating) character on the political scene these days is Irina Sarishvili-Chanturia. "Loose cannon" does not BEGIN to describe this woman. It seems like every few days she delivers another wild accusation; at this point, it doesn't matter what her batting average for these blame-fests is, Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-107056487213001882003-12-04T23:04:00.000+04:002003-12-04T23:08:31.920+04:00More Politics Tomorrow, I Promise
But in the meantime, yes, it's . . .
Fiber Arts in Tbilisi
Yesterday, our friend Nino the textile artist met some Kirghiz felt artists who were in town for an unspecified event with some Swiss company or NGO or something. Is that vague enough? She invited them to come to her textile arts center, an attractive space she and her partners have renovated in a Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070359139421637072003-12-02T13:45:00.000+04:002003-12-02T13:59:36.200+04:00A Real Coup—For Me, That Is
I am so chuffed. I figured out a pun in Russian! The book I am helping to translate, "The Way Through Flour" is a pun on a Tolstoy title, usually translated as "I Come to Grief."
The Russian words for "flour" and "torture" are really similar, and I figured this out for myself.
I know, I know, it's a small victory. But now I have to think of a new title for the book.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070353002345026982003-12-02T12:07:00.000+04:002003-12-02T12:17:19.686+04:00Vardzia
Well, since I am writing this, we can all safely assume that we made it back from Sapara later that night. It was all the way dark so I couldn’t see what we were driving through, plus which all the mud had frozen so the road was marginally better. We arrived back at the hotel and went to the restaurant to feed Nick. At the other end of the huge white tile restaurant, complete with Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070225276274784342003-12-01T00:36:00.000+04:002003-12-01T00:48:31.826+04:00Out of Dodge, Again
Clif has been trying to put together an excursion to Vardzia ever since we had the day in Shida Kartli with Nodar. (Man, if I didn’t know what these words meant, that sure would sound odd.) Anyway, Nodar was the one who suggested it, but every time we tried to pin him down to when he would like to do it, he had another something to do. The other somethings got more and more Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070053942226054582003-11-29T01:08:00.000+04:002003-12-20T19:30:09.700+04:00Casualties
I know she did a Very Bad Thing by putting a rubber stamp on the fraudulent election returns, but I was really kind of sad today to see that Nana Devdariani, head of the Central Election Commission, has resigned.
I don't know what it was about her that kind of touched me. Perhaps it was that Austin-Powers-She's-a-Man-Baby thing. Perhaps it was the unattractive hair, orange with dark Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070051635947324492003-11-29T00:06:00.000+04:002003-11-29T00:34:29.530+04:00Interesting Talk over the Thanksgiving Table
Some points that came up at our Thanksgiving dinner, for which I give great thanks to our genial hosts, the Brickers.
• Shevardnadze was hoping to pull it out just one more year. The BTC pipeline, which will transport oil from Baku (B) on the Caspian Sea via Tbilisi (T) to Ceyhan (C) in Turkey, will come on line in about a year. The Georgian Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1070049814399292092003-11-28T23:36:00.000+04:002003-11-29T00:04:08.390+04:00Never a Dull Moment
It's gone back the other way at the university again. I think it's like Whack-a-Mole: first you think you've got him, then he pops up over there. The rector of the university, Roin Metreveli, has his job again. Saakashvili went over to the university and said a seemingly reasonable thing: that it's not the government's business to be involved with the administration of the Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069874917795169662003-11-26T23:26:00.000+04:002003-11-26T23:29:09.420+04:00Retraction of Retraction, Again
Nino may have jumped the gun a little, but the rector of the university has indeed resigned.
A demonstration against the resignation of a popular dean of journalism is also underway.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069852240634597102003-11-26T16:34:00.000+04:002003-11-26T17:11:12.296+04:00Saakashvili Will Be the Only Candidate
Well. I feel vindicated, I really do.
Having, as I do, a healthy (diagnostic, even) AQ score myself, I often find myself mystified by people's intentions. I have absolutely no predictive ability at all in a situation that includes people's motivations. If asked what I think will happen, I ALWAYS guess wrong. Clif can always figure out the plot of a movie Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069781721433341032003-11-25T21:35:00.000+04:002003-11-25T21:35:51.873+04:00Happy Birthday to My Mother!
She’s been very understanding about what must be a completely nerve-racking situation. I know her inclination is to tell us to get the heck out of Dodge, but she has listened to all our news and has even expressed enthusiasm for our exploits.
So, here’s to you, Toodie! Gau-mar-JOS! Gau-mar-JOS! Gau-mar-JOS!
Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069781321615985072003-11-25T21:21:00.000+04:002003-11-25T21:29:34.466+04:00Mr. Pooley, Again
Well, it wasn't a fluke. The guy got back to me again! Extra credit points to Time magazine. The missing piece of information was that the story was filed on Saturday, at which point I probably would not have taken exception to it at all.
He answered me point by point, and while I don't necessarily agree with him, I most assuredly do appreciate the time and effort it took to Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069780636099600882003-11-25T21:16:00.000+04:002003-11-25T21:17:46.780+04:00Questions about Children of Shev and Ajara
Pete writes:
“i have a professional interest in georgia and have been watching the political goings for several months. i'm intrigued to see how this pans out. i think abashidze and the whole ajara situation will be key.
someone told me yesterday that burjanadze and sakashvili are just "children of shevardnadze". not sure i buy that description. Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069761437022642252003-11-25T15:56:00.000+04:002003-11-25T15:58:14.763+04:00Big Doings at the University and Elsewhere
I live a block and a half from the main campus of I. Jviakhishvili Tbilisi State University, and boy are they making a lot of noise today. It’s a concert of what sounds like euro-pop-rock with a few traditional Georgian polyphonic tunes thrown in. (Again, it never ceases to amaze me that the teenagers know these songs.) There was a lot of what sounded Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069708775559108442003-11-25T01:15:00.000+04:002003-11-25T01:20:05.436+04:00The Morning (er, the Afternoon, um, I Mean, Evening) After
Well, it was sort of a lost day for many of us in Tbilisi, and not just because of that cheap cognac, either. I spent the day catching up on the dishes and the laundry, and obsessively consuming the news. It’s more like an emotional hangover if you can imagine. I even had to take a nap, and this after getting up at 12:30 in the first Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069665854956121182003-11-24T13:22:00.000+04:002003-11-24T13:24:44.296+04:00A Good Question
Daniel writes:
In the photos and videos that I have seen, many of the Burjanadze and Saakashvili supporters are waving a white flag with a red cross, with a small red symbol in each of the four white areas. I know the official “white, black, and deep red” Georgian flag, but I have never seen this other flag before. Is this the flag of St. George? It looks almost exactly like theMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069626812346363472003-11-24T02:31:00.000+04:002003-11-24T02:34:01.030+04:00The Rose Revolution
Today is the saint’s feast day for St. George, the patron saint of, yes, the nation of Georgia. On this day we are supposed to find every Giorgi we know (not an easy proposition here) and give him congratulations, so of course we congratulated our neighbor, Gio. We went down to the protest with him and his mother and her friend, a fascinating woman who is a university Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069528845047784772003-11-22T23:19:00.000+04:002003-11-22T23:23:18.810+04:00Spin
President Shevardnadze issued a statement from his office that says, "The armed attack on the president has ended without casualties. President Shevardnadze is alive. An armed coup has occurred in Georgia."
(!)
Only trouble here is that it occurred on live television, and everyone saw it. No arms. Not even remotely a question of casualties.
I wonder how long it will take some news Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069522622033096762003-11-22T21:36:00.000+04:002003-11-22T21:37:29.436+04:00Burjanadze Speaks
Also, an interview with Ryan Chilcote by videophone.
[Do you call yourself the acting president?] I did not declare myself acting president. I said until the question of the president's resignation and his activity is clear I am acting for the constitution.... We don't need any bloody revolution in this country. We guarantee full security for the president and his family and Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069522070831802482003-11-22T19:56:00.000+04:002003-11-22T21:28:18.356+04:00Misha Speaks
Mikheil Saakashvili was interviewed by Ryan Chilcote of CNN by videophone. Here are some quotes, typed quickly as he was speaking.
[On going in to the Parliament] People went in, we had our hands up to show we were not armed. The police did not fire.
This is a velvet bloodless revolution. I have never seen the Georgian people so united. Do I look like the leader of a coup? I have Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069512680298643232003-11-22T18:23:00.000+04:002003-11-22T18:54:38.950+04:00The Opposition Ascendant
It's about a quarter past six local time (GMT +4), and the worst of it seems over. We watched the whole thing on television, changing channels compulsively, looking for the best feed. We also kept in touch with Elizabeth and Lado, who were down at Freedom Square today. So here's the story, from our point of view.
Last night, after the cars and buses all arrived, a crowdMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069440873033293272003-11-21T22:50:00.000+04:002003-11-21T22:55:25.310+04:00A New Development
Events are moving quickly tonight. Georgia's Security Council chief, Tedo Japaridze, has called for the newly elected members of parliament to dissolve immediately after calling for new elections. He called the elections a massive fraud. Just like the television guy's resignation, he apologized for his boss and ally (former, I guess), saying that there are members of Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069439176862199542003-11-21T22:20:00.000+04:002003-11-21T22:42:32.326+04:00Kmara Strikes Again
Someone at Kmara likes Nine Inch Nails. I just saw a new commercial on TV that was truly wonderful. With "La Mer" playing on the soundtrack, there are scenes of a young man and his father at home. They appear and fade out, alternately, as they get up, eat breakfast, and get dressed. The young man puts on a Kmara shirt and picks up a flag, and the father puts on camo and his Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069438242101124872003-11-21T22:10:00.000+04:002003-11-21T22:11:08.920+04:00Primitive Hominids in Georgia:
Some Are from Dmanisi, Some Are from Batumi
Dmanisi
Today I went to hear a talk by fellow Fulbrighter Martha Tappen about her project, a paleontological dig at Dmanisi in south Georgia. Some of this work was published in Scientific American’s November issue, but it was great to hear her talk about it in more detail. First of all, she is a brilliant lecturer. She isMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069315962070211992003-11-20T12:11:00.000+04:002003-11-20T12:13:07.466+04:00Retraction of Retraction
Even though the channel 9 people called and canceled the live interview, they did apparently show the footage and the mini-interview they had already conducted. We missed it. Clif's translator saw it and said he did not make a fool of himself. That's what we strive for, here.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069272889044685542003-11-20T00:14:00.000+04:002003-11-20T00:15:13.920+04:00Michael Jackson
ewww much.
sorry. just had to.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069271722436134792003-11-19T23:07:00.000+04:002003-11-20T12:07:33.543+04:00A Voice of Sanity. From Where??
In an editorial from the Japan Times of all places, the issues surrounding the elections in Georgia are laid out in clear declarative sentences. (And I have just learned a new trick. Active links. Will wonders never cease?)
If anyone can argue with their assessment, I'd like to know how. Now that things have slowed down (in anticipation of tomorrow, the legal Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069181807876511402003-11-18T22:55:00.000+04:002003-11-18T22:57:11.153+04:00Retraction
Much to his personal relief, the people from channel 9 called up and canceled the interview with Clif. Oh well. That fame didn't last very long, did it?Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1069155321973028722003-11-18T15:35:00.000+04:002003-11-19T13:01:10.763+04:00The Big Mo’
The opposition took a break for the weekend to let everyone go home and get warm. Amazingly, the gas and the electricity have been UNINTERRUPTED since the beginning of the protests. This state of affairs is unprecedented in the last few years. It’s not that people are so stupid as to believe that this will last, but it’s pretty canny on Shevardnadze’s part. Imagine, if you will, Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068929835707493492003-11-16T00:56:00.000+04:002003-11-16T00:57:36.123+04:00A Day Out of Town
Today, Saturday, we decided to bug out and go see some churches. Our art historian friend Keti had told us about one of her colleagues who has a Neva and a lot of background in the field, so Clif called him up (his name is Nodar—I should write science fiction and use Georgian names!) and arranged to go out to Shida Kartli and see some old stuff.
It occurred to me today that Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068841590769263742003-11-15T00:22:00.000+04:002003-11-15T00:26:50.653+04:00Protests, Week 2: Friday night
Yesterday, Mikheil Saakashvili called for a nationwide protest to take place in front of the Parliament building in Tbilisi. And so it came to pass. I had a meeting at the embassy (about which more later) at 4, so I was making my way toward the center of town, but obliquely so as to avoid the protest itself, at the same time everyone was heading toward Parliament. Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068755115825894802003-11-14T00:04:00.000+04:002003-11-14T00:25:34.843+04:00The Latest News
Today was calm here in sunny, but chilly, Tbilisi. This morning I went to a spouse's coffee at the home of the embassy's Community Liaison Officer. (There were actually 2 men in attendance, just so you don't think the word "spouse" is kidding here.) I did not wear gloves, but I did try really hard to be polite.
The ambassador's wife was there, and she told the group that the U.SMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068498265936548532003-11-11T01:01:00.000+04:002003-11-11T01:07:11.720+04:00No, God Doesn’t Come Down, You Idiot
At least that’s what my friend Lado told me. (Lado would never call me an idiot, though; he is a gentleman, a scholar, and an artist. He is also Elizabeth’s BF, though she suffers from IFO*. I call myself an idiot for not assuming there would be a procedure in place.) If Shevardnadze resigns, then Nino Burjanadze, the speaker of the parliament, becomes Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068368859830214912003-11-09T13:03:00.000+04:002003-11-09T13:07:37.800+04:00Goals Change
Not mine. Mine is to survive Georgia. The electoral opposition’s goals have changed. First, they wanted the obviously stinky precinct votes tossed out. Then, I think they wanted everyone, the sitting government especially, to know that they were united in their outrage. Now, they want Shevardnadze’s head (not literally).
What changed in the situation here is that the vote totals Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068118627800819652003-11-06T15:36:00.000+04:002003-11-06T15:37:05.770+04:00The Tyranny of Maka
Just as I feared, I am not Taking Advantage of Every Aspect of this Big Adventure. This is not to say that I am a complete slug, but it’s hard to get out and see the museums when a certain recalcitrant party, age 11, wants to sit at home and become Jabba the Hut. Every outing requires negotiation; negotiations inevitably break down; both sides revert to negativity, if not Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068057357583297462003-11-05T22:32:00.000+04:002003-11-05T22:35:55.663+04:00Holding Pattern
Tuesday, Nov. 4
The day after the election we didn’t do very much. Nothing seemed to be going on, so Clif went out to teach his classes. Once he got home, we decided to go out and get some food at the central market and see the collapsed house (see below). We talked to Bill, who has actually studied Georgian for a couple of years, and invited him to come over and watch TV Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1068051154450925162003-11-05T20:51:00.000+04:002003-11-05T20:59:21.346+04:00An Election Observed
I volunteered to observe the parliamentary elections in Georgia because I thought I could somehow help Georgians—that by certifying the elections, I could help Georgia move toward joining the first world. This isn’t how this has worked out, of course. I am still overly optimistic about the situation here, but it is a real mess.
I observed for NDI, the National Democratic Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1067782550039907682003-11-02T18:07:00.000+04:002003-11-02T18:15:48.790+04:00I Want My Irresponsible Journalism!
Well, here it is.
http://www.gtelection.ge/eng/index.php
This changes minute by minute, there is NO editorial control, they just post whatever they hear on the website. (I think this is the Georgian Times' MO for print journalism as well.) If you go to the bottom of the page, you will see number ranges 1-10, 11-20, 21-30 etc. 1-10 are the most recent reportsMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1067753493563167882003-11-02T10:08:00.000+04:002003-11-02T10:11:32.413+04:00Election Results Online
In case you are interested in following election results, the website of Civil Georgia will be posting results starting at 8 p.m. tonight local time. That's 11 a.m. Sunday for the East Coast. It's a beautiful day here in Tbilisi, slightly cool and sunny, very autumnal. So maybe that will be good for getting people out to vote?
Anyway, here's the url.
http://Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1067685542972599132003-11-01T15:11:00.000+04:002003-11-01T15:19:01.830+04:00Something Fishy? Maybe Not
We lost our internet access last night, a mere 30 hours before the election, which Clif will be officially observing. Paranoia being what it is, we automatically assumed the worst. Turns out we had exceeded our upload/download limit. But the office wouldn’t be open until Monday? That won’t do! Our translator, Ana, threw herself into the breach and “made some calls.” Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1067275737984702912003-10-27T21:28:00.000+04:002003-10-27T21:28:57.276+04:00Thursday, October 23
Georgia State Puppet Theatre’s “Battle of Stalingrad”
On Thursday night we went to the puppet theater to see a performance of “The Battle of Stalingrad.” What an unusual subject for a performance of puppet theater you are thinking. Well, so did I. But it was amazing.
The theater itself is on the edge of Old Town, the very medieval, twisty, cobblestoned part of Tbilisi thatMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1067010296311034432003-10-24T20:44:00.000+05:002003-10-24T20:44:55.753+05:00Oct. 18 and 19
I hope you took note of that mention of the chest cold. By Wednesday, I was laid out by that sucker. Every time I got horizontal, I would go into complete lung lock, unable to take a breath without coughing. It made sleeping difficult, for me and for Clif; I had to move to the sofa. Anyway, by Friday evening, it looked like I was going to live, so we accepted the invitation of Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1066972407906443142003-10-24T10:11:00.000+05:002003-10-24T10:13:27.850+05:00I'm Still Here . . .
I have been laid low with a terrible cold for more than a week, but I promise an update on the third (and God willing final) trip to Kakheti. Also a really great performance at the puppet theater.
Clif points out that "terrible cold" doesn't begin to describe it.
But I'm better now, really.Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1066306544895547002003-10-16T17:15:00.000+05:002003-10-16T17:15:44.910+05:00Oct. 13 and 14
In the morning, we had hot dogs (2 large) and mashed potatoes (huge mound), plus mayonnaise-y carrot salad breakfast. Plus, I forgot to include in the description of yesterday’s breakfast, there was something served in a stemmed glass (one per table) that was the consistency of thick syrup but was fruit-based. We didn’t know what to do with it, so we put it on buttered bread. Tea Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1066281563215375432003-10-16T10:12:00.000+05:002003-10-16T16:57:30.006+05:00Errata
Uplis-Tsikhe is the real name of the cave city.
Tochna is how you say "exactly" in Russian.
Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1066245871936911662003-10-16T00:24:00.000+05:002003-10-16T00:28:18.030+05:00Can Anything Else Go Wrong?
A Really Fun Weekend Full of Disasters
Part I--October 11 and 12
Saturday morning we got up at dawn to meet the bus at the Sheraton Metekhi Palace Hotel for a group visit to the Black Sea coast and Batumi. We had received strict instructions to join the group at 7:30. Never mind that the train left at 8:40 and we live closer to the train station than the hotel. But, Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1065694399194847172003-10-09T14:54:00.000+05:002003-10-16T16:59:01.396+05:00Scientists Come Through
My sister and my father-in-law have both, simultaneously, provided the answer to the laundry problem. They suggested that the water might be acidic, thus both neutralizing the detergent and destroying the clothes. I am happy to report that I will no longer be forced to go down to the creek to beat the socks on the rocks to restore their cottony softness. All it took was a Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1065456891960320312003-10-06T20:59:00.000+05:002003-10-06T21:14:51.903+05:00Gotta Go Back to Kakheti, Again
Sunday we got up early for our second trip to Kakheti. A different driver, Enver, picked us up in his new forest green Niva, and after some quick stops for provisions, we set out. Enver is a jolly man who teaches computer skills at Zugdidi University. He comes back to his family in Tbilisi every week. He speaks very little English, but he tries hard. He kept Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1065167312162537722003-10-03T12:46:00.000+05:002003-10-03T12:49:04.353+05:00Whingeing
I don’t like what is happening to our clothes. I do not understand the washing machine. What happens is, the machine goes around and around for three hours, the clothes come out wet and destroyed, BUT THEY ARE NOT CLEAN. Why is this? How can this be possible? One theory is enzymes in the detergent. The socks come out like loofahs. You can hardly wear them again. I have yet to find a Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1064864193977993112003-09-30T00:35:00.000+05:002003-09-30T00:36:33.753+05:00Warning: This is a really long entry. Just thought I’d let you know.
Postcolonialism, Terrorism, War and Loss, Overplanning, and Love (Lots of Love)
Though Not Necessarily in That Order
A Long Day in Kakheti
Sunday, September 28
We woke up early for our trip to the wine country; Gocha picked us up at 9 a.m. When we got on the highway, it was a kind of miserable drip-drip cloudy day, but we sawMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1064671666696524782003-09-27T19:00:00.000+05:002003-09-27T19:07:46.826+05:009/27/03
I don’t get all “Stendhal” over visual art. It just has never struck me that way, but music will do it to me, as will dance. I would never dare to attend a live performance of a boys’ choir. I would probably sob and make a scene. SO, it was a close thing today when we had the opportunity to go to a performance rehearsal for Erisioni, but I didn’t cry. Well, maybe a little tearing up, but Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1064258288351792202003-09-23T00:08:00.000+05:002003-09-23T00:18:08.223+05:00Gaumarjos! Which is what people say when they are drinking a toast, like “Cheers!” I think it literally means “victory” in Georgian.
We went shopping on Saturday for a wedding present for Keti and David’s son’s marriage. We were been invited to attend the wedding on Sunday afternoon (and the dinner afterwards), and were really looking forward to it. Keti and David, already introduced as our Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063822012591398032003-09-17T23:04:00.000+05:002003-09-17T23:06:52.613+05:00Today we went exploring in search of the dry bridge market. It is fascinating, if a bit sad and weird. The “dry bridge” is what we would call a viaduct I guess: it’s just a bridge over another street. It is evidently so unusual in this country that this one is unique in Tbilisi and is called THE dry bridge. And the market isn’t actually on it, either.
Anyway, we walked over the darned thingMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063651786399852212003-09-15T23:40:00.000+05:002003-09-17T22:50:22.673+05:00Monday night 9/15/03
The photos are here! Click on the picture link on the left to see amazing things! Our team of crack (headed) engineers has worked out a kludge. There are larger versions of the images if you click on them. Use the back button when needed. Margareeya! (Cool in Kartuli).
We have just returned from an amazing weekend in the mountains. On Saturday our driver, Gocha, picked us Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063365036191905342003-09-12T16:05:00.000+05:002003-09-12T16:10:36.206+05:00We went to the Bazroba (huge, open-air bazaar) today to buy Mary Neal a cell phone. The bazaar was intense: labyrinths of passageways, roofed with that blue plastic tarp material hanging low, and stall after stall of every imaginable piece of foodstuff and consumer junk: car power adapters;
cheap sunglasses;
ball-point pens, shiny pencils;
plastic tubs, plastic vats, plastic cups all in brightCliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063296570021580092003-09-11T21:09:00.000+05:002003-09-11T21:09:30.113+05:00I Am The Other
Although I am white, I am like a black person among these Caucasians.
I have never stood out so much in my life.
Let me count the ways.
• I have waist-length red hair. No one here has red hair. In a week I have seen 3 redheads, and one was probably from a bottle. And the women all have shoulder-length layered hair. I try to keep it up most of the time to seem less different, butMary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063294021227915202003-09-11T20:26:00.000+05:002003-09-11T20:27:01.236+05:00Sept. 7
Sunday, Clif, Wilson, and I walked from our apartment up to the mountain behind Tbilisi (Mtatsminda), where we saw the outdoor museum of traditional Georgian architecture. They have moved buildings from various parts of the country to this location, reassembled them, and loaded them up with artifacts and things to be interpreted. We had a very knowledgeable guide who spoke perfect French,Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063208719495216732003-09-10T20:45:00.000+05:002003-09-10T20:45:19.646+05:00Scene from a restaurant: we are a sedate table of ten or so, but nearby is a table of 30 or more, beefy Georgian men, lank Georgian men, and a few women. One very substantial guy is the tamada (toastmaster)–I think I saw him drink a liter of wine from a cow horn in one pull–who is leading toast after toast to all the usual subjects: parents, to women, to peace, to Georgian song, who knows what Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063191193037777502003-09-10T15:53:00.000+05:002003-09-10T15:53:12.890+05:00Sept. 5
The next day, we go to the university to meet the folks at the center for American studies (where I pick up a little editing work!), do a little food shopping, and visit the closing party for a joint Georgian/Dutch art exhibit organized in a decrepit wine factory (one of those incredibly creepy rundown industrial spaces). At the art exhibit, we hear nine men singing, a capella, some Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063122353144238542003-09-09T20:45:00.000+05:002003-09-09T20:45:53.210+05:00Sept. 3/4
Well, the good news about my flight from New York to Tbilisi was that I had two completely fascinating guys in my row on the JFK to Vienna leg. They were on their way to a bioterrorism conference in Dubrovnik. Details about exactly what they do were sketchy except that it involved inventing, manufacturing, and marketing equipment to test for bad germs and stuff.
The best part of Mary Nealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02827252585823421457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063107558096705312003-09-09T16:39:00.000+05:002003-09-09T16:39:18.126+05:00We have rented a wonderful apartment, right in the center! My excellent landlady from the guesthouse called an apartment finder, who supplied a driver and an English-speaking agent to show me apartments. We looked at a total of about ten places and one place spoke to me: a second-storey apartment with a gallery overlooking a courtyard. You enter through a gate, down a dark tunnel into the Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063105387747295782003-09-09T16:03:00.000+05:002003-09-12T16:16:43.073+05:00We have eaten in restaurants too much. Yegor, his wife Natasha, and their friend Andrei are visiting from Moscow and we have gone out every night. The bills seem small to an American used to New York City prices. I have missed seeing Yegor and it is worth going out every night to be able to spend time with him. The food has been uniformly tasty, but some things are shockingly good: cheese with Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1063105215398906082003-09-09T16:00:00.000+05:002003-09-09T16:00:15.250+05:00First impressions: The Tbilisi airport is tiny and Wilson and I were the only Americans on the flight from Vienna. The rich Georgian teenagers on the flight spent their time getting drunk, drinking beer, wine and finally Bailey’s Irish cream from the bottle. This, of course, led to the wearing of silly hats. Wilson had the window seat on the Airzena 737 and I craned over him, trying to see the Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1061738589069134642003-08-24T20:23:00.000+05:002003-08-24T20:25:56.946+05:00THAT BIG RIVER
I am evidently living in Egypt.
Not really in Egypt, but on the banks of Da Nile, that's for sure. I have dismantled many parts of my life. I have packed up many things and moved them to the attic. I have made arrangements and said goodbye to many people. I have even taken Clif and Wilson to the airport and watched them go off with a teetering smart cart full of enough stuff to Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1060438216150233622003-08-09T19:10:00.000+05:002003-08-14T10:13:10.363+05:00Things that wake me up in the night (MN).
I worry:
that I forgot to arrange transfer of one of the utilities.
that I still haven't finalized arrangements for the pets. Clif suggests burlap bag.
that the car needs the oil changed before we park it for 5 months. Also it makes a funny whistling noise.
that I meant to sell the car anyway, but didn't get around to it.
that the car will lose thousandsCliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5652202.post-1060178944576417492003-08-06T19:09:00.000+05:002003-08-06T19:09:04.610+05:00Packing and worrying. Cliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02950118493541676333noreply@blogger.com