Waking early, we were of course still late to meet our friend. Well, not so much a friend as much as a friend of a friend. I met a girl in Gainesville who'd recently finished her Peace Corps service in Georgia. She knew a few people who were still there and contacted one of them so he'd show me around. Andrew was his name, and he was a really interesting guy! He offered to give us a mini-tour of the city, so we met him at Liberty Square, surrounded by looming magnificent government buildings, statues and ritzy hotels. These situations have the potential for extreme-awkwardness. So many times people you meet are strange, a bit off, or highly unsocial. Thank god that wasn't that case! We were surprised and relieved at his normal-ness and rather witty personality. At first, when I walked up to the hotel, I couldn't figure out if it was him or not. Wearing a bowlers hat, ponytail swinging, and dark brooding eyes, I wasn't sure if this was Andrew, or a random guy. But it was, and after a mildly awkward initial encounter, he led us to this great cafe connected to a bookstore where we enjoyed pumpkin pie and some excellent, house brewed coffee. Conversation and coffee flowed while we enjoyed Georgian-style pumpkin pie. The next thing you know, an hour and a half had passed. I bought these awesome tattoos, you know, the kind you buy when you were a kid. It was a mini-booklet full of stars and moon tattoos. I couldn't think of anything more appropriate for our first moment of group bonding. You see, on the way to meet Andrew, we ran into another Fulbrighter, John, in Liberty square. He joined us to meet Andrew, and ended up staying with us throughout the whole trip. So, we tattooed ourselves in this little coffee shop and headed out to explore the fine city of Tblisi.
With our new tour guide, we were led through a series of excellent parks with towering statues of Georgian political and cultural leaders. I was expecting Georgia to be very Post-Soviet like but I was pleasantly surprised. No dreariness. It was full of sparkling twinkling lights, cultural centers, churches, and great restaurants. But, I spoke too soon. We arrived at what is known as the "Soviet market." {This blog includes some excellent photos}Boy was I wrong. Nothing could've been more Soviet. It was only in 1991 that Georgia declared independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Traces of the Soviet architecture, cuisine and culture and present, but not quite as prevalent as I saw in Armenia.
We walked through rows of old utensils, posters of Stalin, Russian currency, old cameras, swords, guns, stamps, huge furry Russian hats, socks- anything you can associate with the USSR, you would be able to find this market. We haggled with the vendors, who were quite sweet. Toothless, but sweet. It was nothing like haggling in Egypt or Turkey, where negotiating a price is a marathon, a struggle, a source of pride. Here, the haggling back and forth was all in good fun. People were extremely welcoming and some knew a little English. Old Russian music floated through the winter air. Old men, adorned in brown furry winter hats chatted and smoked cigarettes faster than I could watch. My friends bought old Soviet posters and coins, and then we made our way slowly out of the market. My head was spinning, trying to remember all the cool stuff I saw. I wasn't ready to leave. Markets, are, in my opinion the ultimate place for people watching, not to mention a brilliant display of a culture that, at one time, was extremely prevalent in Georgia and still is effecting the culture today.
P.S. for a bit more insight into Georgian culture and traditions, check out Andrew's blog http://1981tonow.blogspot.com/2012/02/cold-dead-body-and-big-shoes.html
With our new tour guide, we were led through a series of excellent parks with towering statues of Georgian political and cultural leaders. I was expecting Georgia to be very Post-Soviet like but I was pleasantly surprised. No dreariness. It was full of sparkling twinkling lights, cultural centers, churches, and great restaurants. But, I spoke too soon. We arrived at what is known as the "Soviet market." {This blog includes some excellent photos}Boy was I wrong. Nothing could've been more Soviet. It was only in 1991 that Georgia declared independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Traces of the Soviet architecture, cuisine and culture and present, but not quite as prevalent as I saw in Armenia.
We walked through rows of old utensils, posters of Stalin, Russian currency, old cameras, swords, guns, stamps, huge furry Russian hats, socks- anything you can associate with the USSR, you would be able to find this market. We haggled with the vendors, who were quite sweet. Toothless, but sweet. It was nothing like haggling in Egypt or Turkey, where negotiating a price is a marathon, a struggle, a source of pride. Here, the haggling back and forth was all in good fun. People were extremely welcoming and some knew a little English. Old Russian music floated through the winter air. Old men, adorned in brown furry winter hats chatted and smoked cigarettes faster than I could watch. My friends bought old Soviet posters and coins, and then we made our way slowly out of the market. My head was spinning, trying to remember all the cool stuff I saw. I wasn't ready to leave. Markets, are, in my opinion the ultimate place for people watching, not to mention a brilliant display of a culture that, at one time, was extremely prevalent in Georgia and still is effecting the culture today.
P.S. for a bit more insight into Georgian culture and traditions, check out Andrew's blog http://1981tonow.blogspot.com/2012/02/cold-dead-body-and-big-shoes.html
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