After a week or so of living in my host village, and counting the 23 houses and rows of corn (I got up to 145 before I got sick of that activity), my family took me to Batumi to stay with some of their relatives. It was a good break, and I was excited to see the city with the company of locals.
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| Waiting for the Marshutka |
The first day here I bought some train tickets, and then we just hung out after along supra where we mixed half a glass of vodka with half a glass of beer. At night we walked on the blvd that is right beside the black sea. My host sister then decided that it was time to take some pictures, so we practiced doing our georgian faces (serious) and then American faces (smiling). See below for details.
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| Goergian face |
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| American Face |
The following day we went to go swimming in the black sea, which wasn't possible the previous day due to thunderstorms. So we made our way via the #31 marshutka to a spot that the locals knew that was a bit outside of the city that was essentially an abandoned soviet pier, complete with rusted out moors and everything that one could want for a good time. the thing was about 20 feet high, and we each took turns running and jumping off the end. My host sister Kristina decided it was picture time again, and she got some pretty sweet shots of me jumping off the thing. The black sea is extremely polluted, but I did my best not to swallow too much water, and it had the added benefit of being much warmer than the river that I had been swimming in at my permanent site in Tsoniarisi. One of the kids I was with couldn't remember my name, so he started going through a list of Georgian names like Tedo, Nado, georgi, etc. finally I told him that if he was going to call me these things, then I was going to start calling him Rhianna, and magically he remembered my name.
Nothing like this would happen in america. Such a structure would be closed and condemned well before the rust starts to set in. That's why the kids play so many video games, we never let them take any risks or have any adventures. I saw really small kids taking the plunge, and they certainly weren't any worse for wear.
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| Note the rusty pilings |
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| Hanging from rusty structure. glad I got my tetanus shot |
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| Jumping off a dangerously high pier |
After we came back from swimming we went to go and watch my other host sisters play rehearsal, and I had no idea what the heck any of them were saying, but it was pretty cool to get to sit there and watch them perfect their craft in a smoke filled, excessively hot room. and of course afterwards I was asked to give a piano concert, so that was fun. Also I got to eat my first Adjaran Khatapuri, which is in the shape of a boat (since we're by the sea), and has an egg on it (to symbolize the sun). No, it's not the first raw egg I've eaten since being here.
I go back to Tsoniarisi tomorrow for a few days, then I head into Tbilisi for the weekend to see friends and check my mail. It's kind of wild that I have to travel across an entire country to check my mail, but it is what it is (or in georgia, esse aris ras aris). All in all a great few days.
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