Cave of Wonders

Me and my adorable host cousins

Today, my host family took me to see a cave in a nearby city. My host aunt, uncle, cousins and grandparents came as well. It was really nice to spend some quality time with them. The tour guide seemed happy to see a foreigner in the mix. He smiled and asked my host family a few questions about me, his eyes never leaving me. (I am still trying to get used to the fact that many Georgians have never seen a foreigner). Once satisfied with having his questions answered, he proceeded to explain the historical facts about the cave. My two host sisters, Keti and Nino, took turns translating for me. It was a bit awkward, albeit awfully sweet, that the tour guide would frequently stop and give them ample amount of time to translate. He wanted to make certain that I was equally informed. One interesting fact I learned was that it takes 1,000 years for a stalactite  (the scary looking formations that grow from the ceiling) to grow 1 cm. Now, whether or not that's a true statement or whether something got lost in translation is beyond me! Either way, it was interesting to hear.

My host sisters- Keti and Nino

As I walked through the cave, stopping frequently to curiously gaze about and every once in a while to snap a photo, I smiled to myself thinking "Wow, I am so happy right now." It wasn't that the cave had enlightened me in any way. In fact, I'm quite certain that it didn't have much to do with the cave period. It was more the overall experience of being so far away from home yet being surrounded by people who truly seem to care about me and my well-being. I've actually had that feeling come over me quite a few times since my arrival. It always comes at such unexpected moments, and it's those moments that make me most grateful to be here experiencing Georgia and the Georgian way of life.

Stalactites

Fun Fact- Krubera Cave, the world's deepest cave, is actually located in Georgia! It became the deepest known cave in 2001 when explorers reached a depth of 7,185 feet. Perhaps, I will get to visit it during my time here. 

TBILISI

Last weekend, some friends and I went to Tbilisi (the capital) to watch a soccer game. It was Georgia vs. Malta. I was told by several people (Georgians) that the Georgian soccer team isn't very good and that they never win. Once we arrived at the stadium, we were pleasantly surprised to see how packed it was. We were even more shocked when they won! The crowd went CRAZY!!! They started burning little pieces of paper throughout the stadium. It was a little frightening at first but the fires were maintained. So that was good.

The next day we did some sightseeing in "Old Tbilisi."Take a look at some of the pics below.

THE OUTHOUSE AND OTHER SHOCKING DISCOVERIES

Well, as some of you may know, I am in the Republic of Georgia for a few months participating in an English teaching program. I have been here about a month now and wanted to write about my adventures and discoveries so far. I'll start with my host family which consists of a deida (mom), a mama (dad - go figure!), 2 da's (sisters) and 1 dzma (brother). They've really treated me like part of the family since my arrival. The house is comfortable and a good size, consisting of four bedrooms. I have my own room with a full size bed, dresser, desk and small closet.

As much as I have enjoyed my time here and anticipate to continually do so, I wouldn't have lived up to this article's headline if I didn't include my shocking discoveries while living here.

Shocker #1 The Outhouse. I just used it a couple of hours ago and even though I have been using it for the past 3 weeks, I still catch myself thinking, "I can't believe I am seriously using an outhouse!!"  I'll leave the gory details of my experience inside the outhouse for those with strong stomachs. Now to be fair, not everyone here uses an outhouse, but in my social circle this seems to be the case more often than not. 

Shocker #2 Underage Drinking. What the h#*@!! Did my twelve year old host brother just down a couple of glasses of wine??? And I've heard of some as young as five years old throwing 'em back!! You've gotta be kidding me! 

Shocker#3 Driving in Georgia is detrimental to your health. I have never seen such crazy driving in my life! All of this weaving in and out of traffic on a two lane road, and trying to pass two semi's while traffic is clearly coming towards you from the other direction which sometimes cuts so close that the on-coming vehicle begins to honk and flash his brights....whew, I don't have asthma but I think I've had a couple of wheezing attacks while traveling on these roads. Which brings us to ...

Shocker #4 Wearing a seat belt offends the driver (particularly passengers that sit in the front seat). Oh no he didn't! He can be offended all he wants, I don't plan on flying through any windshields any time soon. 

Shocker #5 Animals run things around here! There are so many cows on the streets. I just don't understand it. They're not in enclosed fences, they're strolling the streets.  Sometimes in herds with someone guiding them and sometimes alone.  I see so many chickens, pigs and dogs everywhere....homeless dogs mostly. Oh, and don't get me started on the flies and bugs. These flies don't back down without a fight. When I first arrived, I noticed that there were a lot of flies around the food and no one seemed to be concerned! They just let the flies land on any and everything. The flies could come and go...snack on this and nibble on that. When I finally decided to begin shoo-ing them, they kept coming back with a vengeance, they wouldn't go down without a fight. Like I said, animals run this!

Now, I'd like to summarize in saying that I know life in Georgia sounds quite scary and probably quite awful after reading this, but I am truly enjoying my time here. Georgian people are very giving and hospitable. I really feel like part of the family here. I am greeted with Colgate smiles every morning and evening. I am constantly being reminded just how kind and giving the Georgian people are....from receiving free taxi and marshut'ka rides, to getting showered with hugs, kisses and smiles. I'm sure to have more shocking and perhaps disturbing discoveries while here but I am quite certain that they will be equally matched with moments of kindness and love.