Back in the USSR

To be honest, I was not ready to leave home when it was time to fly out to Poland.  When I headed to the Warsaw airport, a large part of me wished I was heading back to my parent’s warm basement for a few more days rather than my cold mountain village.  It did not help that my friend and I realized our flight was earlier than we thought it was 2:15 minutes before it was to leave, so we had to rush to the airport.  Once at our gate, we met a bunch of new TLGers.  Getting to talk about Georgia made me happier to back. 

Arriving at 5AM without having slept did not.  I met 2 of my friends and waited with them until the buses started running. In the process, we met a drunk, gay Brazilian journalist who works in Moscow.  He was so pleased to hear us speak English and offered us a place to stay if/when we are in Moscow.  It was a good reminder of how small of a world Georgia is.  Once the busses started running, we saw the sun rise over the city as we headed to a 24/7 restaurant for breakfast.  Then I ran some errands and took a nice nap on the Peace Corps office couch, knowing that it would be several hours before I would get to crash for good.  My Peace Corps friend then made my day by showing me where there was a Teremok (a great blini/crepe place I loved in Russia and missed every morning I was in Tbilisi) in Tbilisi.  After that, I headed home.  I was tired enough to sleep on my marshrutka and started to look forward to returning home. Having to drive around sheep and cows made me smile and made me feel back at "home".

Once I got home, my grandmother met me on the porch with “Moya krasavitsa!” (My beauty/my beautiful girl!), and I knew it was a great thing to be back.  I got hugs and kisses from my family and tried valiantly to keep up conversation until about 9.  I slept in until 2 the next day.  It was glorious.  The last few days have been incredibly relaxing.  I’ve been sleeping in late, not worried about doing much of anything.  Friends have come to visit, and I’ve been thrilled to see them.  Yesterday I ran to the bank and on the way home was invited by my neighbors to a small birthday supra.  They and their neighbors from Tbilisi spoke in Russian the majority of the time for my sake.  I really appreciated it, as well as enjoying the conversation.  One of the women had a handful of anecdotes.  I found that I was able to offer up halfway decent toasts in Russian.  I remembered how delicious fresh mtsvade (shish kebabs) are and indulged in far too much birthday cake.  When I arrived, the party was outside as they made mtsvade.  Being Georgia, the fire that was keeping everyone warm was also heating a fresh batch of chacha (Georgian hard alcohol), so I got to see the process up close.  Of course, I had left my camera at home, thinking it was a short trip to the bank.

Today I went for a walk and saw several friends along the way.  I hate saying goodbye but I love reunions.  I even was able to have a brief conversation with my director (principal), including finding out that my New Year’s gift from Misha was at the school.  Tonight, for the first time since I got home 3 days ago, my toilet flushed.  The fact that I had forgotten it wasn't flushing is a sign of how used to this place I am.  Even after 3 weeks back in the first world, I am getting quickly accustomed to the quirks of life here.

Tomorrow is a holiday that involves the patriarch baptizing a cross and sanctifying the water that way.  Common people celebrate by making khinkali (Georgian dumplings) early in the morning and then sharing it with neighbors.  I’m very excited.  We’ll also head to the church for a bit.