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| | | | | Thursday, October 2, 2008 1:53 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | [Image:Mtkvari River in Tbilisi.jpg] View of Tbilisi and Mtkvari River Welcome to Tbilisi, Georgia Here is a spectacular view of the city of Tbilisi, Georgia. Georgia is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, on the legendary Silk R | | | |
| On Rustaveli Avenue | | | | | Saturday, November 10, 2007 10:53 AM -0500 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Today was another brilliant, crisp day. Once again we could see Mt. Kazbeg clearly on the horizon, and the sky was a clear, deep blue. Since my departure time is inching nearer (I'll head for home this coming Wednesday, November 14), I decided to d | | | |
| Sameba (Holy Trinity) Cathedral | | | | | Monday, November 5, 2007 4:01 AM -0500 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Yesterday, Sunday November 4, was a crisp, clear fall day. We've had clouds and drizzle here for a week, and then Saturday evening a wind storm brought cooler weather. The wind howled and sang all around us, and the electricity went off for a while | | | |
| The Revolution is at 2:00 P.M. | | | | | Saturday, November 3, 2007 5:57 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Yesterday and today there have been huge demonstrations (100,000+ people) in front of the Parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue. The crowds are demanding new parliamentary elections and are protesting actions of the current Saakashvili government. | | | |
| The Ethnographic Museum | | | | | Friday, November 2, 2007 3:54 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | FYI We have internet access again! When we moved to the new apartment on Oct. 21, we didn't have the internet installed there. And of course even simple things take a while--so today we are finally back on line. We still don't have wireless acces | | | |
| Churchkhela, New Furniture, and a Street Cat | | | | | Saturday, October 20, 2007 5:31 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | A Georgian treat that has always been a favorite of mine is churchkhela, a traditional snack prepared in the fall, when grapes and walnuts are at their peak. Village women string walnuts and then dip them into hot grape syrup, much as candles are | | | |
| Tina's Birthday Party | | | | | Saturday, October 20, 2007 4:14 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Tuesday, October 16, was not only my grand-daughter Meegan's birthday, but it was also the birthday of Tanya's sister-in-law Tina. We were invited to Tina's party and we had a lovely time. [Image:Food.jpg] In true Georgian style, th | | | |
| Tbilisi Pizzeria | | | | | Thursday, October 18, 2007 8:47 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Since we decided to leave Mtskheta and return to Tbilisi because of all the crowds there, on the way home we began looking for a place to eat. Of course all the people who had been in the churches were now jamming the restaurants. We stopped at | | | |
| Jvari Continued | | | | | Wednesday, October 17, 2007 10:03 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | The interior of Jvari Monastery [Image:Jvari cross.jpg] [Image:jvari window.jpg] View of Mtsketa from Jvari Window According to traditional accounts, it was here in the early 4th century that Saint Nino, a woman evangelist credited with con | | | |
| Jvari Monastery | | | | | Tuesday, October 16, 2007 4:17 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | October 14, this past Sunday, is a Georgian Orthodox church holiday. The churches were packed all day, and services were broadcast on TV. I made several attempts to discover exactly what the holiday was all about, but the answer seemed to be dif | | | |
| | | Observations | | | | | Saturday, October 13, 2007 4:45 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
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October 13, 2007
Georgian, Russian, English
Sixteen years ago when I was here last, there weren't many advertising signs around the city, and those few were in Russian and Georgian. Now there isn’t a single word of Russian to be seen anywhere. Billboards, bright and contemporary, are all over—most of them promoting cigarettes, cars and wine, others showing tanks and things military (perhaps they are army recruiting posters). Most people speak Georgian most of the time, yet they use Russian sometimes, mixing it with Georgian here and there. It seems to me that Russian is frequently used with numbers, calculating figures, and so forth, as well as for communicating with foreigners. Their assumption appears to be that if someone doesn’t know Georgian, then they are sure to speak Russian. Other
languages--German mostly, some French--can be seen and heard here and there.
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Typical Street Scene at a bus stop |
However, it seems to me that people here are just as unaccustomed to hearing English spoken, especially American English, now as they were back in ’91. If we are overheard in public chatting in English, invariably heads turn in our direction. People often want to chat in English with us, just to get some conversational practice. If I have the opportunity, I usually try to speak some Georgian with people, and nearly always, they are delighted to hear it. Georgia is probably one of the few places left where Americans are welcomed and admired, and they love it when we use their language.
Dachi --Mr. Language
My friend Tanya has five grandchildren, all boys ranging in age from four to sixteen. Tornike, the oldest, and Giorgi, are Boriko’s sons, and Bakuri’s sons are Dato, nine, Dachi, five, and Gio, four. They are all great kids, good-looking, amiable, and bright. Little Dachi is quite a character. When I first met him and spoke English to him, he screamed and ran out of the room. (Come to think of it, I’ve sometimes had that effect on other men…) Later he asked his father, in Georgian, “What’s the matter with her? Why doesn’t she speak normally?” So it was clear that as far as Dachi was concerned, I was a handicapped person. The next few times we met, he ignored me.
Last night, it was Gio’s birthday, and we were invited to come over. When I came in, Dachi said “Hello” to me and gave me a big grin. Wow, I thought, there’s some progress. One of the presents for Gio was a shooting top that sparkles as it spins. Dachi began playing with it, and with no prompting from anyone, began counting in English, “One, two, three! Go! Go! Go!” Well of course everyone made a big fuss over him, at which he turned to me and said in Georgian, “now you have to speak Georgian.” I told him that I speak English, and so Dachi switched to Russian and tried again to converse with me. I replied in Georgian, “Ar-mesmis,” which means “I don’t understand.” Whereupon Dachi counted to ten in English!
I’ve never met a five-year-old who persisted with such effort to communicate with me—in three languages! Like many Georgians, he is very determined. Later on, I asked Dachi “what does a dog say? what does a cat say? and so on. He got the idea quickly. Then I asked “what does a cow say?” Without missing a beat Dachi shouted “Domestic animal!” We were all amazed. Bakuri said that Dachi picks up a lot of words from TV, but still —he’s quite a linguist.
Our Textbook Writing Work
During the first few weeks of my stay here, Tanya has been putting the finishing touches on a book for third-graders who are just beginning to learn English. This ESL (English as a Second Language) set includes not only the book, but a workbook, CD, and teachers’ guide. It is a wonderful book, and already it is very popular. Many teachers and students have already begun using it in their schools. The Ministry of Education is piloting this textbook in several schools this academic year. It’s clear to me that the methodology and approach of the 21st Publishers authors meets and exceeds our Maine Learning Results standards. Frankly, while I assisted Tanya in putting the final touches on this book and now in collaborating on an ESL book for older students, I am
learning new ways of teaching a second language that I’m sure to use when I get home. Many of these new practical methods have been introduced here by the British,, and the Georgian Ministry of Education is requiring learning and teaching standards for textbook publishers that are nearly identical to ours.
New Buildings Everywhere
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Construction Across the Street
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Four Cranes at Dusk |
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Construction continues apace here, and for the some thirty construction companies that operate in the city, there are apparently few building codes in place that they have to meet. Urban planning seems to be non-existent, and unfortunately
parks and green areas are being gobbled up by developers. Even entire streets and blocks of little houses are marked for demolition and redevelopment. Quite a few historic buildings have been converted to pricey luxury hotels, and one wonders if this many rooms will ever be in demand. It is interesting to note that more than half (56%) of the population lives below the poverty line, and yet all the new apartment buildings are meant only for the well-to-do.
Additionally, it concerns me that although Georgia is in an active earthquake zone, and several fault lines bisect the area, it’s not clear whether any of these new structures have utilized earthquake-resistant technology in their design. Many people believe that the older buildings are safer since they have withstood past quakes, but who knows?
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Building in Progress |
Completed Apartment Houses |
Image (right) shows current and proposed locations of seismic monitoring in Georgia |
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| Jubilee Concert | | | | | Monday, October 8, 2007 1:38 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Jubilee Concert at the Conservatory [Image:Image054.jpg] Sunday evening Tanya and I were invited by Irina Jorjadze to a concert at the Conservatory. This performance was the first in a series of concerts given in celebration of the | | | |
| Chandeliers | | | | | Monday, October 8, 2007 1:11 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | The last few days here have been spent working on getting the new apartment ready. We’ve made several shopping trips for chandeliers, and Kakhi has been running all over getting electrician’s wire, outlet and switch covers, and letting the wor | | | |
| Odds and Ends | | | | | Wednesday, October 3, 2007 1:52 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | We Find Rakakees! You might recall that last week we saw a sign in Old Tbilisi advertising "Beer and Rakakees." No one could tell us what these delicacies were, so Tanya and I decided to find out for ourselves. It turns out that Raka | | | |
| Khinkali | | | | | Wednesday, October 3, 2007 4:48 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Tuesday, October 2, 2007 [Image:03102007_125125_0.jpg] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Below, the Sameba Church in the Alaverdi District [Image:Sameba Church in Alaverdi District.jpg] Every morning w | | | |
| The Bichebi Boys | | | | | Wednesday, October 3, 2007 3:34 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Monday, October 1, 2007 For the first ten days that I was here, only Tanya, Kakhi, and I were in the apartment, because the boys, Tornike and Giorgi, and their mother, Nino, were on a trip to Italy to participate in a choral competition. Now | | | |
| At the hippodrome | | | | | Monday, October 1, 2007 11:09 AM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Saturday, September 29 Just a few blocks from Saburtalo Street, there is a horse-racing track called the Hippodrome. It is a green zone right inthe middle of the city. Sixteen years ago, Tanya and I used to walk through it on our way to the Insti | | | |
| Old Tbilisi | | | | | Saturday, September 29, 2007 1:03 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Friday September 28, 2007 Tanya and I have been working very hard on our textbooks, and the fact that the household is half-moved into the new apartment and half-packed here makes everything a little more hectic. The phonesring constantly with | | | |
| Shopping with Omar | | | | | Monday, September 24, 2007 12:38 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | [Image:Omar the Taxi.jpg]Monday, September 24, 2007 Tanya's neighbor, Omar the cab driver, takes us everywhere we want to go, and today he spent several hours with us shopping for bathroom fixtures. Finding the basins and commodes wasn't difficult | | | |
| Tea with Eka and Bakuri | | | | | Monday, September 24, 2007 12:07 PM -0400 | By: Pat Taniashvili |
| | | Sunday afternoon Bakuri and his wife Eka invited Tanya and me to their apartment for tea. They have three children: Dato (8), Gio (5), and Dachi (4). As you can imagine, these three young boys have lots of energy, and they zoomed around the pl | | | |
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