At the hostel, I chat with a former TLGer who is back in
Georgia for a visit after a couple years away. We share stories with each other
and others hanging out at the hostel about the craziness that is Georgia. His host
family, for example, was an extremely traditional family full of men who very
well could have been connected to the mafia. They had a stock pile of
questionable weapons and assured him that if anyone in Georgia gave him a
problem, they would kill that person. And their parents. And their children. Sounds
like a good place to live. Why not?
10:00pm
After a while we head out to indulge in the small but potent
Tbilisi underground, comprised of disgruntled 20-somethings who know that their
country is backwards but can’t escape it. We end up at Dive Bar…a popular
hang-out for us foreigners and the locals who enjoy our company. I see a Ukrainian
guy my age who I’ve met here before, while he was hosting a crazy group of
travelers from Barcelona. He tells me they were traveling in a caravan, but
couldn’t take it to India, so they just left the vehicle and all its papers
with him. He also tells me that he and some other friends are going to the wine
festival tomorrow, and then camping tomorrow night. I’m welcome to join. Sounds
like fun…why not?
Sunday, May 25th, 2:00pm
A TLG friend of mine and I meet up with the Ukrainian and his friends, and he shows us our weekend home. As you might guess, it isn’t a usual sight in a country where black is the most popular color of clothing. She also hasn’t been used in a couple of months, and they didn’t clean her out before they left…but hey, our chariot awaits! We hop on board and settle in on the bed in the back. Looks like this could be an adventure…so why not?
9:00pm
We camp out at a lake called Lisi Lake. By the end of the
night I’m sitting around a fire with two British guys, another American, a
Ukrainian, a Turkish guy, and an Iranian girl. As it gets darker, the scenery
around us gets more beautiful. In front of us is the water, dark and still. Part
of the city is framed by hills to our right, and we can see large buildings
with hundreds of little golden lights lined up in rows stories high. To our
left are more hills, standing tall and deep purple, never minding the quiet
lightening lighting up the sky behind them. I can’t help but think to myself
that this is what being young should be like. No…that’s not enough for me. This
what I want my life to be like. Spontaneity, companionship, beauty….I mean
really, why not?
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