The Neverending Ticket

From my last post you might be thinking that I'm on my way back to the states. Sadly, you would be terribly wrong.

Getting your ticket from a Georgian travel agency is like trying to solve non-linear equations with your 8th grade math book. The basic skills should theoretically help you at least gain a very general idea of what is happening. Can I, using my skills of traveling in America, gain a general idea of what is happening with my trip home? Nope. It just isn't going to happen. A difficult task has become completely impossible and not the fun impossible of "oh, look I found infinity."

Many, many mouths ago I emailed TLG telling them I would not be extending my contract. I would need to fly home between June 15-17 because I would be assisting a mission trip in Chicago. I did this probably three times all within each new deadline. Two months ago I specifically emailed Alex, the flight coordinator, to make sure he received my email since I hadn't heard anything from them. He said they had. I thought great. I knew I wouldn't get my ticket as early as I might like, but I would at least get it a week before I flew out.

Well, two weeks ago I called Alex again asking about tickets and when he thought they would be sending them out. He was very noncommittal and said in a couple days. I then get worried when last week I still don't have anything after he tells me two days. I call a couple times that week and finally get him to tell me that it will be on the 16th. I don't have anymore information. That at least, thankfully, gave me enough to plan on how to get to Tbilisi on time.

  Tuesday night before leaving for Tbilisi, I check my email for a ticket. No ticket. I take the train (and yes I love foreign trains, too) on Wednesday morning. I get into to Tbilisi and take a taxi to the TLG office to hand in my phone and get my certificate before leaving on Thursday early morning. Only when I get to the office I find out that they are still waiting for my ticket. OK, I'll admit panic sets in a bit. Alex gets my ticket in about an hour from when I arrive. The ticket says I'm leaving on Friday and on a different airline!! Ah this so was not in my back-up plan.

I spend the night in a wonderful hostel called Old Town Hostel . They literally have everything that a nice hotel will have all at a cheaper rate. (Wifi, showers, TV, clean rooms, a common room, great location) They have been great.

Tbilisi Peace Bridge

This morning I woke up obscenely early for Georgian time, 7 AM. I then proceeded to check out all the tourist hotspots before the sun gets hot and people are crowding the walkways. It was wonderful. I'm glad in many ways for the extra time. I didn't get to explore the city much when I was here for training. It has costs me a bit more than I anticipated. I was supposed to be paid the day before leaving. However, even this morning I hadn't been paid for the month of June. It's a good thing I had some savings from each previous month to use for this extra day. I've done a lot of walking and free sites. Yet, food is more expensive in the city and I still have to get to the airport tomorrow.

Now, I've checked my ticket twice today online. The first time today I noticed that I'm back on Turkish Airline. They are who I flew in on and have better luggage requirements than LOT. It's still on the 17th. However, I can't check-in online. It looks like I'm on some sort of wait list for my first flight. I should just go with the flow, but I'm still a bit nervous about the whole thing.

I'll be home, hopefully, late on the 17th. I  am missing family and friends and normal sandwiches and my animals. See you soon. 

Independence Day Protests

So, one more post today about something that is making the news here and in the US. Thursday was Georgia's Independence Day from Russia. Most of my neighbors had supras long into the night or celebrated with family. Many major cities like Tbilisi and Batumi had protests run by the Opposition. They hoped to oust the current President, reunite ties with Russia, and encourage freedom of speech. The last issue seems odd to me. My host family or co-teachers have never complained about not having freedom of speech or feeling restricted by their government. The news found on the TV do not paint the protestors to be very peaceful or searching for civil rights. (Yes, I know this has a strong pro-government bias) I see images on the TV of protestors with large white sticks and even an attack on a car. It's hard for me to support the idea of these protestors when I see first-hand the good that the president's reforms are doing, especially in education.

There were some earlier protests last week and then again this week. The embassy sent out emails warning US citizens to avoid the areas where the protests were taking place. I'm certainly very safe here in Poti and didn't have any plans to travel to those cities during the weekend. I get to instead observe the changes from a safe distance. I've attached some links below about the events. If you're interested I suggest you read the short articles. Each one has a different bias.

TIME
  New York Times
    RT Video (Russia but in English)
      A georgian video to come, when my internet decides to cooperate 
     

The Quest for a Marshutka Proof Bag

Marshutkas are crowed, smelly mini buses. They are the standard form of transportation in every city and between cities here in Georgia. The great thing about them is that they are cheap and easily spotted. The bad thing about them is they are excruciatingly uncomfortable. You get smashed against the windows, or worse two strangers. Most of these strangers do not bathe as frequently as my timid American nose is used to. If you are carrying anything with you from a purse to a luggage bag, you had better hope that it can survive being crushed even more than your body and being thrown around some. Finding a bag that satisfies these requirements and can carry a 17" laptop is a tedious and frustrating journey.

I first attempted to find a large black purse in the Poti market that would fit my English books and laptop. Most Georgian women walk around all stylish and posh with a large metal studded, fake leather purse. My purse just didn't fit the requirements of Georgian streets even if it did fit all my books; which it didn't. (For the record, I never buy any bag unless it can fit at least one standard paperback book ;) Not always the easiest thing to achieve.)I bought two different bags that fit the requirements and had both break and be torn apart in one week. The continual rain and tribulations of riding in marshutkas did them in. I gave up on style at that point and just wanted to find a sturdy bag that would fit all my stuff. Weeks of searching yielding nothing. I even recruited volunteers in other cities to help me search.

Finally, I ordered ThinkGeek.com's "Bag of Holding". My dearest parents then shipped that and my kindle (New purse requirement: must fit kindle. Who knew life could be so easy!) over here to Georgia. I was told that the service I used, usa2georgia.com, would provide courier service to Poti. They did not. I can't complain, though, since it only cost me 45 GEL to ship a medium sized package to Georgia. That's a steal compared to the $300 with USPS or FedEx. The problem remained on how to get the package from Tbilisi, the capital, six hours away.

Yesterday, I braved the mountain roads by boarding a marshutka in the morning headed to Tbilisi. This one was crowded but not terribly so. I could keep to myself with my MP3 player. It was a long ride, six hours. None of the marshutkas have new or comfortable seats. Eventually, your but will hurt from sitting so long. Mine did.

When I got to Tbilisi, I met Ana in a taxi. She helped me translate to the driver where I needed to go. I picked up the package at the station from a super nice and English speaking woman. TLG or ex-patriots in Georgia, www.usa2georgia.com is definitely the way to get supplies from the states. They were awesome. After that we stopped at McDonalds for a hamburger. I'm not a fan at home in the states, but seeing those golden arches did make me smile a bit. The food is mostly the same. The menus just don't have prices, are written in Georgian, and don't feature any value meals or the dollar menu. In another taxi, I headed to the bus station again. All of this took a little over an hour. Perfect timing! I managed to get on the last bus headed back to Poti by five o'clock.

The marshutka going back was even more crowded than the first. I was squished in the back seat. I sat next to a very nice and friendly Georgian man from Telavi. The only problem was that I could tell that he distinctly was not wearing deodorant. It was kinda gross!

I can though, say that my new bag is marshutka proof. It was all worth the effort. I have triumphed over evil, righted wrongs, and proven my worth. . . as a marshutka passenger.