Author: jroach5

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Goodbye Georgia

This summer I spent roughly seven weeks in Georgia from the largess of the Notre Dame SLA grant, the Nanovic institute, and the Russian department. Georgia is an ancient land. It was one of the first countries to christianize, and has been at the crossroad between larger empires for millennia. Nestled amidst the foothills and valleys of the Caucuses, Georgia has preserved its unique culture amidst a tempestuous past. Some speculate that it was here amidst the verdant foothills and sloping broad valleys of the Caucuses that fermented grape juice would be first processed and drank. Wine has become central to Georgian culture, and this sense of merriment continues through piquant Georgian cuisine and all palatable potables.

During an initial three day sojourn in Tbilisi, I was met with breathtaking views, lavish dining, and an unforgettable wine tour in Georga’s Kakheti region. By train I carried on towards the black sea coast and arrived in the subtropical port of Batumi, where I met my wonderful host family. There were eight people living in the three bedroom modest Brezhnevka apartment, and while sharing one bathroom was hard they were all very hospitable, friendly, and warm to my stay.

Georgian cuisine was impeccable (especially for somebody who loves warm bread, cheeses, and meats) and I was made two meals a day from my lovely host Babushka named Leila. I was further regaled with the homemade “cha cha” (Georgian moonshine) many a night. In Batumi I partook in a Russian language immersion program that was both a part of my academic plan and of immense personal interest. Class met four hours each weekday, supplemented by language partner practice. My partner was a married woman fleeing Kherson, Ukraine and working in Batumi while her husband was a sailor. My linguistic skills have greatly increased. Moving into a completely non-English speaking environment was a shock therapeutic experience for bolstering my language skills, but upon reflection I have improved my Russian alot.I was taught by primarily Ukrainian teachers and the class was quite rigorous, but I have come off with a much better grasp on conversational Russian. After class each day I would also take time to explore the city. It helped that the numerous cafes I frequented were run by either young Russian or Ukrainian emigres to Batumi who have come since the war’s inception, as I got great practice. Although I did adjust culturally and grow, there was little need to as the hospitality of Georgia was so resplendent and welcoming I always felt at home. 

The streets of Batumi were always vibrant, with babushkas vending old items and old men gambling at backgammon on the sidewalk. Georgia is also very safe and children would play on the streets until 2am at night. I was very surprised by the quantity of American products in this small caucasian country that held the world away. The Republic of Georgia does not host the teeming throngs of American tourists that crowd the cities of Western Europe every Summer. Few Americans visit Georgia, and it is much more frequented by Russians, Turks and other tourists coming from regional caucasian countries and the Middle East. Moreover, few Georgians have ever been to America, and even less emigrate to America. However, many of our ubiquitous products and brands reach across the ocean and sea and find themselves in many family homes.  I was also interested in the cultural and political circumstances I heard about through the talk of locals, in particular about the future of Georgia. Georgia has been pursuing greater ties with the west and in many street corners the EU flag is flown beside the Georgian flag. This orientation towards the west is reflected by the hopes among the country’s young and progressive voters to pursue greater ties with Europe and join the EU, and many young people are more curious about America and American culture. Talking with so many emigres from the War was really eye opening and led me to value the stories of these people I met much more than the news reports of the conflict that are constantly discussed back home.

The excursions were also amazing. Georgian nature is breathtaking, and the program I took part in offered extrusions to Svaneti high in the caucasus mountains, the botanical gardens of Batumi, and cooking/dancing courses. Reflecting on my time there I would say I did meet my goals of reaching a more proficient comprehension and speaking level of the Russian language. I would highly recommend going to Georgia for anybody who enjoys: Food, culture, hearty conversation, nature, the post Soviet world and more. Georgia has something for everyone, and I will never forget my seven weeks there.

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Individualism and Uncertainty Avoidance in the Republic of Georgia

When I first arrived in Georgia, I noticed how much more family oriented the Georgian people were compared to Americans. I lived in an eight person apartment with one bathroom and three bedrooms, and the family structure was very cohesive, all centered around the head of the household (My host Babushka). As the metrics show, Georgia tends to exhibit less individualism and more uncertainty avoidance than the US, and my experience firsthand revealed it to me. There is little culture of independence and moving out of the house upon reaching adulthood. Job stability and simply working to earn a paycheck to live rather than trying to become a 1%er was much more the norm among the populace from what I gleaned, especially compared to Notre Dame students aiming for wall street. Perhaps because Georgia is such a small and relatively homogenous country, there is also a much stronger sense of community in shared values, national history and ethnography. Since the inception of the US individualism as been one of our most cherished national values, and compared to Georgia I believe we tend to exhibit much more individualistic qualities in terms of acquisition of wealth, family, and more. This goes hand in hand with uncertainty avoidance as Americans are in general much bigger risk takers as individual actors, whereas in Georgia preserving old customs through social cohesion and strong communal families seems to be more normal.

I will say there was a sense of yearning among the youth that tended to be more progressive and Europe-oriented for moving to bigger cities and finding prestigious careers, and in this sense it was more western and individualistic. I wish I was thinking more about these cultural dimensions when I was in Georgia, but I think they have their limitations. Applying numbers to culture seems to me like a very mathematical way of viewing the world, and while useful and insightful I do not think everything can necessarily be measured or “metriczised”. The generalized information definitely led to me making some stereotype, but as I said it is important to understand the limitations of the model and my own capabilities of judgement. I think moving forward whenever I find myself in a new place I will try to better understand how my behaviors and values as an American differs and what that means for how our cultures are distinct.

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Embarrassing Moment in a Georgian Gym

It was a perfectly sunny day. The birds trilled amidst a steady summer breeze as tall proud conifers jutted back against the Lesser Caucuses mountainside surrounding the Harbor of Batumi, with its portent arms and cranes outstretched towards the sea and the wider world. The subtropical rains had abated for the last few days and it was to be a nearly half a fortnight of sunny days and brilliant starry nights on the black sea. In downtown Batumi, I was strutting out of Russian class with great confidence as I was now home free. As per my usual routine I decided to the gym in the great mall next to our quaint school. At the mall I was accompanied by several classmates, and I decided to join them to visit the supermarket on the first floor of the mall before going to the gym on the fourth floor. I came to the gym after shopping and laden with grocery bags I struggled into the locker room. However at approximately 5:30 PM on July 7 disaster struck….

For some reason or another, my groceries slipped out of my hand as I entered the locker room to store them. On doing so, a calamitous cacophony of shattering glass reverberated so loud they could be heard amidst the watery halls of Atlantis much to my chagrin. I had dropped not only all my fresh produce but two bottles of beer I had been recommended by my host brother. The locker room floor was a proper mess and I was left awestruck at such a hideous slip of deportment and self composure. The worst part was the reactions of the other grizzled Georgian men, watching the hapless American bring beer into the gym and then proceed to shatter the bottles and their contents all over the locker room floor. It did not help that the gym owner was in the locker room…. I later called to the janitor to clean it up, and he was not happy at what he thought must be my petty hooliganism.

I continued my workout with an intense anger that in all seriousness was foremost at myself and secondly at the other Georgians for making fun of me in the locker room, I was utterly humiliated by their laughs. While I had a great workout, I sincerely regret those feelings. In the moment, I was angered at their laughs. From my own cultural expectations, I would have expected for somebody to come help me and ask me if I was ok (I also took a tumble, not helping my cause to any onlooker). Upon using the D.I.V.E. exercise, I can now recall the events with a more clairvoyant and preferable perspective. While I was in the moment I was wracked by embarrassment and later anger. Upon more objective analysis I find that I should have been more helpful to the gym owner and less concerned with my social standing amidst the Georgian locker room of the mall gym. The situation could be described objectively as a funny mishap that I was not aware of in the moment and I did could not communicate with anybody as they did not speak any English or Russian. I have since consulted the gym owner and made amends, and he said I was “off the hook”. For future incidents, I realized that I should be less self conscious about what people from other cultures think when said conscientiousness leads to negative thoughts. I did find D.I.V.E. useful, but such cultural mishaps rarely happen so I will hopefully not need to revisit such a blemish on an otherwise spotless time abroad. I will also remember to always buy my groceries after the gym!

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Exploring stereotypes in the Republic of Georgia

The Republic of Georgia does not host the teeming throngs of American tourists that crowd the cities of Western Europe every Summer. Few Americans visit Georgia, and it is much more frequented by Russians, Turks and other tourists coming from regional caucasian countries and the Middle East. Moreover, few Georgians have ever been to America, and even less emigrate to America. However, many of our ubiquitous products and brands reach across the ocean and sea and find themselves in many family homes. Georgia has little direct interaction with America in general save for trade, and even less with American college students. Georgia has been pursuing greater ties with the west and in many street corners the EU flag is flown beside the Georgian flag. This orientation towards the west is reflected by the hopes among the countries progressive and young voters to pursue greater ties with Europe and join the EU, and many young people are more curious about America and American culture.

The two stereotypes I have encountered is that Americans are loaded with money and care little about worldly affairs outside of the confines of the US border. From the people I’ve met their experiences are based mainly on the internet. I do know many students who fill these criteria. Spending lavishly in a country without any genuine interest in it (ie learning the language or culture, or even interacting with locals beyond the waiter and vendor) beyond a passionate and fleeting euphoric feeling of tourism seems a staple of many people’s impressions of American tourists and study abroad students, and I would also hold this as an autostereotype.

However, the heterostereotypes among the youth are much more positive, who emphasize the social and pecuniary prosperity they have heard about Americans from the internet and pop culture. Overall, Georgians are the most hospitable people I have ever met. From who I have spoken to in my home, on the streets, the beach, and at local bars, all take great interest when I tell them of my studies and my choice of country being Georgia. Once I tell somebody I am American they often ask my why I chose such a place instead of just studying in America, who many see as much more prosperous (on economic terms). They often also assume that I only speak english, which is a valid question since Georgian is such a rare language and few Americans speak any Russian. I have met very inquisitive people, who both take pride in their stories customs and nation, and are eager to get closer to the West politically and in simple social knowledge.

The plight of Georgia’s slow economic woes is juxtapposed in to Americas dominance of the world market and the supremacy of the USD in the minds of many Georgians, and it is understandable why they see America as so prosperous and absurdly rich by comparison. From who I have spoken to, we do share many correlating values of curiosity of the other’s culture and interest to seek out more knowledge on the other country through academic and social interests. While GDP and job opportunities may be lacking, Georgia is richer in the soul of a unified national identity, family ties, hospitality, and eagerness for integration in the world than perhaps the US ever will be. Reflecting on their perspective of American college students makes me feel much more humbled. In the provinces and on the streets with crowds of children playing and old men playing backgammon, I find content people who are interested in engaging in conversation. I have seen that though we are from thousands of miles away we can still bond over a game, a drink, or a simple conversation, where stereotypes certainly exist, but become washed away by the merriment of a mutual fraternization and curiosity. Before arrival, I knew little about Georgia and did not know much about their culture, but the fact that they know so much about America tells me that I should be more aware of my place in the world and work harder to be more lucid of what I should learn while eating bread from the table of a proud people.

However in my past three weeks I have met a country