Book Review: The Pear Field (მსხლების მინდორი)

The Pear Field in English and Georgian editions

Ekvtimishvili, Nana. The Pear Field. Translated by Elizabeth Heighway, Peirene Press Ltd, 2020.

The Pear Field has been a critical darling in both English and in Georgian, and it is the first Georgian novel I’ve read in Georgian (with help from the English translation). I’m a big fan of literature in translation and try not to be a snob about it, but I’ve got to say that here the original Georgian version was better. The English version felt quite abridged, and while some of the choices made perfect sense (what does the average English speaker know about the difference between a khrushchyovka and chekhuri proekti or the stereotypes of people from different regions of Georgia? In that context, it’s not informative), others I really missed in the English version. The Georgian descriptions were longer (not just because I read slowly), sly language jokes were missing (I understand that this is not easy to translate, but the ones I understood in Georgian were pretty great…I probably missed even more), and anecdotes and additional examples were cut. They didn’t move the plot forward, but they did contribute to the mood of the book. I think these excisions are what made the English version feel more bleak and depressing to me, while the Georgian version had a lightness and vibrancy to it. (Interestingly enough, this is very similar to my reaction to the author’s film “In Bloom”.)

Most reviews of this book mention that horrible things happen to children in it. Having read these reviews, I was prepared and didn’t find them as awful as I probably would have otherwise. I think reading in Georgian was also helpful here, because I couldn’t understand the awful details on the first read but I could get the gist, so I was more mentally prepared. I recommend this strategy if it applies to you.

So far all I have written about this book is criticism, but I do think it was very good. It’s just not a book that’s easy to explain why it’s good. Lela, the main character, isn’t exactly likable, but she is admirable in her way, and her refusal to give in keeps the story going. The same could be said of many of the characters: you don’t like them, but they’re interesting. Some, of course, you will detest. Ekvtimishvili’s writing is very visual and her descriptions are fantastic. I know Kerchi Street, where the story is set, well, so it was very easy for me to visualize, but I think others can do so as well. Her descriptions of people are full of life and a bit of humor. They keep the book from being bleak.

With the content warning mentioned above, I do recommend this book as a description of life in Tbilisi in the 1990s. It’s quite short (the English version is 163 pages, the Georgian 211), so it’s not a big time commitment like The Eighth Life is. If you’re a Georgian language learner looking to read in Georgian, this seems like a decent place to start. There is lots of dialogue using everyday speech, which is easy to understand. You probably won’t understand the vocabulary used in the violent scenes, but that was OK by me. I “warmed up” by reading two children’s books in English and their Georgian translations first, and while I was glad to have the English version, too, I was able to understand the Georgian well enough without the English to compare them.

One word of advice: pay attention to the boys in the school. I found myself thinking of them as a group rather than individuals (perhaps just like the system did!), and that left me confused about a major plot point later on.

English version: 3.5/5
Georgian version: 4.5/5

Bookshop.org

Since I’m often asked for book recommendations, I’ve started a list (two actually) on Bookshop.org of books about Georgia and books about the region more generally. They are by nature incomplete–I can only include books available on that site, and I am sticking to things available in English and that I have personally read and liked. If you think something is missing, feel free to reach out–if I haven’t read it yet and you’re willing to get a copy to me, it could make its way there soon! I do plan to keep updating the lists as I work my way through my massive “To Read” pile. Full disclosure, if you buy books through the link, I will get a small commission; you’re of course welcome to make note of my recommendations and buy the books elsewhere. I have also updated the links in my book reviews, where possible. Happy reading!

Postcard from: Bulgaria

In January due to a bad luck/good luck situation, we received fairly substantial compensation from Lufthansa for a delayed flight. In a funny coincidence, it arrived the day after our legal wedding, so we referred to it as our wedding present, and decided to use that money half for the honeymoon and half for the wedding reception.  We also decided that, out of loyalty, we should at least fly Star Alliance, if not Lufthansa, for the trip. As we were browsing the places Lufthansa flies from Tbilisi that are not at weird hours, I got back in touch with an old friend I hadn’t talked to in a while. He was getting married! In Sofia! We should come! Turkish Airlines had flights to Sofia with a reasonable itinerary (no stupid o’clock AM flights, and long-enough but not-too-long layovers) and average prices, and G thought a Bulgarian wedding sounded fun. Bulgaria, though not a member of Schengen, follows Schengen policy on Georgians, so it was a destination that was visa-free for both of us.  A family friend had relocated to Plovdiv not so long ago and had praised the city and invited visitors. The wedding day was miraculously between my students’ final exam and make-up period, so it was meant to be: we booked our tickets to Bulgaria!

Our flight from Tbilisi to Istanbul was uneventful, and we arrived in Istanbul New Airport for the first time. Our layover was a little over an hour and a half, and people on the internet said the airport was crazy and you needed at least two hours for a layover and so on and so forth, so I was rather nervous and rushed us out of the plane to hot-foot it to our next gate. There was no need; we had to go through security again, but everything was running smoothly and we had about a half hour before boarding even started to sit at the gate. On the way back our gates were about as far apart as possible (there was one more gate before the end), but we didn’t have to go through security that time, and again had plenty of time. There was some strong turbulence on the descent into Sofia (G loved it. I did not), but it was another relatively uneventful flight. The Sofia airport was small and easy. There were a few people who took some extra time at immigration, but G’s Georgian passport didn’t raise any eyebrows…they looked at mine more than his! Luggage also came through the baggage claim quickly, and we were ready to go.

We were going straight to Plovdiv, so we wanted to change a little money into leva and buy a SIM card before we set out so we could pay for the transportation and meet up with our friend easily. There was only one FX booth open at the time, so we didn’t have an option to compare rates or anything, and only changed 100€ for the time being. We couldn’t find a place to buy a SIM card (which we thought was strange but the info booth confirmed there wasn’t one), but there was WiFi, so we sent off a quick message and then booked an OKSuperTrans (THE taxi company that constantly came up in travel recommendations) to the bus station. There are multiple companies offering buses from Sofia to Plovdiv, but the one we had heard was cheaper (Karats) didn’t have a person at the counter, so we bought from the other company (Khebros) that had a bus leaving at the same time. Apparently the lady didn’t like us much, because she gave us the worst seats on the bus (back row in the middle) though there were vacant seats at the front. It didn’t have WiFi as it claimed, and while it was air-conditioned, our vents didn’t work. It was not comfortable, but fortunately it wasn’t a very long trip. We tried to pick up a SIM card at the bus station, but they didn’t seem to be sold there, either. Once we made it to Plovdiv, we were easily able to get a taxi off the street to our friend’s apartment. We had a bit of trouble connecting with him because we had assumed we would have a Bulgarian SIM card, but the very nice staff at “Planet Club” let us use their WiFi without buying anything, and we connected….I felt bad that we were so busy in Plovdiv we never stopped back in to spend money. That evening our friend showed us how the public buses worked and we caught up with our friends, had dinner, and went for a walk in the park along the river.

In the Roman Stadium in Plovdiv

The next day was our big tourist day for Plovdiv. We met our friends in the morning, and they helped us get a SIM and change money at a good rate. They recommended Vivacom, and we got a great deal for a short-term SIM. We paid 8 leva total, and didn’t use all of our internet, much less the call and SMS packages! BulBank had much better rates than the airport, and the customer service was good. Then, we went for a walk through the center of Plovdiv. The center is amazing! A huge pedestrian zone, fountains, green parks, Roman ruins…just lovely. After walking around all morning we stopped at PizzaLab for lunch (our friends had recommended it, and the travel books kept recommending pizza as something to eat in Bulgaria, so it seems to be a thing). It was set-up kind of like Subway–you chose your preferred dough, sauce, and toppings. Mine was SO GOOD. Then we went back out to be tourists. We stopped and watched the 3D show at the Roman stadium, which was interesting, but the 3D seemed to be off. Our ticket for the show included free admission to the House of Stambolyan, an old Balkan-style house displaying the works of painter Dimitar Kirov. We wouldn’t have gone if the ticket hadn’t been included, but I’m so glad we did! The house was beautiful, the guide was friendly and interesting, and I enjoyed the artwork. At the end of the tour, the guide gave us some fresh figs from the yard, and it was such a nice and hospitable gesture. We had planned to go on the walking tour that evening, but there was confusion over the starting point, so we missed it. Oh well. We strolled around with our friends, and when a thunderstorm came out of nowhere we had a delicious dinner at Antik Turkish Restaurant.

Wearing shorts in Bachkovo Monastery

The next day, we decided to visit Bachkovo Monastery, the second largest in Bulgaria, and just over a 30-minute ride from Plovdiv. G’s friends from back home had told him he had to visit it, because it was founded by Georgians. The “bus” (which was a marshrutka, which is fine, but not a bus) departed from the Rhodope bus station, so we found our way there by city bus, were told the tickets were sold out but we should ask the driver anyway, who said they were not sold out and happily sold us two, and set off. The Georgians weren’t exaggerating or being over nationalistic in saying that Bachkovo had Georgian roots, as the introductory sign prominently displayed this information. The oldest part of the church did indeed look like a Georgian church, but the rest of the complex certainly looked Bulgarian. Bulgarian churches are known for their beautiful, brightly colored frescoes, which make them great subjects for photos. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is less strict about dress codes than the Georgian Orthodox Church (our Bulgarian friends more or less said “Wear what you want! Why would they care?”), and so G made sure we got a picture of him wearing shorts at the church. The museum was also quite interesting. We walked back down to the main road, which is lined with little stalls selling food, and picked up some pastries and corn, baklava, Bulgarian delight, and chips–good lunch!

Because of the slight confusion over the marshrutka to Bachkovo, we decided that upon our return to Plovdiv we should but our bus tickets to Veliko Turnovo the following day so we wouldn’t miss our hotel reservation. Turned out the bus station was less than a block away from where we were staying, so it was an easy errand! We rendezvoused with our friends to visit the Plovdiv Rowing Canal--yet another beautiful outdoor public space, and had dinner. The next morning we gathered our things, said farewell and thank you to our friends, and headed off to Veliko Turnovo!

The view from dinner at Ivan Asen, Veliko Turnovo

We checked into the Boutique Hotel Tsarevets, which we would highly recommend as excellent value for money, and freshened up a bit. G was craving fish, so the receptionist recommended the restaurant Ivan Asen where we got a 10% discount as hotel guests. We lucked into a table on their beautiful balcony and enjoyed Bulgarian wine and beer, grilled fish, and chicken and broccoli with Bulgarian cheese. The food was WONDERFUL, and I really enjoyed the chardonnay, which is not usually one of my favorites. After dinner we went for a walk (though G might call it a hike, or even a march), exploring both the old and touristy parts of town, some residential districts, and a highway. We stumbled upon the bus station, so we decided to buy our tickets to Sofia well in advance. And then we heard the music. We decided to check it out since it sounded like people were having a lot of fun, and found ourselves at the Veliko Tarnovo International Folklore Festival.  It was such fun watching dancers from all over the world (even Georgia–we can’t escape). We also enjoyed the food trucks outside–sweetcorn and fried fish, yum!

Georgian dancers performing at the folk festival

The next day was the 4th Thursday of the month, which we didn’t know when we planned, but apparently meant that there was free admission to museums and historical sites. So we did all the museums and historical sites. Tsarevets fortress was much bigger than I had imagined from my reading, and we spent quite a few hours there exploring. The church was particularly interesting, as the frescoes were in a contemporary style (it reminded me a bit of Picasso’s Guernica) and were very movng. We then went to the Modern History Museum, the Jail Museum, the Museum of the Constitutional Assembly, and the Archaeological Museum. They were mostly small and only had limited information available in English, but were worth well more than the price of admission! We went to Inn Khadji Nikoli for dinner, which brought us into the old residential district to explore. The Inn itself is an historical house, and the service was excellent. Don’t skip the bread rolls! The portion size was big even by American standards, so although the meal was more expensive than other places we had eaten, we didn’t feel cheated. After dinner, G wanted to go back to the hotel for a break and I wanted to keep exploring and see some souvenir shops so we split up and agreed to meet at the folklore festival. G took the phone with data, so I had to use my pre-digital skills to get there. According to the map, the park where the festival was being held was just a bit down the road and a block off to the left. I didn’t notice it when I walked past, and ended up in ANOTHER large beautiful park a few blocks away, where I asked for directions and was set straight. Silly Veliko Turnovans with their multiple big beautiful parks! The folklore festival wasn’t quite as magical on the second night, but it was still fun and we had a good time.

The next morning we were set to depart to Sofia for the wedding festivities. There was some confusion, because there are multiple bus stations in Veliko Turnovo, and the woman who sold us the tickets had definitely said “Central Bus Station” and the taxi driver bought us to “South Bus Station” because that’s where the buses to Sofia leave from (my guidebook  said they also left from a private bus station, which looked kind of central). When we got there, though, there was a bus to Sofia with the livery of the company we had bought tickets from, and the same woman in the ticket kiosk said it was correct. I was still nervous though, afraid that we were in the wrong place and there was a parallel bus from another station, and eventually we would be found out and kicked off. I didn’t fully relax until the bus pulled out with no one else demanding our seats. The ride was longer than I had expected it to be, and not as well air-conditioned as it could have been, but relatively fine. G figured out that the “Central Bus Station” in question was not our departure, but our destination in Sofia. We then went to Hotel Forum, where the bride and groom had arranged a block of rooms, to check in and freshen up. We then joined the other guests for welcome drinks at 65 Fireflies. The place had a cool vibe and great pizza (See! Pizza is a thing!). We stopped at a shop on the way home for supplies and snacks to keep in the room and got some fruit (and a really good knife to cut it), interesting beverages, strange flavors of Pringles, etc.

Saturday was the wedding! The legal wedding was short and sweet, and I didn’t understand much of the Bulgarian, but they definitely agreed to get married. They had a receiving line after the ceremony, and at the end the guests were given chocolate–fantastic tradition! However it was hot so the chocolate was melty and I am a klutz, so I squirted my chocolate all over my dress. I did, of course, have a Tide2Go pen in my bag, so I was able to clean up the worst of it. After a few group photos, we had a short break before the bus to the reception while the bride and groom took their photos. I took this opportunity to wash my dress and get the chocolate out. I was all cleaned up by the time to leave for the reception. We were greeted at the venue with some delicious champagne cocktails on the reception patio, and were given little felt flowers to pin to our clothes. The reception building was really nice; apparently it used to be the South Korean embassy, and as such had a great vibe for a wedding. There were a lot of Bulgarian traditions incorporated into the party, though overall the format was familiar to me as a European Christian wedding reception. There were folk dance performances, which were really impressive and lots of eating drinking and dancing (though I couldn’t figure out the horo). It was really fun to hang out with the other guests, and the couple seemed to have thought of every detail to make it easy and fun for their guests (I can only hope our guests were as pleased with our wedding!). It was a blast.

One of the Bulgarian traditions at the wedding: breaking bread. The story is that whoever takes the bigger half will be “the man” in the relationship. She “won”.

The next day, the foreign wedding guests who were still in town went together to Rila Monastery, the largest in Bulgaria. It was a very pretty drive, and the monastery lived up to the hype–big and colorful. We climbed the Tower of Hrelio, which had a few little historical artifacts and amazing views, saw the frescoes in the main church, and ate fried dough and Bulgarian cheese while spending time with friends. That evening, G and I went to a restaurant called Chevermeto which is known for Bulgarian cuisine and folkdances. They charged a cover to enter, but the dance program was very good, and the dancers invited the audience to dance with them in a not-pushy but fun way. The roast lamb was incredible–the best I’ve ever had; the other dishes ranged from “fine” to “good”. It was the most expensive meal we had in Bulgaria, but the entertainment made it worthwhile.

The last day of our trip was the first day we had to explore Sofia, so we walked towards the center and stopped at places that looked interesting, making sure we looked at the major sites. We went into the Central Sofia Market Hall (which was weirdly hard to find) and had some juice, and checked out the exhibits in the Natural History Museum when it looked like it was going to rain. G had never been to a natural history museum, and I predicted he would like it. I was right. We then walked a bit more, stopped for shaurma and to buy my copy of Harry Potter in Bulgarian, and then went back to the hotel to pack and head back to Tbilisi.

Bulgarian souvenirs

Thanks to Kiril and Bilyana and their friends and families, Amol, Dipali, Isha, and plenty of friendly strangers for making our trip fantastic. We highly recommend Bulgaria! We could easily have spent another day in each city without being bored, and we didn’t even make it to the Black Sea coast, so we hope to visit again someday!

Book Review: Fifty Russian Winters

Fifty Russian Winters by Margaret Wettlin (image from GoodReads)

Wettlin, Margaret. Fifty Russian Winters: An American Woman’s Life in the Soviet Union. New York: Wiley, 1994. Print.

Purchase from my bookshop.org link.

Maybe I’m a little bit nosy, but I’ve always liked books that give me insight into other people’s personal lives. When I was a kid, I read my way through the biography section of the library and preferred novels that were written in diary form. I read more broadly now and will accept non-realistic elements in my books, but I still love a good memoir.

Margaret Wettlin’s story of planning to visit the Soviet Union on a one-month tour and ultimately staying 42 years certainly resonated with me now that I’ve been in Georgia longer than expected. (But I have no intention of staying THAT long!)

I think the most valuable part of this book is her recounting of her experiences during the war. Though I’ve read a decent amount of material about Russia and the Great Patriotic War (/World War Two), I haven’t before come across any first-hand accounts of the civilian experience outside the major cities or of being evacuated. Her short time in Tbilisi during the war was particularly interesting to me. I found it funny that they found a cheap “peasant’s house” in Bagebi “five miles of climb from Tbilisi”(196). Bagebi BARELY counts as a suburb these days, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a cheap anything there. It was a good reminder of the huge changes Georgia underwent as part of the Soviet Union, and the further and faster development I’ve seen even in my few years here.

The greatest weakness of the book was also the most interesting part: Wettlin’s underdeveloped and unsupported political views. She never joined the Communist Party, but she certainly supported the proclaimed Soviet ideals of equality and reform. She even became an informant for the secret police in support of this dream, but when she became disillusioned that her work didn’t seem to be making things better, she quit. She is critical of Stalin, Khrushchev and Brezhnev because they made people’s lives worse, not better. She never would have gotten a good grade on a political science term paper, as she offers no evidence to support her beliefs…but who does, really? How many Americans could give real, evidence-based reasons to explain why they are a Democrat or a Republican? Of course there are many people who can, but I would wager that for the majority of people, it just feels right, as the Soviet dream initially did to Wettlin. Her opinions in this field really shed a lot of light, for me at least, on why so many people continued to support the Soviet Union for so long, despite the hardships they faced.

The book is far from perfect, but that’s a large part of why it’s so interesting. Definitely recommended reading for those interested in Soviet history.

Movie Review: Tangerines (მანდარინები)

Tangerines movie poster (image from Wikipedia)

Tangerines/მანდარინები/Mandariinid

Language: Russian and Estonian with (teeny-tiny) English subtitles

Availability: available on DVD and Amazon streaming in the US

This film was produced in a collaboration between Estonian and Georgian filmmakers and actors. It was Estonia’s nominee for the Academy Award, and made it to the short list, though it did not win. “Tangerines” is a lovely movie about older Estonian men who don’t want to leave their homes in Abkhazia (each for their own reasons), despite the escalating violence. They come across a wounded Georgian soldier and a wounded Chechen mercenary, and take them in, and the film follows the political, ethnic, and inter-personal relationships and tensions that follow. This film was purposefully very multi-ethnic and multi-lingual. The characters ultimately learn to move past their ethnic differences and prejudices to help each other in an extreme situation. As one would expect in a film about war, there is violence and sadness, but my overall feelings toward the film were positive. The only thing I didn’t like about the film was the teeny-tiny subtitles (on the edition I rented from Netflix, at least)…I had just been to the eye doctor, who cleared my vision as good, and I really had to squint to read these. I had an advantage over others, though, as I can understand the Russian part, at least! (My Estonian however, is non-existent).

Postcard from: Tao-Klarjeti

I went to Tao-Klarjeti a few weeks ago. If you chose to take a break and look for that on a map, you may be very confused at this point. Tao-Klarjeti isn’t the name of anywhere anymore. It was the region where the Bagrationi dynasty of Georgian monarchs were from, and now it’s part of Turkey; the places we visited were mostly in Artvin province. It’s a pretty popular destination for Georgians to go on tours, but not somewhere many Americans visit, so when a friend asked if I wanted to join, I said “Why not?”. We went on an organized, but not guided, tour. We had two mini vans full of people, including a professional driver for each, and the organizer. The drivers were very good and did not suffer from lead foot or road rage, and the organizer had a route worked out and pre-arranged cheap hotels. We paid 270 GEL/person for a 3-day trip, which included everything except food–we didn’t stop at restaurants or stores (though one evening we went to a teahouse and bought some olives and baklava); we brought pretty much everything with us from Tbilisi, and ate in the car en route.

We left Tbilisi early in the morning and made for the Vale-Türkgözü border crossing. There was a long line of trucks, but very few passenger cars, so they let us skip ahead and we crossed quite quickly. It was interesting to see the change as we crossed the border. The geography in the region was the same on the Georgian and Turkish sides, but nonetheless it was obvious that we were in a different country–the cemeteries were different, the houses were a different style, and there were tractors and mechanized agriculture all around us. As we drove further into Turkey we got into higher and higher mountains. There was still quite a bit of snow, and we were even caught in a blizzard in the mountains between Ardahan and Savsat. There was some sort of nature reserve or natural park in the mountains, and it reminded me of the American West–pine forests, rugged mountains, and well-maintained picnic areas. As we drove through a village on the Savsat side, one whole village was outside (despite the poor weather) having some sort of festival.

Late in the afternoon, we made our first stop: Tbeti Monastery, the first of many old, abandoned Georgian churches in various states of ruin. Apparently this church survived fairly well for a long time, but was “exploded” in the mid-20th century…sounds like there’s a story there, but I didn’t get any more information than that. One of the villagers speaks some Georgian and runs a little souvenir shop (and paid toilet) next to the site. Next, we stopped at Savsat Kalesi, the former citadel of the town of Savsat (in Georgian, შავშეთი/Shavsheti) which was kind of a big deal back in the Georgian era. There are archeological excavations ongoing sponsored by the Turkish government. The fortress has some typically Georgian features–there’s a tone (traditional Georgian bread kiln) and kvevri (Georgian amphorae), and a “pharmacy” very similar to the one at Vardzia. Then we took a break from historical sites and clambered around “Hell’s Canyon” (Cehennem Deresi Kanyonu). It was a nice enough canyon, I suppose, but as I’ve spent a lot of time in the American West, a canyon in and of itself is nothing so impressive. This was the place where it became abundantly clear that our organizer’s footwear recommendations were way off the mark. She had recommended galoshes or rain boots, which I don’t have, so I wore what was closest: snow boots. Even though my snow boots are made by an outdoors/hiking brand, they are absolute clodhoppers, and I had real difficulty maneuvering through the canyon and leaping from stone to stone. I also picked up a good few kilos of mud in the treads, making me kind of miserable. But I made it through. Our next stop was the fortress Artanuji / Gevhernik. We approached from behind, and it was perched atop a sheer rock face. When my friend told me we were climbing up there, I joked about not having brought any rock climbing gear. We walked around to the other side, and though there was a path (of a sort) it was still tough climbing in the aforementioned clodhoppers. It was worth the climb, as the fortress was filled with wildflowers, and was really, really beautiful.

Artanuji Fortress

After one more stop at Dolishane Church, which is supposed to have lovely frescoes, but I couldn’t tell you as it was pitch black by the time we got there, we returned to the town of Savsat and stayed in a pension run by a guy called Jemal, who is the widower of a Georgian woman and loves all things Georgia. The place was basic, but clean (until we tramped mud through), and the beds were comfy and showers were warm.

The next day, I ignored any further fashion advice and switched to my trail runners, so I had no further climbing issues. First, we drove up a narrow, windy, frightening/beautiful mountain road to Porta monastery.  We saved some time getting there by scrambling up a stream bed rather than following the path. This was once a massive complex; now much of it is buried, but bits are still accessible. The ground we stood on was once one of the upper roofs. Apparently a large piece of the dome (which is still above ground) had fallen just a few days before our visit, so I was rather wary of exploring very much. It was also interesting that the village is still inhabited, and though it’s tiny and remote, electric lines do reach up there.

You can understand why bits of Porta are falling down, right?

We also visited the village spring to refill our water bottles with cool fresh water. The Georgians said it had some special health/religious properties, but I was mostly happy to get a cool drink.

Our next stop was Artvin Castle, which is now part of a Turkish military base (so no photos). At first they told us we couldn’t enter, but then a nice young soldier who spoke very good English came to escort us. On the road to our next destination, there was a distinct change in the landscape. The area around Savsat was one of the lushest, greenest places I’ve visited (we drove past a hotel called Green Valley: they were not lying), and as we went further on, the landscape become much more arid (and brown). We visited many churches this afternoon: Ishan Monastery, which was closed for restoration–the Georgian government has protested the way the Turks were renovating, allegedly frescoes were destroyed, but they seem to be back at work; Haho/Hahuli which is now used as a mosque; there are supposed to be good frescoes, but it was locked so we couldn’t see; and the Oshki Monastery, which was relatively intact except for the lack of roof, and also had an academy. Our last stop of the evening was  Tortum Waterfall, the highest in Turkey, which had rather nice tourism infrastructure and cafes. We were due to spend the night in the town of Yusufeli, so we wandered around a bit, bought some edible souvenirs, and met and chatted with a Georgian Turk in a teahouse. We then proceeded on to our accommodation at Hotel Agara, which was lovely, and a sakalmakhe (საკალმახე, trout restaurant) as well as a hotel. This day was particularly poignant as much of the area surrounding these places, apparently including the town of Yusufeli, will soon be flooded with the completion of planned dam projects. I’m not sure about the status of the historical sites themselves, though the ones on mountaintops are likely to be fine.

On the third and final day of our trip, we began at the Tekkale/Otkhta Monastery (the “Monastery of Four”), then visited Esbek, which was interesting as it was the ruins of a village, rather than a religious site. Apparently snakes like it there, though, so we had to be careful. There was also quite a view down into the valley. Then we visited Bana, my favorite of the old churches. It was really, really, ruined, but in a very picturesque way. Apparently its current gravity-defying structure is the result of being used as a military installation in the Crimean and Russo-Turkish wars. It’s also located on a small rise in the middle of a broad valley surrounded on all sides by colorful mountains, giving you stunning views in all directions.

Ruins at Bana

One of the mini-vans got a flat tire at Bana, so we had to stop for repairs before we went on our way home. Along the road we saw the source of the Mtkvari, the river through Tbilisi. Our last stop was Seytan Castle (allegedly the setting of Georgia’s most famous epic poem, The Knight in the Panther Skin).

You remember “Where’s Waldo?”, right? This is “Where’s Em?” at Seytan Castle

We crossed back to Georgia at the Çıldır-Aktaş-Kartsakhi crossing point, which the internet says is closed, but seemed to work mostly fine for us (one of our drivers had a little trouble and was taken for interrogation because he had the same name as someone on the deportation list…it got sorted out, though). We returned to Tbilisi late at night, tired from a jam-packed three days of sightseeing.

I can’t write a post about traveling in Turkey and ignore the security/terrorism question. I thought long and hard before I chose to take this trip, and asked a lot of questions. I’m lucky that I have friends who are experts on security in the region, and family who support me in making these kinds of decisions. Just before I went to Tao-Klarjeti, the US State Department updated its Turkey travel warning, and it is kind of grim, so I debated this trip a lot. On the one hand, I really don’t want to get hurt, and on the other hand, I believe that staying at home, not going anywhere or doing anything out of fear is playing into the hands of terrorists. In summary: this particular area neither has much of a Kurdish population, nor is it near Syria, so in those ways it’s not a likely target. This is also a very sparsely populated area: the most populous town we spent any time in was Artvin, with a population of 25,771. I could count the number of other tourists we came across on my fingers. However, as this area was the Soviet-NATO border, there are a large number of military installations, and there is also a good amount of strategic infrastructure, particularly dams and reservoirs, which I was unaware of before I traveled. To be honest, there’s much more immediate danger from road accidents than there is from terrorism–the mountain roads were very steep and windy, though much better maintained than their Georgian equivalents. Overall, I didn’t feel that I was in any particular danger while I was there. My conclusion was (and is) that this is probably the safest area of Turkey to visit right now, but it’s not without risks (but even home is never 100% safe).

Book Review: Heretics and Colonizers

Heretics and Colonizers (image from GoodReads)

Heretics and Colonizers: Forging Russia’s Empire in the South Caucasus by Nicholas B. Breyfogle* 

Breyfogle, Nicholas B. Heretics and Colonizers: Forging Russia’s Empire in the South Caucasus. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 2005. Print.

Availability: Available in the US and UK in physical editions; formerly available at Prospero’s, but currently out of stock. Check your local academic library. Buy from my bookshop.org link.

Let me begin by saying that this book is a little different from most of the others I have reviewed here. This is a true academic work, not a non-fiction book for the general public, and it assumes a certain amount of background knowledge. Since I have a solid background in the history of the region, I had HEARD of Dukhobors, but I was coming into this book without much specific background information, and I found it fascinating. The writing is interesting and accessible–not the snooze-fest that sometimes plagues academic writing. The research explores the Dukhobors, Molokans, and Subbotniks (sometimes referred to in English as Spirit-Wrestlers, Milk-Drinkers, and Sabbatarians respectively) in the South Caucasus. These religious sects were composed of ethnic Russians, but they were not Russian Orthodox, presenting a challenge to the traditional idea of Russian nationality. Some were exiled and others chose to move to the South Caucasus, where the regime thought they would be less likely to spread their “heretical” beliefs to other Russians, but they could be of use spreading Russianness to other areas of the empire. The tsarist regime’s treatment of the sectarians and their legal status was in near constant flux. In some ways and at some times, the sectarians achieved great successes in their new homes, while the (spoiler alert) Dukhobor Movement and weapons burning resulted in retaliation and exile/immigration for many of the Dukhobors.

This was one of those books that raised a lot of questions for me and encouraged me to look up some more information and learn more. I’d be interested in reading a biography of “Queen” Lukeria Kalmykova, for example, and I’m very interested to find out what’s going on with those who remained in Georgia at the end of the time frame covered in the book. (I asked a Georgian friend, and his reply was “Yeah, there are Dukhobors in Kakheti and Molokans on Aghmashenebeli Avenue. They’re still Russians. I don’t know about Subbotniks.”)

This book is perhaps not something with widespread popular appeal, but if you are curious about the topic I strongly recommend that you read it.

*I studied under Professor Breyfogle, so you may consider me biased. I don’t think knowing him changed my opinion of the book, but it did encourage me to read it, which I probably wouldn’t have otherwise.

Book Review: Flight from the U.S.S.R (ჯინსების თაობა)

Flight from the USSR (Image from GoodReads)

Flight from the U.S.S.R. / ჯინსების თაობა (“Jeans Generation”) by Dato Turashvili  

Turashvili, Dato. Flight from the USSR. Trans. Maya Kiasashvili. Tbilisi: Sulakauri Publishing, 2008. Print.

Availability: Easily available in almost any book or souvenir shop in Georgia, in Georgian, English, or Russian. US/UK editions to be released February 2016.

The story of a group of young Soviet Georgians who just can’t take it anymore so they decide to hijack an airplane and defect to the West. This historical fiction novel is more on the historical side (per my quick Google research), and most of the fictionalization lies in giving personality and dialogue to the historical personages. The story was initially written as a play in 2001, while Shevardnadze (who makes an unflattering cameo in the novel version) was still in power. That was certainly a brave act of artistic resistance. The novel version of the story was published in 2008, though the play remains popular (but I haven’t seen it yet). US and UK versions of the novel are slated to be published in February 2016.

When I decided to start reading this, I didn’t realize how timely my choice of reading material was–I began just after the Paris attacks, and therefore the idea of terrorism was at the forefront of my mind while reading it. One of the main themes of the book is the oft-quoted idea that the difference between a terrorist and a freedom fighter is where you stand, and that the line between good and evil is not always clear-cut. The hijackers’ actions are not defended–everyone admits that engaging in terrorism is wrong, but they are all portrayed as sympathetic characters who are just trying to make the world better. As the novel tells it, the casualties of the hijacking were inflicted by the authorities, while the hijackers shared water with the passengers trapped aboard the aircraft. This brings into focus the harshness of life under the late-Soviet regime, and the upside-down reality that the terrorists took more care of citizens than did the officials whose duty was, theoretically, to protect them. The novel engages with the philosophical questions of violence, freedom, and the connection between the two. To me, Turashvili didn’t answer these questions; rather, he created an environment suitable for the reader to ponder them.

Though the book has a philosophical side, it remains a quick and enjoyable read. The action is fast-paced, and the prose is concise and readable. At under 200 pages, it’s also a quick read. Kiasashvili’s translation was quite good; it maintained a readable and colloquial style. The one real problem I found with this book was that the proofreading was terrible (/non-existent)! It was riddled with typos–some of them comically awkward (“shedding teats in the cemetery”) and some just bizarre (a Russian letter inserted in the middle of an English word). Note to Georgian publishing companies–I (and I’m sure plenty of other ex-pats) would be happy to check for typos in exchange for some lari. These errors prevented me from fully engaging with the book and immersing myself in it. I assume that the forthcoming US and UK editions of the book will fix these problems, making the book much more readable. I can’t speak to the quality of the Russian translation.

One last point to make is that the Georgian editions of the book (Georgian, English, and Russian) are published by Sulakauri Publishing, who have been in the news recently for an ad featuring a Hitler impersonator, which many feel is in poor taste. You may want to keep this in mind when deciding if you would like to purchase the book.

Book Review: The Ghost of Freedom

 

The Ghost of Freedom (Image from Goodreads)

The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus by Charles King 

King, Charles. The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2008.

Availability: Available in both the US and UK, both physical and ebook editions. Often in stock at Prospero’s in Tbilisi. Buy from my bookshop.org link.

There’s a bit of a funny story regarding how  I read this book at this moment, but if you’re not interested, feel free to skip on down to the next paragraph. The town where my parents live, and I spend lots of time on vacation, has an excellent used bookstore, so whenever I’m in town, I make a few stops there to see what I can get. I usually also volunteer to search for things for friends, since the prices are so good. An acquaintance from university is now teaching elementary school in a low-income community in the US, and she had posted on Facebook asking for donations to her classroom library. Since I had access to a good used bookstore, I figured I would pick up a few things for her kiddos. I also looked at her personal wishlist which contained lots of Russia/Eastern Europe titles, so I thought I’d try to find something for her, too. Imagine my surprise when I saw a book on the Caucasus on her list, and my shock when this was her only request that was in stock at the bookstore! So I picked it up, and I read it first before I sent it along to her.

Now, on to the book itself. I know that back in grad school, I’d checked this book out of the library many times, but I hadn’t read it cover to cover. At that point, I used it as a reference when writing papers–what year was that treaty signed? who was the leader during that event? Although it worked very well for that purpose, that didn’t allow me to appreciate just how good this book is–the writing style and structure are excellent. One of the best parts of the book is the chapter on the creation of the Caucasus in the Russian imagination–King goes beyond the usual discussion of Pushkin, Lermontov and Tolstoy (all of course, very important) and also discusses the effects of mountaineering, ethnographic missions, and the role of Circassians as sex symbols in Europe and the US in this chapter. I also learned a few new stories from this book–the Armenian Archbishop murdered in New York, and Queen Mariam’s refusal to surrender to the Russian military (which I can’t believe no one had told me before). Even though this book was published in 2008 (just before the Russia-Georgia war) it hasn’t lost its relevance.

Verdict: Read it. Read it all!

Movie Review: In Bloom (გრძელი ნათელი დღეები)

In Bloom (Image from Wikipedia)

 In Bloom (გრძელი ნათელი დღეები)

Language: Georgian with English subtitles

Availability: available on DVD in the US, scheduled as part of the “Discovering Georgian Cinema” series in Washington DC: info here

This was the Georgian movie that everyone was talking about last year, but I just recently watched it for the first time. To be honest, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would, though I still thought it was good, I had just heard so much hype that nothing could live up to it. The beginning of the movie made me smile because of just how realistic it was–despite the passage of 20+ years and vastly different political and economic conditions than those in the movie (it’s set in 1992), the day-to-day conversations were word-for-word what I have often heard amongst my friends, co-workers, and host family. The story is quite good, and the main characters are very believable and relatable (and portrayed by very talented young actresses). The ending, however, was unsatisfying, and one of my viewing companions compared it (unfavorably) to “one of those weird French movies from the 70s”.

The English title “In Bloom” is not a direct translation of the Georgian title “გრძელი ნათელი დღეები” (grdzeli nateli dgheebi), which means “Long, Light Days” and is also a play on one of the main characters’ name: Natela (Natia). To me, the Georgian title better suits the film: it captures the feeling of reminiscing about teenage days. Even though some of the situations and events in the film were rather dire, the characters lived their lives, and found joy in them. Despite the dark subject matter, there was a sense of lightness and hope throughout.

“In Bloom” is certainly worth watching, but personally, I preferred Since Otar Left for a view of Georgia in the 90s, and Tbilisi I Love You to represent Georgia today and its recent history.