CHAPTER 2 : CELEBRATIONS AND NEW ENCOUNTERS

This month, unlike the previous one, I traveled less.
I chose to slow down, to focus on new encounters.
I took a pause.

MANGLISI CAMP

In mid-December, we spent a few days at Manglisi Camp organizing activities for teenagers.
It was very intense, both physically and mentally, but also very enriching.

DECEMBER 25 : THE DOG THE LINES AND THE PERSPECTIVES

For me, it was a day like any other.
It was cold. I took my camera and went out for several hours to get some fresh air.
I like to linger on the architecture I come across.
To observe the details.
How many windows are there? How many angles? Who built it? What makes this building special?
For example, I came across a building that looked like a crystal with angular facets, or even like a spaceship. It reminded me of some models I had made during my studies.
As I walked, I asked passersby: “What is that building?”

It turned out to be a sports complex dedicated to rowing.

I was a little disappointed. I had imagined it was a secret building. I couldn’t find any information about its architecture or its architect. From an analytical point of view, I would describe it as contemporary deconstructivist or neo-futurist architecture. It reminded me of Zaha Hadid, an architect and urban planner, and a major figure of deconstructivism.

I continued walking around the park and came across an open-air amphitheater. Night was falling. There was no one there.

I imagined that in summer, this place must feel completely different, full of life and movement.

I noticed a dog hiding between the rows of seats and tried to photograph it.

My lens autofocus suddenly stopped working. I struggled to focus manually with my frozen fingers.

Then I started taking a whole series of photos, because I found the perspective really interesting.

NEW YEAR’S EVE

Back to social life.

I was invited to a New Year’s Eve party in Tbilisi by an Australian expat. There, I met people from all over the world: Australians, Americans, South Africans, Japanese, Afghans, Germans, English, and Georgians.

A Georgian man I had just met there, invited me to visit his family. It was unexpected, but I said yes.
(In my own country, that would probably have felt strange and I would never have accepted).

At midnight, I found myself surrounded by food with his family. Traditional food: satsivi, khachapuri, and most importantly, gozinaki (made of honey and walnuts, symbolizing sweetness and prosperity for the coming year). It’s quite heavy, but I really like it.

There is an important New Year tradition here: until midnight, no one is supposed to eat.

I didn’t know it at the time, but inviting a stranger into your home is believed to bring luck. If that’s true, I’m happy to have contributed !
I learned that this tradition is called Mekvle. Mekvle means “the one who leaves footprints”: the first guest to enter your house after the New Year begins.

I hope it brings me luck too !
It was a strange and beautiful night.

EXPLORING TBILISI

During my days off, I returned to Tbilisi several times. I really like this city, there is so much to see.
I made new friends there.

I visited the Georgian Museum of Fine Arts, which I really enjoyed. I discovered Georgian art through many different styles: Modernism, Georgian avant-garde, naïve art, lyricism, expressionism, and contemporary art.
As a surrealism lover, I was especially touched by the works of Tato Akhalkatsishvili, who explores memory, existential themes, and psychological states through enigmatic landscapes.

Being a pedestrian in Tbilisi is not that easy. Everywhere I went, desperately searching for pedestrian crossings to cross the big roads, it took me a long time to realize there were underground passages.
(I thought they were metro entrances.)

If you ever go to Tbilisi, don’t hesitate to visit Fabrika.
It’s an iconic place: a creative, multifunctional urban space. There are often concerts there.
Sometimes I go to the open space to work on my personal projects, accompanied by a friend who is writing her thesis.

Here is a picture of the traditional Christmas tree. (from distance it's looks like a wig haha).

Yesterday, we went back to work. Sadly, I returned sick, weak, and about 3% energy, but still emotionally motivated.
I’m really happy to be back with the other volunteers.
And I can’t wait to keep exploring Georgia on weekends, chasing traditions, mountains, and strange buildings !

Next chapter loading… More chaos coming soon !

Comments

MOVING TO GEORGIA: MY FIRST EXPERIENCES!

Moving to Georgia: my first experiences! At the start of September I moved to Georgia to volunteer at the International Scout Center in Rustavi for 6 months. In this blog I will tell you more about why I decided to volunteer in Georgia, about how I prepared myself to move abroad, about my expectations and about my experiences of the first weeks. Who am I and why did I decide to volunteer abroad? Why did I decide to move to Georgia? I am Renée and I am 25 years old. I am from the Netherlands and there I lived in a small city called Leiden. The few past years I was studying Education and Child studies there. In my bachelors I did an exchange semester and lived for 6 months in the city Tartu in Estonia. This was a really nice experience and after I came back to the Netherlands I decided that at some point I wanted to live abroad again. So when I graduated university last year I knew what I did not want: a stressful job in the Netherlands. I explored different possibilities, for exam...

In the head of a volunteer - Arrival and first week

I can’t believe that it’s been two months since I set foot in Georgia for the first time. And yet it seems like a lifetime of experiences. Here is an assortment of my very first moments, hope you enjoy :) The arrival and discovery of Rustavi landscape When I arrived at Tbilisi Airport I was surprised to see it was not as big as I expected a capital airport to be. I waited alone for a few moments for Aleks to pick me up. During my wait I went to exchange money (by the way, if you come to Georgia, don’t do it at the airport, the exchange rates are far better in the city) and I realised that I really was far from home, I couldn’t understand any of the words people were saying to each other. When Aleks arrived I went in the car. I had a cold at the time, and I travelled at night, so I arrived in Georgia without any sleep. I felt really tired and I didn’t know where I was going. I didn’t talk m...

WE ARRIVED!

Gamarjoba! Welcome to a new round of ISCR blogs. I am Vibeke, a new volunteer from the Netherlands. A month ago, I arrived at Tbilisi airport together with the other Dutch volunteer Renée, and since then three more volunteers arrived: Krista from Latvia and Charlotte and Anias from Germany. For the coming months, we will organise activities at the Scout Centre in Rustavi, try to understand something of the Georgian language and discover the beautiful country! 😀 With this blog, we’ll try to keep you updated. But how did I end up here? This summer, I applied for the volunteering program at ISCR with the European Solidarity Corps. I just finished high school and wanted to take a gap year before starting my studies. As I am always eager to explore new countries and cultures, I decided to apply for a long-term ESC program, in order to not only explore a country, but also contribute something to it. I started to search for countries that I knew nothing about. I wanted a country that will gi...

CHAPTER 1

Once upon a time there lived five gnomes. They each lived a different life in a different place for a different amount of time. However, the thing they had in common was an unexplainable urge to add a new plot to their autobiographies, to put their for-centuries-collected skills and knowledge to a good use and go to a land far far away. They packed their biggest tiny backpacks, said farewell to their gnome families and forest fairy friends, each jumped on the back of a seagull and flew into an unfamiliar direction. This is where their stories intertwine. Turns out all the seagulls were going the same way; they dropped all the gnomes at the same place – a magical castle surrounded by forests and hills. The castle was home for many, no matter big or small, young or old, beginner or advanced, from this planet or another. All the residents of the castle warmly welcomed the gnomes with open arms and open hearts. The castle was a place where a helpful hand was given first and questions ask...

In the head of a volunteer : What volunteering means to me

This article is more a train of thoughts about my volunteering experience and what it means to me than a story about reel experiences. I wanted to share it in the hope that other volunteers can relate. Those reflections started when I took over the instagram page. I am now in charge of posting about our workshops, keeping you updated about our activities and making weekly and monthly recaps. To give myself ideas, I went to see the archived posts and I got lost in what the previous teams of volunteers posted. I felt so strange. I realised that this place, where I work, eat and sleep everyday, was used by people in the same situation as me before. They walked in the same streets, shopped in the same grocery stores and discovered the same Rustavi as foreigners. Maybe the children I am meeting during my workshops knew those other volunteers, and it’s more than probable that they will me...

Search This Blog