America for a Minute

It was a busy month back home. It’s not really accurate to say ‘back home’ I suppose, as most of the time was spent traveling to see various friends and family. I had barely landed when I left to drive up to Burlington Vermont to visit Tzega with my high school friends Yulia and Kyle. It was quite the international car with Yulia in from Moscow, Kyle in from Nairobi and me coming from Georgia! It was great to catch up, to reminisce, to laugh and to go a little crazy cooped up in the Yaris for so long.

 

Christmas was spent at home with the family. All the siblings were gathered with the exception of Francis, Snigdha and Kiran. It is always one of my favorite times, coming back from the Shepherd’s play, sitting around a table laden with Jeff’s fantastic cooking and finally seeing family for the first time in far too long. This year it struck home for me that I would like to be able to sit around meals like that with a little more frequency, so I’m keeping that factor in mind as I consider my plans post-Georgia.

Shortly after Christmas I shot up to the lower Adirondacks to spend some time with my friend Roman. It was a real nice visit, and comforting to know that I had made at least one excellent friend in my time at McGill. We rang in the New Year together in a supremely low-key fashion, lounging on couches, watching TV. It was a surprise when we looked at the time and realized it was 2012. It felt just right.

From Glens Falls I headed to North Hampton, Massachusetts to see my friend Julie. A couple other Northwaters friends made it over for a real nice dinner that I cooked up of pork roast served next to celeriac puree, pan-fried collard greens with bacon and a red wine reduction. It was back to PA for a night or two before my flight to San Francisco. Roger and Denise’s new house makes for a nice stop en route to the airport. It felt strange to all of a sudden be on the other side of the country, but it was a wonderful, sunny shiny visit to Francis and family with summer-like weather, perfect for bike rides and plenty of geocaching! It was great to play with blocks and read to Kiran, who’s already so much bigger than the last time I was out there.

After San Francisco, it was another quick stop with the parents before heading up to Montreal for a long weekend. I drove with my friend Liana. The snow started above Albany, and was pretty serious by the time we were crossing the Champlain Bridge into the city. The Yaris survived the snow and fun-filled weekend catching up with the friends from McGill I still have up there. Highlights included tearing up the campus bar at MacDonald with my French-Canadian friends David and Simon-Pierre, watching a movie in one of the lecture halls, finding a geocache that had eluded me before in my time up there, getting my car stuck in multiple parking spots and eating a deliciously greasy poutine!

All too soon it was time to head back south. I managed to squeeze in a quick visit down to Baltimore. I had the opportunity to sit in on 1^st and 3^rd grade Spanish lessons at the Waldorf School, which gave me some ideas for making lessons back here a little more engaging. But then again it was time to be on the road. I found that it was time to be packing my bags. I still squeezed in a last dinner out with my friend Tristan at Majolica in Phoenixville. I was one of the most memorable meals I’ve had in a good while and a perfect way to end my time in the States before flying over here again. Leaving was a little overwhelming. I felt as though I needed another vacation to recover from my vacation.

I was a little concerned upon arriving at the airport in Philadelphia to find that my flight to Chicago was cancelled, but I got on another flight and made it there in time for my connecting flight to Istanbul despite several inches of snow on the ground in Illinois! On the long flight over-seas I had all four seats in the center block to myself, so I stretched out and slept most of the way comfortably! By the time we landed in Tbilisi it had been about 24 hours of traveling. At four in the morning I shared a cab with one of the other teachers I know who was on the same flight to an apartment in Saburtalo where I passed out for a couple hours. It was an effort to get up at 1pm- I was ready to sleep all day. I caught the 3pm marshutka back to the village, and caught up with my friend Tim on the way. Of course there was a welcoming meal awaiting and directly after I was ready for bed. But I was happy. It felt a little bit like I had come home.

I've already been back here a week now. I'm rediscovering the use of my Georgian and I'm slipping right into the school routine. It's good to be working and the pace of life in the snow-covered village is just right after so much running around.