The Trials & Tribulations of an Evacuated Peace Corps Volunteer: Part II

გამარჯობათ, or hello in Georgian!

I remember when I first looked out the window while flying into Tbilisi International Airport, I felt an overwhelming feeling of disbelief. Was I really doing this? Was this opportunity truly presenting itself to me? It was that same feeling you get when something seems almost too good to be true. Upon arrival at the airport, we were greeted by Georgian staff from The Peace Corps. They had beautifully handmade signs depicting Georgian and American friendship with greetings. All 40+ of us were scrambling to get our bags together. We all eventually packed onto a bus and drove to a hotel where we would be staying for 3 days in Tbilisi. It was nighttime, and as I looked out the window I could see old Tbilisi, the peace bridge, and churches and mosques lit up in the night. It was a surreal feeling, but at the same time I felt as if I had already traveled so much that nothing could ever seem truly "foreign" to me anymore (if that makes any sense). The first time you travel internationally, you get butterflies in your stomach. But, after so many flights and new lands it is hard to maintain that same feeling over time. Everything seems more comfortable and manageable, and this worked to my advantage.

I began to learn the Georgian language 6 days a week, 4 hours every morning, for 3 months. After 3 months I continued, with my own self-motivation, to take Georgian lessons with a tutor weekly. Because of this, I became fluent in Georgian, which opened me up to many different things. I was better equipped to make, withstand, and hold long lasting relationships with people around me. At times I became devastated and hurt with the things I heard around me. At times it seemed like ignorance is bliss, and at other times it was very useful knowing the language.

A good example is the sexism and colorism I experiences while in Georgia. I could hear men constantly barking commands at women and treating them as lesser because they are simply women. At times it was directed at myself. Georgians laughed in my face when I told them that my father does baking at my house back in America and he will go out to the store and buy tampons/pads if I need them. They were in shock, since women in Georgia are supposed to feel "shameful" of everything that makes us women and wonderful. Additionally, I experienced a lot of colorism in Georgia, which is strange considering I am ethnically Georgian and was born there. I had some men make comments such as "why are you so black?", and "how are we supposed to know you are from America and not Africa since you are so black?". I was absolutely stunned the first time I heard this and told them that comments like that in my culture are considered rude (pointing out anyones skin color). I hosted a seminar on climate change in the port city of Batumi, and one of the attendees said "why should we care about famine in Africa? Isn't that normal there? All Africans are starving so who even cares". I also constantly had to educate people on American culture...

"We are not all fat, and we don't eat McDonalds everyday"...

"We are not all white"...

"We don't all speak English. English is not Americas official language; we don't even have one"...

"America is nothing like the Hollywood films you watch where everyone is rich and white"...

Our own society has painted this elaborate image of America which has created a domino effect of falsehoods that have trickled down to every possible country and culture. I learned early on to not get overly upset with every comment, otherwise I never would have survived living in Georgia. I kept telling myself...

"just plant seeds, just plant seeds"

A great example, is that I had my period one day, but had no feminine products. So, I went into my host family's living room to ask for some, but only the men in the household were in the living room. I was in a hurry since I was in dire need of a product so I just said "I am on my period and I need a pad". My host brother shot up from where he was sat and yelled for my host sister to come help me. I left all the men in the living room in utter shock with beet red faces. My host sister said she didn't have any pads either so I said we needed to go to the one market that we had in the village. She was so embarrassed; face turning red. No one seemed to want to help me, so I said "fine, I am going by myself". Then my host sister said, "wait, the shop owners wife isn't working right now. Only her husband is and you can't go buy pads from a man!" I thought to myself how ridiculous! Of course I am going regardless of the sex of the cashier. Blood was nearly dripping down my leg. So I started walking, and then my host brother and sister drove up in a car and drove me there. I tried to remain confident when speaking about my period and seemingly disinterested in whether the shop clerk was male or female. I hope this planted a seed. Of course I completely understand and am aware of their cultural reasoning for reacting the way they did. They have been taught from a young age to hide their periods and not speak about them, which has also led to a huge lack of sex education for youth in Georgia.

Another example of "seed planting" would be when the Georgian filmmaker made a film titled "And Then We Danced" about two men falling in love in Georgia. Georgia is a homophobic country, and civilians attempted for hours at every movie theater to prevent people from entering to watch this film. Astonishing! A film about two people falling in love...how horrible, I sarcastically thought to myself. I sat by my host families TV as we all watched and just said...

"სიყვარული არის სიყვარული"

...Which means "love is love". No one spoke but I could feel their thoughts filling the room. I hope this stirred up some understanding and simplicity to a situation that was overreacted. I understand this disconnect is based on a lack of education following LGBTQIA+ issues within Georgia as well.

As disheartening as it may be to hear this, we can't change an entire culture on our own. It takes years and years of a new generation pushing for equality in order for things to gain sustainability. However, I believe you can always plant seeds in the minds of others. Whether that be creating new memories with people from other nations who maybe never met an American or a foreigner before. You are always an ambassador to yourself and to the country of which you belong, so make a worthwhile impression. You can always subtly put new ideas in place in the thoughts of others. All I can hope is that through being myself, I hope I broke through cultural barriers during my time in Georgia and changed any misconceptions and pre notions they had of Americans/foreigners. I know my community and village loved me dearly, as they were so open to hearing me out and learning new things, as was I with them.

I truly believe if you love your country, then you want it to do better. You know it is capable of being better. I know that Georgian people at their core are kind, loving, and hospitable. I hope the younger generation and next generations can help to keep pushing Georgia towards a more equal and loving nation where all people can feel welcome and accepted. Until next time, კარგად! (bye)

Next time I will take you on a tour of a day in my life and of the village/home I was living in with a host family.