I had a busy last few weeks! My boyfriend Ben came to visit and we spent a wonderful ten days in Mestia, Zugdidi, and Tbilisi for the holidays. A post about Georgian New Year's and Christmas celebrations will be coming soon! In the meantime, I feel like it's due time for a post about culture …
A Weekend in Mestia, Svaneti
After returning from Racha on October 31, I had spent 17 full days in Zugdidi and was getting a little stir-crazy. The solution, of course, was to go to the mountains. Zugdidi is the gateway to Svaneti, one of the famed mountain regions of Georgia. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision; snow was forecasted for the …
The Last Days of Autumn in Racha
I caught the first glimpse of Racha's indescribable fall beauty as the Delica meandered around the curves of the steep highway between Shkmeri and Oni. When I peered off the side of the road, I could see the Kheoni River stretched onwards through the valley below. We departed Tbilisi at 6:30 that morning, but my …
Autumn Celebrations in Georgia
Since arriving in Georgia in September, I had heard excited talk about Rtveli and Tbilisoba. Rtveli is the name for harvest celebrations held throughout Georgia in September and October. It's a time for family and friends to spend time together, enjoy food and wine-making, and help with the enormous task of harvesting grapes. As wine …
The Terrifying Road to Tusheti
My first venture into the Caucasus mountains was to Tusheti, a region in northeast Georgia. Through one of the many "Expats in Georgia" Facebook groups I belong to, I found out there were spots remaining on a $175 weekend tour. The only route to Tusheti is Abano Pass: a 45-mile (72 km) one-way dirt road …
Hard-Launching My Fulbright Year in Georgia
A few weeks ago, I boarded a plane on my first international flight since leaving Austria in March of 2020. After several long layovers, no missed connections or lost baggage, I arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia at 4 am on September 11 to start my year as an English Teaching Assistant with Fulbright. A Quick Geography …
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Skiing in Karakol
One of my favorite hobbies is skiing, and I was super stoked for an opportunity to shred some snow on the beautiful slopes of the Tien Shan. Other SRAS students Ross and Mikaela and I planned a ski trip for one of our last weekends of the semester. There are several ski slopes in mountainous …
A Week in Uzbekistan
SRAS students’ trip to Uzbekistan was a long time coming. Originally scheduled as a two-week Central Asia tour, after the London School and the tour company they booked our trip through had both forgotten that we needed visas to get into Uzbekistan from Turkmenistan and we were left visa-less between borders, completely unaware of the …
Touring Turkmenistan
I'm Sorry, Where? Heard of the place? No? Watch this video from John Oliver. You don't even need to see the full thing to grasp how bizarre of a place it is. SRAS students studying in Bishkek had the opportunity to travel to Turkmenistan for a few days in October. As freaked out as we …
Horsin’ Around
After the half-day horse trek organized by the London School and SRAS, a few of us students were left wanting more. Four of the eight SRAS students agreed to go. There are many companies offering treks and excursions in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan, but typical of broke college kids abroad, we were looking for the …
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