Yesterday was Easter in Georgia. (There is a disconnect between the western and Orthodox calendars, so the holidays don’t quite match up. Christmas, for example, is celebrated on January 7th and New Year’s Day is Jan. 14th.) Easter brings with it two significant events in the life of the average Georgian: Easter Monday is the day when Georgians return to their “home village” to decorate the graves of their ancestors and to enjoy a large feast with family, and it’s the end of Lent. I’m not sure which one is more important.
Georgians define “home village” as the home of the family patriarch. Since most of these home villages are not Tbilisi, the city itself is relatively empty during the weekend. This is probably a good thing because Easter also brings the end of Lent. Georgians observe Lent on three levels: the most devout abstain from meat, dairy, and eggs during the entire 40-day Lent period; the “average” Georgian abstains on Wednesdays and Fridays, and the “Easter Orthodox” (equivalent to the “Christmas and Easter” Christians in America) fast only on Fridays. There are those, of course, who don’t observe Lent at all, but they are a definite minority. Georgians additionally are expected to give up something for Lent, just as we do in the US. For many Georgians, that’s alcohol. (Thank God wine isn’t considered alcohol in Georgia, at least for the purposes of Lent; for the purposes of Lent, alcohol is defined as distilled spirits. Vodka sales plummet during Lent, but the smart businessman makes up for it by increasing his wine stock.) So, Easter Sunday is when Georgians can go back to their vodka. Thankfully, as I said, that’s usually done away from the city.
So that leaves we few Americans practically alone in Tbilisi for four days (Good Friday is usually taken as a vacation day by the Georgians and Easter Monday is a national holiday). Since it was a beautiful weekend, and since staying in our quarters for four days should be outlawed by the Geneva Convention’s protocols prohibiting torture, I went out to see the sights. I decided to visit two places that I’ve wanted to see since I got here: the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the zoo.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is in the center of Vake Park, what used to be known, and is still known by the older generation, as Victory Park. The Tomb cradles the remains of a Georgian soldier from World War II, but since he’s unknown, it’s impossible to know if he fought for the Russians or the Germans during the war. (Most Georgians fought with the Red Army as draftees, but tens of thousands fought alongside the Germans against the hated Soviets. Some volunteered to join the Germans but many more were fighting in the Red Army when they were captured by the Germans and given the choice of joining the Wehrmacht or being executed.) There is a place next to the Tomb for an eternal flame, but like so many things in this country, it’s not working at the moment. Every year on May 9th (Victory Over Fascism Day) the dwindling number of WWII veterans gather in Vake Park to place a wreath on the Tomb, the President or Defense Minister gives a speech, and the younger generation marches to the Victory Statue to place a wreath and catch their breath before climbing back down. You get an idea of the climb from these pictures.
I also visited the zoo, a saddening but educational experience at the same time. The zoo is small and shares space with a kids’ amusement park. The zoo is right out of the 1950s: small enclosures with little for the animals to do but pace and sleep. While there are the requisite pair of old and dusty lions, a monkey cage, and a llama or two, a lot of space is dedicated to the animals that most fascinate Georgians: bears, horses, and birds. There must have been a dozen bears in the zoo – brown and black bears (no polar bears, which disappointed me greatly) kept in small and dirty enclosures and in some cases, cages. There was a very large pasture filled with horses and ponies, some of which are attached to a cart for kiddie rides. And there was a whole row of cages filled with birds of all sizes and colors. My trip to the zoo confirmed what I had been thinking: Georgians are bird brains. They love birds here. Many people travel out of the city on weekends for bird watching tours, and many, many apartments and houses display a cage or two filled with everything from small songbirds to larger parrots and macaws. When you walk into a pet store (which doubles as a veterinarian clinic and animal supply store), you’re immediately overwhelmed by the noise (and stench) of dozens of birds. Older ladies often carry a small amount of bird seed in their pockets or purses to feed the pigeons while they wait for the bus, and chickens are prized not only for their eggs and meat but as pets.
I get the birds thing, and I’m pretty fascinated with bears of all colors, but I’m still at a loss for the enthrallment with horses. The villages surrounding Tbilisi and Gori are filled with horses, donkeys, and ponies. In other words, it’s not like they’re rare or endangered creatures. Yet, the chance to ride a pony or to ride in a cart pulled by a couple of horses appeals to Georgian children just as it would to American kids, I guess. Even the most popular ride in the zoo’s amusement park is, what else – a merry-go-‘round.
So another weekend in Georgia is over. And only four work days until the next one! Thanks for reading.
