Category Archives: Culture Shock!

Quality of Life, Political Economy, and Ethnocentrism

Posted on March 20, 2013 by

A CNN article caused an uproar in the Georgiasphere because it listed Tbilisi as an example of one of the world’s worst cities. This list was based on the Mercer “Quality of Living” survey which rates 221 cities based on … Continue reading →

Posted in Civics, Culture Shock! | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

EARTHQUAKE

Posted on December 23, 2012 by

I just survived my first earthquake. Well, okay, technically it was at least the third earthquake I’ve experienced in Georgia. Once when I lived in Gldani my roommate came home and asked me about the earthquake and I had no … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventures in Adventures in Georgia, Culture Shock! | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Generalizations

Posted on July 21, 2012 by

Generalization is a very important skill. It underlies language – it’s our capacity to recognize that this chair and that chair share enough features that we can give them one name and use that name to communicate about a whole … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture Shock!, Deep Thoughts at 3AM | 3 Comments

Thoughts on Adaptation

Posted on July 17, 2012 by

It was a great movie. *************************************************** I’ve been gradually adapting to life and culture in Georgia for the better part of two years, but it seems to have hit some kind of a peak lately. People are starting to notice … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture Shock! | 7 Comments

Why I Do What I Do

Posted on May 10, 2012 by

I’ve been having a conversation with a fellow expat in Georgia. Something tells me “Britishvili” is not his real name, but I feel it might be rude to level such an accusation at a perfect stranger, so “Britishvili” it is. … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture Shock!, Education, Sex and Gender | 3 Comments

Barfight and Epiphany

Posted on May 7, 2012 by

I basically had an epiphany slammed directly into my forehead – in the form of an angry, drunken Georgian’s head. The epiphany was: I may have been judging Georgian men a shade too harshly. How, you might be wondering, does … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventures in Drinking in Georgia, Culture Shock! | 9 Comments

Sick Again and Sick of Lies

Posted on April 6, 2012 by

Last week, I walked into one of my second grade classes (“second form,” in Georgian English). It was a day like any other. “How are you,” I asked my coteacher. “Oh, not very good”, she said, pronouncing “good” to rhyme … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture Shock!, Health and Sickness in Georgia | 33 Comments

Growing Up In The World of the Iron Curtain

Posted on April 3, 2012 by

I think it’s safe to say that people in the US, overall, have absolutely no clue what it was like to grow up in the Soviet Union. If you’re from the West, take a minute to think about what you … Continue reading →

Posted in America, Culture Shock!, Politics | 4 Comments

In Defense of American Heritage

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

Georgians are perhaps overly fond of mocking the United States of America for being a “young” nation. Georgians attribute a whole host of negative traits to this deficiency – our lack of respect for tradition, our liberal values, our loose … Continue reading →

Posted in Civics, Culture Shock!, Education | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Is there anyone out there cause it’s getting harder and harder to leave

Posted on January 8, 2012 by

I know, that’s not the lyric. But it is. Getting harder to leave, that is. This summer I would like to travel around Europe and Asia instead of visiting New York. I’ll have the details of that once they’re confirmed; … Continue reading →

Posted in America, Culture Shock! | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments