Snow Days in Georgia

After 5 weeks of vacation, 1,300 pictures (that survived the cut), 3 boats, 4 countries, 1 rental car, 11 hotels/B&B’s/lodges/hostels/guesthouses, and 5 packages of Duo cookies, I am back in Shashiani.

I trudged through 8” of snow with a large duffle bag, a carry on, my computer bag, and a coat to get back to my house, all the while cursing the winter and its consequences. However, less than a week later, I realized that 8” is nothing compared to 14”. Granted, these are rough measurements; I have no way of actually knowing how much snow we have, especially because most of the surfaces are uneven, so it’s not as simple as just looking at a few tracks in the snow and approximating. However, I think my estimates are fairly accurate for the majority of my experiences.

My students’ favorite question for me as of late has been, “You like snow?” My reply is typically something like, “I like the snow because it is beautiful, but I do not like the cold.” (Me miqkhvars tovli imitom rom is lamazia magram me ar miqkhvars tsiva.)

By the time I got back to the village, the snow had been there for a few days and had been fairly packed down in most areas. However, after Friday’s snow, there was nothing but cold feet, wet boots, and several layers of socks. As I left school on Friday, I was greeted by snowballs whizzing through the air; I’m happy to join in when I am not the sole target. I found solace with the 3^rd graders and walked home in slush.

I had dinner with Jenny’s family Friday night and got in a taxi around 6:30 to get back to my village. However, the roads were bad, and I was a bit concerned at the reliability of the driver’s car. We went slowly through Vazisubani and eventually reached the bottom of the hill entering Shashiani. My road lies toward the top of the hill, so I gave him a better marker of the “first shop”. However, as we crawled up the hill, I realized we were not going to get that far. I got out as he backed down the hill and swung the car around. I was greeted by students sliding down the road in old toboggans or just sliding down on their feet and watched for a few seconds before I continued on down my road. I eventually ended up back at the road and played with Ani and a few younger students outside, dodging cars and pulling toboggans.

Saturday proved to be the ultimate snow day; it was cold, and I felt lazy. In America, a snow day infers a blazing fire in the fireplace, sweatpants, a good book, and a cup of hot cocoa, with a snowman or two thrown into the middle. In Georgia, however, a snow day infers a seat by the pechi, sweatpants, leggings, two long—sleeved shirts, one sweater, a pair of fuzzy socks, and slippers, one of the few books I brought with me to Georgia, and a cup of fruit juice from whatever compoti we have open, with a snowman and 3 snowball fights thrown into the middle.