my wu-chi blog » pictures

Day in the life

ja — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 17:53:05 +0000

Snow in Chala.

During the first week of December we got about two-three feet of snow. Below are some pictures from this time.

It's a good day

Do you see the Abominable Snowman?

6th grade girls having snow fight with badminton rackets

Yellow flower in the snow

I found the above small flower patch at school hanging over a cement curb trying to escape the snow. This is probably one of my favorite pictures that I have taken in Georgia. For what it is worth, there is no post-editing on this photo – this is the way it came out. One more reason why I like it so much.

You can view the rest of the Chala snow days slideshow here.

After a two year hiatus…

ja — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:07:31 +0000

The Flat Stanley’s are back!

Alexa sent me a box (now 4 for 4 with USA2Georgia) of children books and new Flat Stanley’s of her three girls and Jason and Kim’s two boys. This was perfect timing for we got our first snow fall this week.

Flat Stanley Snow Angel

Flat Stanley Bath Time

Look how deep the snow is!

Grandpa giving a helping hand with the rabbit pen

You can view the rest of the new Flat Stanley’s in Georgia here or all of the Flat Stanley’s over the past 5 years here.

And I’m Back

ja — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:52:52 +0000

I have a camera!

My dad sent me his ‘old’ camera, which just happens to be the exact same as the one that died on me. I now have four batteris and two battery chargers. At first I thought that I did not need it, but then I realized how cool it is to be able to charge two batteries at once and to have a large depository of batteries available for use.

Just as a side note, this means that USA2Georgia is 3 for 3 for delivering my packages. Thank you!

If only

ja — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 18:30:08 +0000

Tonight would have been a good time to have a working camera.

On the way home from town, I was smashed into the front of the marshutka. It was not a comfortable experience, but it did afford me the view of seeing the full moon rising over the mountains. I got home, changed clothes, and then headed out to watch more of the moon.

I ended up going down towards the river so I would have a nice open view of the moon. This area is full of corn fields, which in the last week have all been chopped down. The timing of my walk coincided with the sunset. So on one side I had the full moon rising and on the other I had the pretty colors of the sunset. I think it would have made a cool panorama. Oh well.

On the plus side, thanks to my dad being a tech geek and buying the latest and greatest gadgets, I will be getting a hand-me-down camera in a week or so. Yeah!

Mestia – The drive

ja — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 18:45:37 +0000

We flew to Mestia from Tbilisi but Beso, Teona, and I took the marshutka back to Chala.

The marshutkas only leave at one time of the day – 0600. Yippie! We get up early, eat some breakfast and hop on the marshutka. About 20 minutes later we stop before a bridge with three marshutkas stopped ahead of us. Why have we stopped?

Teona translates that there is a mudslide ahead. Really? My eyes quickly wake up and sure enough, I see that the other side of the bridge is covered in gunck at least three feet deep. Interesting.

It had been raining every night for the past three nights. I remembered that the night before was a really good lightning and thunder storm. Apparently there was also a lot of rain and this mudslide was created. I wasn’t too shocked by this site for Georgia had been getting pounded by rain throughout the spring and early summer causing lots of flooding and landslides. Just never thought that I would be stuck by one.

We got out of the car and walked across the bridge to see the size of the mudslide. We saw that it traveled at least a couple hundred yards above the bridge and continued for about one hundred yards below the bridge. Amazingly, it looked like no houses were caught in the path.

After about 30 minutes, a tractor showed up. Sweet – this will be fun to watch. I figured that it would scoop up the mud and dump it over the side of the bridge. Instead, it slowly pushed its way through the mud, the force of which was causing the mud to slide down the hill below the bridge. This went on for about 30 minutes before another tractor showed up. This one had a bigger engine and tried to drive over the mudslide to get to the other side. He made it about 15 feet past the progress that the first tractor made and started to get stuck. He quickly reversed out of there and came back to the bridge. The first tractor went back to work.

Eventually, the second tractor took over and soon a third tractor arrived on the other side of the mudslide. The two worked together to create a one lane path and push the mud down the side of the hill. Overall, it was interesting to watch, but it took three hours before we were under way.

Now the fun was just beginning. It takes four hours to get out of the mountains and to a town called Zugdidi. We had several more interesting experiences over these four hours. Stopping at least two times due to rock slides of slate and waiting for them to be cleared out. Well, waiting for the tractors to get out of the way so the marshutka driver can make a mad dash to get by, which is really fun when you are driving over a rock slide on the side of a steep cliff. Wheee!

Another fun adventure occurred in places where they were paving the road. I am so glad that they are, but it is a bit scary the way they were doing it. They paved one side of the road with cement that was about a foot thick for a long ways and then go back and work on the other side. Since they were working on one side, all traffic had to drive on the opposite side that was just paved, which is only one lane wide. Do you see the problem here – two way traffic driving on a one lane road, in the mountains along the side of the hills. Amazingly, we never encountered traffic coming at us on these parts of the road, but it was close a few times.

The rest of the time was spent holding onto the seat in front of me for support as we drove through all of the hills and curves. I am so glad that I was wearing my back brace.

After we got to Zugdidi, we caught a ride to Kutaisi and from there caught a marshutka to Sachkhere. Overall, 10 hours on the marshutka and another 4 hours of waiting. If you can, I highly recommend flying!

View the mudslide slideshow.

Mestia – Ushguli

ja — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 17:42:47 +0000

The highest, constantly inhabited, village in Europe. Awe-some!

Ushguli is about a 2.5 hour drive from Mestia over rough roads and through winding hills. Along the way, our driver told use stories and folk-tales about the areas and it was a lot of fun. The stories, not so much the ride thanks to a bad back.

Drinking a beer at the highest village in Europe

After we got to Ushguli we stopped at a cafe so everyone could get some coffee. This is actually the only cafe in Ushguli and they have drinks, food, and souvenirs. I was actually quite surprised to see a sign on their bar that stated that the cafe was partially funded by USAID. Really? Interesting.

Since I am not a coffee drinker I wanted something else to drink. Considering that it was almost noon, like in an hour or two, I decided to get a beer. While drinking my beer I realized that I am having a beer in the highest village in Europe. Sweet! After the other guys saw me drinking beer they decided that they also needed a beer after finishing their coffee.

In front of Mt. Shkhara, the highest peak in Georgia

After finishing our drinks and partaking in the souvenir shop, we headed out to explore the village. The north side of the village is dominated by Mt. Shkhara, the highest peak in Georgia. That is where I wanted to go. Well, not all the way to the mountain for that is a seven hour hike. Instead, there was a nice hill on the edge of the village that overlooked the mountain and that is where we went.

Along the way through the village, we picked up a guide dog, well more like a dog follower. The dog followed us all the way to the top of the hill and kept an eye on us. At one point the dog saw a pack of dogs running on the mountain to our left and he ran to the edge of our hill and yelled at them. I think he was telling him that this was his hill and that we were his.

Lower Ushguli Towers

After the hill we walked back through the village and ended up at the cafe again, this time to eat lunch. Next, we headed south of the village towards the museum that lets you go up in a tower. If you look in the photo above, the museum/tower is the short fat building on the far right.

The Wanderer

On the walk to the museum, was walked up a hill that gave a nice view of upper Ushguli. On top of this hill is where my favorite photo was taken, as seen above. When I got home and looked through my photos, this one reminded me of a painting that was on the cover of my humanities class in high school. It was actually my favorite painting and I think it inspired me to hike, travel, and see the world. I love it!

Wanderer above the Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich

Overall, I love Ushguli. I am going to go back next summer and hike to the glacier. I would love to live there, but having snow from October to May is a bit of a downer for me. If anyone is interested in purchasing or building a summer tower that I can live in for free, please let me know!

View the slideshow of Ushguli.

Mestia – Chalatis Glacier Hike

ja — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 18:35:46 +0000

A few kilometers north of Mestia is the Chalatis Glacier. Hike time!

Bridge to Chalatis Glacier

We got a ride most of the way to the glacier for we did not know how strenuous the hike would be and wanted to enjoy ourselves. The jeep took us about 1/2 to 2/3 of the way there. There is a footbridge that you have to cross over a river and this is where all of the vehicles stop. As we got out of the jeep (btw – not the jeep in the picture above), we saw a small group of older ladies returning from the hike. Well, hell, if they could do it, we can do it. Well, turns out they did not do it, but we did.

Chalatis Glacier

The weather was perfect and the hike to the glacier was awesome. Up and down hills. Walking along the river that is coming out of the glacier. Boulder hoping. Trying to find the trail while boulder hoping.

Note – out homestay host told us that the trail was flat. It was not. Mostly uphill. I noticed that she also told us that the road up to the Svaneti house museum was also flat. That was very uphill. I have concluded that the people that live in the mountains have a very different idea of flat than the people that do not live in mountains.

The picture to the right is the glacier. No, not the mountain at the very top but the wall of gray rocks that go across the middle of the picture. I didn’t realize until I was almost upon the face of the glacier that that was the glacier. I thought that it was just another rock slide wall. I was wrong.

It was awesome to watch the water flowing out of the bottom of the glacier to form the beginning of a river. Whenever I see rivers, I always wonder where they start. Well, for this river, I now know.

Water flowing out of Chalatis Glacier as the start of a river

The picture on the left is where the water is flowing out from under the glacier. If you look at the ground that surrounds the river you will see lots of rocks. I thought that this was the normal ground. However, upon walking up to the very edge and watching the water come out I realized that the ground is ice covered in rock. Upon looking closer I noticed that the ice was not that thick so I decided that sitting on the edge was not longer a great idea and decided to back away a bit.

We decided that instead of calling our driver to pick us up, we would just hike all the way home. It was a long and hot walk back to Mestia.

As we got close to town, we started passing a lot of huge dump trucks as they were going back and forth with river rock. The trucks were annoying for the road was dirt and they kicked up huge dust clouds whenever they drove by. How dare they!

At one point one of them stopped and offered a ride. Considering that there were six of us and only room for three in the cab, the girls jumped in and left the boys behind. The boys kept walking and we got passed by a few more trucks. After a bit of time truck stopped and offered us a ride. Sweet!

Before, I mentioned that the dump trucks were huge. By huge I mean having to climb up a three step ladder to get into the cab. Huge. We squeeze in and get going. Happy to be getting a ride.

Literally, one minute later we see the girls on the side of the road standing in shade. Are you kidding me? Why did they stop there? Man, do we have to stop? We just got on! Fine. We stopped. Apparently that is where their driver dropped them off. Luckily, right where they were dropped off was a little food stand with shade, seats, beer, and ice cream. Yes we partook. After the rest it was another 45 minute walk to get into town and to our homestay.

View the slideshow of the glacier hike.

Mestia – River

ja — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 14:29:55 +0000

While in Mestia, we took two trips to the river that was a ten minute walk from our homestay.

After we flew into Mestia and settled into the homestay, we still had about one or two hours until dinner so we decided to head out. We took a side road down a hill that I guessed would lead to a river. I was right.

After crossing a little bridge we found a nice rock outcropping to hang out on and play with the freezing water. The girls took off their shoes and put their feet into the water. The boys skipped rocks. Beso, aka the mountain goat, was jumping around on the boulders.

And now, please take off your hats and bow your heads for a moment of silence for the trip to the river had a very sad outcome. Beso and I were skipping rocks and having fun. Even Teona tried to learn how to do it. Well, after throwing one rock, I noticed that two things flew out of my hand. I was puzzled for I was pretty certain that the rock did not break in half. Sadly, I was correct. It turns out that my ring flew off my finger and into the rushing water. I have always had a problem with the ring sliding off when my fingers are wet, especially wet and cold. I could not help but laugh. I feel naked now that my fingers are bare.

On the last night in Mestia, Beso, Amy, and I took another trip to the river. It was a very hot that day and we were tired of walking around. When we got to the river we were instantly greeted with about a 10 degree temperature difference next to the water. Yeah! We were also greeted with a lot more water than we saw three days earlier. It had been raining every night, but I did not know that it had rained that much. Below is a shot from the first trip and a similar shot from the second trip.

First trip to river

Second trip to the river

View the slideshow of river pictures.

Mestia – The Flight

ja — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 15:53:40 +0000

Delays. Delays. Delays. They were never more appreciated.

The morning of the flight, we take two taxis to get to the airport for there are six of us. I get in the taxi with Teona and Beso, the kids from Susie’s family, and make idle chat with them on the way to the airport. At some point I ask them if they have their IDs. They give me a puzzled look. I go through as many synonyms to ID as I can think of and end up on passport. This they understand and they say no. Susie told them that they did not need their passport since this was a local flight. Ok. But do you have anything else with a picture on it? No.

Well, it turns out that to them, the passport is the name of their national ID, similar to a driver’s license in the states. However, it is not the same thing that we think of as a passport and this is where the confusion came into play and why they left their IDs at home. Their IDs are 3 hours away and we are 20 minutes from the airport.

We get to the airport and try to check-in. The guy at the desk gives us a weird look and I cannot figure out why. He then states that we are on the 2pm flight. Wait, what?

Let me rewind to when we bought the tickets. The process of buying the tickets took over an hour for their phones were always ringing and the phone call takes priority over someone standing in front of them. Nice. We asked for the 2pm flight and an hour later when I finally get the tickets, they say 10am. I see this right away and ask about it. They say that the 2pm was full and so we got the 10am flight.

Now, fast forward to the airport. I show him that our tickets say 10. It doesn’t matter, the machine says 2pm. Immediately, I am happy for the delay for this gives us a chance to get the kids’ passports. I ask what time the plane will board and they state around 1 to 1:30. That would cut it extremely close, but we got a chance now. I tell Teona to call her mom and ask for help. The mom is to the rescue and puts the IDs on the 10am marshutka. That means that they would arrive in Tbilisi around 1pm. Cutting it close, but it could work.

Next, I call Susie and explain the situation. Susie decided not to go on the trip to Mestia due to the high altitude and breathing problems that she had been having for the past month or so. She was going to spend the weekend in Tbilisi with Sandra instead. I ask her to pick up the IDs and drive to them to the airport. She agrees.

Now we are sitting in an airport with four hours to kill. We play card games, watch movies, and talk. All the while hoping that the marshutka would come on time and that the plane will not be on time.

One o’clock comes and passes and no word from Susie. I call her and she says the marshutka has not show up yet. About 10 minutes later she calls and says that they are on their way to the airport with the IDs. Yeah!

We decide to go ahead and have everyone but me, Beso, and Teona check-in and go to the gate. The plan was that maybe they could delay the plane and that end while we are waiting for Susie. Also, if the IDs do not make it on time, I would stay with the kids and figure out the alternatives while the others head to Mestia.

Well, we go to the desk to ask where we are to check-in and they tell us the plane is late. Boarding will start at 2pm. Really? Awesome! I call Susie and let her know that she does not need to be Speed Racer to get to the airport. We all sit back down and all of us are a lot more cheerful. The IDs are close by and the flight is late. Everything is going to be ok.

The plane, there is only one, that flies to Mestia is operated by a company called Pegasus, which is a Canadian firm. The plane has a total 15 seats, which was very nice for that means that all but 5 people have a window seat. We quickly got on board the plane and were soon in the air.

Oh, one important piece of information. This is to be Teona’s and Beso’s first flight. Ever. They were a bit nervous, but I think the excitement of everything far outweighed the nervousness. It was fun to watch their faces at the wonderment of flying when we took off.

We fly over the NE part of Tbilisi and I finally get to see the Tbilisi Sea. It is a reservoir that is in the mountains NE of Tbilisi and is a popular attraction in the summer time. For a while we fly parallel to the main road that goes to the western part of the country. We then do a small turn and head more NW. Soon I hear Amy say that she can see her village. Really? I look out the other side of the window and spot Chala. I tell Teona and Beso and we all take photos.

From this point we start flying into the mountains and soon begin to see snow capped peaks and small villages in valleys. The view is spectacular thanks to a mostly clear day. We are all taking pictures of the rivers, mountains, villages, and snow.

Next thing we know we are entering a wide valley and I see a landing strip. Wow, we are here. The flight lasts about 45 minutes and it goes by very quickly. We circle around Mestia and we can see towers and several tall snow covered mountains that encircle the town.

When we get out of the plane, we see a sign that says welcome to Mestia Airport in front of the very weird looking Mestia Airport building. And by building, I mean something that is about the size of my two-room townhouse in the states. We all take out our cameras to take pictures and are immediately told by airport personnel that no pictures are allowed. Welcome to Georgia.

We get out bags, meet our driver, and walk out of the building where we are met with a parking lot of dirt and no sidewalks. The airport opened at the beginning of this year, but apparently the parking lot/entrance to the building was not required for the opening. We pile our stuff in the jeep and head into town.

View the slideshow of flying to Mestia.

Censored

ja — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 15:40:42 +0000

For about the past month or so my camera has been having a problem that has been sadly getting increasingly worse.

The display on the back is acting up by showing different variations of horizontal lines. Unfortunately, these lines also appear on the photos. From what I have read online, this problem is due to the image sensor. And also from what I have read online, it is not worth spending the money to get it fixed for it will cost as much as, if not more, than a new camera.

So until I can figure out the proper place to smack the camera to fix the problem or until I buy a new camera, the pictures are going to few are far between. Below are some examples of the bad pictures just in case you think the drugs are effecting my vision.

Blue line down the middle