I woke up on my two year anniversary with a smile on my face. The butterflies are still there. I know I’m past the honeymoon phase, but you still take my breath away. I’m still curious to get to know you more, to discover new sides of you. What started as a crush has grown into a deep love. I love telling people about you, how you’re spoiling me, how crazy and soulful you are. Oh Georgia, how I love you!
My romance with this lovely country stared already 15 years ago, and May 9th, 2019, I said, “I do” and deployed here for an interesting job. And now two years into this partnership I’ve grown accustomed to some of the Georgian peculiarities, sort of like not being bothered when your husband farts. I am no longer surprised by Georgian drivers, like when a car reverses on the motorway, or when a bling bling car tries to demonstrate by some asshole maneuver that his dick is bigger than yours, or when a car just stops in the middle of the street to have a chat with an oncoming car while blocking the entire flow of traffic. I don't yell at the idiots anymore, instead I have little cute dialogues which I find most entertaining (but possibly quite disturbing to my passengers).
An anniversary should ideally involve a surprise. And I was not disappointed. My dear Georgia managed to get under my skin which requires quite an effort. After returning from my evening hike I was greeted by a new metal door with a massive lock installed at the entrance to my building. I had no way to open the entrance, and the worst part was that no one told me this Fortknox project was underway?! Like, can you please notify people or are you passively aggressively telling tenants that they are no longer welcome!? Its been quite a mission to sort it out and I’ve come in contact with several neighbors and handymen who don’t seem to share my delight in my anniversary prank.
And why is my love for Georgia growing? With every visit to the nature I feel so connected to the universe, with every chat in my simple Russian I feel grounded, with every sunset ame rainstorm I feel alive, with every soulful conversation I discover new things about myself. It’s in the interaction with lovely people that I truly understand the meaning of Georgian folk music, whether it’s staying with a family at their guesthouse or conversing with the seamstress. Let my love story continue.
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