Tag Archives: georgia
my first friend Huihui and the Sea
I met Huihui on the fourth day of my walk, about eighty kilometers from Beijing. I was very shy and insecure about my project at that time, and I didn’t know what to expect from people. So when this stranger on his bicycle showed up next to me and started asking me questions (where are […]
Bye Bobona
Today Bobo was extra nice. He sat on my shoulder while I was making breakfast, then he came to sit on my lap, purring until he fell asleep. Meanwhile, his siblings and his mom had gone outside and found a place on top of one of the neighboring roofs. When I finally went out and […]
stranded in Georgia during Covid19
Funny how I have randomly ended up in a country that seems to be handling Covid19 pretty well, at least so far. Today’s stats for Georgia are: 721 total cases out of which 485 have recovered and 12 have died. Why the success? I think it comes down to luck and vigilance. Luck, because Georgia […]
wanna be a slave?
The Chinese language has a slang word called 猫奴 (maonu) – it means “cat slave”, and if your arms, hands, and legs look like this, then maybe you’re one of us: Each drip of blood a decoration. It’s been two months that Coco, Toto, and Bobo dropped from the sky and into my life. Since […]
until then
I’m staying in Batumi, in an old apartment that has been turned into a hostel. The walls are almost twice as high as a person, and they are covered in wood panels. I mostly stay put on a couch, reading, having trail mix and tea, playing Mario Kart, listening to the sound of heavy rainfall […]
riding the bus is harder than walking
Everything happens so quickly. The bus door opens and closes, the engines start humming, then a stream of familiar places rushes by outside of the window. Sometimes I think of a person whom I’ve met here or there, or of a cat or a dog. Every time we go through a tunnel I find myself […]
leaving the corner
Gonio means “corner” in Georgian. And what a strange little corner it is. The sun shines bright in Gonio. The clouds rain heavily in Gonio. The dogs are friendly in Gonio. Everyone is very relaxed in Gonio. Having spent a month in the corner, tanning, swimming, reading, socializing, I felt that Gonio had taken some […]
The Longest Warrior and the difficulty of doing nothing
Remember how a while ago I started making merchandise for those who wanted a part of The Longest Way? Well, here’s a brand-new shirt: And not just that. There’s also new mugs and other stuff: The design is called The Longest Warrior, and it was made by The Pumpkinbear: Oh, and I’m going to be […]
ruin value
I spent the night in front of an abandoned house in the hills. An old man had suggested I go there to sleep, so I had no way of backing out. But I felt spooked. Some of the windows were busted in, and the doors had been locked and then blocked from the outside. As […]
listening to my breath
Words of friendship and a bottle of wine. “When you are feeling weak – drink a bit of this” says my inked friend, then he lifts one hand to the sky. May God protect me. I stay on the back road, and it is quiet and nice. Wearing light trail runners, I feel myself floating […]
chained up
At first I was afraid, I was petrified. Kept thinking I could never sleep on karaoke night. But then I left the window open and I listened to their songs, and I grew strong, and I learned to get along. And so I’m back, from outer space, and I’m resting in my hammock in this […]
the end of the world
I’m staying at a hotel two blocks from the beach. The owner, a man with big, inked arms and the face of a tough guy, gives me wine, laughs roaringly, and lives in order to distribute fist bumps. “But” he asks me, “have you heard of Jehova’s Witnesses? My friends and I are Jehova’s Witnesses. […]
no amusement
My first night at a camp ground is behind me. It felt like a caravanserai: campers herding their cars, motorcycles, and tents into little spaces, then hurrying off to use the restrooms or grab some food at a table in the center of the camp site. The road is as narrow as it is busy. […]
Hello, Black Sea!
I wake up with one of the shittiest songs ever stuck in my head. “Under My Thumb” by the Rolling Stones. It’s apparently about a dude who manages to romantically suppress a woman, so yay for a wholesome ear worm! Sometimes I wonder how boomers can pretend to be outraged at punk or hip hop […]
kicking the shit out of some dogs
I’m staying in this small hotel here: It’s got everything: rooms, food, a shop, restrooms, a shower, wifi, and non-stop dance music that is very loud. I am enjoying it. Doing some laundry, resting my feet. Oh, and yesterday I found myself kicking the shit out of some dogs. And I mean full-on football penalty […]
biting bread
I woke up a bunch of times. Sometimes it was people honking. Sometimes it was people yelling. One time it was a thunderstorm. Once, in a dream, I found myself at a shooting range for high-tech rubber bullet guns. I wanted to point the gun at my own leg to see how it felt, but […]
Madame Le Pig
Right off the bat, I run into two Germans. We are everywhere. I’m just surprised the Mars Rover hasn’t found any yet. “Ja, guten Tag, nice to meet you here! It is quite cold on this planet, isn’t it? Thank god we have the best outdoor coats and thermal underwear, haha, jaaa!” I give another […]
same yet different
Heavy rain woke me up in the middle of the night. When I went outside to check on the Caboose, I ran into the owner of the guesthouse. He mumbled that he was checking on something as well. It continued to rain until late in the morning, then it died down. Loading up the Caboose […]
it’s not just in my head
Packing. Waiting. Looking out of the window. Waiting. Eating. Exercising. Drinking tea. Waiting. Someone is playing dance music somewhere, possibly downstairs. I am not even sure if it’s music at all. The only thing I can hear is the beat rumbling through the concrete. It mirrors my heart. The taxi ride to Baghdati takes thirty […]
parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
The city is as sleepy as a folk ballad. Maybe that is because of the heat. Or maybe it’s because Kutaisi isn’t the capital anymore. The last time it played that role was 900 years ago. There is a monastery called Gelati on a hill nearby. It was built during a time when Kutaisi was […]