Mtatsminda

Yesterday, Tamaz, Eka, Nino and I went to Mtatsminda, Tbilisi's family amusement park. But before heading up the mountain we stopped off at Eka's godmother's house to pay them a visit. Sadly, a first visit wasn't enough for me to remember all their names but there was the grandmother, her daughter and her husband and their 3 year old son, George. (pronounced gee-or-gee) He was adorable with his mass of curly brown hair and big eyes. Nino informed me that George has two older sisters, one with a son older than him. I always think it's fun when that happens. :)

We were invited in and treated to coffee and tea, some grapes and a little snack, but this time there was an added (what some might call) bonus. George's mother pulled out of the cupboard a bottle of cognac and commenced to pour it out for the adults present. I was informed that this was 20 year old, good cognac and instructed to raise my glass in a toast. (Toasts by now have become quite familiar to me here. I read, before coming, that Georgians take toasting very seriously, but nothing could have prepared me for how true that is. They toast everything, and even if it has been toasted before in the evening, or in this case, afternoon, they toast it again!) In this case it wasn't the toast that concerned me, it was the fact that it was only 2:00 in the afternoon and I was being given cognac. Knowing Georgian hospitality I don't know why I thought I might be lucky enough to get away with only one small snifter. Even though it took me 4 sips to finish what everyone else had downed in a single go I was, of course, offered a second. Not wanting to be rude I finished it and in turn thought that I had fulfilled my obligation as a guest. Ha! Enter George's father. He was just returning home and as I hadn't met him yet we needed another toast, and consequently another glass. When he offered me another I had to protest with my very best Georgian, and hope that my family would bail me out on this one. Thankfully coffee came after all the cognac and I trusted that the caffeine would be able to counteract the soporific effects of hard liquor on my lightweight standing and carry me through the afternoon's amusements.

Soon after coffee we (Tamaz, Eka, Nino, George, George's father and me) all piled into the car and headed up the mountain. "Mta" is the word for mountain and "tsminda" means holy so literally Mtatsminda means "holy mountain." Nino might have explained to me why there is an amusement park on the top of Tbilisi's holy mountain but it eludes me at present. At any rate, the giant ferris wheel and satellite tower (which vaguely resembles the Eiffel Tower) at Mtatsminda can be seen from almost anywhere in the city below. So we drove up the mountain, one hairpin turn after another. For some reason Eka was driving, whose incredibly cautious driving technique would have been a reprieve from Tamaz's Formula 1 racing style except that Tamaz kept reaching across and grabbing the wheel to "help."

When we finally reached the top we peered out over the city. What a view! And the day was perfect! I like Tbilisi but there is no denying that it's a dirty city and it was such a pleasure to be up on the mountain, with carefully planted flower beds, beautiful trees and clear blue skies. We didn't do much. The men (including George) went off to a cafe and we women went off to get tickets to ride the ferris wheel and take pictures. Eka is afraid of heights so it was just Nino and I who went up in the ferris wheel. (Picture the London Eye and you'll have an idea of its size.) Nino amazes me sometimes. She's only 14 but how she conducts herself reminds me of just how much she is influenced by the culture that she has grown up in. Not that it's a bad thing, it's just that she makes me feel like the child when I'm with her instead of the adult. She is so self assured here, while everything is still so foreign to me. Like, I would have waited in the line that was forming for the ferris wheel even though I should have guessed that, like the lines on the road, lines here are only suggestions. So we skipped half the line and pushed between this crowd of 20-something guys to secure our place. And although I would have happily waited to see the incredible view that we got from inside our glass-enclosed box, there was a certain thrill that came with getting there the Georgian way.

After our descent we found the rest of the family and a ride for little George. After some difficulty in getting him on a ride because he was so small, we finally secured him a place on a car ride where he couldn't have been happier.

Wedding parties are a common sight at attractions and Mtatsminda was no exception. I think we must have seen at least 5 different ones while we were there. Tamaz and Eka keep telling me that they are going to find me a nice Georgian boy so I can stay here, well Tamaz saw fit to put this plan into action on our way out. He took my arm and began to announce, what I presume was my availability to the incoming wedding party. More than a few heads turned. Beating him with my camera produced no effect.

We stopped for khinkali (a meat filled, boiled dumpling) on the way back to George's house and ate dinner with them. After several more glasses of cognac were forced upon me and we had eaten our fill it was time to go home. I must feel at home here because I am always so happy when we get to retreat to our little flat. It's my favorite place in Tbilisi so far. Though Mtatsminda was pretty awesome!