Georgia: Church, people, politics

The Orthodox Church has been the religion of Georgia since the 4th century, but was practically eliminated under the Soviets (Stalin was a native of Georgia), and came back to life under independent Georgia in the 1990s. At one church I happened upon a wedding. They know how to do weddings and masses with pomp and circumstance and dozens of guys in fancy robes. The mass is 2-3 hours of chanting with no pews to sit on. They are also famous for polyphonic singing with the chanting. Very angelic.

I had dinner with a Peace Corps staffer and at breakfast I met an Iraqi couple who now live in Denmark. His brother was killed by Saddam. I He’s also not positive on the current rulers of Iraq and is amazed that the American people elected Trump. He’s very positive about the social safety net and freedom in Denmark where he raised his kids.

Georgians love books with many sidewalk sellers of old books. And they love their wine. They say wine is the reason that Georgian culture has survived for millennia.

Politically the government is pro-Russia, but most people are not. Many parallels with the US, including Russian propaganda in the upcoming elections. Russia occupies about 20% of Georgian territory. Their big oligarch (their Elon Musk?) has strong ties with Russia. The people not so much.Read more