The 8th Graders of Akhaltsikhe

We took portraits and recorded video of the 8th Graders of Akhaltsikhe. In the portraits, the students showed off an item that had personal significance to them. Students then wrote a short reflection in English and in Georgian. We then recorded them reading their reflection in English. This can be seen at the end of the slide show.

Students in Milton, Vermont did a similar project and then were asked to find similarities and differences between themselves and the students from Akhaltsikhe. 

8th Graders of Akhaltsikhe

Final Reflection

I am not sure I even know where to begin on my final reflection. I have been putting it off for over a week and I would be remiss if I did not complete it. This trip has forever changed me. It was my first time in over 20 years, where I was alone and the only two labels I initially carried were "Joe" and "teacher from Vermont." It was also the first time visiting a country where I did not know the language. Thanks to my travel cohort of 11 other teachers and the leadership of IREX's Claire Breedlove, this trip was wildly successful. It showed me how to do international travel. I am now ready and I have the confidence to travel to new places on my own and/or with my family and friends.

I lived in the moment. During my entire time that I was away, I lived in the moment. I appreciated and took advantage of all the situations that were presented to me. I tried to take in all of the sights, sounds, and smells. I was able to ignore the minutia of life and just appreciate the world. Now that I am back home, I am working on living in the moment.

I can get by with a simple "Hello" and "Thank You." I did not learn as much Georgian as I would have liked but learning these two words showed my appreciation of their culture. People were more than willing to help me out when I made the attempt to speak their language.

I am very lucky to speak English. Regardless of where I was, there was always someone around who spoke English.

Only knowing one language made me feel stupid. In my travels, I came across many people who spoke more than one language and some that were able to speak four or five languages. I wish that learning language was more of a priority in this country.

Teachers in Georgia complain about the same things that teachers in the United States complain about: lack of resources, not enough time, not enough pay, not enough time, poor parenting, etc. At the end of the day, all teachers still go to work and care deeply about their students.

Good teaching is good teaching. While I was in Georgia I saw schools that had limited resources, but I also saw some amazing teachers doing the best with what they do have.

Georgia had beautiful nature and history. There was something amazingly peaceful seeing churches and castles that were over 2000 years old. The nature of Georgia is absolutely gorgeous. I would go back to Georgia just go hiking/camping in Borjomi National Park.

I love visiting cities, but nature is much more relaxing and spiritual.

Athens, Greece was a nice stop on the way home. Seeing the Parthenon, watching the sunset, and visiting the ocean had a magic all its own. There is something special about walking the streets where there is over 2000 years of well documented history.

While traveling, I found that blogging and emailing my family, was very therapeutic. It helped frame my thoughts and gave me a sense of where I came from. I am very appreciative that this blog will serve as digital scrapbook of my experience.

I will travel internationally again both for pleasure and for work. Some possible destinations: Iceland, Finland, Spain, Peru (Machu Picchu), and of course I will take advantage of opportunities that will send me to some place new.

Final Day in Akhaltsikhi

I presented my host teacher, Lela, with an I Love Milton shirt.

Milton Bear with the Dancers.

Today was my final day in Akhaltsikhe. It was my favorite day in a school yet. In the morning, I introduced the 10th grade students to whiffle ball. It was great watching them pitch and trying to hit the ball. We then played some football (soccer) and ended the period with basketball. Luckily for me the rim was very forgiving I was able to score two baskets. It was great to see how you do not need language to play sports.

I then visited a seventh grade and second grade classroom. We ended the school day with the 8th graders. We had the students write about their favorite object and took a picture of the object. We also video taped them talking about their objects. It was great. At the end of class, I gave them one of my favorite books, Stargirl, and I handed them two Rubic's Cubes to solve.

After school, I went to Girls in Civics meeting, where we talked about American schools. I showed them a few clips from Yellow Jacket TV, and they were impressed.

Finally I ended my day watching the students perform a traditional dance. I was completely blown away with what I saw. I wish all of Milton's dancers had seen this dance. There are not enough superlatives in the English language to describe how awesome it was.

Here is a link to watch this amazing performance. It is well worth the wait to watch it.
Akhaltsikhe Dancers

Sapara Monastery

This monastery was originally built in the 6th century. There is a lot of history and it has been under Muslim, Mongol and Russian rule, just to name a few, and has seen many other changes. It had the feeling of a very peaceful place. I wish I was there by myself so I could just sit and look out at the mountains and meditate. They placed this monastery in the woods, so that it would be hidden from the invaders coning into Georgia.

This is only accessibly through ropes. There was one monk who lived here who was only able to get his food through ropes and pulleys. I could do that for about three days.

Bee keeping experts. They use the honey for food and for the candles inside the monastery.

My awesome travel partner, Google Trainer extraordinaire, Wendy from Middletown, NJ.

How many people, for how many millenniums have passed through this land?

Supra and Food

I had the most amazing time at a traditional Supra in a Georgian house with our US/Georgian connection Tiko Vardidze. She has been coordinating our time in Tbilisi. She also lives in Akhaltsikhe where I am staying. She took us to her village and showed us her farm house.

First, we went to her house where she stays with her mother and father-in-law. In Georgian culture, women are expected to live with their husbands parents. This was the first meal that was prepared for us.

Tiko and her awesome son. He can count to 10 in Georgian and English.

This is part one of our meal. At 6:00 were made to eat delicious foods. I especially love the mushrooms.  I also like  the lobio, Georgian beans. Keep in mind, all this food was just the first part of our meal.  I also had some Turkish coffee which was the first coffee I ever had.

Then we went to Tiko's house on the outskirts of town. She told us that all houses have two stories. The first one is for cattle: cows, sheeps, and/or pigs. The second floor is for living. Her family also grew potatoes and grapes. They sold the potatoes for whole sale at markets. The grapes they turned into wine. They keep half the potatoes for seed and the other half they sell. They only keep the smaller potatoes for food.

Grape vines. They cut the vines in the spring. I should remember this for the grapes I grow in my yard.

Wine casks in the basement of the house

The wine maker

Potatoes for food.

Potatoes for seed.

Pouring of wine.

The vehicle for digging up the potatoes.

The tools for digging up the potatoes.

At the Supra, there is tons of food. Your plate is never empty and they keep on feeding you. This is like a Thanksgiving times 10. I have never eaten so much food. All of the food is organic and they grow most of it themselves. They told me they do not use chemicals because they feed it to their children. During the Supra, the Tamada (the Georgian Toast Master)  first makes a toast to God. Then he toasts his family, then he toasts the loved ones who have passed onto the afterlife, the toasts the guests, the families, etc. He ends the evening with a toast to God. It is impolite to drink the wine except when toasted.  These toasts happen sporadically throughout the meal, and after each toast you are expected to eat some more food.

Despite this traditional feel they were watching the TV and checking their cell phones. I even got to see this American classic dubbed in Georgian:

Do you recognize it?

This is the family I got to share this wonderful time with:

The family

The daughter playing video games.

The best homemade child swing ever.

Georgian culture is very hospitable and I am blessed to have been given the opportunity to spend some time here. I am hoping to forge everlasting connections between Georgia and Milton.

And this is Rabati Castle on the way back. Absolutely beautiful.

Meeting the Teacher and Students of Akhaltiskhe #5

Mitlon Bear, Me and the 4th Grade Class

Milton Bear, me and the 8th Grade Class.

The teacher:

Today I had the opportunity to watch an amazing teacher. After all of the talk about how the education system here in Georgia is very tradition stand and deliver and memorize rote facts, I saw a teacher that promoted group work and presentations. Students were doing group work, giving presentations and seemed very engaged and happy. It reminded me very much of the work that I see teachers do on my house. I even had to laugh because she was correcting students on putting words on presentations that they did not understand. I have heard Ms. Endres give the same critique to my students numerous times. I was also very impressed with the content the 8th grade students presented on their favorite TV shows and the 7th grade students presented on environmental issues. This may be my American ignorance, but I was shocked to see them presenting on environmental issues. At the end of the lesson, the teacher gave an impassioned plea for bike lanes in Georgia to help cut down on green house gasses. And given the way people drive in Georgia, I would be very hesitant to get on a bicycle and ride the streets of Georgia. Another thing that was impressive was the vocabulary of the student explaining such complex issues in a language that was not their own. I could not envision any student in Vermont giving the same quality presentations in a language other than English.

 


The students:

The students were awesome. They were very courteous and curious. They asked me about my favorite TV Shows, DC vs. Marvel, and music. During the 8th grade presentation about TV shows here were their answers:

In order of most popular:
Flash (3)
Georgia X Factor (2)
Shadow Hunters (2)
Teen Wolf (2)
Harry Potter (2)
Georgia Dancing with the Stars (2)
Once Upon a Time (2)
Prison Break
Grey's Anatomy
Shannara Chronicles
Arrow
The Legends of Tomorrow
Umaru
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D
Flat 18 (Georgian Sitcom)

Sometimes they watch the shows in English and sometimes they watched them dubbed in Georgian.

Another thing that was interesting is that one 7th grade class asked for my autograph. I felt like a celebrity of sorts.

Below is a video of Happy Birthday and part of a presentation on Harry Potter.

8th Grade Art Work

8th Grade Presentation

4th Grade

4th Grade

Miton Bear and 4th Grade eating Salt Water Taffy from New Jersey

Student Presentation on her favorite band. Look familiar?

Milton Bear 4th Grade