30 December 2006

Gaumardschoss 2007


Gaumardschoss, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Many happy hours, moments of friendship, love, Gaumardschoss and delicious Georgian wines I wish you for 2007 with this nice photo of my father and the artist Otari Arisheli

I am sure 2007 will be a great year for all you dear readers of this tiny blog.

Photo: Ralph Hälbig

23 December 2006

Horse Thief, print 2006


horse-thie1, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Horse Thief, 2006

Digital Print on paper, 2nd/10, 69 x 41cm

Hans Heiner Buhr

EUR 300.00

Sakartvelos Gaumardschoss


georgischeflagge-023opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Thank you Georgia for all the impact to my life. Since 1996

Bodyguards for Helga


bodyguards, originally uploaded by grijsz.

One of the most outstanding women I met in Georgia

21 December 2006

An extented article on the Tsova-Tushs, Batsbs by Roland Topchishvili


Tusheti, Indurta, originally uploaded by grijsz.


"One of the reasons of close economic and cultural relations was the tradition of fraternizing existing in the Caucasian mountains. Tsova-Tushs (Batsbis) and Tushs generally, were often fraternizing not only with other Georgian mountaineers, but also with Kists (Chechens) and Didos (Daghestans).

The appropriate rituals were always followed this tradition. The future blood brothers were dropping silver coin scrapes into a bowl full of milk, than they drank the milk and after that they were considered as, so called - “oath and silver eaten”.

Another form of fraternizing was, when in the same wooden bowl the two men were dripping blood from their cut fingers. There was the other form fraternizing as well. If the candidates’ mothers were alive, they were going to them together and touching mothers’ (each other’s) breasts with their teeth. This ritual was held in the presence of the whole family and the neighbors. The sense of collectivity was characteristic to the mentality of the mountain dwellers. The blood brothers often changed their horses and armament. It was not obligatory, though. "

Roland Topchishvili


A very recommended reading:
http://www.nplg.gov.ge/ic/DGL/work/Englisurebi/Roland_Toplishvili/The_Tsova_Tushs.htm

Viktor Mazurovsky: Caucasian scout


mazurovsky-1opt-medium, originally uploaded by grijsz.



mazurovsky-1opt-detail, originally uploaded by grijsz.



mazurovsky-1opt-sign, originally uploaded by grijsz.


Viktor Vinkentevich Mazurovsky 1859-1923

Виктор Мазуровски

Caucasian scout, 35x22 cm, Oil on board mounted on Canvas, signed, in perfect Condition

For sale: EUR 4.000

Other paintings by Mazurovsky

http://tinyurl.com/y68abw (on Artnet)

http://www.100megsfree4.com/rusgeneral/cossak2.jpg

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Fireofmoscow.jpg

http://www.pravoslavieto.com/history/19/1877_Rusko_Turska_vojna_IKONI_na_bojnoto_pole.htm

19 December 2006

Early winter silence in Kakheti


kvareli 050-opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

On the road near Kvareli


kvareli 044-opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

in the foreground a small graveyard


kvareli 043-opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

empty roads and poetry


kvareli 003-opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Saperavi wineyards near Akhalsopeli

15 December 2006

A glimpse of difficulties learning Georgian

everybody knows such beautiful but simple words like "Khatchapuri" aka Cheesebread.
But do you know this nice verb "ბრდგვნა" ? It means "destroy", "slash", "frazzle".

Now try to speak: "b-r-d-g-v-n-a" or the form "we destroy" with 7 consonants before the vowel "v-b-r-d-g-w-n-i-t"

Nice word ! "ვბრდგვნით"

To type Georgian letters this is a very useful tool: The Translit Online Converter
http://ncnever.free.fr/translit/

Aka Morchiladze und sein Bestseller "Santa Esperanza"

In Georgien ist Aka Morchiladze seit vielen Jahren ein Bestseller und sein vom Pendo- Verlag in München verlegtes Buch wurde nun Anfang Dezember über Sonia Zekri und die Süddeutsche Zeitung beim deutschen Feuilleton entdeckt. "Santa Esperanza" ist eines der ungewöhnlichsten Bücher der Saison in Inhalt und Form. Eine fiktive Chronik eines ausgedachten Inselstaates im Schwarzen Meer, fabuliert phantastisch-reale Bürgerkriegserlebnisse aus Morchiladzes georgischer Heimat der Jahre nach der Unabhängigkeit ab 1991. Die 850 Seiten verteilt auf 36 farbige Hefte mit je 24 Seiten zusammengefasst in einer tragbaren Filztasche lassen sich in verschiedenen Reihenfolgen lesen. Ein "Muss" für alle Georgienfans zur Lektüre unter dem Weihnachtsbaum.



Ein etwas älteres und schön langes Interview mit Aka Morchiladze auf Englisch von Marina Vashakmadze hier

Ebenfalls auf Englisch eine Zusammenfassung des Buches bei Taktaka

Eine deutsche Zusammenfassung des Buches auf buecher.de

und hier ein Link zum Buch bei Amazon: Santa Esperanza

14 December 2006

Art Villa Garikula and a wonderful vision by Joe Kagle

"IMAGINE. The year is 2020. ART VILLA has been in existence for twenty years as a new center for contemporary art. Karaman Kutateladze, the founder of this special place, stands on the porch of the renovated home of past royalty, looking out over the picturesque, quiet, and beautiful valley of Garikula. The image is calming but there is always an inner excitement when a new workshop of artists and students is starting. He knows with pride that it was his visionary insight that led some artists and social activists to re-establish Georgia’s rightful place in the history of art by creating Art Villa Garikula."
Read the full text by Joe Kagle here

Links to the Art Villa Garikula

http://www.garikula.org

http://www.heinerbuhr.de/wind-vom-kaukasus2.htm


tafel2, originally uploaded by grijsz.

13 December 2006

2007 with GERMANIA from Berlin Tegel to Tbilisi

Starting 13th May till 21st October 2007 GERMANIA http://www.gexx.de will operate an additional flight from Berlin Tegel to Tbilisi every Sunday evening. Retour from Tbilisi to Berlin on Monday morning.

Cologne/Bonn - Tbilisi can be booked for every Thursday/ every Friday morning (back from Tbilisi to Cologne) from 29th March till 25th October 2007

Website: http://www.gexx.de

GERMANIA
bietet ab 13.Mai bis zum 21.Oktober 2007 einen zusätzlichen Flug nach Georgien an und zwar erfreulicherweise ab Berlin-Tegel. Abflug nach Tiflis/Tbilissi jeden Sonntagabend und Rückflug nach Berlin jeden Montagmorgen.

Ab 29.März bis zum 25.Oktober 2007 fliegt Germania weiterhin ab Köln/Bonn am Donnerstagabend nach Tbilissi/Tiflis und am Freitagmorgen zurück nach Köln/ Bonn.

Detaillierte Informationen und Preise auf http://www.gexx.de

12 December 2006

Silver and Beer


silber-bier, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Holy brewed Khevsurian beer in silver cups, made specially for the Atengenoba celebrations every last weekend in July. See some more images from Khevsureti on http://khevsureti.blogspot.com

11 December 2006

Yesterday

I met Levan, the smart Blogger from We Georgians at http://taktaka.blogspot.com and had a couple of delicious fresh brewed beer with him at Kaiser Bräu Tbilisi

Levan and his friend Lego are young aspiring lawyers. Both spent part of their studies abroad in Germany, but decided to return to Georgia, as it seems easier here to start a professional career now.

There I met Avto Sharvashidze a former pupil of mine in Rustavi's 17th school some long 10 years ago, who is very successful at the Design company pixel.ge

Florian Mühlfried on a day-stop in Tbilisi on his ethnological studies in Tusheti and Shiraki gave me the hottest news from the Tushetian shepherders and we had long discussions about the most practical footware in the mountains (Meindl Trekking Boots versus 5-Lari Rubber Galoschi with wool stockings) (Galoschi won:) plans to introduce to the mounteneers at New Year Eve the famous hot strong drink GROG. We think they will like it at cold winter days as a old rule is:

„Rum muss sein,
Zucker kann sein,

Wasser kann sein, muss aber nicht.“ Wikipedia.de

Something like:

Rum has to be,
Sugar may needed,
Water may needed, but not necessarily.

Rapho posted on his georgien.blogspot.com a nice Khevsurian Folksong performed by Dato. Thanks to Avidil and Geostar

06 December 2006

The new Georgian passport

I had the chance to see a new Georgian passport and found it just wonderful, like a little history book of Georgia. It is to sad that, the passports will son be filled with all the different foreign visa and the imprinted images will be covered.


passport-7, originally uploaded by grijsz.



passport-6, originally uploaded by grijsz.



passport-5, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Don't wonder Georgians, when next time at the border control the check of your passport takes a little longer...

05 December 2006

Nice article by Robert Parsons on BBC

on Georgia's vineyard Kakheti, this beautiful valley of the river Alazani. I bet Mr. Parsons made great wine as this years grapes had been superb.
Link to the article

Here are two more images from Kakheti


lagodekhi-valley, originally uploaded by grijsz.




Don't worry for next winter, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Cattle drive Tusheti 2007


cattle-drive-text, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Cattle Drive Tusheti, Georgia 2007 Link

Viehtrieb Tuschetien Georgien 2007 Link

03 December 2006

In the Jungle and above the Clouds


heiner-jungle-new, originally uploaded by grijsz.


clouds caucasus kakheti, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Both photos are made in Eastern Georgia, the first in the forest of the National Park Lagodekhi, the second from the Abano-pass and the view over the Alazani Valley, Kakheti

29 November 2006

New older images from Tusheti by Keti


Keti's father with friends


Bakuri


Lasharoba in Chigo


Lasharoba in Chigo


Car accident

Keti from Chigo near Dartlo is now living in New York and was so nice to send me some older photographs from Tusheti

22 November 2006

Giorgoba, George slays the dragon, Zurab Tsereteli


george-slays-dragon-tbilisi, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Zurab Tsereteli's
sculpture Monument of Freedom will be revealed on Freedom Square Tbilisi on Thursday, November 23th. Details here

In the Georgian Times it is said, that the descision to put it on the column was made by Gouvernment, wich is difficult to follow. I definitly think, it was the artists descision, no matter by whom it was, it was very wise.

The column with the rider Giorgi on its horse slaying the dragon has a big impact to the composition of the whole ensemble Freedom Square [Georgian: Tavisuplebis Moidani], like an "i" with the point golden illuminated in the sky. And it got the perfect size to look at, it seems to ask your eye, "follow me..."

It is a representive piece, deeply connected with myth, history and reality of the symbol and with Georgia on the other side. It could stand in other countries, like the U.S, in other cities like Moscow, but there it seems to be beautiful but a little dishonest. Here in Georgia has it found its right place, a kind of true message: We are small, we had been beaten, but we always fight back. We do not want any evil to others, as we rest in our selfs, in our families, our land, in our language, poetry and habits. We are dreamers and sometimes go for taking the skies.
Saw you Misha storming Shevardnadzes parliament ? This is George, hotblooded but undaunted by death.

We feel reflected in George. The sculpture is vivid, changing and lively. It mirrors the Georgian character. It is right in our centre, between the earth we stand on and the heaven far above. It is an ideal to strive to, as we are far from perfect.

And it's a delighted elegance around Tsereteli's George, bringing the death to the monster in a playful dance. Compare it to the stress of other Georges fighting the mighty dragon.


St.Georg, Berlin

Tsereteli's sculptures are admired but got lot of critic too. See here examples of his works:

In Russia and Ukraine

http://www.tsereteli.ru/eng/g.php?country=RUSSIA,%20GEORGIA,%20UKRAINE

in the US

http://www.blueofthesky.com/publicart/works/goodandevil.htm

http://www.tsereteli.ru/eng/g.php?country=THE%20UNITED%20STATES%20OF%20AMERICA

with the discussion of Tear of Sorrow on a Russian blog

http://www.russiablog.org/2006/07/russia_donates_911_memorial_to.html

and the controversy on this monument dedicated to 9/11

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2006/09/12/monument.shtml

"Controversy also emerged when it transpired that the sculptor had mistakenly included the names of about 40 people on the monument who had survived the attacks, but were on some lists of presumed fatalities."

http://zeebeam.blogspot.com/2006/10/911-memorial-by-zurab-tsereteli.html

http://smetanka.blogspot.com/2006/09/russia-tear-of-grief-intro-to-orthodox.html

and other critical voices

http://www.veryrussian.net/2006/zurab-tsereteli-goes-america.html

Art Students earlier this year protested against the plan of Tsereteli's sculpture. What instead of the "better contemporary",as you demanded, you wanted to place here ?

Zura, this is a master piece !

21 November 2006

Urlaub 2007 in Imeretien, Westgeorgien

in Kooperation mit Argo-Travel Kutaissi


Urlaub in Imeretien


Kultur in Kutaissi


Typische Landschaft in Imeretien


Zwischenmahlzeit


Krönungskirche Bagrati, Kutaissi


in Kooperation mit Argo-Travel Kutaissi

Das georgische Landleben mit viel Entspannung hautnah erleben, Mai-Oktober 2007

Im westgeorgischen Gebiet Imeretien haben wir mehrere Dörfer mit besonders schöner Naturlage unweit von Wäldern, Flüssen und Bergen ausgewählt. In diesen Dörfern haben wir Kontakt mit typischen georgischen Familien, die unsere Gäste empfangen und nach Wunsch betreuen. Natürlich sind das gut eingerichtete Häuser mit Dusche, WC und dennoch taucht man schnell in das zeitlose, scheinbar idyllische Leben auf dem georgischen Land ein.

Die Familien leben auf angenehmen Höfen mit schönen Obst- und Gemüsegärten, mit Weinberg und Weinkeller. Unsere Gäste werden in einer ökologisch intakten und sauberen Umgebung wohnen, naturbelassenes Essen zu sich nehmen können (Obst, Gemüse, Fleisch, Milchprodukte, georgischen Mazoni (Yoghurt) und die Reichhaltigkeit der georgischen Küche kennenlernen. Gern können Sie an der Zubereitung der Mahlzeiten teilnehmen und exotische Rezepte mit nach Hause nehmen (Schaschlyk, Chinkali, Chatschapuri, Sazivi, Elardshi )

Es gibt Möglichkeiten zum Reiten, Fischen, Pilzesammeln und Wandern im Wald und in der näheren Umgebung (z.B. im Kurort Sairme)

Gern versuchen wir Sie in georgisches Brauchtum einzuführen und laden Sie ein, an einer traditionellen georgischen Hochzeit teilzunehmen und die Besonderheiten der georgischen Tafel ausgiebig kennenzulernen.



Empfohlene Tourdauer ab 1 bis 2 Wochen
Die Gäste werden auf Wunsch von einer deutschsprachigen symphatischen Dolmetscherin begleitet.

Reisepreis EUR 80.00 Euro Tag je Person, Kinder bis 14 Jahre 50% ermäßigt

Kontakt:

Tusheti. From Village Koklata by Tamuna


Tusheti. From Village Koklata, originally uploaded by Tam*Tam.

See Georgia through the eyes of Tamuna, follow this Link to her Flickr-Set

20 November 2006

When Georgian school girls are rocking



Mari, Sali, Nino and Salome
See my previous posts here and here

George slays the dragon, Tbilisi by Zurab Tsereteli



I really like the new eye-catcher at Freedom Square Tbilisi. It fits so perfect with the place and lets your mind wander by slowly walking around to see it from every different angle.
Thank you Mr. Tsereteli !

On second no. 6 you can hear the now so typical Alarm horn of the Patrol Police. Who has been in Tbilisi, recognizes.


george-slays-dragon-tbilisi2, originally uploaded by grijsz.

19 November 2006

Border guards


ausst71, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Hans Heiner Buhr 2001

18 November 2006

Khatia


khatia, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Photo: Wilhelm Siepe, Cologne

17 November 2006

Abenteuertrekking Nationalpark Lagodekhi Georgien 2007


sterndolde, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Trekking National Park Lagodekhi
05.08.-15.08.2007
Wine Region Kakheti and the Mountains of the Lagodekhi NP
EUR 1160.00
More info at Kaukasus-Reisen
(German/English/Dutch/Russian)

16 November 2006

Tiny Still-lifes from Georgia


Somewhere in Shiraki, 1998


Somewhere near Borjomi, 1996


At Korsha, Barisakho, 2000 Photo: Maurice Wolf


Near Borjomi, 1996


Near Borjomi, 1996

I opened three new Flickr-Groups today: Khevsureti, Tusheti and Buzkashi
Have a look and if you like it, Please join.

15 November 2006

View to Gldani, Tbilisi


autobasar200mm, originally uploaded by grijsz.

Gldani bridge, cold November evening, big size here


gldani1, originally uploaded by grijsz.


gldani2opt, originally uploaded by grijsz.

If you like Chocolate, like I do, you will find this blog nice: http://parisbreakfasts.blogspot.com/