Natia and I went drinking in a French style bar where you sit outside and get waiter service. 15 lari for a whiskey! I met Nati's friends: one who is going to Manchester for an MBA, one who was jealous at her offer from DLA Piper, and a mid 20s dieva (Nati denies this but it's my diary) who is dating a man in his 50s. Very continental street, all the bars have tables outside and people mingle to the live jazz and reflect on their good jobs and new Mercs. This place reminds me of Latin America in some ways; the lives of the poor and the rich are not so much in conflict as rarely touching. Drinks here are 15 lari (£5) in a country where the average wage is about £100pm. It slightly awed me to be drinking the equivilent of a £60 drink. I am quite rich here, it's an odd adjustment. The fact that the inequality here has made me consider this so much is indicative to me of the actually quite egalitarian society we have at home, something that makes me proud. I will keep giving my change to beggars and sign up to a Georgian charity at home, I think. One of the most interesting parts of travel is looking at your own state and life with the benefit of wider horizons, and it's nice to look at my own society with more respect for what has been achieved.
Drinking in Shardeni
Natia and I went drinking in a French style bar where you sit outside and get waiter service. 15 lari for a whiskey! I met Nati's friends: one who is going to Manchester for an MBA, one who was jealous at her offer from DLA Piper, and a mid 20s dieva (Nati denies this but it's my diary) who is dating a man in his 50s. Very continental street, all the bars have tables outside and people mingle to the live jazz and reflect on their good jobs and new Mercs. This place reminds me of Latin America in some ways; the lives of the poor and the rich are not so much in conflict as rarely touching. Drinks here are 15 lari (£5) in a country where the average wage is about £100pm. It slightly awed me to be drinking the equivilent of a £60 drink. I am quite rich here, it's an odd adjustment. The fact that the inequality here has made me consider this so much is indicative to me of the actually quite egalitarian society we have at home, something that makes me proud. I will keep giving my change to beggars and sign up to a Georgian charity at home, I think. One of the most interesting parts of travel is looking at your own state and life with the benefit of wider horizons, and it's nice to look at my own society with more respect for what has been achieved.
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