September Summary

I apologize for the delay in blogging.  Here is a summary of what I have been doing before and during school.  I will blog separately about school.  The past week or more has been slightly uneventful.  I have been slightly busy taking TLG volunteers across the border to Turkey to show them how to obtain a visa and also how to get to the Istanbul Bazaar.  The Istanbul Bazaar is a small scale mall but is very Western.  The IB opened a few months ago and has stores that resemble American stores.  You can clearly see by the clothing which stores are American Eagle, GAP, Victoria Secret, and Dollar General.  The number one reason why people go to IB though is the Burger King.  The Burger King is just like any BK from home but is the closest thing to Western style fast food around.  McDonald’s just opened a location in Kutaisi around 100 kilometers from Kobuleti but it is much closer for people to cross into Turkey and go to Burger King.  The pursuit is less about going to Burger King but more about obtaining a source of large amounts of protein whether it is beef or chicken.  My worst crossing was last weekend when I went with my friend from New Zealand.  We waited in line for over 2 hours just to cross into Turkey.  I have become friends with the Turkish border guards.  A few remember my face and tell me to show my friends where the visa office is instead of them having to give directions.  I will make the journey again tomorrow to take another group of people to Turkey.