Megi in Kazbegi

June 19, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

All photos by Amy Yu Mao, or Khvicha. “MEGI!” So begins every conversation with Khvicha, the taxi driver with whom I’d trust my life.  “Meghan” seems to be tough for many Georgians to grasp, so I usually introduce myself as “Meg,” which turns into the Georgian name “Megi.”  Thus, I am now Megi. While Amy was visiting last week, Khvicha designed and implemented the perfect three-day tour of Georgia.  We covered most of the country, with the exception of the […]

Categories: 2013, Driving, Eurasia, Europe, Friendship, Georgia, The Great Outdoors, Travel • Tags: Friendship, Georgia, Hiking, Kazbegi, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, Roadtrip, Stepantsminda, Travel

Flower children in Kakheti

June 11, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

I’ve found a cure for a heavy heart and culture shock.  It’s the combination of an old friend, unspoiled landscapes, mountain air, and wine.  Amy was my roommate at what I fondly refer to as “nerd camp” (research internship with NASA) ten years ago.  We hadn’t seen each other in many years before she came to visit this week. Our first destination was Kakheti region, in the east of Georgia.  Think vineyards, blue skies, and green fields rolling on for miles.  Our […]

Categories: 2013, Driving, Eurasia, Europe, Friendship, Georgia, Playtime, Tbilisi, The Great Outdoors, Travel • Tags: Davit Gareji, Flowers, Georgia, Hippies, Hippy, Kakheti, Oenophile, Peace, Photography, SIghnaghi, Travel, Wine

Turkish Aesthetics

May 19, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

After a strange couple of days here in Tbilisi, I’m cheering myself up this Sunday with endless cups of jasmine tea and memories of Istanbul.  Here are some of the textures and colors of the Tomb of Sultan Mahmud, Hagia Sofia, Topkapi Palace, and Blue Mosque.

Categories: 2013, Europe, History, Istanbul, Middle East, Travel, Turkey • Tags: Hagia Sofia, Islam, Istanbul, Photography, Travel, Turkey

Struggling to be hopeful

May 18, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

I removed this post for a few days while things cooled down in Tbilisi and varying news reports surfaced debating the facts of May 17. I’ve been wanting to write about my trips to Istanbul and Prague, I assure you.  I have plenty of stories and photos from both of these beautiful cities that I’d love to share.  But since I returned to Tbilisi, I’ve been unable to sit down and draw out the words. When I left the airport […]

Categories: Eurasia, Georgia, Tbilisi

Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar

May 10, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

Categories: 2013, Eurasia, Europe, Travel, Turkey • Tags: Asia, Europe, Grand Bazaar, Haggling, Istanbul, Market, Photography, Travel, Turkey

How to Survive a Supra

April 15, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

სუფრა [supra]: A traditional Georgian feast; literally, “table cloth” My first supra was disorienting, not least because of the obscene amounts of wine consumed.  Every ten minutes, a man stood up and philosophize on some topic in Georgian or Russian.  Sometimes the other men at the table would stand with him, knowingly instinctively when to speak and when to clink glasses and when to drink.  My wine glass magically filled to the rim every time I turned my head.  People drained clay […]

Categories: Eurasia, Europe, Food, Georgia, Travel • Tags: Borjomi, Celebration, Culture, Dance, Food, Georgia, Supra, Tbilisi

InstaGeorgia

April 13, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

see more by following me on instagram at megjohnson86

Categories: 2013, Eurasia, Europe, Georgia, Playtime, Russia, Tbilisi, The Great Outdoors, Travel • Tags: Culture, Georgia, InstaGeorgia, Instagram, Tbilisi, Travel, Turtle Lake

Gratitude and Giveaways

April 1, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

I greeted last spring in Austin, Texas with someone I loved very much.  That trip feels like a memory of a past life, given how much has changed since then.  From Switzerland to Israel, Russia to Colombia, and finally landing in Georgia.  Euphoria to heartbreak to disorientation to fulfillment, and just about everything in between. Along the way, there’s been at least one constant in my life, and that has been Soulshine Traveler.  Writing here has cushioned the falls and […]

Categories: 2013, Colombia, Eurasia, Europe, Friendship, Giveaway, Touchy Feelies, Travel • Tags: Austin, Colombia, Geneva, Gift, Giveaway, Gratitude, Israel, Love, Russia, Spring, Thanks

“Stalin pooped here”

March 30, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

The pinkish bud has opened, Rushing to the pale-blue violet And, stirred by a light breeze, The lily of the valley has bent over the grass. Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili, age 17 (later known as Joseph Stalin) One of the most unnerving things I learned while in Russia last summer was that Joseph Stalin’s reputation isn’t all that bad.  I expected that the propaganda, purges, and mass murders during Stalin’s reign would weigh heavily on the collective memory of Russians.  But […]

Categories: 2013, Conflict, Eurasia, Europe, Georgia, History, Russia, Travel • Tags: Georgia, Gori, great patriotic war, History, joseph stalin, Museum, Photography, Politics, Travel