Harvest in Satemo

December 2, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

All photos taken by Lasha Merabishvili. In late September, I joined a friend and his family for a weekend in their village outside of Gori.  We took a marshrutka (a small bus or large van, usually bright yellow, which is the most common form of public transportation in Georgia) from Tbilisi to Gori, and then something that looked like a Soviet-era school bus from Gori to Satemo.  I’d estimate the top speed of this second bus to have been about […]

Categories: Eurasia, Georgia, History, The Great Outdoors, Travel • Tags: Eurasia, Georgia, Photography, Travel, Wine, winemaking

Arrival and Versailles

September 1, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

Upon landing in Paris, I was immediately whisked away to moonlit Avenue des Champs-Élysées by my Parisian host.  Coming from Tbilisi rather than New York, I was shocked by the grandeur, the wealth, the diversity, and the sheer number of people packing the sidewalks.  It was dazzling. We chose a random restaurant with outdoor seating and ordered an icy-cold bottle of rosé.  Thus began a week of culinary indulgence.  Sadly, I didn’t take any food photos, because I tend to consider […]

Categories: 2013, Europe, France, Friendship, History, Paris, Travel • Tags: France, Photography, Travel, Versailles

Shashlik for four, please

June 29, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

All photos by Amy Yu Mao The last leg of the journey with Amy took us south and west.  We set out early on a Friday morning with Khvicha and his young assistant (whose name I do not know, because he was introduced to us as the “master of shashlik”), who was recruited to help with preparation of the meal that awaited us. We made two logistical stops along the way.  The first was in Khashuri, where Khvicha and his […]

Categories: 2013, Driving, Eurasia, Europe, Food, Friendship, Georgia, History, Playtime, The Great Outdoors, Travel • Tags: Driving, Georgia, History, Photography, Roadtrip, Travel

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

“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

Vardzia Cave Monasteries

March 22, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

After the opening of a new branch office in Akhalkalaki (and a few glasses of celebratory wine), my coworkers and I paid a visit to the Vardzia cave monasteries. I’d never heard of the caves before that day.  Nor had I received the memo that we’d be hiking up the side of a mountain on a work day.  Hence, I did not select my shoes accordingly.  See photo below of aching-but-smiley woman in four-inch Ann Taylor pumps. The scale of […]

Categories: 2013, Eurasia, Europe, FINCA, Georgia, History, Playtime, Travel • Tags: Byzantine, Eurasia, Georgia, History, Monastery, Photography, Puppies, Travel, Vardzia, Vardzia Cave Monasteries

Honoring Women’s Day in Georgia

March 13, 2013 by Meghan Johnson

I live in a country that honors everything feminine.  Men speak about their mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters as saints and angels.  I haven’t had to open a door for myself in two months; I assure you that chivalry is alive and well.  On International Women’s Day, ladies were gifted with flowers, compliments, and gratitude in the streets, and some of my female friends even received Women’s Day bonuses at work. I also live in a country where I was […]

Categories: 2013, Eurasia, Europe, Gender, Georgia, History, Tbilisi, Twins

2012 in Books

December 31, 2012 by Meghan Johnson

“We need to make books cool again. If you go home with somebody and they don’t have books, don’t fuck them.” – John Waters A few days ago, my dear friend Roxanne posted her favorite books of 2012 on Stories of Conflict and Love.  Admittedly, Roxanne reads better books than I do, but I bake more cookies than she does, so I think we come out even.  I loved her idea of wrapping up the year by revisiting the words and ideas […]

Categories: 2012, Books, Colombia, History, Microfinance, Russia, Touchy Feelies, Travel, Twins

Twins, Northward Bound

October 12, 2012 by Meghan Johnson

A wise friend recently suggested an exercise to overcome my heartsickness since leaving Cartagena.  She prompted me to think about the things I loved so much about living abroad and what gifts this past year has given me.  She then asked me to think about ways to replicate those elements here in my “normal” life in the United States. I didn’t anticipate maple syrup, seagulls, and frostbite appearing on that list, but that seems to be just what the doctor […]

Categories: Americana, Boston, Colombia, Driving, Food, History, New Hampshire, Playtime, The Great Outdoors, Travel, Twins