Fathers Day Weekend

Wow, almost a month since my last blog.  Training for the 2 Georgian battalions is going fairly well, some problems they need to work on, some problems we (the US) bring on ourselves.  Frustrating.
So my weekend was good.  Saturday about 15 of us went on an embassy sponsored white water rafting trip.  I'd say it wasn't true white water but just some good fun rapids, good enough for all of us to get completely soaked.  (Good thing I decided to leave my camera in the van.)  Here's a link to the company.

http://travel-in-georgia.blogspot.com/2008/07/tours-around-tbilisi-white-water.html
After the rafting we had a great bbq picnic.  Fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, bread, sulgumi cheese (Georgian specialty) pork, beef, and sausages.  And beer, wine, and water. 

Sunday I went for a walk.  At least that's how it was sold to me; 'C'mon Sir, we're just going for a short hike to a monastery.'  We started in the morning at a roadside cafe with Turkish coffee and Georgian cheesy bread.  In the pic below, the taller tower (actually a cross) at the top of the mountain is our destination, the St. Something Zedazeni Monastery.

Our first attempt had us on the wrong approach, but had a nice view.

After an hour and a half circling around to the right hill we started up again on a dirt & gravel road.  And I'm wearing my Sketchers loafers, yeah, good.  In the pic below is one of the many refugee villages set up after the 2008 Russian invasion.  The ethnic Georgians live here while ethnic Ossetian, Abkhazian, and increasingly Russian people are staying in the occupied territory.

Finally we reached the top, here's the iron cross and the monastery.

 Back down again to meet our driver, thirteen miles total, and tired feet. 

INDEPENDENCE DAY

May 26th is the Georgian Independence Day.  Georgian independence has its roots in the tumultuous events of WWI.  The Bolsheviks were running rampant, Russia pulled out of the war, and nationalism was building in all areas, even in the Caucasus.  Georgia and a few other countries were part of the Transcaucasus Union or Federation, but it only lasted a year or so when it declared its independence on May 26th 1918.  And then the Soviet Union strong-armed it back in, but still the 26th is considered it's independence day.
So, what's an Independence Day without a parade?  For years the parade was held in the capital city, Tbilisi where the President and Parliament are.  And Tbilisi still had street festivals & displays.

But the President had a new Parliament building constructed in Kutaisi, about 3-4 hours west. So President Saakashvili addressed Parliament in its first session in the new building yesterday, then went out to see the parade.  I'm not sure if it's an attractive modern design or an ugly glass wart.

Like I said a 3-4 hour drive with only some of it on a US style superhighway.  About 30 minutes outside of Kutaisi we told our drivers to pull off somewhere so we could change into our uniforms, and we expected they'd find a gas station, roadside restaurant, etc.  Nope.  They just pulled off the side of the road into a field, maybe 30 feet from the road.  And we had our female interpreters and a female Air Force officer from the embassy just watching a half-dozen men stripping down to underwear in a field. 

But the parade was nice, we were placed in a section with a lot of other people so most of what we saw at first were sun-umbrellas with Georgian colors.

Most of the Georgian Army's five brigades were there along with a sampling of their hardware; artillery, tanks, rocket launchers, etc.

And then a few sections of aircraft; helicopters & jets.

On the way back we stopped for dinner, traditional Georgian food.  Then back in the vans for the torturous ride back to Tbilisi.  Good times....

And from a Georgian website that covered the event.
http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=24815

UNEVENTFUL WEEK

Sorry, not much to talk about.  Lots of training, which is good since that's the reason we're here.
A buddy of mine came down from Germany to see how things are going.  We talked about all the problems and the good points.  We went out to dinner and I found a great bar, The KGB Bar - Still Watching You...   I'll have to get the t-shirt.
I just googled it and found the KGB Bar in NYC.  Yeah, I think the one here is probably a little more authentic.  Speaking of KGB...
On the way out to one of our training areas, we pass by a huge open area with a hundred or so antennas near a once nice, now abandoned, tiny village.  It was a KGB listening post back in the day.

1st post for May '12

I haven't posted in about two weeks now.  Cuz I'm busy.  Doing work.  Werk.

Gratuitous, self-promoting photos from race day

Me, pre-race in my uber-cool USMC running suit.  Our medical officer is on the far left.

After I finished the 10k I had a little water then grabbed a beer and headed out a quarter mile from the finish line to cheer on the half-marathon runners.  A half hour later an Army SGT on an ATV brought me another beer.  Running 10k (6m) + standing in hot sun + drinking beer = 1 stoopid Marine.

Rustavi Races

Early this month a MSgt approached me about setting up a simple half-marathon (13m) here on our small-ish base.  He's a runner, he likes to run.  I said sure, but let's engage with the Georgians too, I'm sure some of the soldiers would want to run with us.  And let's include a 10k (6m) as well, we'll get more participation.
My overall guidance was 'think big and prepare for success'. 
Three weeks later, on Sunday 22 April we had over 300 runners from US military, US embassy, Georgian military, and local civilians.  The nearby City of Rustavi hosted what we hope will be an annual event.  The MSgt worked with the embassy for security notification and participation, with the Rustavi mayor's office for police cooperation and media, with a new Georgian brewery for sponsorship, with a local electronics shop for prizes, with a printing shop for t-shirts, and with a local restaurant for food.  I of course supervised.
It was a pretty simple course beginning with the 10k which ended at the starting point.  Those half-marathon runners circled back out for their remaining 7 miles. 

 ABOVE: Registration table
Running isn't a big exercise for most Georgians, not like what we're used to in the US.  A lot of the Georgians who were probably in their first race had an odd strategy of sprinting for 100 yards then walking for a few seconds, then sprinting again.  Every time I would catch up to a sprinter on his walking cycle he'd take off again.  This lasted for a mile or two then they pretty much realized slow & steady worked a whole lot better.

ABOVE: This is a race strategy?
What does it matter?  It was a beautiful day and the races went off without a single problem.  Really unbelievable for an event like this that had never happened before and was put together in about 10 days.

See, what a nice day.

I ran too.  Look at the HMMWV, and look at the guy to the left of it.  That's me.  I had to pee about 1/2 mile into the race.  Hey, when ya gotta go....ya gotta go.
But don't think that the Georgians are all slow.  Look at the next pic.

Georgians took 1-2-3 in the 10k.  1st prize was a Samsung Galaxy tablet, 2nd prize was a Nikon camera, 3rd prize was a MP3 player.  A Georgian also took 1st place in the half-marathon, a Marine Capt took 2nd place, and a DoD analyst took 3rd place.
OK, that's it, I'm tired.  The embassy has more photos on it's FB page.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150742855042954&set=a.10150742854562954.421118.55448127953&type=3&theater#!/tbilisi.usembassy

Kakheti pt2

Saturday we woke up and had a typical eastern European breakfast; meats & cheeses, bread & coffee. 
The day was beautiful with the Caucasus mountains in the background, here's me with Maj Birney, my deputy. 

Then back in the vans to the local castle in Telavi.  Begun in the mid 1600s Batonis-tsihe was a fortress built for the local tsar back in the day.  Unfortunately it was closed for renovations so we could only walk around the outside.

Next stop was the Gremi church, begun in 1517.  Built on a small hill it's still in operation.  I walked by the 'front door' and could see a service going on and smell the incense.  It's obviously been renovated, several times, but still interesting to see some of the original works including an incredibly steep, and dark, winding stone staircase leading up to the bell tower. 

Last stop was back to the winery.  It's one of the few winerys built into caves, a network of about 150 km (seems like a lot but that's what the lady said) Originally they made wine the traditional way in the big jugs buried in the ground but now they use regular wood barrels or huge steel tanks. 

We had a late lunch with great food, and wine of course, then back in the vans for the drive back to base.

Kakheti pt1

The Easter holiday is a big one for the Christian Orthodox church so we've got a long 4 day weekend.  I had one of the Army soldiers work on a trip and he put together an overnighter to eastern Georgia.  Kakheti is the easternmost province and is also Georgia's wine country.  Friday late morning we drove out for two and a half hours to an area that in some spots could be confused with New England.  Tree covered roads with rolling farmland, and also the vineyards.  Our first stop was a resort still prepping for the upcoming summer season.  We were the only ones there but they had the bar open so we had a few drinks and enjoyed the scenery.

Next stop was a winery, they were closed but said they'd be open the next day.  So we continued to the Nekresi monastery dating back to the 4th century. 
http://www.georgiatraveller.com/2011/01/nekresi-glimpse-into-history-of-georgia.html
The climb up is a one mile (1 1/2 km) walk on a very steep brick-paved incline.  Difficult enough just walking up, never mind thinking of hauling up all the building materials.

 

Late that afternoon we went to our hotel which, in all seriousness, looked like something out of an 80's John Carpenter horror-flick.  So we got back in our vans and went to downtown Telavi to a better hotel.  The hotel also operated a nearby bed & breakfast/winery so that's where we went for dinner.  While we were waiting for dinner the host gave us a short tour of the place and explained the Georgian method of winemaking.

The wooden box on the right holds the grapes and feeds them into a crusher.  The juice is then placed in big ceramic jugs buried in the floor and sealed for 2-3 months.  (see the circles in the background)  Then it gets bottled and stored.  

The Generals Visit

So two weeks ago the Commander of Marine Forces Europe came through with his entourage to visit the Caucuses.  Here's a picture of me explaining the intricacies of how a rifle range works.  "They point the rifle that way and bullets come out."

In my last post I said I was busy & that was 2 weeks ago...
Last week I had 2 general officers come visit, both from Marine Forces Europe.  So that's what consumed my hours & days, going to meetings at the embassy and answering emails & phone calls about read-ahead materials, providing biographies of the US staff here and the Georgians.  And approving a seating chart for the lunch in the chow hall on Saturday.  Yeah...good times...  But the visits went well and the generals were pleased, so I keep my job for now.

Last weekend (St Patty's Day) I went to a Georgia vs. Russia rugby game.  We got tickets through the embassy, third row on the center line.  They would have been great seats except it was windy and cold and the seats were hollow plastic so it felt like sitting on a block of ice.  But the game was great, Georgia stomped on Russia, 42-0.  Georgia is in white, they had a giant player who looked like Troy Palomalu from the Steelers.  Then we went to an Irish bar for shepard's pie and Guinness.

So this week I get to focus back on training with one battalion here and one at another nearby base.  Marksmanship training, land navigation, staff planning, communications.  All good stuff.  Sometime late next week I'm supposed to receive more MRAPs for driver training and IED training. 
OK, that's it.

Whew!  I am busier than a one armed wallpaper hanger.  I'm still turning over with the previous team who has one week left.  This week we are reviewing all the equipment I'll end up signing for including radios, night vision goggles, humvees, MRAPs, computers, etc.  About a bizillion dollars worth of stuff.
The training portion is going well; although I'm in charge of it I haven't yet actually been to any classrooms or ranges to see notes being taken or bullets being fired.  But I'll get there.
The food ain't bad.  The US Georgia Army National Guard supports us with about two dozen soldiers to run our part of the camp (we are technically tenants on the Georgian military base) like the chow hall, the post office, medical, motor pool.  We contract with local women to actually cook the food & wash the dishes and they're supervised by a Staff Sergeant.  The Georgians have something very similar to Chinese dumplings but they're about 3 times as big. 
Sorry, still no photos.  Once again, I'll get around to it.
I won't publish my address, if you want it leave a comment with your email. 

Gamarjobat!
Hello! from Georgia.  The past four days were busy with meetings and tours of training areas.  Every day ended with me being exhausted and I STILL could only manage a few hours of sleep.  Stupid jet-lag (I'm 9 hours ahead of the East Coast).
The Georgian military runs their training with assistance from us, to include some equipment they need to be able to work with us in Afghanistan (radios, night vision goggles, etc.) They have some good instructors but need help with the experience that only we can bring.
Two nights ago I and another Marine were invited out to dinner by a few Georgian officers, when I was really looking forward to some sleep.  Three and a half hours, two bottles of wine, and two carafes of 'cha-cha' (like grappa) later...I finally got some sleep.  The food was great though, some really interesting dishes.  One was a shallow pot of fried chicken in a thick broth of garlic yogurt.
I just got another email that needs my attention so I'll cut this short.
Not surprisingly Georgians dislike the Russians.  Remember, 3 years ago the Russians invaded to 'free' the people in the regions of Abkazia and South Ossetia.  This blogger service gives me simple stats on page views, etc.  It also shows geographically who is looking at my blog.  So, to my Russian friends who are enjoying my blog...hello!
And good-bye.

Gutentag!
The flight from Norfolk (to Newark) to Stuttgart, Germany was nice.  Plenty of legroom but I still couldn't sleep.  So I watched Contagion.  Then I watched Horrible Bosses.  Then I watched Real Steel.  Then I felt a little sleepy but with 45 minutes of flight time left the cabin lights were turned on so I just stayed up.  Arrival in Stuttgart was fine, clearing through customs took all of 30 seconds.  Unlike an American returning to the States where the TSA, FBI, Border Patrol, and Immigration all take turns grilling you for hours. 
So I went through another day of briefings at MARFOREUR (Marine Forces Europe) which is located on a base called "Panzer Kaserne"  For those of you unfamiliar with German military terms, 'panzer' means tank.  And who is the most famous German tank commander?  Rommel.  So Panzer Kaserne is actually Rommel's old headquarters which the US took over after WWII.  It's actually a really small base, you could walk around the perimeter in a half hour.  But on a few of the buildings there are still concrete eagles of the German army but the swastikas have been removed. 
Today is Saturday so I took the train into downtown Stuttgart (I'm staying at a hotel in Boblingen) http://www.reussenstein.com/joomla/
and walked around for a few hours.  I took pictures but they're all too big to squeeze through this internet connection, I'll have to shrink them to a smaller format.  The main tourist area is nice, probably a lot nicer in the summer.  I had a little pizza from a bakery.  They used cream cheese as the base with spiced ham & herbs sprinkled on top.  It was ok but really?  cream cheese?
Taking the train to Stuttgart wasn't too bad, the automated ticket kiosk had instructions in English.  Coming back was different.  Buying the ticket was easy but then I had to figure out which track my train was on (imagine a semi-outdoor Grand Central Station)
"Hello, I am a stupid American.  Which train takes me to Boblingen?"
  "Gretunchenken wertan obnachtingen" (yes you are stupid and I will put you on a train to Norway)

Actually the Germans were/are great.  This is a major city with lots of tourists so everyone I asked for help spoke English.  Now I'm back in the hotel drinking beer (what else?) and contemplating dinner. 
"Hello, I am a stupid American.  I'd like to order some tasty sausage."
  "Ratnakgretchen weinerschnitzel haufcraken."  (yes you are stupid but I won't spit in your food)

Here's a little more information, courtesy of Wikipedia.  It's a little dated but still basically the same as what's going on now.
 Georgia Train & Equip Program
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Train_and_Equip_Program

Intro

Why am I going to Georgia?
In 2009 the Republic of Georgia offered military assistance to the US in Afghanistan provided we assist with training and equipment (compatible radios, etc.) So the Marines have been providing this training to the Georgians and liaison with their USMC counterparts in Afghanistan for about 2 years.  I am going because I'm the idiot who put his hand in the air to volunteer despite the current political pressure to scale back involvement in global conflicts, there are still conflicts.  Enough to still need reservists.  Plus I met all the requirements for the position.
So I'll have about 10 Marines who work for me as a headquarters plus two other groups, also of about a dozen or so, who will conduct the hands-on training with the Georgian military.  I'll be at a Georgian military base near the capital Tblisi.  No word if there's a golf course there.

Don't read this.  I'm just practicing.  I never wanted a blog, I thought medical advances had made blogs & yellow fever a thing of the past. 
"I say old chap, you look quite pale."
"Yes, I'm afraid I've caught a bad case of blogs."