So, I'm still in Georgian and I'm not completely sure about the national obsession with getting me drunk before 2 in the afternoon. I went to a wine tasting yesterday, nothing too crazy, but nice. So, the owners picked us up in Telavi, took us to the farm, opened four bottles of wine (I was under the impression that we were to simply sip a small amount of wine, NOT get a glass and a half of each), and some chacha. Those of you who want to laugh at the name chacha, I assure you, it is dangerous as hell. So after about 6 glasses of wine and 2 shots of this sixty percent homemade whisky/vodka, we left. We tried to go to another wine factory for a 'tasting,' but thank God they were closed. After that, we hitched a ride back to Telavi (or so we thought) - we just wanted to go to this monastery and the guy who picked us up brought us to his house, fed us a bottle (like litre and a half) of his homemade sweet wine and then took us to a feast. It was crazy!!! And it looked like he was about to cry when we said.... I don't know... I just think that I need to get back. But we went. Some things about Georgian feasts; - They rule. - There is a ridiculous amount of food and wine. - Toasts are complicated as hell. I broke the 'rules' several times (prompting rude looks and finger shaking) because I simply didn't know when to drink. But they were friendly and everything ended without incident. - They also found it really funny that I kept saying stupid stuff like 'Wow, Georgia is so much better when there is no Atlanta.' - People took us from that party to their house to drink more wine and eat more food. It was insane. We literally had to run out of there. So, if you are in dire need to put on a couple pounds, come to Georgia. Because let me tell you, there is food end hospitality to go around!!! It's 1:30, I'm not drunk, and I'm going to stay that way for at LEAST another hour. Maybe two if I can stretch it. But that's not really likely. I'm also being careful - don't worry Mom and Aunt Penny!!
