Batumi for 3

I have found myself in Batumi the last two weekends. The first time I went with some of our friends in Poti. We went to the Botanical Gardens just outside of the city. If you come to see me at any point in my service I will take you here. It was amazing. They have 21 different sections of gardens including East Asia, Rose Garden, Bamboo Plantation, and North American park. Each section had so much to explore and see. It was 8 gel to get in and 3 gel to take a little bus through the park. We just walked the whole thing. By the end we were all tired and ready to head into town to get some khachapuri. We were in Batumi so we went for some Adjarian khachapuri. This is the khachapuri where the dough is formed like a open boat and then a raw egg and butter is put on top of the hot cheese. It's a Georgian must for anyone. After the food we walked around a little and headed home. Here is a photo of my friends after we were interviewed about the park for the news. This happened in the North American section and everyone was very happy I was an American in the North American area of the park. 

This weekend I went down to meet up with some PCVs to spend Saturday night in Batumi. We had a great time just hanging out and enjoying the city. It has been cold and rainy for days, but when I go there on Saturday the weather was perfect. We were able to walk along the Black Sea, check out some great statues, eat some amazing food, and just do a little shopping. We found the Ikea basket, I'm not 100% sure if it was a real Ikea but everything was from Ikea. I loved it. I didn't take my camera, but my friend Jill got some great photos of me you can enjoy below. The drink is non-alcoholic, when our waiter found out I didn't want alcohol he really wanted me to try this. So much that he just brought it to me and then made me pay for it. It was really amazing tasting and I would drink it again. We also go cheese cake at that restaurant. It was a win all around for everyone involved. The trip home was a little crazy because we had to detour from the main road to a back dirt road. It was a very Peace Corps moment for me in that old van speeding down a tight dirt road.   

Black Sea

It has turned cold here in Georgia. Some places already have snow, but here in Poti we just have rain. The best part of a rain storms is watching the sea the next day. The Black Sea is calm most of the time, but after a storm there are some really amazing waves.  I got some nice photos down by the water one day and thought I would share them with you here. The first location is a beach by my house and the second is down by the port at sunset the same day. I've learned a lot about the Black Sea this last week, so I want to give you some information to go with these photos.

 At around the depth of 200 m life is impossible in the Black Sea because the oxygen levels are to low. 

 The Black Sea receives more fresh water then it evaporates. 

 The Mediterranean Sea is the source of salt water to the Black Sea. 

 The Black Sea does not have a tide.

 The ancient Greeks called it "Euxeinos Pontos" 

The 6 countries that border the Black Sea are: Turkey, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, and Bulgaria.

I hope you have enjoyed today's lesson on the Black Sea.