Job Discussion Forums

[Theresa]

Any info about schools in Georgia, recent experiences, pay and conditions? And by the way guys enough of all these comments about beautiful willing girls here there and everywhere. If youre female the only male contact is with Russians ( whoppee doo.... ).

[maruss]

AS you can read from my previous postings about this country,it WAS a lovely place until the civil war back in the early 1990's-most of the people are warm and hospitable,the men gallant,jealous and macho,and the poor women as meek and timid as ever,BUT the whole country is very unstable,the economy barely surviving and there is massive poverty,crime and corruption.The capital Tbilisi is not safe for men to go out alone in at night,let alone women and foreigners are unfortunately prime targets for robbery or worse!The election results last weekend are just another indication of how things there are barely under control,and my general hints and warnings are seconded by a lovely lady I know very well in Moscow who is half-Georgian herself and whose father still lives in Tbilisi-I have known her for years and trust her 100%-she tells me that I was lucky to have visited the place in 1994 without too many problems apart from bureaucracy,but has always warned me to forget about the idea of going to live and work there etc.,unless it's in a compound for foreigners in somewhere like Supsa etc on the Black Sea.

[Communist Smurf]

"...enough of all these comments about beautiful willing girls here there and everywhere."

Are you speaking of that post from several months ago "Where are the good women?"

[joe-joe]

Theresa

I've sent you a PM with my experiences of working in Georgia this summer for 2 months. Hope it helps

[Theresa]

I er um overlooked the previous in depth post on Georgia. Lets put it down to a combo of sinusitus and an overdose of New Russians. Couldnt however find anything on 'Where are all the good women?'. Would still like to know where all the good males are hiding in Moscow after 3 months of searching and have only found Georgians attractive so far. Not that that would be my real motivation for being interested in moving to a dodgy country of course. Its a question of culture, scenery, history and good wine......
Does anyone have any leads on finding a job in Supsa?

[joe-joe]

Hello once again Theresa. Sorry to hear about your sinusitis by the way. I did see some months back a job advertised in Supsa with ETI, (one of the companies I told you about before which operates in Georgia). So maybe contact them to see if there are any current or soon to be forthcoming vacancies there.

Although getting a job immediately in somewhere like Supsa may not be quite so straight forward. I do know from my own experience that ETI tend to advertise such jobs, interview prospective candidates, then move their own existing 'proven' staff to such positions, and then fill the gap made by their move with the new personnel they recruit in places like Tbilisi or Baku. Again I hope this proves useful to you.

[maruss]

Hi Theresa!-as you have probably seen on the world news,things there are looking very volatile,once again,I'm very sorry to say,and I hope therre won't be a return to the situation of the early 1990's!
Supsa has a foreign run oil installation which is well guarded etc. and the teaching jobs there which I was informed about a couple of years ago paid about 800$ per month,plus free accom and meals-you could even borrow the firms cars to use if you wanted!But then I know personally via a German geologist friend who went there as a consultant,that this money was peanuts in comparison to what he and other foreigners were getting,although he said it was good fun,relaxing and safe and the local people were delightful!

I know that Moscow is grimy and miserable by comparison,especially after living in Cyprus for 25 years myself,but at least there isn't another civil war about to erupt there-well at least not yet anyway!Although you never know,things might be heading that way in Russia too,and sooner than we think!

M.

[Theresa]

Thanks everyone again. Now is probably not the best time . Not sure about the idea that Russia will go the same way though as I keep asking the Russians I know-from all walks of life though I havent met Poutine yet it has to admitted- WHY they dont have a little revolution and just get blank looks of apathy in reply

[joe-joe]

Has anyone else seen the news from Georgia this weekend? It appears things could potentially get very unpleasant there. I hope things get resolved peacefully.

[Kent F. Kruhoeffer]

Hi joe-joe:

Looks like it's all over. Mr. Shevardnadze resigned last night after meeting with the opposition leaders and Russia's Foreign Minister ... and no shots were fired.

For the latest news, try Google: http://news.google.com/

Best wishes,
keNt

[joe-joe]

Hi Kent,

Thanks for the post, Rogan also kindly sent a PM yesterday evening of a similar nature. I also saw the news, which was thankfully good. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the interim period until they hold elections, (and indeed after the elections too) is as peaceful. Politics in the Caucasus is unfortunately prone to being unstable and unpredictable.

[joe-joe]

Hi Kent,

Thanks for the post, Rogan also kindly sent a PM yesterday evening of a similar nature. I also saw the news, which was thankfully good. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the interim period until they hold elections, (and indeed after the elections too) is as peaceful. Politics in the Caucasus is unfortunately prone to being unstable and unpredictable.

[Deconstructor]

Hey everybody, I just joined this forum and want to tell you about a very old country just south of Georgia called Armenia. It's amazing how little this country is known. It has great literature, history, language, architecture, etc. I've been to many places but few are as interesting as Armenia. True, it's very poor like Georgia but it's worth seeing and living in. If you're in that area, try going there.

Unlike many countries where teaching English jobs are a dime a dozen, it is a bit more difficult in Armenia. They really want qualified people and CELTA and the like might not cut it, though it is not outside the realm of possibility. You can certainly get teaching jobs on private bases.
[/quote]

[werkard]

Hi Theresa, hope this info is not too late.
I worked in Tbilisi for a year with Int. House. It wasn't entirely a happy experience. The boss, Irakli, was reputedly a translator employed by the KGB in Soviet days. He certainly knows how to manipulate his employees!
I was initially housed in a very old insanitary flat near the school and provided with no assistance to find somewhere else.
When I did manage to do this, much to his chagrin (I don't speak Russian or Georgian) he put up all sorts of barriers.
The contract between the owner and the school was full of holes and resulted in ME paying over 20 dollars to get the hot water heater fixed one time when it blew up.
Getting out and about into the country is very difficult if you don't speak the language.
Going up to Svaneti where the mountainbs are can be downright suicidal.
One of my old students has recently emailed me and told me things are improving under Sakashvilli.........hmmm
OHH and another outfit sometihing like E.T.I. (oil contracts office in London)
Had serious cash flow probs,
Good Luck

[Anthony Schierman]

Hi Theresa and everyone else --

I would like to take the oportunity to dispel a few rumors about teaching English in Georgia that seem to keep popping up in this discussion forum.

I have been working for IH Tbilisi for the past six months and have found the overall conditions to be quite satisfactory. It's a good school and the Director, Irakli, is far from being the "KGB" type figure that the last respondant made him out to be. He is a fair boss (who actually used to be the head of the Writer's Union back in the Soviet era) who does his best to run a large school (30+ teachers, mostly Georgians, and about 1000 students) in a country where many things that are taken for granted elsewhere (electricity, gas, etc.) do not always function as they should.

Tbilisi is, in my opinion, a lovely city with a lots of cafes and stuff to do. It's no more dangerous than Moscow or Detroit unless you're really looking for trouble, but you can find trouble anywhere. So do not believe the postings that make this city out to be something akin to Kabul in terms of safety. Georgians are incredibly open and friendly and there is a strong tradition of hospitality towards foreigners.

That job at the oil compound in Supsa that someone keeps mentioning is supposed to be a nightmare (unless you enjoy being stuck in a "secure" compound with a bunch of men 24/7), and I say this because I actually met a teacher who did it and quit a month into his contract because he just couldn't bear the isolation.

As for accomodation, it's what you would (or rather should) expect from a post-Soviet nation with no money and a crumbling infrastructure. You will not be put up in the Hilton and, as an adult, you are expected to deal with problems (heating, gas, water, leaks, etc.) as they arise. That's life. My flat is old and dusty so if that sort of thing bothers you, I would not recommend Georgia as a place to live.

Travel around the country is generally safe, and Georgia is one of the most beautiful parts of the world that I've ever seen. It's true, Svanetti (a tiny mountainous region) should be avoided, but so far, no one has forced me to go there and there are many other, more secure places to visit.

Obviously, Georgia is not for everyone, but if you've got a sense of adventure and an ability to adapt to unusual situations then, Georgia will reward you greatly. And I don't even work for the tourist board.

Best Regards, Anthony