Berikowpa

The Georgians have their own version of Mardi Gras, called Berikowpa. Young men dressed in funny costumes caper about, dancing and playing instruments. However, rather than throwing plastic beads to spectators, they block the roads and request payment for passage, while other villagers laugh and point. What do you get for the “toll?” A good laugh and wishes for a happy spring.

At least, that's what happens the first time you’re stopped. By the third road block, it was all I could do to keep our driver from running over the revelers. Berikowpa lasts about a week before spring starts, and as far as I can tell it has no connection to Lent (also unlike Mardi Gras). Oddly enough, though Berikowpa is an old tradition, this is the first year I’ve seen it. I’m not sure if this represents a rise in patriotic fervor, or simply now that the traffic cops are no longer shaking down motorists every 20 km., the average citizen has taken a hand in it. However, I suspect the former.