A tourist asks a Tbilisi taxi driver for a fixed price to the airport. The driver says the meter price is 40 lari. The tourist offers 30. The driver, offended, says: “Ukrainuri bablo ar minda! Minda bablo qartulad. 35 lari da gzaze mogikhebi kartul simgerebs.” (I don’t want Ukrainian money! I want money in Georgian. 35 lari and I’ll play you Georgian songs on the way.)
You would never ask a bank teller for "Bablo." But you would tell your roommate, "Gechirdeba bablo, modis?" (I need bablo, are you coming?). Bablo Qartulad
is a dark comedy. It avoids being overly "gritty" by presenting corruption and crime through a lens of irony. The Georgian Connection A tourist asks a Tbilisi taxi driver for