Mikheil Saakashvili inspected the construction work around the Duruji Lake along with 30 teachers who are participating in the program “Georgian Language for Future Success,” initiated by the President. The President of Georgia familiarized them with the recreational zone being built. The new zone will be opened on November 5th – on the “Iliaoba” holiday and it will have a symbolic name – the “Lake of Ilia.”
"This reservoir is being filled by the Duruji River. After completion of the work a large lake will be formed here (for comparison: 3 times larger than Turtle Lake) and an artificial island will be created in the center. There will be a beautiful coastline, boulevard of approximately 700-800 meters, a café and a 4 kilometer bicycle lane. It will be connected to this place by the Kvareli Bridge. The lake water will be consistently filtered, giving it a blue color. There will be a beautiful lake surrounded by the nearby mountains and close to the Nekresi and Gremi Monasteries. Lopota and Kvareli lakes are also here, but unlike Lake Duruji, they are privately owned and one has to pay money to enter their territory. Duruji Lake will be available to everyone. November 5th is “Iliaoba” and we wish to complete the Duruji Lake before then. In fact, little more than one month is left for us to accomplish our task before this holiday. The Ilia House-Museum was renovated in Kvareli. I also offered for Kakhetians to name the lake “The Lake of Ilia” - noted the President of Georgia while talking to the teachers.
After touring the Duruji Lake, the President of Georgia moved to Kvareli. Mikheil Saakashvili showed the guests his new vineyard and together they harvested the Saperavi breed grapes.
"I am charmed by what you are going to do, because only idealists can build our country. Bored, inactive and cynical people won’t be able to accomplish this. They can only interfere with the work, get on peoples nerves and criticize (referring to some politicians). The only people who can build the country are the ones who have ideas and have the desire to implement their ideas to completion, the process of building the Georgia State. I have not done anything more important nor will you do anything as important as this. As you have seen in the movie “Giorgi Saakadze” –how a bunch of arrows are separated– the enemy was always trying to do the same thing to us; have us as separated arrows. These kinds of politics still continue within the country and abroad. Every citizen of Georgia is hard working, sympathetic and knows the value of his own work as well as the work of others and wants to be an indivisible part of the Georgian State. The only road leading to this goes through the Georgian language. Dimitry Shashkin and I developed a good program that includes receiving a bachelor’s degree, participating in this program and then studying at the Master’s level, a successful combination. You can tell your great grandchildren in the future what a good job you have done. Professional teachers who had high salaries did not often achieve the results that you have. It is true that they had more experience than you, but you have something that they did not have and that is great motivation. When you go to those families you take the Georgian soul there and you become the ambassadors of our state and our people there. You are like those instructors who have come to Georgia to teach English, but your mission is of far greater importance than theirs. Americans are bringing general education but you are building the state which is a completely different phenomenon. I gathered you here today so I can thank you. I have seldom seen people with as much merit as yours. You are the clearest proof of how we can form a beautiful state from scratch, basically from ruins. The work you are doing will eliminate conflicts, abuses, and problems in the future. People will breathe more freely and our state will become stronger. Everybody wants to be a good Georgian but there is one obstacle in the process – the Georgian language. We will overcome this obstacle together. If a person wants to create a career, get promoted, build a business or achieve something he must know the language. I want us to gather one more time in spring to talk about our achievements.” – stated Mikheil Saakashvili.