Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia has simple advice for the increasing number of international sports stars who find themselves living in Atlanta.

Last month, the Atlanta Braves signed Japanese pitcher Kenshin Kawakami, who speaks little English. The process of recruiting Mr. Kawakami involved cultural issues as well as athletic ability and money. Braves management met with Japan’s consul general for the Southeast U.S., Takuji Hanatani, to make sure Mr. Kawakami would feel comfortable living in Atlanta.

Mr. Pachulia can relate. Ten years ago, at age 14, he began his pro basketball career in Istanbul, Turkey.

“In the beginning, it was so hard, because I didn’t know places, where to go, what to do,” said Mr. Pachulia, who speaks English fluently. “Once you start meeting people and get to know the city, it’s much easier for you. I was lucky I had that experience in Istanbul. When I came here (Atlanta), after a couple of months I started feeling better.”

He has now embraced American culture and the Atlanta lifestyle.

“It’s been four years since I’ve been playing with the Atlanta Hawks and I feel like I’m at home,” he said. “It’s really nice here.”

Nice, even with Atlanta’s notorious traffic, which does not phase the basketball star.

“Nothing compares to Istanbul traffic,” he said. “You can be stuck on the highway for three or four hours especially going from the European side to the Asian side. So I’m not really complaining about Atlanta traffic.”

Mr. Pachulia tries to make time to socialize with others from the Republic of Georgia living in Atlanta.

“We try to get together but it’s really hard because everybody is working and my schedule, so much travel and practice,” said Mr. Pachulia. “But we still find some time, especially in the evenings to get together and talk about stuff- talk in your own language.”

After years of living abroad, Mr. Pachulia’s Georgian sometimes gets rusty.

“I’m never going to forget my language, but if you don’t talk in any language, you automatically start forgetting,” he said.

When friends visit, he makes a point of having a bottle of Georgian wine open for them. He buys it at Whole Foods. But Mr. Pachulia has not found a restaurant in Atlanta with authentic Georgian cooking.

“Probably the best place for Georgian food is my house,” he said. “Especially when my mom is here.”

Mr. Pachulia normally has time to return to his home country – it’s a 20-hour trip - only in the summers when basketball season is over.

Last August, he had to watch helplessly in the United States as his family members back in the Republic of Georgia experienced an invasion by Russian troops. The conflict centered on two disputed regions, South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

“I was scared, I did not want this to happen,” said Mr. Pachulia. “My mom was there. Every hour I was calling her to make sure she was OK. It’s your Mom, you know, and she is there by herself. When I can’t help her personally, when I’m so far from my country, it was a tough situation for me. ”

Most of the fighting was over in a week and Mr. Pachulia’s relatives were not injured. Yet he worries about the future of his country. Georgia gained its independence after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 but relations with Russia have been tense since then. 

“It’s really a good culture, really interesting culture,” Mr. Pachulia said of his home country. “My country has been in bad times since I remember, since I was born. I want to see Georgia happy. It takes a lot of time, a lot of work but I’d like to see the smiling faces. Right now, I don’t see that.”

Mr. Pachulia plans to play seven or eight more years of pro basketball. Although he does not envision returning to the Republic of Georgia permanently after retiring from basketrball, he plans to always maintain strong connections there.

“I might not be living there every day,” he said. “But I’ll be going back and forth. I can’t see myself or my family without my country.”

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