​June 24 to July 5 2016   Beautiful Georgia Part II

I have run out of superlatives!! Georgia exceeded our expectations. It is so beautiful, the food and wine delicious, the culture so rich in history dating back pre-history almost. So you might think why not just leave it there? ....... but I really must attempt to describe some of what we saw and experienced. Our guide Nino, a born leader and passionate advocate for her country and fellow Georgians, brought it alive for us. Together with Gia, our excellent driver, we travelled perhaps 5000 thousand kilometres from the capital Tbilisi, east into wine and fruit growing regions, north to one of the highest glaciers in the Caucasus (Mt Kazbegi 5047m), west to the upper Svaneti region (both regions are in the Greater Caucasus mountains and the roads are pretty rough) and finally we headed south for one of the highlights of the trip for me, the 12th Century cave town of Vardzia.

Where to start? Perhaps a few impressions from that amazing trip starting at the capital. 

Cathedral in Tbilisi

Tbilisi is a conglomeration of the old and new all jumbled together in a fairly small area - compared to sprawling Melbourne! We focussed on the old - exploring the winding streets of the old city, peering into churches and cathedrals dating back thousands of years, before walking the ruined ramparts of the 4th Century Narikala fortress on the craggy heights where it once guarded the old city. From there we trekked down to the millennia old Sulphur Baths fed by waterfall and creek at the bottom of the precipice. We happened on some exuberant and totally unexpected entertainment which was a bit if a treat - a traditional Uzbeki dance celebrating a wedding in the square outside the Baths.

We completely forgot time in the National Museum of History - the two of us had a personal tour led by the museum's longest serving guide (we had her all to ourselves!); she has been guiding there for 50 years. What she doesn't know about Georgian history and treasures is probably not worth knowing - we felt very privileged. Dinner on the rooftop terrace of our hotel sipping Georgian wine and watching the lights come on across Tbilisi was a perfect way to end a wonderful first day.

As we drove east the following day into the Kakheti region, we passed what seemed like an almost endless line of fruit stalls along the side of the road selling huge watermelons, peaches and an array of other fruits and of course buckets spilling large ripe tomatoes ...... and slaughtered pigs! There they were, fresh-killed chunks of pig - pale pink mysterious shapes hanging by the roadside inviting people to buy, some cuts wrapped in cloth others, just swinging naked in the breeze. Bizarre sight for we overly sanitized and refrigeration-oriented visitors. We called into Khareba winery for a tour and tasting and came away with 4 bottles to polish off along the way. Then were taken to a local farm where the family treated us a delicious lunch with fruit and vegetables from their garden and scrumptious pork shashlik all topped off with homemade cheese, wine, bread and chachas - their local fiery grape vodka ....whoph haaa!

Ancient underground wine vats 

Georgian wine is pretty special. With a history of 8000 years, it is one of the oldest wine-making regions in the world. It still practices the traditional underground claypot, kvevris, fermentation method, which has been UNESCO listed as intangible cultural heritage, along side the newer European method. Both variety tastes of sunshine and rich soil - the wine is not readily available in Australia but do ask for it nevertheless, its really worth a taste.

Turgid mountain torrents

Our next destination was the ancient capital and religious centre of Georgia, Mtskheta with its UNESCO World Heritage sites - Jvari monastery and Svetitskhoveli cathredral. The magesty and spiritual ambiance of these places had us whispering and wishing we could dwell in the silence for a while. But we were swept northward along an incredibly beautiful drive through 'gorgeous' valleys - truly! and woodlands to the ski resort of Gudauri. The following day was stunning! driving beside the Tergi river into the Sno valley and then on via very narrow roads deeper into the High Caucasus to the exotic tiny village of Juta. Surrounded by the gorgeous snow covered mountains, it is completely cut off from the whole country for six months of the year. You can read more about the experience of those two days in the entry for 28 June, suffice it to say it was simply wonderful.

Look for Part III for the next part of our fantastic journey through Georgia!