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Travel diary: Tbilisi, Georgia, part 1
Travel diary: Tbilisi, Georgia, part 2
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The next morning the weather is still spectacular as I get up, ready to explore northern Armenia. The breakfast room is kind of small, but there are only a couple of other guests here, so there's no problem finding a table. I pick a few things from the simple but tasty buffet, and brew a cup of coffee at the coffee machine. Twenty minutes later, I'm ready to head out!
This time I know from the beginning in what direction to walk, and I soon find myself back on Kote Abkhazi street. Five minutes later, I'm at the Meidan square, and another five minutes later, I've made the climb to Envoy Hostel, halfway up the hill of Narikala, with a gorgeous vista of Tbilisi.
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| The view of Tbilisi walking up Narikala |
In the courtyard, a handful of people have gathered. Soon enough, I find out that most of them are heading north, to Kazbegi, close to the Russian border. Our guide, Nika, explains that our driver is a little late, and when the Kazbegi people have departed, there are only three left. Me, and an American couple from Minnesota. A fourth guest, a German guy in roughly the same age as me, joins us at the hostel where we move up to the terrace to admire the views in the sun. After fifteen minutes or so, the driver parks his minivan outside the hostel, and we can get going.
Soon enough, we find ourselves driving out of Tbilisi, and into the Georgian countryside. I am fascinated by how green everything is. Here and there, street vendors are scattered. Most of them are Armenians and Azeri, Nika explains. Here, close to the border, the ethnic groups are mixed, and Russian is used as the Lingua Franca.
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| The countryside south of Tbilisi |
After driving for approximately an hour, we reach the border crossing in Sadakhlo. A Georgian officer gives us our exit stamps and hands us back our passports. Then we have to walk through a corridor for 50 yards until we reach a new booth, this time with an Armenian officer in it.
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| Crossing the border at Sadakhlo |
The first difference that I notice between Georgia and Armenia is the quality of the roads and cars. The roads here in northern Armenia could use a little maintenance, and there are a lot more Russian Ladas here. But our driver is skillful, and it still feels safe. The German guy soon falls asleep (after landing in Tbilisi just a few hours before going on this trip), but I talk quite a lot to the American couple, as we head further south.
The first stop is the monastery Sanahin. It was founded in the 10th century, and is located close to the city of Alaverdi. The landscape is still very green, but a lot more dramatic than in southern Georgia. The mountains are higher and the canyons deeper.
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| At Sanahin |
Nika guides us through the monastery. I'm struck by how sparsely decorated everything (including the church) is. There are no icons or frescoes. The thick stone walls make it quite chilly, despite the heat outside.
In the antechamber before the main hall of the church, the floor is covered with tombstones.
"You may walk on them," Nika tells us. "Priests are buried in these tombs. They dedicated their lives to carrying people to Christ, leading them to faith, and by being buried here, they continue to do that after their deaths."
After a solemn tour of the monastery of Sanahin, we get back to the minivan. This time it only takes fifteen minutes or so before our next stop, at the monastery of Haghpat. Haghpat is a little younger than Sanahin, and was allegedly built by the disciple of the master who built Sanahin.
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| At Haghpat |
This monastery is also sparsely decorated, but I quite like this simple style. Just as at Sanahin, the surroundings are beautiful. High mountains, deep canyons, and extremely green.
We get back in the minivan again. It's time for lunch, and we drive to an Armenian family where a delightful lunch is served in their backyard. "We Georgians are proud of our food," Nika declares, "but we leave the BBQ to the Armenians." A huge plate of grilled meat is served, together with fresh vegetables, bread and different kinds of cheese.
The American guy exchanges some words in Russian with the matron of the house. Once again, I'm struck by how surreal this feels. This time I'm not even in a city, but in the countryside where I know absolutely no one. And I'm surrounded by five people whom I had never met before today, but under these circumstances, in the backyard of this Armenian family's house, they almost start to feel like old acquaintances.
When we're full, we continue to the third and last monastery of our trip. Akhtala is a lot closer to the Georgian border, and this is reflected in its architecture and decorations. It is adorned with huge frescoes, colorfully painted, and impressively well preserved. I appreciate the art, but I must admit that I prefer the Armenian orthodox monasteries.
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| Fresco at Akhtala |
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| Akhtala |
On our way back to Tbilisi in the afternoon sun, we pass the border again, where my passport gets another two stamps. We only spent a few hours in Armenia, but the experience, despite being short, has been really rewarding, and I'm happy I went on this trip.
Once back at Envoy hostel, I buy something to drink. (It is gone in a flash - the sun may be sinking low, but it is still hot!) I set my eyes on the Narikala hill again, but this time I walk to the top. The hill offers spectacular views of Tbilisi, and I pause for a few minutes to admire the Georgian capital from this vantage point. Then I keep walking towards Kartlis Deda, "Mother Georgia". She is twenty metres high, made from aluminum, and she keeps watch over Tbilisi. In one hand she holds a bowl of wine for her guests, and with the other hand she wields a sword to fend off enemies.
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| Kartlis Deda, keeping watch over Tbilisi |
Close to the statue, there are some stairs down the hill, and I walk back towards the Old Town, in order to visit Abanotubani, the famous sulphur bath district of Tbilisi. Allegedly, both Dumas and Pushkin went here to take baths. I gather from the sulphur smell that I'm walking in the right direction. The neighborhood is picturesque with colorful buildings clinging to the hillside above the domes of the sulphur baths.
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| Abanotubani |
Despite the smell, there is a lot of movement here, with a lot of people in the streets. I feel like it's time for dinner, and just like the night before, I've looked up a restaurant that I want to try out. Café Alani is not very cosy, and it is very loud. The food smells good, though, and I order the lamb stew chakapuli and a glass of the house beer, as recommended by my guide book. The stew is alright, although I doubt that I will remember it for years to come. My doubts are about to disappear a few hours later though, as the chakapuli or the beer gives me a mad bout of food poisoning. Thank God for FaceTime - talking to my wife and my parents back home (when I don't have to hug the toilet) gets me through the evening, before I finally fall asleep from the exhaustion. I'm not likely to forget Café Alani and their chakapuli anytime soon...
In the morning I wake up, not quite as well rested as the day before. I stay in bed, taking tiny sips of water now and then. Finally I head out to buy some Coke. That will do for breakfast. Then I take a shower and pack my belongings. I check out and order a cab back to the airport. However, I order the cab to pick me up in an hour. I'm not done with Tbilisi just yet, and I don't want the food poisoning to be my last memory of this city.
With the bottle of Coke in one hand and my camera in the other, I head out to explore the area close to the hotel. I have to pause a lot, but I still manage to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful buildings.
Among other things, I see the Sioni cathedral, and the Freedom Square with St. George and the dragon.
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| Saint George and the Dragon |
My hour is soon up, and I head back to the hotel. It turns out that I get the same driver who picked me up the day before yesterday. He's not very talkative today either (and doesn't even point out any Government buildings). I arrive at the airport about three hours before departure. Way too early, according to the agent who is scanning boarding passes (although I had already passed through security), but she hesitantly lets me pass through. I do some passive plane spotting from a bench in a quiet alcove of the departures hall. Aircraft from Belavia and Air Astana both arrive and depart before my Boeing 737-800 from Ukraine International Airlines arrives at the gate to fly me home via Kiev.
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| In transit at Kiev Boryspil Airport |
The last leg is flown on a very nice Embraer ERJ-190. When we land at ARN, I'm extremely tired, but also happy with the trip. Apart from the food poisoning, Tbilisi met my general expectations, and it was nice to make its acquaintance.
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| Outside the Sioni cathedral in Tbilisi |
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