SAQARTVELO…Kutaisi-Tbilisi-Batumi
Gamarjoba, genatsvale! Don't you think, this story will not be in Georgian, but about beautiful Georgia and its people, and not even a story, but travel notes?
After returning from this country, the pleasant feeling with which we were greeted did not leave me for a long time - cordiality, respect for guests, friendship, attention, love. After all, a Guest in Georgia is an honorary status, you can hardly find such respect for a tourist anywhere else. Each Georgian considers it an honor to meet, seat at the table, hold a feast in the classical Georgian tradition, answer all questions, and tell about Georgia with great love. In general, Georgians are great patriots, and pride for themselves and their country can be heard literally in every word. . .
So, note to the tourist. To begin with, there is absolutely nothing to contact a travel agency for a trip to Georgia. The country for Ukrainians is visa-free, Vizeir flies to Kutaisi at a reasonable price, and Booking. com will easily help you find a hotel at a discount. But we decided to settle in a guesthouse and went through one of the sites to the owner of such a guesthouse in Kutaisi named Beso. I must say right away that we corresponded for a long time, I asked a lot of questions - about the settlement, excursions, the country and the weather. Beso answered each letter in detail in broken but understandable Russian. By the way, in Georgia, all Georgians speak a little Russian, so there is no problem with the language here. The final fears and doubts dissipated when we, a group of 6 people, were met on time by a man with a sign and taken to the guest house. The owner turned out to be a young man with a bunch of relatives who, during the few days of our stay, created a special flavor of the Georgian family with their smiles, jokes and joint feasts. The house we lived in was an ordinary, wooden one, with a large living room, two bathrooms, and modest amenities. In the yard - a shady gazebo and grapes. Everything is homely, comfortable. In the morning everyone goes about their business - in the evening they gather at a large table to share how the day went. All tourists - guests of this house, gather together with the owners, conversations do not stop here until late in the evening. And the hospitable host pours so much wine and chacha that it is simply impossible to drink everything. However, as well as to eat everything that caring mother Leah has prepared according to the recipes of classic Georgian cuisine.
The first day was devoted to a trip around Kutaisi. Having thoroughly refreshed ourselves with khinkali (Beso eats 38 pieces of them with a good drink), snacks and wine, we set off on our way to the Satapli reserve. It is he, one of the few, who keeps dinosaur footprints. And inside, in underground caves, illuminated by multi-colored lights, a feeling of a magical fairy-tale underground kingdom is created. If you are offered to swim in an underground river on a boat - agree! Photos in speleologists' helmets look original : ) Don't be too lazy to walk to the viewing platform with a transparent bottom to tickle your nerves. Well, take a few photos in white soft slippers, of course (you need to change shoes on the site). Then we examined the Gelati temple complex and took amazing pictures in the rays of the sunset, and ended this day with the Kutaisi fountain with animals (in the evening it looks especially impressive in multi-colored illumination ) and the Temple of Bagrat. And for dinner we planned a feast in honor of my birthday. I will say right away that I have never had such a birthday - a real Georgian feast! With traditional toasts, snacks and birthday cake. After drinking a horn of homemade wine according to the Georgian tradition, tired and exhausted, we went to bed.
Second day. In the morning we headed to Akhaltsikhe, stopping on the way to Borjomi. It would not be superfluous to recall that the city is famous for its mineral water Borjomi, which occupies the first position in export in Georgia. The town is very similar to our Truskavets - the same shady, green. It is located in a gorge, in the valley of the Kura River. The water is warm, so it is almost impossible to drink it. But we courageously take a sip and move on. Just a few kilometers from Borjomi is the Green Monastery. Do not miss! The path to it is narrow, almost a path, the forest is overgrown, beautiful. The Green Monastery is the same age as the Byzantine Empire, very ancient and ancient. We are moving further... and here we are at the Akhaltsikhe Rabat fortress, one of the most beautiful fortresses in Georgia. The word "rabat" means any fortified place, and indeed, the fortress was built in the classical tradition of that time. The territory of the fortress is quite large, and in the hour of time allotted to us, we only had time to run through the main places. And then Vardzia was waiting for us. The road to it is hilly and bumpy, so it can easily rock you. But what beauty will open before you when you finally get there! The territory of the cave monastery complex is huge, besides, you will have to climb all the time uphill to reach it, because. buses don't run. But it will be a very exciting journey! Well, the end of this day was marked by our arrival in Tbilisi, where we settled in the Mirobelle Hotel. 3 star hotel with good location and good breakfast. It is located not far from the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, and from the window you can see the Narikala fortress. The room is small, but everything worked well. We were satisfied.
Day three. We dedicated a walk through the quiet streets of Tbilisi. We started our tour from the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, then climbed the Narikala fortress by cable car to look at the city from a height, we spent plenty of time along the streets and back streets of the old city - and here, there is something to see, especially if you leave the usual tourist route and delve into one of the streets - you will find many "Odessa courtyards" executed in the classical Georgian style. We looked into the famous sulfur baths (the smell there, I tell you, is still the same! ), And finished our walk by climbing the funicular to the amusement park, where the whole city is visible as if in the palm of your hand... In the evening, my friends and I went to a Georgian restaurant very respected by the locals " Tsishvili", or the Mill. Friends, do you want real Georgian cuisine and local flavor? Come to the Mill! Here you will be sung, greeted magnificently, and fed deliciously. And the restaurant itself is also a museum - be sure to take a walk!
Day four. We are heading to Kakheti, finally a wine tour! On the way, we stop at some important local history sites. These are former castles. They now resemble a pile of stones, densely overgrown with greenery. But personally, I really love such places - when you sit on a stone warmed by the sun, close your eyes - and in front of you is the spirit of the Middle Ages... Then we stopped in the city of Telavi, but the complex itself was closed. But we managed to take a couple of pictures near a huge plane tree, which is about 800 years old. Well, further along our wine route, we visited the Chavchavadze house-museum in Tsinandali. From here, in fact, Georgian winemaking began. A short digression into history, and we move on - to the Alazani Valley. It was expected to see something like that... But in reality it's just a field with vineyards... albeit a beautiful one : ) And so we go down to the cellars, where it smells of cold and damp, listen to the guide's story, examine the labels on numerous bottles, in order to observe live in half an hour behind the process of winemaking, inhale the sour, slightly tart smell of wine and taste the most worthy varieties... Well, then, intoxicated with tasting wine and cognac, we are moving to the station to go to Batumi.
Day five. Batumi is the last point of our journey. We spend the night on the train - a comfortable SV carriage, and in the morning we are already met by a bus for a tour of sunny Batumi. In Adjara, as in all of Georgia, the weather was sunny. First, the guide took us to the border with Turkey, in Sarfi. After wandering along the coast and looking at the "Turkish coast", we returned to Batumi. And again a leisurely walk, breakfast and of course the sea. The sea in October in Georgia is cold, but we were not going to swim. Taking off their shoes, jumped on the pebbles, basked in the sun. And then we walked along the embankment, which is very beautiful in Batumi. The monument to Nino and Ali is a symbol of love, we didn’t manage to take a picture while moving, but we climbed the funicular to see the panorama of the city, managed to ride on the ferris wheel and tasted Adjarian khachapuri in the Adjarian House. What a yummy! In general, Georgian cuisine is a topic for a separate story. It's actually very spicy and spicy for me. But at the same time very tasty! Well, at the end of our trip, we went to the Botanical Garden, so huge that it seemed that during the 5 hours we spent there, we managed to see almost half of it. The park is extremely beautiful and walking through it is a pleasure. True, then no one felt their legs, but absolutely everyone was satisfied. In the evening of that day, we returned to Kutaisi and the next morning we were taken to the airport to return to our homeland.
Well, what can I say in conclusion? Nahvamdis, Sakartvelo! Thank you for your hospitality, for your hospitable people, for these unique 5 days filled with care and your love. . .
