Once upon a time in Tbilisi......

A few days back - I had posed this one question to my audiences on both WhatsApp and Facebook on who these people are on display in the above picture? I further asked them whether it is just another YouTube music video or a shot taken from a movie on the in-flight entertainment system. I got a wide range of responses. With some claiming it to be a sitcom from a popular TV show to others mentioning that it could be a flash mob at one of the town-squares worldwide, it really enthused me to see a wide range of responses I got on the above picture.      

As you may have guessed it right - this photo is a shot taken from a popular music video in Georgia, titled - Menatrebi Dzalian. This literally translates to "I miss you very much". In essence, this sums up the emotions, sentiments and the feelings that I had when I was departing the Shota Rustavelli Tbilisi International airport and landed Sharjah. I really felt that we should have stayed much longer as 5 days was insufficient to experience the beautiful countryside and metropolises that the country had to offer. Nevertheless, after a lot of convincing I finally came to terms with the present-day reality and here I am today sharing with you a short travelogue on my memorable experiences in and around the Georgian paradise.

It all started when we set off busy packing our clothes and belongings on a Friday evening. Closing our books and laptops, we were all filled with excitement as it had now been 6 years passed since we had last gone for a holiday abroad. Having prepped ourselves well for the journey ahead - we set off in a cab to the Sharjah Airport where we had checked in our baggage and got our boarding passes for the departure a few hours later.

While at the airport, it came to us as an amazement that our immigration took not more than 5 minutes. All of this was part and parcel of the new technology of passport scanning and facial recognition that had been introduced recently at the Sharjah airport. While it used to take us one hour and sometimes one and half hour too in the past - our waiting time had now been reduced quite significantly as a result of this enhancement.

At Shota Rustavelli International Airport

It took us a total of three hours of flying time by the local budget carrier - Air Arabia. Upon landing at the Shota Rustavelli International Airport in Georgia, I was taken aback by the huge 5 star hotel casino advertisements on display at the airport arrivals section which greatly reminded me of the Goa Dabolim International Airport. Furthermore, the airport in its size, layout and aesthetic was also a clear resemblance of the same in my hometown with its huge national flags to be seen all across. 

As we got out of the airport with our baggage, we were given a warm welcome by our local guide - Lasha who spotted us pushing our luggage from a distance. With his typical Georgian accent, he escorted us in his vehicle showing us the different places and attractions in and around the city of Tbilisi briefly while we were heading off to the Gudauri hills which was to be our stop on the first day of the trip.

                                                                                          Aragvi River

While on the long journey, he gave us a brief insight into the value systems and beliefs of the locals. Being a villager himself hailing from a mining town that goes by the name of Chiatura, our guide went on to describe the similarities and differences in being born and brought up in the countryside versus being brought up in the city of Tbilisi. While he was describing all about the countryside, speaking greatly of the 'fresh fish' from the rivers - I encouraged him to play the local Georgian music to get into feel of the tour the Georgian way. I have left a link of the playlist of Georgian tunes put together before the comments section of this travelogue.

                                                                                 Ananuri Fortress

As we had come the long distance to Georgia, we visited a few places that included the Aragvi river - which is the place where the plain water mixes with blackish water as well as the Ananuri Fortress. The Ananuri Fortress is what happens to be remnants of the 9th century era in time when feudalism was the way society was organized. With its old fortress cum Eastern Orthodox Church - its serves to remind visitors and tourists alike of the rich history of Georgia dating before the establishment of the Russian Republic and the communist era. 

We took a few photos in that area as well as few scenic spots, having a good view of the river and were taken by a pleasant surprise! For every photo clicked in the good spots marked, you had to mandatorily pay 5 Laris (AED 7) to the locals. It amazed us as this was the first time we came across such a case where you had to pay the locals for a photo you clicked with your own camera.

Wooden Houses in Gudauri Hills

       Bird's eye view of the Gudauri Hills from the Inn

After 3 hours of travelling from the airport, we finally reached Gudauri hills and were taken aback by the beautiful scenery of snow-capped mountains and green hills. To top it up, it had now become extremely cold as we were at a high altitude and could see sheep with thick fur from afar. There was also a noticeable difference in the houses - that were more of wooden structures built to withstand the extremely cold climates especially in the months when it would snow. We were lucky to have come at a time when it was not snowing and could enjoy all that the countryside had to offer.

We spent the rest of the evening and night at a small inn called - Gudauri Inn before we could check out the next day for our onward trip to Tbilisi.

Sheep on the roads of the countryside

After having a sumptuous breakfast at the in-house restaurant, we then set off to visit an old church set atop a hill with a beautiful view of the countryside. On our way, we were thrilled to see a flock of sheep moving in a herd with their shepherd on the roads. It was a beautiful sight to behold. To add to it, the accompanying music played by our guide in the car seemed to sync quite well with the movement of the sheep. 

 Russia-Georgia peace monument

We also visited the Russia-Georgia peace monument situated at the border with Russia. It had in it engraved paintings that from my perspective depicted the commonalities in culture, traditions and history of Georgia and Russia. Before heading off to the city, we stopped by a restaurant in the same area where we had the opportunity to taste the local delicacy - Kachapuri  which resembles a pizza with the Georgian cheese freshly prepared by the chefs.

                                                                     Kachapuri - National Dish of Georgia

We then headed off to the capital on a three-hour journey, mesmerized by the beautiful countryside that we could see on the way, whilst listening to all the lovely Georgian folk-tunes, rap songs and pop music played by our guide. At the capital, we checked into another 4 star city hotel - Clocks hotel where we spent the remaining two nights of our trip. In the evening, we went around to explore the neighboring shops and fruit-sellers and were once again pleasantly surprised to see a near resemblance to the shopping centre of Mapusa back in my home state of Goa. 

              

Mapusa & Tbilisi contrast

Fresh fruits from the Tbilisi market

Further, the shopping centre of Tbilisi had a number of street vendors selling fresh fruit such as cherries, apricots, figs, peaches and not to forget -  the cherished delicacy - churchkhela which are dried fruits enveloped in a colourful coating of gelatin.

                                                                       Bridge of Peace - Georgia

Aside from that, we also discovered that Georgia is famous for another dish called - Khinkali which resembles a Chinese dumpling filled with chicken mince which we had a chance to taste at a famous joint in the vicinity called - Khinkali House. We savored the dish to the fullest whilst facing a one man show performance at the centre-stage in the restaurant. The restaurant, including it's top-seating area was filled with lot of people on that day as the Georgian football team was facing off intensely against Spain in the Euro Cup.

                                                      Musician playing at the side of the Mother Georgia monument

On the next day we went to a few places around the city that included the famous Peace bridge of Georgia, and a short cable car ride to Mother Georgia on the other side across the river. We were enthused to hear one of the locals singing in Hindi a popular tune from Shree 420 (Shree Char Sau Bees) whilst playing the accordion to appease the tourists visiting that area. We also visited a rural area of Georgia and had the opportunity to taste the local bread and cheese made by the villagers in their in-house bakeries. 

                                                                                     Bodbe Monastery

     Svetitskhoveli Cathedral

On the fourth day of our trip, we visited the Bodbe monastery which houses the remains of one of the revered saints of Georgia - St Nino of Cappadocia. We also visited the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral which has relics of the cross of Jesus Christ including the shroud in which he was buried after crucifixion. As we passed around the vicinity of the Cathedral, we were thrilled to see small cafes selling 'wine ice cream' which was something we had never ever thought could exist. And indeed, it was a bliss to our tastebuds as Georgia in general is also know for it's home-grown wines.

                                  

                                                                                             Sighnaghi Town

We stopped for short walk in a place called Sighnaghi which is small town located in the Khakheti region of Georgia that has a beautiful landscape of pastel coloured houses at a height on a hill-side. It also had a park called 9th April Garden that closely resembled the Muncipal Garden of Panjim with musicians singing and playing instruments for the tourists as they came to visit and spend their time in the area. 

A performer at the 9th April Garden

On our way back, we stopped at the winery called - Khaketi Traditional Wines, where we had the chance to taste the different flavors of sweet wine that were stored in big cannisters at close to 19 degrees celsius temperature. We also discovered that the country has it's own signature version of the Vodka called 'Cha-Cha' which we could not only find in the winery, but also sold in the city and neighboring towns of the vicinity. 

                                                                         Khaketi Traditional Wines

And with that, we were sad that our trip to Georgia had come to an end. As we traversed the city, enroute to the airport I reminisced of the great moments we had spent with our guide who had happily had taken us to all of the different places, giving us a glimpse of the local culture and the Georgian way of life. I also learnt of the similarities in culture, food and the way of life between Georgia and my home-state of Goa. More importantly, I took back a great lesson that - "When you make your guests feel at home, you will leave them with great memories and an urge to visit you again".

        

                 

                                                                                     With Lasha our tour guide

Link to the Georgian music playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWE8gA2fODpUxlo5gSRMFJtyDqEtorYM6&jct=GF9USj7sDLeB0bMU1GfLzg