Georgia On My Mind (Ray Charles)

Welcome back to Macs With Packs! After a more than two year hiatus we’ve taken the plunge overseas again. We realised we’re a bit rusty at this when it seemed to be twice as hard to get ready for this trip as it used to be but, then again, John did successfully complete his 3rd dan blackbelt grading only 5 days before we left. It took many months of manic training but he got there.

It was so sad and strange saying goodbye to everyone!

Much to our surprise we sailed through Melbourne airport. We had heard how crazy airports are but apparently we just timed it well. As we walked out to the plane we had to laugh at its name. Qantas gives names to planes like “Spirit of the Outback”. Our Scoot plane was called “Barry”! Barry was a bit tardy though - we were all loaded on then we sat on the tarmac for almost an hour. 

We made an effort to break the long haul to Georgia up. First stop was Singapore and, coming from a Ballarat winter, it was hot and humid. Our hotel room was tiny but the location was great. We were right near all the restaurants that line the river along Clarke Quay. I particularly loved the renovated shop houses and larger buildings with their gorgeous painted shutters that are scattered throughout Singapore. 

We ate wonderful Asian food and John had to visit Jumbo for a pepper crab. He looked good enough to eat in that ravishing bib - not!

We ate our breakfasts under fans so large that they were tethered by cables like guy ropes. We didn't seem to get enough vegies but the vegies in the ad below still didn't appeal.....

We caught up with my friend Jelissa in the fascinating Arab quarter and had a great night. We saw some interesting shops in our travels including one where you choose your coffee and a big robotic arm makes it for you.

Unfortunately, we spent most of our time here trying to get credit cards to work. We discovered that it's incredibly difficult to contact some banks (pointing the figure directly at ANZ here) in an emergency. We spent time in the CBD trying to get this sorted and found this cool sculpture that reflected us and the buildings around us.

As I write this, we have been trying for a week and still haven't been able to talk to anyone at ANZ. Unbelievable!

We then flew to Dubai for a short one-night stop. It was 40 degrees and humid when we landed! We didn't experience it much though as we just stayed near the airport and were indoors most of the time. We arrived late and left early but had a wonderful stay. We got upgraded to a large room and had the most fantastic meal in their restaurant. We only wanted something light so we ordered a mezze plate. First they brought free snacks - 5 beautiful dishes of olives and pickled vegetables, one of which was whole chillies! Next came our mezze plate - 6 gorgeous bowls of assorted dips accompanied by warm pita breads. They were sensational! We couldn't eat it all though. Then they gave us free desserts! Then, if that wasn't enough, they gave us 30% discount off the bill because we were staying in the hotel. This is just an airport hotel but we'll be staying here again if we come back through Dubai!

Also in the hotel we saw local ladies all dressed up in their glittery finest for a wedding. It was amazing!

We boarded the plane for our last leg and had an interesting flight flying over the vast desolate lands of Iran. The scenery finally changed to rolling green hills and at last we arrived in Georgia!

The most obvious first difference was the lack of masks. We had been wearing them everywhere since we left home and suddenly nobody was wearing them. We had heard about the incredible hospitality of the Georgians but the staff in the airport were grumpy and so bored-looking it was like they were acting.

Tbilisi's old town, the part of the Georgian capital where we're staying, is a fascinating mix of old wooden balconies, modern shops built over old ruins, gold-roofed churches, steep cobblestoned streets and expensive cars. Overlaid onto this scene are thousands and thousands of tourists. Shop staff are like those we met at the airport - bored, unenthusiastic and unsmiling. Get the right person though and they are bright, informative and happy to help. Such a contrast!

We have a room with a balcony in a small hotel with lovely views of the old town. We explored the area on our first day but it was so hot that we struggled to go far. The temperatures were in the mid to high 30s most days. We learned to keep our explorations to early morning and evenings and over the coming days saw many sights.

The traditional wooden balconies, often suspended out from the walls of buildings, are a feature of Georgian architecture. I love them!

The old city walls were partly exposed, partly buried and partly built on. This entire house was built on part of the wall. Clearly, heritage values were not considered highly by planners at some stage!

Georgia has had a tumultuous history and it continues to this day. The last of the Lenin statues stood in what is now called Freedom Square. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced with this striking gold statue of St George slaying the dragon. St George is the patron saint of Georgia, although he has nothing to do with the country's name!

A really sad sight was the memorial to 19 hunger strikers who were killed by Russian soldiers in 1989.

A previous president, Saakashvili, poured lots of money and effort into adding modern structures to Tbilisi. This bridge was cool but I felt it was out of place leading over the river from the old town.

We stumbled across a well-made boardwalk along a river so we thought we should follow it. Much to our amazement, it led to a waterfall in the heart of the old town! It was 36 degrees this day so we appreciated the coolness of the spray. 

Equally surprising was the tourist touts there with a macaw and a monkey that you could pay to have sit on your shoulder. Pretty tacky. But then again, there was lots of tacky touting going on everywhere. The town was so full of tourists. We struggle to work out what nationalities they are as we don't recognise the languages.

To get to the waterfall we crossed a few footbridges and they were totally covered with lovers' padlocks.

Nearby were old traditional sulphur baths which still operate today. I think they'd be great in winter but hot baths are the last thing we feel like in this heat!

Gorgeous old churches perch on hills, even in the town.

I'm amazed I've got this far without mentioning the most wonderful aspect of Georgia so far - the food! It's sooooo good! There's a lot of focus on fresh vegetables, nuts and herbs with meats playing the second fiddle which suits me fine. Every meal we've had so far has been amazing, whether it's in a restaurant or a simple cafe. 

Khinkali are like large dim sims but there's a broth inside the pastry as well. There are also 'pies' stuffed with cheese, potatoes, mushrooms or meat. They are so tasty! Walnuts feature a lot - think roasted eggplant stuffed with walnut paste or light, crispy cheeseballs with walnut sauce. Strings of walnuts coated with grape resin are a tasty and popular snack.

Tomato and cucumber salad with walnut dressing in the front, cheese pie in the back.

The flavours are subtle yet stunning - a hint of lemon here, a touch of coriander there and a surprise burst of rosewater somewhere else. One of my favourite things was drinking homemade pomegranate lemonade with ice. The cold burst of flavour from the seeds that have been chilled in the drink is sensational on a searing hot day. I loved it so much that I asked the waiter to add Bacardi to it one night. It was amazing!

Sometimes, things get a bit lost in translation. The boiled 'language' on a menu had us baffled but we worked it out - it's 'tongue'! 

To avoid the heat we've been getting up early and getting our walking done before the town wakes up. Most shops don't open until 10am. By then the heat has set in.

We have a Caucasian walking book with us so we thought we'd give it a try. It first led us up to a gorgeous cathedral on a hill. The views back over the city were stunning.

We were then supposed to follow our noses through a pine forest for an hour but we quickly discovered the forest floor was covered in a type of low-growing cactus and we were wearing sandals. We decided to head onto a nearby road for a bit then make our way back onto the track later. After slogging uphill in the sun for ages we discovered that the road through to where we wanted to go was a private driveway. We had no option but to return the way we came. We were both sore the next day from so much hill work but we need to get fit for walks that we plan to do elsewhere in Georgia.

As we returned to the old city we could easily see the old fortress that we were trying to reach from a roundabout route.

Just outside the old city, the buildings change and the grand old 19th-century houses reminded us of Buenos Aires, Courtney. This particularly grand one was atmospherically crumbling into ruins.

We went to the museum and learnt a bit about previous Soviet invasions. There is clearly no love lost between the two countries. There are Ukrainian flags everywhere as Georgians show their support for the Ukrainians. We saw this flag on a balcony - it's the Georgian flag but it's made in the Ukraine's colours. I found it quite moving.

There are so many Russian tourists here though so we don't understand how that works.

We have one more day in Tbilisi then we head out into the regional areas. We hope they're a bit cooler!

Til next time!
Heather and John