I wouldn’t believe that after the last video no one is curious to see the inside of a watchtower and the view from top so I’ve done a video to show it to you.

Svaneti is incredible, in each village there’s a forest of towers, there are tens of them. I can’t Imagine how rich this region was when they were built in the 9th to 13th century.

On the way back as you see we had to stop to change a wheel. They changed a flat wheel for another nearly flat one. Here things are just enough for their purpose… or nearly.

I meet again the Israelis I met in Borjomi, they were in bad mood for waking up so early to catch the bus and had no food or drink for the 10 to 12 hours of the journey so they ended up shouting at the driver to stop because they were hungry. The driver was an ass but when you are not in your country you have to adapt. Meanwhile I was enjoying the landscape through the dirty window, the gorge where the road goes is impressive and the river inside is scary. Now I want to go to Israel to find out if all of them are like this couple.

Here are the mountains where the Greek Argonauts came to search for the golden fleece, I was telling you about them in Turkey. Seems I’ve been following the legend. Sometimes I think on getting a book like that and go to where it relates, it would be a literary book full of surprise, it could be beautiful, maybe I do it one day.

In the next post I´ll tell you about Tiblisi, a very interesting city.

See you soon.
Fernando

The way to Mestia, the centre of Svaneti region, didn’t seem to be simple. First I had to arrive to Zugdidi by a Marshrutka(vans with several seat rows like a minibus), from Zugdidi I had to get a 4WD or a Marshrutka to Mestia. This part is not always done in the afternoon and takes 5 to 6 hours mainly by a dirt road.

I was lucky, as soon as I arrived to Zugdidi I got on to a Marshrutka saturated with bags, luggage, cases, undefinable stuff, cafés and people and I arrived to Mestia. On the way I met a couple from Catalonia with whom I searched for a guesthouse. It’s a great place to stay in the village as they feed you as well.

The music is from Mike Oldfield, from his second LP, Hergest Ridge. There are some moments where the symphonic rock doesn’t seem to blend with the scenery too much but as Mike Oldfield is one of my favourite I’ve felt like putting it.

I’ve been three days around here and I’ve edited a little video about it for you to judge how beautiful the place is. Just one data for you to get an idea of how extreme the mountains are here, out of the 2100 glaciers of the Caucasus 30% are in Georgian land

It’s a pity not having taken the mail of the two Canadian girls that recommended me the place, I’d tell them thank you. Even they disrupted all my days and plans I’m happy to not miss this place. Seems that a ski resort is being planned so they’ll do a road and fill up the village with hotels and the atmosphere won’t be the same.

Fortunately, even in the video I say that Ushguli is the end of the road, this is not totally true. The road continues, the thing is that it is nearly impassable. In this area there are still more isolated villages then even if Mestia gets spoilt the Svaneti essence will still be there for whoever ventures to find it.

See you soon.

Fernando

In the morning I go to the bus station where a minibus is going to take me to the Vardzia caves. Yesterday Arthur, the guy in the tourist information office, said that there were two Israelis coming on the trip, I like the idea, I have never been with people from Israel so I’m corious. The banner has Georgian and Russian.

A square on the way.

As I arrive early so I go into the market to buy something.

I buy two water melons that look good… ok, I buy two apples that are smaller.

We make a stop on the way, which is good because after so much F1 I was getting a bit sick.

It’s the Tmogvi castle.

It was built in the 10th century and has fantastic views.

We arrived to the Vardzia caves, the most famous caves in Georgia. It has a mystic importance to the Georgians because of its union with queen Tamar that founded it in 1185 as protection for the Mongols.

From the inside.

There are like 600 caves but there were up to 3000. There are places where it’s carved 50 meters into the rock and it is 15 storeys. An earthquake destroyed a big part in 1283.

You can get into every nook.

A lift between caves and stairs.

The church is one of the highlights

I like the bells.

With the paintings on the ceiling.

I’ve liked Vardzia a lot also I have enjoyed a lot with the Canadian girls. Now they have changed my plan! I wanted to make a quick trip by the south of Georgia, but they’ve talked so well about the mountain area of Svaneti in the north that I’ve decided to change my plans once more and go there…. At the end… that’s why I’m in Georgia, to see mountains.

Soon from the Vardzia mountains
Fernando

Entering Georgia is like taking one step back, like arriving to the past even if you have not lived there.
Georgia is a poor country that is starting to progress, in the past it had a good standard of living when it was part of USSR. A part of that past seems to be still there, when arriving it seemed like I was arriving to that decadent USSR that I imagined.

Maybe because of this I’ ve felt like giving the pictures an old feel and  publishing them in black and white, trying to find a simple framing and let the light not make too much shading and burning some parts. A black and white experiment. I’ ve also changed the ratio of the pictures, from the panoramic I like using, to a more square, less modern look.

Georgia has it’ s own alphabet, strange characters that look totally alien.

Asking for the hotel recommended by the book, a woman told us she had rooms for rent in her hose. Kmi, Sacha and me have a flat just for us with two huge rooms a bath and a kitchen. I have a piano in my room although during the day there is no running water in the bathroom.

I get into a internet café to check my mail and work over the blog. It’ s run by a 55 year old women, it’ s funny to see how well she manages with the games and the network. The building is falling apart. The guy in the computer next to me is driving bus 42, what a boring game, isn’ t it?

Ex-soviet taxi.

Houses are a bit run down.

It’ s a radical change. Here women have hair on their heads and for men it is not necessary to have hair on their faces. There is a park where people go to enjoy the afternoon, it’ s a vocational place, the girls go in small skirts, it seems strange after so many Muslim countries, but now I’ m where Christianity reigns.

Borjomi is famous for having carbonated springs, I don’ t like carbonated water so I don’ t like the taste but it’ s supposed to be good. Borjomi has  an alpine air, a mountain style.

I’ ve been days wanting to listen to REM, so I spend the afternoon sitting in the gallery listening to six REM CDs in a row, here are the ones I’ ve enjoyed the most:
– Automatic for the People, a 50 minute CD that went around infinitive times in my auto reverse walkman, the song “Drive” still makes me shiver, the rest of the CD… I don’ t like it that much any more.
– Up. The first CD they released when Bill Berry left the band, a different sound to the previous Cds which is sooooo good, I’ ve driven a lot with it.
– New adventures in HIIF. I love the name, the CD is a secret piece of jewellery, it was unadvertised in the history of music, but my friend Juanito and me agree that it is one of the best. The last song Electrolite is a master piece.

Brooms from the market.

Borjomi is at the door of the national park of Borjomi with immense forests to walk, very near by is Bakuriani, the one that once was the most popular ski resort in USSR.

Here things have to last as there’ s no money to replace them.

Hairdresser.

Beer and a trout from the Kvabliani river, the best dinner in the last few days.

More soviet reminiscences, this big building anyone would ban next to a national park. During Russian times national parks were closed places, they were totally protected, now, in the western style, the parks are open for the people to enjoy them. It’ s a more intelligent way of management as people in the area don’ t feel it as a bunch of prohibitions and see it as an attraction to tourists therefore money.

I go to see the museum of the village, it doesn’t’ t have much.

All has and old flavour.

On the background you can see the banner of Borjomi waters. The Borjomi springs were discovered by Russian solders in 1829. Today it is a vocational resort that has a balm and the waters have healing properties.

A hanging bridge I picture in the morning going to the bus station, I’ m going to Vardzia, some excavated caves in rock that are the next post.

Posting something soon.

Fernando

I’ve decide to cross to Georgia by a border near Kars, from Posof village to Vale in Georgia. It is a border crossing that nearly nobody uses, the majority of  the people go by Trabzon(Turkey) to Batumi(Georgia on the black sea coast. That plan does not appeal to me, too much beach tourism, moreover the landscape of Posof seems to be very good.

A truck that looks like a toy as I told you the other day when talking about Ani.

Posof with the volcanic highs on the background.

In the mini bus I meet Kmi and Sachia a nippo-swish couple that got married a few months ago, it´s pleasant being with them as it’s obvious they are happy together. Sometimes they talk in Japanese sometimes in French and with me in English, I get confused just seeing them.

We have arrived to the border in a minibus but it can’t cross to Georgia, you have to cross by foot and looking for a taxi or bus to take you to Vale by the not paved road. The walking part is luckily flat and short. To go to Vale… maybe it’s better if you see the video.

The first song in the video is “Bexo” from Aynur, a Turk band. During the last part, with the tank in the gallery, sounds  “Gute Laune”” from the wonderful Tosca CD Dheli9.

I’ll soon tell you more things about the Caucasus.

Fernando