Georgia- end of Asia, start of Europe

Georgia Diary 1

Georgia- end of Asia, start of Europe

For our vacation last week, the consideration besides the new place having some historical value, was around four-hour flight, no visa interview hassles and lower temperature than that in Lucknow.  

After considering the short list, we zeroed in on Georgia for our five-day short visit. In the coming weeks, I will try to take you on that journey as I happily relive my time in this nation in the Caucasian region. I shall try to share what all I experienced first-hand, so that in case you wish to visit this trans-continental country with borders touching Russia, Turkiye, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and which despite repeated Soviet aggression and rule, has veered towards the west, you are prepared to some extent.

We took an Indigo flight and landed in Tbilisi, the capital where we stayed the nights and took day trips to other places. A couple of other airlines also fly to Tbilisi from India but they are expensive and Indigo though very indifferent to physical comforts of its ‘customers’, remains low-cost.

Metekhi church

A major percentage of the population follows Georgian Orthodox Christianity and our first day of Tbilisi tour began with a visit to Metekhi church in the old town area.

Outside the church stands the impressive bronze statue of King Vakhtang Gorgasali, the fifth century warrior king and statesman who founded the city. Depicted in full armour sitting atop a horse, the statue was built by renowned Georgian painter and sculptor Elguja Amashukeli in the 20th century. Researchers say that the temple was built in the 6th century.

‘Metekhi’ means to break. One of the several legends associated with it is that King Vakhtang I Gorgasali broke a promise and in repentance, built a church. He also built the castle and palace here. The temple symbolizes the temple of the Virgin Mary in the Garden of Gethsemane (Jerusalem).

The structures were damaged in earthquake or destroyed by Khazars, Mongols and other foreign invaders several times in history, but were rebuilt and modified the same number of times by various rulers. It was also used as a garrison by the Persians, prison by the Turkish and NKVD camp by the Soviets.  

The iconostasis of the looted temple was repaired in May 1988, a new cross put up and worship rituals resumed.

Photography was forbidden, so I can only describe the scene. The warm inside of the stone church, crowded by devotees and curious visitors, was lit merely by the light glow of the thin, long, amber candles and daylight coming in from the two doors. I only wish there was a place to sit down so that I could absorb the atmosphere a little longer but the growing crowds nudging for space, forced me to get out soon.

For me, an Indian, the pleasant surprise was that the pomegranate trees and grape vines on the church premises were dotted with ripening fruit (see photo), yet nobody was even touching them, let alone pluck them.

Man-made tree in Rike park

From the church we drove to Rike Park on the bank of Kura or Mtkvari River. The guide told us that the aerial view of the park shows it in the form of a map of Georgia, with the pathways looking like they divide it into various parts of the country.

We walked on the unique-looking Bridge of Peace which seems to split the city into old and new towns.

From the park we took the eight-seater cable car to go up to the Narikala Fortress. (Top photo) From that height, the view of the city is breathtaking, to say the least. Lush green trees freckle the whole old town area and the pointed tops of the slanting ochre roofs of old-style houses are in sharp contrast to the high-rise buildings of the new city.

It was only after reaching there that we realised how tall the diminutive looking statue of Kartlis Deda (Mother Georgia) was. The 20 m aluminium statue, built by Elguja Amashukeli, holds a sword in one hand, and a cup of wine in the other. This, I was told, was to show how Georgian Women are: they welcome guests with warmth but fight off the enemies with equal passion.

About the fortress- in fact, the Mongols had given it the name Narin Qala or little fortress. The earliest walls of the fortress date back to the fourth century, when it was a Persian castle. Arab emirs are said to have built it sometime in the 8th century.

From the walls, you can see the dense vegetation in the huge Botanical Garden below.

Undistracted by the souvenir and cool drinks stalls, we took the funicular train to the Mtatsminda amusement park. The upper station is 727 meters above sea.

It was a warm day, the temperature 33 degrees C and afternoon. With a heavy hotel breakfast, we had decided to skip lunch, but we had to take a break for a cool drink and a moment of rest.

After that, we came down the fortress using the same mode of transport and took a walk in the area of sulphur baths. On one end is the only mosque in Tbilisi.

Sulphur baths

These sulphur baths have an important place in Georgian culture, as Tbilisi got its name from ‘tbili,’ the Georgian word for warm. They have been used by locals and visitors for relaxing or therapeutic good, since King Vakhtang Gorgasali discovered these natural hot springs during a hunting trip.

Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, during his 1829 visit is said to have remarked, “I have never encountered anything more luxurious than these Tbilisi baths, neither in Russia nor in Turkey.” Russian playwright Anton Chekhov and French writer Alexandre Dumas are also said to have visited these baths.

The air was thick with the smell of sulphur. The water discharged from the baths carried the yellow residue of sulphur with it. The narrow bridges over the rivulets of discharged water running over rocky terrain, bore the weight of love locks hung by lovers to keep the memory of their feelings alive.  

Walking the paved or cobbled roads through Meidan Square, an area of narrow streets with cozy cafes, souvenir shops, besides of course, wine shops offering free tasting, was tiring but fun. Georgia has nearly 8,000 year of history of wine-making.

We strolled through the underground market, like Alladin’s cave with antique souvenirs and trinkets, besides of course, wines, flavoured honey and cheese.  

Underground market in Meidan Square

We were tired but the guide was insistent we visit another spot. So, in the hot afternoon off we went, driving outside the city to Temka, to what we realised was Georgia’s own stone henge. Wasn’t that a good decision after all, because it did not seem a well-known tourist attraction? There were just a handful of people including an Indian couple we had been seeing at almost all tourist attractions.

It was a collection of sixteen 30-meter-tall stone columns and like at all the other places, here too, stone steps took one up.

Going up and down stone steps since morning, I had come to acknowledge the painful existence of my pair of knees, quiet so far, but which had started complaining badly by now, spurred by my otherwise comfortable sandals. I gave up my step-climbing expedition, even before the first level where stone sculptures depict the life of Christ.

The top level has the statues of kings, queens, and heroes of Georgia. There is also the cross of St. Nino, the woman who is said to have brought Christianity to Georgia, behind which is a functioning chapel. The other brave climbers said from the top you have excellent view of Tbilisi Sea, a reservoir.

The entry to this marvel created by Zurab Tsereteli, a Georgian born Soviet-trained sculptor, is free and there seems to be no official time for opening or closing.

One thing that surprised me in Tbilisi was the number of stray dogs. They were mostly bigger than the Indian ones, had more fur, but they were all calm and looked peaceful. In a carefree manner, they lay on the pavement quietly, and neither chased anyone nor begged for food. The ones walking as if to a destination, seemed unconcerned by the presence of humans. They had yellow or green circular tags on their ears. Beka, our guide, told us that the city administration runs a ‘trap- neuter- release’ programme for these free-roaming dogs, even cats. Several non-profit organisations help them.

My question to Beka about who fed them just got a shrug of shoulders in reply and sharing the photo of the beautiful, large, furry, pawed member of his own family. So, looking at how healthy they all looked, I assumed that neighbourhoods or animal protection groups fed them.

After walking and climbing several thousand steps, trudging on different levels of elevation and the effort required even for going down the whole day, it was not without relief that we returned to our hotel in the evening, to lie down, rest our limbs and take a nap before we went out for dinner.

                                                                                               - Anupama S Mani