Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia

5/18/15
Next stop, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia!  Ever been???  Turns out it’s a very welcoming city.  In fact, at the airport, they proclaim them self “The city that loves you”!

So I’ll start with some fairly random shots from around town, mostly off the bus, but some while right on the street.  First thing to know is that they are watching...

But it’s a good thing, because even though the ATMs are some of the most beautiful in the world, security is still valuable:

I have no idea what it says, but sex sells even in The Republic of Georgia (and notice that Facebook is everywhere):

From the what-the-hell-does-that-say files, we have a food sign.  Of note is the price of a Coke, less than forty cents (2.3 Lari = $1):

And how come we don’t have an “Anonymous Sexology Clinic” in SF?

These beautiful little red flowers were as ubiquitous as the California Golden Poppies in SF:

And I was a big fan of the roadside cattle all over the place. They don’t really seem to have a home or owner, and roam right onto the roads!

I will try to capture the ambulances and police cars in the various countries to show how they call them in each place:

Tons of cats and dogs everywhere.  Some seem stray or feral, but most are actually pets of the restaurants, businesses, or homes:

We were told, while driving by, that these are the homes where some of the wealthiest people in Tbilisi live:

And going from the haves to the have nots, this was fascinating.  This is a neighborhood built for refugees from a local war.  I’m ashamed to say that I can’t remember the name of the country or people, but did notice that they grow a lot of their own food, as all have fruit trees and vegetable gardens.

Like most cities, there is street art all over the place.

The Mtkvari River in Tbilisi runs through many countries, like Turkey and Azerbaijan:

And is crossed by a very modern pedestrian bridge called The Peace Bridge:

And just to prove that the Georgians have a sense of humor about their past:

Yup, that’s what a police station looks like in Georgia

 I was amazed to realize that we were a mere 1239 kilometers from Tehran

Of course there almost nowhere you can go without a casino!  For the record, I did not go there.  My reasoning was that if I won a bunch of Georgian Lari, what would I do with them?  ;-)

We took a day trip that included two fascinating stops, the first being the museum and childhood home of Joseph Stalin in the city of Gori.  Here is his statue and a photo of a couple familiar faces:

What was really interesting was his private railcar.  It was beautiful and very well equipped inside, especially for it’s time, with air conditioning, modern plumbing (including a large bathtub), and mahogany embellishments imported from Africa.  We were told that he would travel short distances by car, and longer trips were done by rail.  Since he crossed into countries with different gauge rails, they had to have three different sets of wheels that were changed to accommodate the applicable countries’ standards.  We also got to see the tiny one room rome where he and his parents lived when he was a child (not pictured).

This was Jack’s favorite monument in the old town of Tbilisi.  It is a clock tower that does a little puppet show on the hour (we were told).  Unfortunately, we were passing through not near the hour, and didn’t have time to wait...

This statue comes with a story, and sheds some light into the mentality of the culture in Georgia.  The lion’s son had just killed the woman’s son, and the mother lion and mother human were consoling each other over the loss.  How sweet!

Ok, how could there not be at least one phallic reference here.  This is the statue of the mother of Tbilisi, which, from this angle, does look quite evocative.  That protrusion about half way up is actually her sword.  She carries that in one hand to meet her enemies, and in the left hand is a bowl of wine with which to greet her guests.  See humans at the base as references for scale.

Here are a couple shots of Tbilisi from the mountain.  Notice the ultra modern buildings interspersed with the old.  In just about the middle of the first shot you can see The Peace Bridge, and in the second the cable cars taking people to the top.  We were driven up there, and then walked all the way down.

And for the can’t-find-that-in-California files...  We visited the National Museum in Tbilisi, and saw some very interesting things.  For the opening act, a beautiful gold necklace from the mid-5th century B.C.:

And if that wasn’t old enough, they are famous for having discovered in 1991 some 1.8 million year old bones and stone tools.  We enjoyed a lecture from David Lordkipanidze, who personally discovered these amazing fossils that were the oldest in Central Asia to have been unearthed.

One thing our guide mentioned was that Georgia was very tolerant and respectful of peoples various religions, and that they all coexist peacefully in their country.  We visited a Jewish synagog, located right downtown:

And if I may be indulged one selfie, this was taken at the baths in Tbilisi

We had a group lunch at a restaurant called Bread House, at which they make their own bread.  It’s similar to an Indian naan in that it is baked stuck to the walls of a very hot kettle shaped oven.  Believe it or not, the words you read on the window mean Bread House:

It was a delicious meal indeed, and you can see the menu and some remnants, as well as the guys who entertained us with beautiful voices and guitar accompaniment:

On our last day in Tbilisi, we made an excursion to the cave town of Uplistchike, which was like a mini Machu Picchu, but with caves instead of stone walls.

This was a theater where plays were performed.  Notice the ornate carved designs in the ceiling:

A church was built at the top in the 19th century:

Believe it or not, this hole in the ground (later covered by the grate) w the prison cell for wrong-doers.  It gets narrower as it descends, and the public could come by and shame the unfortunate souls held therein:

And to exit the cave town, we used a carved tunnel with a staircase.  Watch Jack as he descends:

Just outside the cave town, we ate lunch at a charming little rustic restaurant:

We learned that The Republic of Georgia is one of the rare places that has not only its own language, but its own alphabet as well, as you may have noticed in many of the pictures.  This is the Google page that shows up when you are in their country:

On our last evening in Tbilisi, we were treated to a very special dance performance done entirely by children and teenagers.  They were quite acrobatic and a thrill to watch.  At risk of severely diminishing the quality of my own photographs, I submit these photos courtesy of fellow traveler Bill Hallier from Fresno.

See y’all in Samarkand...  Thanks for taking a look.  All comments welcomed and responded to!  Peace.  ;-)  E.R.