Sighnaghi, Bodbe convent and Kvelatsminda - our pilgrimage to Georgia continues...

Snickerse for sale in Sighnaghi

This is the sixth full day of our pilgrimage to the Holy Christian sites of Caucasian Georgia. We are now heading towards the fortified town of Sighnaghi, situated towards the south eastern end of the fertile 170km long valley of the River Alazani, a major wheat and grape growing part of the country. We have quite a journey ahead of us again, and I take up my usual position pressed to the window, camera at the ready, anxious to take in as much detail as possible from the passing scenery. I find it hard to understand those who have paid quite a bit of money to come all this way to see this lovely country, only to spend each leg of the coach journey buried in their kindles and watching films on their tablets. It takes all sorts, I guess.

St Nino church at Bodbe Convent

Again we see all the huge trucks lined up along the roadside with nowhere to go - the road north into Russia blocked by landslides. It reminds me of Operation Stack in Kent, when the ports at Dover or the Channel Tunnel are not functioning properly and our "truckies" have to moor up alongside the M20 motorway while they wait for the back log to clear.

There are skeins of sheep's wool hanging out, presumably to dry before being spun. I continue to be fascinated by the resourcefulness of the country people here who manage to make fencing out of pretty much anything they can lay their hands on: old bedspreads, bed heads, the railings out of old cemeteries, branches from bushes and trees, corrugated iron, what look alarmingly like corrugated asbestos sheets, and I even saw old concrete railway sleepers set on their ends and used as a wall around a garden in Gori the other day.

New church being built at Bodbe

Not far from Ananuri I see that a farmer has controlled the flow of the stream to create a small pond in his garden, presumably to breed trout for food. I would imagine that garden aesthetics must have a practical purpose in such a poor area of such a poor country. Gardens here have to be productive and not necessarily beautiful. Many people are growing their own potatoes, and there are plenty of free range chickens around, supplying eggs and meat.

A view of the Bodbe Convent grounds

As we arrive in Tblisi and take the road out and east towards Sighnaghi there is a road sign to Tehran - 1239 km! We have lunch in the center of Sighnaghi and afterwards have time to explore this delightful place. There is opportunity for a little souvenir shopping. There are plenty of snickerse for sale at several stalls, the strings of nut and grape sweet meats. I love them but they are not everyone's taste. There are also many of the colorful felt goods for which the country is so well known. I really regret not buying one of the lovely little felt dolls.

within Kvelatsminda church

Leaving Sighnaghi behind and heading south we soon arrive at Bodbe convent, our next destination, where 20 - 25 nuns live and work. In the grounds is the Church of St Nino, the Enlightener or Illuminator of Georgia, built over the site of her grave. This is a very beautiful and quiet place, set within manicured and very colorful gardens. Inside the church there are attractive frescoes including Adam and Eve, and the Last Judgment, and also an elaborate golden iconostasis. No photos are allowed inside the church so after savoring its spirituality and beauty I go to the shop looking for a guide in English. None are on show, but after quite a while of hunting, my persistence pays off and the nun eventually produces quite a few from below the counter. Nino prayed here, and where locals come to collect the holy water, said to have healing qualities.

icon within the church

Kvelatsminda church

They are beautifully produced and very informative and at only 5 GEL are great value. She would have sold so many if she had only had them on view earlier. As it is she has largely lost her chance; the coach is soon on its way again, leaving us no time to make the trek down a path to the holy spring, said to burst into life after

Kvelatsminda church

Scarves to cover the ladies' heads

Some 35 minutes later we arrive in the village of Gurjaani, and walk to the Kvelatsminda church nestled among trees some 200m down a shady lane, not visible from the road. This is the only two cupola church in Georgia. There is a mulberry tree in the grounds loaded with a fantastic crop of juicy ripe berries. On our way there from the convent we snatch an incredible view of the 170 km valley stretched out below us. Here there is some of the best housing we have seen so far, reflection presumably of the value of the wine industry to the country's economy. By contrast many of the farm implements seem very old and well battered.

Mulberry tree

The church is beautiful. We are thrilled to meet a monk there who unlocks for us a gallery above the main body of the church, accessed by an outdoor flight of stone steps. Here there are two chapels; one dedicated to Saint Barbara, a special saint in Georgia for children, the other dedicated to St George. Inside above the altar the apse is painted blue, an undercoat we are advised, ready for the painting of some modern frescoes. 

Soon we must climb into the coach again for our drive to our hotel for the next two nights, near Telavi - the Kvareli Royal Batoni Hotel, quite an experience in itself - more about that in my next post!

Holy Georgia: towards St Nino's tomb via Ananuri

view from our hotel of the Caucasian mountain range

hats for sale at Ananuri!

fine exterior of the Assumption of the
Mother of God Church, Ananuri

This is the story of our pilgrimage to Holy Georgia back in May this year, with Southwark Diocese and McCabe Pilgrimages. It is Ascension Day, Thursday 29th May, and we have our usual morning prayer on the bus as we set off south from our hotel high in the Caucasus mountains and then eastwards towards Bodbe Monastery, one of the major pilgrimage spots for Christian Georgians, where St Nino is buried. St Nino was a slave from Cappadocia. She so impressed the Georgian Queen Nana and later her husband King Mirian with her miracles that they both converted from paganism to Christianity, and this became the official state religion in AD 337, making Georgia the world's second Christian nation. St Nino's tomb is a sacred place for many Georgians. But it wasn't until the arrival in the sixth century of the so-called Syrian Fathers, missionaries from Antioch, who worked to found several monasteries here, that the religion became firmly established in Georgia. We will visit a few of these monasteries in the next day or so.

Old Georgian script? What does it say?

Our first important stop today is at the 17th century Ananuri fortress, already closed for the day when we came by in the evening two days before, on the Georgian Military Highway. We saw its stunning setting then, but up close it really is very beautiful indeed. As we climb out of the coach the warmth of the sun is welcome after the bitter chill we experienced yesterday up in the mountains. Within the protection of the crenellated stone walls here are two churches, a 12th century watch tower, a 17th century bell turret looking out over the lake, and at the top of the slope a solid tower known as "The Intrepid".

Our guide Maka has the Dean's attention!

Bell tower overlooking the reservoir

The lower of the two churches is really the jewel. It was built in 1689 and is dedicated to the Assumption of the Mother of God. Our attention is immediately drawn to the fantastic external carved decorations, particularly those on the south wall. Inside, and also on the south wall are frescoes of the Last Judgment and of various saints, including thirteen Syrian Fathers, other fine frescoes having been destroyed by fire in the 18th century during the church's turbulent history. By the bell turret I see some steps going down to what I learn was a hiding place for soldiers to lurk and take intruders by surprise in the turbulent past.

the hiding place for soldiers

The smaller of the two churches, the Hvtaeba church, is early 17th century, with frescoes badly damaged, sadly, by graffiti, mainly Russian. It is dark in there but with someone's torch we are able to make out some of that dreadful graffiti on the underside of a frescoed arch.

sad graffiti over frescoes

The tranquil setting belies the history of this site, involved as it was in many past wars. It is hugely photogenic here and we become tourists as we are anxious to take the ultimate beautiful shot!
We meet an English couple in the car park here. They have a motor home and have spent a couple of months exploring Turkey before coming into Georgia and will eventually drive back to London to see their son. I mention the shame of the litter. He shrugs; it's a fact of life, he says. Why do we all have to be so defeatist? Let's stem the flow of litter and not accept the trashing of God's beautiful planet, in Georgia or anywhere else!

view over the reservoir

It is time to say goodbye to Ananuri and move on, towards the fortified town of Sighnaghi and the Church of St Nino at the Bodbe convent…

Holy Georgia: The Gelati and Motsameta monasteries, Kutaisi

Tskaltubo Resort

We are staying for two nights 12 km NW of Kutaisi at the Tskaltubo Resort. This was built by German prisoners of war after World War II and was a popular Soviet Union health spa and resort and sanatorium, much frequented by the rich and enjoyed by Stalin for its recreational facilities. There are the remains of a railway line from Moscow which serviced the center. The approach drive is almost spooky, as we pass massive buildings in process of restoration, amidst neglected and extensive Italianate style gardens which were clearly once opulent. The hotel accommodation itself is modern and fairly simple, but very clean and comfortable. Opening the window in my room, I am rewarded with the cleanest crispest smelling air imaginable, filled with exuberant birdsong.

Tskaltubo Resort the Restaurant Building

Next morning I am awoken at 5am by the noisiest and most glorious dawn chorus of birds I have ever heard anywhere. What a total joy to hear. Strolling through the grounds before breakfast I find some beautiful flowering Oleander and a glorious Magnolia. The meals are taken a short walk away through the gardens, in a huge building adorned within by marble pillars and fountains, the latter not currently functioning. Like Marmite, this hotel is to love or hate. I loved its quirkiness and faded charm, the glorious wild life and clean air, the vast gardens a relic of a different era. Efforts are clearly being made to slowly restore the whole complex to something of its former glory.
For the tourist there are caves to visit nearby, at Kumistavi, with 15 chambers underground, including an underground waterfall, and the habitat for 10-12 species of bat. But we are pilgrims so the bats are given a miss!
Monday morning sees us setting off at 9am after a good breakfast at the hotel to visit Kutaisi itself. The road to the town is sadly littered and unsightly, but I am pleased to see that at least some people care; I see a man picking up litter outside a small roadside café, and an old lady is sweeping the pavement in front of her small shop. And the town itself, as with most towns we visited here, was relatively clean and tidy.

beautiful frescoes, Cathedral of the Virgin, Gelati Monastery

At the time of our visit it is Georgia's Independence Day, with lots of celebration going on across the country. There are events in the town center here so some roads are closed and security appears tight. We pass the town's statue of King David the Builder, much revered King of Georgia from the tender age of 16, then we cross the river and climb up out of town into the mountains, through deciduous woodland and lush green glades, past small fields of sweet corn and groups of placid grazing cows along the roadside.

the mosaic Virgin and Child in the Apse, Cathedral of the Virgin,
Gelati Monastery

King David's grave

The iron gate at King David's grave

the rather curious St Nicholas church
with the bell tower behind

We are visiting the Gelati Monastery, founded by King David whose statue we had just passed in town. He wanted to create a new Jerusalem or Athos here to serve as a major center of Christianity in Georgia. This is said in the guidebooks to be one of the most beautiful spots in Georgia. Maybe, but we will see other strong contestants for this claim later in the week. The guidebooks also warn about the crowds of pilgrim and tourist groups visiting this site, although when we visited it was very quiet. The Cathedral of the Virgin, the centerpiece of the monastery, features many rather fine and colorful frescoes, dating variously from the early 12th century through to the 17th century.

information plaque at Gelati Monastery

But most remarkable is the stone mosaic in the apse, made with 2.5 million stones, featuring the Virgin and Child and the two archangels Michael and Gabriel, dating back to the 1130s. It has suffered some earthquake damage and the lower half controversially restored by painting rather than mosaic. Other features at this monastery are the bell tower, the south gate with King David's grave, the Church of St Nicholas (one of the oddest designs of church in Georgia, and the Church of St George (closed but apparently often opened at weekends for weddings). King David died in 1125 and at his request was buried in the center of the South gateway, so that churchgoers would be forced to walk over him and remember him for ever! The battered iron gate there was built in 1063 in Ganja, then in Persia but now in Azerbaijan. David's son Demetre I brought it back from Persia in 1129.

One of the best detailed descriptions of the Gelati monastery complex is at the UNESCO website.

Having spent some time at Gelati, we retrace our steps in the coach to Motsameta (meaning; martyrs) Monastery, founded in the 8th century. This is smaller than the Gelati Monastery, and again we have the place pretty much to ourselves, at least to start with, although as at Gelati, the liturgy is being said at the time of our visit.

I still find it very difficult to take photos whilst respecting the mystery and divinity of the occasion. The present church was built in the 11th century by Bagrat III, the bell tower perhaps later, in the 16th century. The buildings are set in a spectacular cliff-side setting, with fabulous views into the gorge far below. Within the church there are two skulls in a casket, recovered and reburied from the earlier church. These belong to the brothers David and Constantine Mkheidze, now saints, who refused to convert to Islam in the 720s and were killed by Arabs and thrown into the gorge. I missed my chance here of having a wish granted. Apparently this was available to me if I had crawled three times beneath the tomb of the saints, without touching it! A missed opportunity! The church has only been open again for two years, and has modern frescoes. There may well be a secret tunnel between Gelati and Motsameta, useful in periods of the all too common invasions that this country has suffered.

Motsameta Monastery from approach road

For the tourists with more time on their hands there is a pleasant half day hike to be had between the two monasteries, and in the heat of the high summer a walk down to the river below from the gatehouse of the Motsameta monastery is a popular jaunt for the people of Kutaisi. As we drive back down into Kutaisi there are stunning views of the town spread out below, enjoyed by many of the quality villa-style houses lining the route up here. Always we can see the prominent golden dome of the restored Cathedral of King Bagrat, a striking landmark which we shall visit this afternoon.

The Bagrat Cathedral, Kutaisi

Holy Georgia - in the steps of St Nino and the Syrian Fathers - the road to Kutaisi

We are pilgrims on a journey; in Caucasian Georgia, in the steps of St Nino and the Syrian Fathers. We have explored the Dzhvari or Jvari (cross) church in its proud and very prominent position high above the town of the sacred city of Mtskheta, and then visited the cathedral in the town, related in my last post here.
But now we have to travel on.
Back in the coach we travel westwards, passing close to South Ossetia. Advice on safety and security for travelers from the UK foreign office advises us that: "along the M27 road (also known as the M1), particularly where it runs very close to South Ossetia (between the Stepantsminda/Gudauri turnoff and Gori, and between Gori and Khashuri)... There is a risk of criminal activity in these areas." This is our route!  The website further advises that: "The British government does not recognise the unilateral declarations of independence made by the de facto authorities in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. There is no UK diplomatic representation available in either location." We have every confidence in McCabe's meticulous attention to such details, and also in our excellent Georgian guide and driver.

A refugee camp on road to Kutaisi

on the road to Kutaisi

Our guide tells us that 20% of Georgian territory is still occupied by Russia today, 400,000 people have been turned out of their houses to live in refugee camps in Georgia or to leave the country. We drive past one such camp where some of these Internally Displaced People, or IDPs as they are known, now live. We are told that this camp was partly funded by the European Union and the World Bank. Since its independence, Georgia did suffer civil conflict, fueled, our guide tells us, by Russia who would like the world to think Georgia is unstable. But whilst Georgia did have a corrupt government and economic problems in its early days of independence, for the last ten years or so it is making positive steps forward and life is generally good. There is plenty of new building going on, and the roads are being substantially improved. Georgia wants only to build peace and stability for its people, a desire shared by most of us. The country is expanding its export market around the world, especially for its wine for which it is justly well known, and in 2011 the new Georgian government even renegotiated its exports to Russia again, a huge and very important market for them. As she tells us this, we pass a tourist sign to the "Wine Route", the first of many such signs we will see later in our pilgrimage.

on the road to Kutaisi

There is a family of stray dogs basking on the bonnet of an abandoned car by the wayside; a bitch and her pups, clearly set up home there. There are too many emaciated stray dogs around - so sad.
The wild flowers in the meadows as we drive along are stunning in their diversity and colors. Poppies give us flashes of bright red brilliance, there are fields of barley and wheat, and there are plenty of smallholdings and small orchards in and around the villages we pass through. Much accommodation here seems very old and run down, in stark contrast to the very modern IDP settlements. Rusty corrugated iron roofs cover many of the older buildings, again in contrast to the many shiny new satellite discs seen as we drive further to the west.

typical Georgian food very Veggie friendly!

It is lunch time, and we stop at Venecia Ristorante, before reaching Gori. This restaurant has been built around an artificial lake and canal with arched bridges and plenty of outside terraces. We discover later that this is a very popular style of restaurant in Georgia. A long table is set out ready for us, groaning with enticing plates of food and baskets of the flat bread for which the region is known. We are seated on one of the covered balconies overlooking the lake, which is full of trout. I'm finding the Georgian food very veggie friendly on the whole, helped by the way they keep bringing various dishes, both meat and salad based and there are no defined courses as such, which we are all used to. So at first it seems a little strange, but I like it. I only miss having a sweet "pudding" to finish the meal, that's all. And my wheat free diet, recently imposed for medical reasons, is proving to be a challenge, with so much delicious looking fresh bread always generously provided. But my wheat abstinence is certainly helping me, so perseverance in this respect is definitely worth while.

dough for the flat bread

colorful roadside market stalls on
road to Kutaisi

After this meal we go around the back of the restaurant where the coach is parked and watch an elderly lady making this flat bread, sticking the shaped dough with apparent ease around the sides of a stone pit at the bottom of which are red hot embers; a skill no doubt learnt over decades and passed on through generations. Also here a man is catching and killing some of the free range chickens for supper tonight. I give this a miss! At least the birds have had a happy life scratching around the coppice behind the restaurant and their end comes mercifully quickly.
It is a three hour drive after lunch to Kutaisi and our hotel for the next two nights so we settle down to read, sleep, watch films on our personal tablets etc. or listen to music. I cannot do any of these things; I watch out of the window continually, anxious not to miss any detail of the changing landscape of this lovely countryside. There is so much of interest to see along the roadside;

There is a craftsman making wooden ladders. Then there are the many colorful street market, the stalls stacked high with local fruits. Each market comprises a collection of many small stalls, but many of these appear to be very run down, even abandoned. I've mentioned the cows before, grazing everywhere, with no boundaries, usually under the watchful eye of one or two men, who we later learn are paid per cow per day for this watchful duty. Some keepers are on horseback - one we saw was galloping bareback somewhat dangerously I thought alongside the fast moving traffic!
There are many small fields of newly planted "greens." Then I see a motorbike pulling a farm trailer! A large and rare road sign in English at the road works along the way urges the traffic to "Slow Down." They are widening this very main and busy route and improving its surface at the same time.
Always there is litter, especially at junctions and along the main roads. Curiously the towns themselves are nearly always relatively clear of litter. Lovely Georgia, please stop desecrating your beautiful countryside in this way. Sadly, I fear the UK is heading in the same direction unless we change the filthy habit of "litter bugging" soon.

Kutaisi street scene

We are warned to expect a higher humidity in Kutaisi than in Tblisi. We are driving towards higher mountains on our left, to the South, and into rain - we are only one hour into our drive and can see the clouds coming down the mountain sides towards us. I even think I see snow on a distant peak, glinting in the sunshine before the rain clouds blot out the view. And do they just! It is raining really hard now, the view ahead almost obliterated except when vivid lightning flashes momentarily open it up again, and thunder roars around. It looks to be set in for the day.

poppies!

Water pours down roadside gullies presumably to a collecting reservoir somewhere? Meanwhile we are noticeably climbing. My ears start popping. There is evidence of quite a few rocky landslides which have been cleared away from the road. Then we begin our descent. We drive down verdantly green and steep wooded gorges and we can see a river, sometimes alongside the road, then far below us, always swollen and fast flowing with the rain. There are regular "wrecking cul de sacs" - the signs again in English. Presumably these are the same as our "escape routes" (what do Americans call them?) for lorries with failing brakes on steep hills and the assumption is that Georgian lorry drivers don't need them? I understood that English is not widely spoken here outside Tbilisi so why the English signs?

Home to the story of the Golden Fleece, Kutaisi is Georgia's second largest town, with a population of 200,000. It is also the oldest, with evidence of settlements going back to perhaps the 17th century BC. It was certainly established as a Greek colony by the 7th century BC.
Here we will be visiting two monasteries and the wonderful Bagrat Cathedral, as well as soaking up the atmosphere of the Georgian Independence celebrations which happily coincide with our visit....to be continued...

Holy Georgia: in the steps of St Nino and the Syrian Fathers - Day 2

Cows! There are cows everywhere. They not only graze in the (mostly unfenced) pastures, which are wonderfully rich in wild flowers, but they also stroll on the verges by the side of the road, even along main highways, seemingly unperturbed by the fast moving traffic swishing past, perilously close to them. They look like Jersey or Guernsey cows, honey colored with big doleful eyes, but we are told they are a Georgian breed, especially sure footed to cope with the mountainous terrain.

Cows are of course revered by the Hindus as a source of food and life (contrary to popular perception they are not worshiped or regarded as sacred by Hindus. See Why is the Cow Important to Hindus ).  But Georgia is a very Christian country and that is why we are here; as Christian Pilgrims, come to follow the route of St Nino and the Syrian fathers through the beautiful churches, monasteries, cathedrals and sacred places of this wonderful country. As well as all the cows, I am enthralled by the many broom bushes here along the roadside, in full flower in May, the yellow blossoms almost luminescent in the sunshine. But it is not sunny today. We wake up to rain and it feels very muggy and humid. This may be short lived. It looks as if it may clear later although first we are destined to drive through torrential rain and a dramatic electrical storm.

It is Day 2. Yesterday we completed the first day of our pilgrimage to Holy Caucasian Georgia at the Roman Catholic Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary where we held a group Eucharist, the first of three we will celebrate during our pilgrimage. The priest at the church is proud to give us a talk on the history of Christianity and Catholicism in Georgia, and of his church in particular, before we commence our service. The church standing today dates back to the early nineteenth century, but an earlier church here was built in 1671. The present church was closed during the Soviet period, and was used as a storehouse, before it was restored and reopened in 1999 for the visit of the Pope St. John Paul II to Georgia. The architecture is eclectic, with elements of pseudo-gothic and baroque styles.

There are currently about 50,000 Roman Catholics in Georgia. They date back to the Ottoman period when the Muslim rulers were more tolerant of Catholicism than of Orthodoxy. Many Orthodox Christians became Roman Catholics at that time rather than convert to Islam. It has to be said that today there does not appear to be total harmony between the Catholic and the Orthodox Christians - see for example "Being a catholic in Georgia"). There is seemingly a negative attitude towards Roman Catholics in Georgia and some dispute over certain churches assigned to the Orthodox Christians at the end of the Soviet era. Some of us found the acoustics in the church difficult and missed some of the explanations but there is plenty to be found on the internet for those who wish to learn more of the history of Roman Catholicism in Georgia.

We had an early dinner last night, most of us glad to retire to our rooms to catch up on our sleep. We needed to restore our energy levels in preparation for our drive westwards to Imereti, setting for the story of the Golden Fleece stopping off en route at Mtskheta, (pron. Skayta) Georgia's ancient capital and still its spiritual capital today, the center of its religious life. It is just 20 km and an easy 30 minute drive away from Tbilisi.

The Jvaris(Cross) Church Mtshketa

There has been a settlement here in Mtshketa for over 3000 years. People used to come here to make gifts to their pagan gods, as it was the center of the pagan cult of Armazi.. Bulls were apparently the most common sacrifice and there used to be a statue on the hilltop to Armazi, but only the description remains, of an iron warrior, with golden helmet and shield, visible from all around.

Now Christian pilgrims come here from across the world to visit Svetiskhoveli Cathedral.

Svetiskhoveli Cathedral

Here tradition holds that fragments of the crucifixion robe of Christ are buried, brought to Georgia by Elias soon after Christ's death. Elias's sister Sidonia is said to have been so enthralled by this relic that she died of joy clutching it in her hands so tightly that it had to be buried here with her. A cedar tree grew out of her grave, the wood from which was used to build St Nino's first church, on this spot, in the fourth century. This is also the area where in the same century St Nino erected the first Christian cross.

Only one month before our visit, the head of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II, announced Mtshketa to be the Holy City of Georgia, during his Sunday sermon on April 6th 2014 at the Cathedral of Saint Trinity in Tbilisi. He said that the decree on bestowing the title of Holy City upon Mtskheta had already been enacted and furthermore that this was fulfilling formally the wishes in the final will of Melkisedek I, the first Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, who reigned from 1010 to 1033. He has been revered as a saint by the Georgian Orthodox Church, canonized on October 17th 2002, his feast day being October 14th. Of all the icons I took photos, I cannot believe I do not have one for this vitally important saint. So I am sorry that I have had to resort to the internet instead!

In 1994 the whole of the old city was included as a UNESCO world heritage site.

In my next post I shall say much more about these sites which are so sacred to Georgian Christians....

Holy Georgia: in the Steps of St Nino and the Syrian Fathers - Pilgrimage Day 1

We are a party of 36 pilgrims from the Anglican Diocese of Southwark in the city of London, visiting many of the ancient churches and monasteries of Caucasian Georgia, following in the steps of St Nino and the Syrian Fathers.

View of Tbilisi

We arrive weary at our first hotel, in Tbilisi, on the Friday night, after two long flights with a transfer in Kiev in the Ukraine. Descending into Kiev airport at the end of the first leg of the journey we see the Dnieper River spread out below us. This is one of the major rivers of Europe, rising near Smolensk and flowing through Russia, Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is Ukraine's longest river. As we take off again for Tbilisi in Georgia there is the most wonderful red sunset.

covering trousers with skirts 

Our Georgian guide Maka meets us at the airport on arrival and we are introduced also to our driver who will safely look after us on all our journeys over the next nine days. It will be hot tomorrow we are told, with the slight possibility of a little rain, so we should dress accordingly, and bring comfortable shoes and water, for a walking tour of the Old Town of Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, and dating back 1500 years in parts.

headscarves for the ladies before entering churches

Also essential for the ladies throughout the trip are headscarves, as we must always show respect by covering our heads when entering the churches and monasteries on our itinerary. Some places will even require skirts to be worn rather than trousers for the ladies, and the men are advised not to wear shorts. Fortunately the strictest churches and monasteries on the route invariably have a supply of wrap-around skirts and head scarves at the entrances for us to use as necessary.

As we speed along from the airport to our hotel I notice that the lower trunks of the many trees lining the roads seem to be covered with white paint. An initial thought is that the paint renders the trees more visible to motorists at night but I don't think so, as the pattern is repeated across the country. Someone says this may be to protect from animal damage. Perhaps, but a brief scan of the internet tells me that this is more likely to be to avoid scorching damage and the harmful effect of extreme changes in temperature between night and day from the force of the sun's rays, exaggerated in snow, particularly as the sun is at a much lower angle in the winter. Otherwise the trunks are prone to cracking and disease. It's apparently a latex paint, not oil based. (If any one has any more information on this, the botanist in me would love to hear!)

We also see many of the grim blocks of flats from the country's communist days. These are in stark contrast to the fantastic looking all glass modern building for the Ministry of Internal Affairs. We are told it has been a new policy since 2003 that all government buildings are thus designed, as a symbol of total transparency with regard to all government affairs.

George slaying the Dragon, Tbilisi

There seems to be plenty of life around at 1.30am - there are even cars being washed at car wash centres! The Old Town is beautifully illuminated, as we drive past the old city wall and Freedom Square or Liberty Square with the Liberty Monument depicting St George slaying the Dragon high up on a column. During the Soviet period, this square had a large statue to Lenin but this was symbolically torn down in August 1991. On November 23, 2006, the current monument, created by Zurab Tsereteli, was unveiled in the same place. Very striking at night is the floodlit TV broadcasting tower on the top of the hill above the town, and at nearly 275 meters clearly visible from all around. The Georgians seem to have some affection for this tower. 1.4 million of the 4.5 million population live in Tbilisi, and Maka tells us that like every lady, the town is striving to appear ever younger and more beautiful!

There is much scholarly debate as to the origins of the name Georgia, which contrary to popular assumptions may not be derived from St George, its patron saint.

Metekhi Church

We have barely five hours of sleep before we have to be up and breakfasted to commence our first day walking tour of the Old Town of Tbilisi.

We are reminded by our Dean who is leading our group that we are on a pilgrimage not a holiday! 

This is something we have to remind ourselves about quite often during the coming days; there is so much to see and experience in addition to the churches and monasteries which are to be our main focus.

Vakhtang Gorgasali
one of Georgia's most popular historic figures 

We start at Metekhi Church, perched high above the town on its crag looking down on the Mtkvari river below…