The end of our Caucasian Georgia Pilgrimage - and an old Georgian Myth

There is an old Georgian myth as to why this country is one of such incomparable beauty - but I am getting ahead of myself...
It is our last day, Sunday, and we all celebrate a final Eucharist together in the Tbilisi hotel - a fitting way to end our pilgrimage. Then we have the morning free to do what we will. I head to Rustaveli Street and those parts of the huge Georgian National Museum collections that are housed in the impressive building there. This museum is quite simply fabulous and really needs far more than the couple of hours which I have available. The collection of pre Christian gold and silver is totally absorbing and I spend a long time poring over the display cases, well displayed and mostly with English translations. The gold and silver work is astonishing in its craftsmanship - for example a tiny gold lion with the most intricately detailed mane dates from 2600-2300 BC, the early Bronze Age. Next door I spend some time in the sobering new Museum of Soviet Occupation, with just a little time left for the display of weaponry used in the wars with Persia and Turkey in the 19th and early 20th century. Sadly when I finally make my way to the shop hoping for some sort of guide to take home with me the door is firmly closed - the shop has shut for lunch!
Even a long weekend would be scarcely enough time to explore Tblisi to the full. It is such a shame that it is a long journey to get there from America and the UK.
Lunch is not included today, and most of us find the excellent supermarket near the hotel, where picnics are clearly big business at the deli counter. Our individual choices from a fantastic selection are then beautifully wrapped and supplied with plastic forks and spoons as necessary.
There is a hiccup on the flight home - a very large bang wakes us up out of our dozing making us all jump. It is turbulence or air pocket we are variously told when we inquire of the staff, but the captain makes no announcement at all from the cockpit - that would have been reassuring. In all my many flights over the years I have often experienced turbulence, but never like that!

arriving tired and wet and cold at Gergeti church nr. Kazbegi

If Kazbegi and the steep uphill walk to Gergeti (Trinity) Church at 2170 meters in the pouring rain was the low point of our trip, our last full day at the David Garedzha monastery complex was certainly the high point for me at least. But like the walk to the highest church, there were some of the party who for various reasons could not take part and time must have hung heavy for them on both days.

arrived at Udabno (desert) monastery, tired, hot and happy!

Reflections: I would love to go back to Georgia and allow more time to further explore many of the places we visited. There were also many other churches and monasteries for which we had no time at all. This is always going to be the way with a large group, many different interests and so much to see.
It didn't always feel as much like a pilgrimage as did our previous trips last year, to the Holy Land and then to South East Turkey. But then in Turkey we stayed for several days in two different monasteries which enabled us to really get into the spirit of the liturgy and the mystery of the Orthodox religion. And of course the Holy Land is a very special place for followers of all three Abrahamic faiths, with so many of the significant places to visit within a small area. The long distances we had of necessity to travel in Georgia, tempted us at every turn into becoming tourists rather than pilgrims. I have covered the Holy Land and South East Turkey pilgrimages in previous blogs on this site.

I would like to express heartfelt thanks here to both Rosemary Nutt and her team at McCabe Pilgrimages, who organised such a splendid trip for us, and Southwark Diocese, particularly The Very Revd. Andrew Nunn, Dean of Southwark Cathedral, and his supporting team, who so ably led us with such good humor throughout. And of course thanks to our two wonderful tour guides from Visit Georgia, Maka and Levan.
My guidebook throughout the trip was Georgia, in the Bradt guide series, this one by Tim Burford, updated by Laurence Mitchell, fourth edition published June 2011, and I am grateful for much superb information supplied therein which enriched my visit to Georgia.

I think it appropriate that we should let God have the last word, and so I return to that old Georgian myth that I found on the comtourist website:

"When the God divided the Earth among the people, Georgians were late because of their traditional feast, and by the moment of their arrival the entire world had already been divided. When the God asked them to what they had drunk Georgians just answered: "To you, oh Lord, to us, to peace". The God liked their answer. So told them that although all lands were taken, he reserved a small plot for himself and now he decided to give it to Georgians. According to the God the land was incomparable in its beauty and all people would admire and cherish it forever." 

I say Amen to that!

Holy Georgia - the tough climb to Gergeti (Trinity) Church

Looking back on our climb

 Visiting the Holy Trinity Church high above the Georgian villages of Gergeti and Kazbegi, and at 2170 meters the highest Orthodox Church in the world, should be the high point of our pilgrimage in more ways than one; for me and I think for many others it is in fact the lowest point!
It is cold - not surprising in view of the altitude - but we are unconditioned for this after the lovely warm weather of the last few days. Many of us are not dressed adequately for this climb. And we get colder as we hang around for quite a while waiting for our picnics which we will have to carry up to the church with us (if I had looked in the picnic bag before setting off I don't think I would have wasted energy carrying it to the top - a whole cucumber, a tomato, a hard boiled egg and a small and stale corn bread were my rations…)

beautiful flowers along the way were
some consolation to flagging spirits

As we set off from the center of Kazbegi, it starts to rain. The track starts off as a lane leading to some dwellings on the lower slopes of the mountain, but it soon degenerates into a rough and difficult narrow path, single file only and with plenty of uneven rocks to make the way hazardous. And the rain has now set in; it is the sort of rain that soaks you very quickly. I feel really cold and miserable but I try to motivate others who are finding the walk as trying as I am.

We stop to sing to cheer our damp spirits!

nearly there!

Then just as we think it cannot get any worse, it does! Those who cannot make the walk can be taken up to the church by four wheel drive vehicles, which wait in the valley below for their fares. The problem is that these vehicles use the same lane that we walk on for much of the climb. And with the excessive rain that the area has recently experienced, the lane has been churned by these vehicles into nothing short of a glutinous mud bath, requiring all the skill and more of the drivers as they slither and slide along, skirting around walkers, going perilously close to the sheer drop on one side of the track, avoiding the bank on the other. It is hard for us to stay on our feet as we dodge the taxis. It must be just as hard for the drivers. And then, half way up and just in time for our flagging spirits, the sun tries to come out. We gather together and sing as much as we can remember (not very much as it turns out!) of that lovely hymn by Leonard E Smith, "How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him, who brings good news, good news, announcing peace, proclaiming news of happiness… with the refrain: Our God reigns, our God reigns" sung out with great gusto.
The shocking pun cheers us up and we press on!
 

the scars of the mud tracks - such a shame!

After the most grueling walk I have done for quite some while, we finally come out into the open at the top of the mountain and there ahead across the green pastures is the church, our destination. It is actually a monastery, albeit with only a few monks living there. They stay up there through the winter and can be cut off completely. Services are held daily and are regularly attended by local villagers and those further afield, weather permitting. This is an especially sacred space for many Georgians. It is a popular venue for weddings and our guide says she does this hike a few times a month; no wonder she is so fit!
This church and its separate bell tower were both built in the 14th century. During the invasion by Tbilisi Persians in the 18th century, it is said that this remote church was used for the safe keeping of precious artifacts from Mtskheta, including Saint Nino's Cross. The church is now an active place of worship in the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic tradition.


To our shame, the pilgrim in many of us turns to tourist as we make a bee line to the blazing stove just inside the church before even noticing the interior or feeling the spirituality of the place. I don't even have any photos of the interior.
The weather has turned for the worse again, there is a biting cold wind up there and it is trying to rain again. I have little appetite for my picnic, yearning instead for a hot cup of tea and a huge piece of comforting but forbidden cake. No chance of either! I certainly have no energy reserves at all to even contemplate the walk back down, and with several others load into one of the 4WDs to take us back down into the valley. That was quite some experience I can tell you!
It has turned into a lovely afternoon and evening. While waiting for the fragmented party to regroup in Kazbegi, we find an excellent little café/restaurant where we can warm ourselves up with hot drinks. The hot chocolate is delicious, very like the drink they serve in France which resembles hot thick chocolate custard; very comforting.

view from the top!

I have no appetite for the meal back at the hotel that night. My sweet tooth is desperately missing puddings and desserts, made all the more tricky by the enforced wheat free diet, more restrictive by a long way than having to stick to "gluten free." And the small cuts of fruit and even smaller squares of cake that count as "pudding" at this hotel just don't hit the spot, they are so uninspiring and soon disappear anyway. I slope off early and wearily to my bed....

Holy Georgia pilgrimage: the Georgian Military Highway and trip to Kuzbegi

"I believe you have seen the Georgian Military Road, too. If you have not been there yet, pawn your wives and children …and go. I have never in my life seen anything like it. It is not a road, but unbroken poetry, a wonderful, fantastic story written by the Demon in love with Tamara." Thus writes Anton Chekhov to N. A. Leikin, from "The Letters of Anton Chekhov" which he wrote to his family and friends.

Zhinvali Reservoir

We are pilgrims on a journey, and we are travelling towards the north on that very same Highway, from Kutaisi via Tbilisi in Georgia, so I have no need to pawn my children, husband or anyone else! There is certainly much to see on the journey and there is some very beautiful scenery. We're following the course of the River Aragvi flowing fast across the plain to our right. A calf has just been born, wobbling uncertainly on its gangly legs as it searches for its mother's milk. (My father, a research scientist and agnostic dairy farmer, never failed to be moved by the wonder of new life arriving in this way). Soon we approach the place where the river has been dammed, to create the massive Zhinvali Reservoir.

mountain view from our hotel

We climb high above the dam and the road gets very twisty before coming down again at the north western tip of the reservoir where there stands the idyllically situated 17th century fortress complex of Ananuri. Amazingly, this was going to be destroyed by the flooding when the dam was built. The hamlet itself, which stood below the fortress, was largely destroyed and relocated further north, but common sense and local campaigning saved the fortress with its churches and watchtower - and what a good job. The complex is now closed so we cannot stop to see it, but we will pass this way again in a couple of days.

Caucasian Shepherd Dog

Today we continue our climb in the coach, past the Ananuri church complex into the mountains. It is a fantastic hairpin road at this point, with sloping green meadows on either side looking just like green felt in the evening sunlight. Someone corrects me on this. No, he says, green felt looks like the mountain sides here; God's Creation came first! How true. We climb higher and higher with stunning views to the valley below and the pink tinge of the setting sun contrasts with the brilliant white of the snow sitting on some of the highest peaks. The recent heavy rain this area has experienced is not only evidenced in the muddy appearance of many of the rivers, but also now by a large landslip which has been cleared away from the road ahead of us.
We arrive extremely tired after a very busy and long day. But the hotel we are to stay in for two nights is a fabulous ski resort hotel with huge rooms, many on two levels, and all with varying views of the mountains around. Most people also have a balcony. I don't! There are already 6 coaches parked around the front of the hotel. But the hotel can cope admirably with these numbers. We are strictly too late for the evening meal but they have kept a table for us in the restaurant and there is a large buffet-style spread of what may be described as "international" food. This is the first time on our trip that we have not had traditional Georgian fare, and this is a shame. It is clear that the hotel caters for large groups from Austria, Germany, and the rest of Europe and in trying to please everyone ends up perhaps pleasing very few? Some go so far as to describe the food as "woeful." They certainly cater little for vegetarians. There was never a veggie option among the hot dishes and I always had to make the best I could from the salad buffet range. When I asked the serving staff for a "veggie" option I was offered pasta and potato - in all seriousness!! And they had not heard of gluten free or wheat free diets. I gave up on that one and brought my supply of rice cakes and oat cakes down to the dining room for each meal.
It must be said that I was getting a little tired of my continual diet of tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese and hard boiled eggs for both breakfast and supper! Never mind. We certainly don't have to go hungry, and the accommodation is superbly comfortable. and we certainly never go hungry.

appalling litter at the Friendship Monument

I am wide awake at 6am, after an excellent night's sleep, to the sound of a cuckoo flying around the valley below, his distinctive call loud and clear. I walk out into the grounds and marvel at the meadows around the hotel thick with wild orchids - I don't know which ones…
The itinerary for today tells us that "we walk up through beautiful valleys and woodland to Gergeti (or Trinity) Church, at 2170m." This makes it sound like a stroll, and does not in any way adequately prepare us for what lies ahead! Our guide, who is considerably younger and fitter than many of us, tells us to wear comfortable shoes, carry walking poles if we have them and for the ladies to wear skirts as the church/monastery is very traditional and trousers will definitely be frowned upon. It is a 2 1/2 hour climb up, we are told, to the highest Orthodox Church in the world. Coming down will take us just 1 1/2 hours (assuming we have the energy!).

The Friendship Monument

So as soon as we have finished breakfast we all pile into our coach again heading for Kazbegi and the beginning of our walk. We take the road north towards the Russian border, the only direct route linking Russia in the north with Armenia to the south. It is just 18km from Kazbegi to the Russian border. This road is now normally very busy with huge trucks transporting products south to Armenia, but at the moment a large landslip has blocked the way further north and the trucks are temporarily idle - we saw quite a few parked up in the valley below on our way here last night - good for us but not for trade.

Panoramic mountain view from the Friendship Monument

huge flocks of sheep are common here

We soon stop to see the Friendship Monument, erected in the early 1980s as a symbol of 200 years of friendship between Russia and Georgia. I am not really sure what to make of this monument, given for example the 2008 South Ossetia War between Russia and Georgia and the huge numbers of Georgian citizens displaced by Russia into refugee camps which we have seen along our pilgrimage route. The central female figure in the monument represents Russia, holding the child Georgia. The Georgians like the Russians, our guide tells us, and they welcome the Russians visiting on holiday here. But it is the Russian government that no-one likes! More information on the scenes depicted on the monument can be found elsewhere. Whatever our personal views, it's a great lookout point for the surrounding Caucasian Mountains. We are now above 2000 meters, in the alpine zone, and the views around are stunning. But the litter tumbling down the slopes away from the monument is appalling. What a blot on the otherwise beautiful landscape, and offensive to my eyes. Some don't even seem to notice it. I take photos and resolve to write to someone about it. But who do I write to?
The sheep farmers here use horses to control the large flocks. The horses have very colorful saddles and make a pretty picture against the mountain back drop. Today must be sheep market day as we see many different flocks all being shepherded into one large enclosure, presumably in preparation for auction.

the shepherd with his horse

If it were not for the housing one could think we were in Switzerland, the scenery being so similar. But the housing here is mostly poor, in sharp contrast to the pristine chalets we see in the Swiss and Austrian Alps, and at least in Switzerland I was struck earlier this year by the litter free and clean towns and villages.
Leaving the monument, we climb to 2395 meters, the highest part of the pass we have been over. Our guide is disappointed that we cannot see the Kuzbegi mountain peak, covered in cloud. There can be up to 2 meters of snow up here in the winter and tunnels are built across the roads to help protect the roads from avalanches. The snow melts clearly bring down much debris, seen in the scree and large boulders along the road side. There are some fantastic geological formations, some resembling the basalt Giant Causeway in Eire. And big black birds of prey wheel high above us. We descend again towards Kazbegi and will soon be taking that walk "up through beautiful valleys and woodland to Gergeti (or Trinity) Church, at 2170m"….Many of us are hardly prepared for what is to come! ....