Hotel Vip Victoria Tbilisi

... carpets of wildflowers in abundance. The people are great here, too. Kid's in particular, like to say hello and ask our names. We also find that people are curious about our ages, and ask us how old we are.

We visited Sanahin and Haghpat monasteries while in northern Armenia. Both about 1,000 years old, and as is true in Georgia, the Armenian's also has a knack for picking exceptionally pretty and high places ...

We arrive on airBaltic flight BT-722 from Riga, the capital of Latvia, early morning (~ 5 a.m.) on the 24.Dec.2008. Not many flights arrive in Tbilisi International airport, especially at such an early hour, so we get through the passport check really fast, pick up our backpacks which aslo arrive very soon and go to the exit. A quick SMS to Luka our Georgian friend whom we've never seen before but who has promised to pick us up. A ...

... said "In the Baltics!!" I don't live in the Baltics. But it's nice to not be American for a few minutes. Here there hasn't been the anti-Americanism that was starting to go around in Kazakhstan before I left. Everyone's been very friendly. I'm officially done with the Peace Corps. As of October 17th, I never have to report my whereabouts to them again. It was hard getting out of Kazakhstan. First, I was told I would fly straight to Aktau ...

... house; the underground saunas at the square in front are horribly expensive (40GEL+)). The water really smells of sulphur but it's not unpleasant. One can find there a bath, dry sauna, two superhot pools and I met there two Czech guys having a massage. After getting myself scrubbed I could meet Tamar again at Rustavelli. This time we are heading to Mamadaviti church built halfway the TV-Tower hill and surrounded by graves of famous Georgians - a fine romantic place with a nice nightview ...

... es zu einem Polizeibuero, wo ich zunaechst noch einmal meine Story erzaehlen durften und dann zwei Stunden warten durfte. Dann wurde noch ein Formular ausgefuellt (erneut durfte ich alles erzaehlen...) bevor sie mich dann dankenswerterweise zurueck in mein Homestay gefahren haben... Die Diebe haben meine komplette Kameraausruestung, mein komplettes Geld, inklusive meiner letzten Kreditkarte und auch meine Tagebuecher:-( und meinen iPod Nano gestohlen. Mein Reiseplan ist daher nun ...

... an old palace, with interesting old walls and circular, conical roofed bastions that MP had noted previously. The long suit of this place is Napoleon's death mask, which looks thinner in the face than any of his portraits. One of the portraits could pass for Marlon Brando. It's now 3.30pm, and ZsaZa the guide has told the museum guide we only have 15 minutes to tell us all she knows, so it is a rapid-fire commentary - only ...

... to run fast until we get to Marjanishvili metro station. We caught the metro, and ran towards the parking lot of the marshrutkas in Didube. A kind local man came to me, offering his help. "Borjomi," I said. He took us to the platform where the marshrutkas that goes to Borjomi are. I have no idea how did everyone knows everything - there are no signs (only on the front of the vehicles) and nothing that might lead you. The locals just know. When he introduced us in front of ...

... Georgian Lari in the exchange office nearby - and the driver lighted a cigarette. "Oh no", said Michal, and it took a second or two and we saw three or four local guys standing next to each other, where every one of them holds a cigarette in one of his hands. I came to a conclusion in this late hour of the night that smoking is too popular among Georgian people. Later, this theory has been proven, you will see. The driving in George Bush highway towrds the ...

... läks sõit mööda sõjateed. Me küll ei käinud nii kaugel kui aktivistid eelmisel päeval, aga mägede ilu saime nautida täiel määral. Kui Tbilisisse sattuda, siis soovitan kindlasti teha see päevane trip ja nautida mägede ilu. Samuti saate vaheldust linnakaosest, mille väärtus on rohkem, kui kaheldav :( Taaskord oli meie eesmärk ja sihtpunkt klooster, mis asus elektrijaama paisjärve ...

... to cross a standard Soviet era 6 lane road in the middle of town that they eventually felt they had to cop out and catch a taxi from there to where they were going! We've also noticed a distinct upsurge in the number of post-Soviet gangster-looking types - two shoulder-holstered guns appears to be de rigeur in some parts of town...