4 days in Georgia

Georgia has been high on my “to see” list, and I’m so glad we were able to make it happen. I think it was probably an episode of Anthony Bourdain that planted the seed, and now here we are!

Georgia is gaining momentum as a tourist destination and for good reason. It has a ton to offer: mountains, wine country and a charming capital city that is bursting with character and history. The black sea is to the west with neighboring Russia (to the north), Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan (to the south).

How we spent 4 days in Georgia:

Day 1-2 : Rented a car once we arrived in Tblisi and made the 2 hour drive to Kakheti wine region.

Day 3-4: Soaked up city life in Tblisi.

Info about Georgia:

Where eastern Europe meets Asia

• Visa: American’s don’t need a visa, you can enter on a valid passport for up to 365 days.

• Language: Georgian, but it is fairly easy to get around with English. Georgian is a unique langue with it’s own scripts, and linguistically completely different from Russian.

• Currency: Georgian Lari; currently 1 USD = 2.7 Lari

• Taxis: Download Yandex Go (works just like uber) and if you want food delivery to your hotel/airbnb then check out the Glovo app. Rent a car for wine country or out of town trips, the roads are quite nice.

• Historical facts:

  • On April 1 1991, Georgia declared independence from the Soviet Union.

  • The Caucasus mountain range (that stretches between Russia and Georgia) is Europe’s highest mountain range!!

  • Considered the birth place of wine, they have been winemaking for 8,000 years.

• Political landscape: Recent elections have been complicated… but we felt none of this on our visit, and had a fantastic and uneventuful time.

Food

Georgian cuisine is super unique. A mix of middle eastern and eastern European cuisine.

Khachapuri

Cheesy bread with an egg and butter in the center. Just mix, and dip and thank me later.

Khinkali

Soup dumplings with a flavorful meat center.

Nigvziani badrijani

AKA “Eggplant and walnut wraps”. Great as an appetizer with a glass of Georgian amber wine.

Labio

Hearty bean stew.

Pkhali and pickles

Pkhali is chopped and minced vegetables often served as a cold starter.

Ajapsandali

Eggplant stew kinda like a Georgian ratatouille.

Wine Country- Kakheti

Kakheti is a mountainous region in Eastern Georgia, and this is really the main hub of wine country. It’s about a 2 hour drive from Tblisi. They produce 80% of the countries wine. This city, as is much of Georgia, is steeped in history. They have been making wine since 6,000 BC! They still ferment the wine in clay containers, just as their ancestors before them have done.

Where to stay: Tsinandali Estate by Radison. Gorgeous estate, Kid friendly with an outdoor kids play area for the warmer months, and an indoor heated pool.

Also check out one of the many scenic monasteries.

More time? Head to Caucasus mountains. We didn’t have time for this, but just google image Kazbegi and Svaneti- it looks stunning and would love to go back.

Tblisi:

Things to do and see in Tblisi:

• Cable car from Rike park to Mother of Georgia. Rike park has a kids play area, and is also where peace bridge is located (note- there is no peace on the peace bridge. You will get haggled to take a tour around town).

• Holy Trinity Cathedral

• Meidan Bazar. Underground shops- touristy.

• Leaning clock tower- funky leaning clock tower, and every hour on the hour the door opens and a fairy angel of sorts emerges to mark the hour.

• Chronicles of Georgia: hilltop monument with 16 towers each about 115 feet tall with historical and religious engravings. Overlooks the city, and the reservoir.

• Check out one of the many sulfur baths

• Get lost in the windy streets of old town and freedom square. So many cool wine bars, and restaurant’s tucked away in every corner of the city. Next time- we need to bring the grandparents for some evening alone time!

We splurged and stayed at the Paragraph Hotel in Freedom Square. The location was fantastic. While it was walkable, we ended up using Yandex quite a bit to get around just because our 5 year old who is normally a good walker, was not feeling it on this particular trip. There is also a courtyard Marriott in Freedom square that would be another great option.

This was a quick trip, but already labeled as one of our favorites. The Georgian people have a stoic kindness (much like Moldova), but are truly warm and opening to outsiders, and as most places we have traveled to outside of the U.S. people here are very kind and forgiving to children.

Have you thought of visiting Georgia? Visiting the Caucasus region also piqued our interest in neighboring Azerbaijan. I think our two years in Moldova are going to take us to many other gems in the region, that we honestly had never even thought of visiting.

For now it’s back to work at the embassy, and feeling grateful for this adventure and my small family that I get to share it with.