Greetings from a very sunny Tbilisi. I decided to fly with Turkish Airlines via Istanbul as they offered a reasonable return flight but it did require a 6-hour stopover in Istanbul on the outward journey - initially reduced to 5 hours as we were an hour late getting into Istanbul but then extended by over 90 minutes as we were then late taking off for Tbilisi - a storm in the region.

Not that you'd know since there was never any explanation other than a very bumpy flight all the way from Istanbul to Tbilisi with the seat-belts sign on the whole time & occasional reminders to remain seated.............

Apart from that the journey was straightforward - they feed you well in Turkish Airlines Economy Class - the flight from London was on a Boeing 777 & was given a seat in what I assume is their "premium economy" section, so more room & the flight (once airborne) was less than 3 hours - the flight from Istanbul to Tbilisi was on an A320 with the most riduculously gaudy seats - turquoise leather with brown inserts - really - that's not nice, is it? Despite the hour we got a nice meal but no coffee/tea service as it was too turbulent..........

So, instead of arriving in Tbilisi at 02.45 we got in about 04.08 - no landing cards to fill-out so top marks to Georgia for that - you vie with Iran for ease of entry (err....) (no landing cards) (ahh..) - nice, smiley lady on passport control (at 4 in the morning?) & then a short wait for bags & out to meet a less than happy driver............

If you've ever studied the flight schedules at Tbilisi International Airport you'll have noted that about half of the international flights get in between 01.00 and 04.00 - when I say study, clearly a glance will do - anyway - it means that the airport here (like Yerevan) is a busy place in the wee small - when sensible folk would be tucked-up, securely in the land of nod........

The drive into the city was straightforward - as you'd expect - but was amazed at the number of police - police cars & then, in the city itself, police/security on the streets - nothing sinister - police - on the streets -

really?

Quite how they think this contributes to having one of the lowest crime rates in Europe - move along, clearly nothing we can learn here............

I was due to stay at the British House hotel but the booking was transferred to the VIP-Victoria - which was a shame - the room I had was spacious & the hotel staff friendly, though. The VIP-Victoria is on a side street called Arakashvili - a bit of a trek from the city centre (about 3.5km to Freedom Square) but in a nice area called Vake (after Vake Park) and the walk in quite interesting.

Notes on pavements: usual pot holes & cracks plus random bits sticking up (old tree trunks/remains of old posts, etc.) - plus, for a city where I only saw a few dogs - so take a bit more than the usual care when walking. Crossing the road - well, i say road - clearly that isn't how Georgian drivers see them - so crossing the race-track can be an adventure - you soon get the hang of it - and using the under-passes obviously helps & - as many of them have shops - makes it interesting, too.......

A novelty, which I wasn't expecting, was that the wide pavements are used for car-parking & so you have to watch out for cars driving & manoeuvring.......

on the pavement - which the good folk of Tbilisi take with grace & patience

Anyway, I Chavchavadze Avenue has several colleges on it so the area is teeming with students - most of the buildings are old so lots of character and quite green, making it a pleasant walk -

Day One was spent wandering around the city getting my bearings - it's a lovely city to wander around - it was surprisingly warm & sunny, too......

I had lunch in the Old City, sitting outside & had an Argo and a Natakhtari - both local beers - they were setting up a big TV so that patrons could watch the Georgia-Greece Euro 2012 qualifier later in the evening. Georgia subsequently lost 1-2.......

So that was Tuesday - on Wednesday (12th) I once more ventured into the city & booked a couple of tours with Tourist Tour (www.touristtour.ge) - one for Thursday out to Mtskheta, Gori & Uplistsikhe and a city-tour for Friday morning - having been hopelessly disorganised & not booked anything in advance...........

Anyway, after having booked the tours, I went to the National Gallery on Rustaveli Avenue - now, I'm clearly no expert & clearly know nothing about art - but thought it was dreadful - the National Museum just further along Rustaveli Avenue has an interesting section on Russian occupation but wasn't remarkable apart from that. I also found Vake Park having somehow not found it on Tuesday - which, considering it is only about a kilometre from the hotel is singularly inept - but still didn't find either the cable car or the museum of folk architecture & daily life - but I'd like to come back & see more of Geogia (and Tbilisi, clearly!)........

So, on Thursday morning I was picked up by Shorena & Nugzar from Tourist Tour & we drove out of Tbilisi to Mtskheta (pronounced "skayta") where there are several churches to see - we started with Jvari set on a hill-top just outside the town overlooking the confluence of the Aragvi & Mtkvari rivers.

After that we went on to Gori to see the Stalin museum - Josef Djugashvili was born in 1879 and the complex contains the house he was born-in (oddly covered by a big canopy to protect it from the elements); a railway carriage & the museum itself. A group of 9 tourists had gathered and we followed Olga around the museum as she rattled through the life & times of Stalin (Stalin - man of steel). Olga didn't seem to draw breath as she took us around only deviating from her script to ask where we were all from - 2 Georgians accompanying the Brit; 2 Israeli lads and, er - 4 Iranian guys on a driving holiday. Quite international. You will have your own views on Stalin and the museum - but it is there & I went - his story is pretty much glossed over in the UK so learning more is down to the individual. What is rank is the gift-shop in the museum entrance selling various inappropriate souvenirs including Stalin Saperavi......

After Gori we drove to Uplistsikhe where there are the remains of a cave settlement - it is situated apparently near the old Silk Road and it became an important trading centre by around the 5th century BC - you have to use your imagination as the site seems remote & not near anything particularly - scrabbling up, down & around the rocks requires sensible shoes but is great fun - the weather had turned & it was very windy & drizzly adding to the merriment - it's a fascinating site completed by a 9th/10th century church at the top - building that must have been hard work given its remote location and position on top of the rocks. The cave-city has a connection with Queen Tamar who reigned from 1184 to 1213 - the height of Georgia's power as a nation but it is not believed she actually lived here - fascinating place & well worth visiting.......

After that we went back to Mtskheta and visited the Cathedral of Sveti Tskhoveli - built on a pagan site this is something of a spiritual heart for Georgia and has many stories & legends associated with it - including that of the grave of Elias' sister Sedonia who died holding a piece of Christ's crucifixion robe (buried with her) and a Cedar tree grew from the grave which gave forth a miraculous sap that cured all sorts of ailments......

There has been a church here since the 4th century AD but the current building dates from the early 11th century - damaged by an earthquake in 1283 & then by Tamerlane a hundred years later - it then underwent various restorations and a large wall was built around it in the 18th century. It is a beautiful cathedral with lots of icons but oddly surrounded by a new housing estate.......

The Georgian state broadcaster was setting up - getting ready to broadcast the service from there the next day - October 14th being a public holiday - Sveti-tskhovloba......

We had a late lunch in a traditional roadside restaurant - fresh salad, herbs, fresh zavatskoy (flat bread) and khachapuri (cheesy flat bread) followed by khinkhali - pasta dumplings filled with meat (but you can get other fillings) - lovely but was absolutely stuffed as Shorena & Nugzar clearly felt i was in greater need of food than them :-/

washed down by lemonade and a sparkling pear soft drink - lovely meal, though, even though i was forced to eat so much :-)

The sun came out again on Friday - another bright, sunny morning. This time i was picked up by Nina and Nugzar as we set off on a morning tour of Tbilisi. You might think a tour unnecessary but the reason i like doing them is that - depending on the guide, clearly - you can learn more about the city & life in general of the country you are in. Both Nina & Shorena were fresh out of university - speaking several languages each - and with very balanced views on life and wonderfully pragmatic/optimistic about the/their future.........

Anyway, we headed off for Mount Mtatsminda to visit the Monastery of Father David - after St David who lived in a cave here during the 6th century - the present church was built in 1859 and there are graves of famous Georgians - the church was busy with a service underway as today being Sveti-tskhovloba - the grounds contain a spring & naturally the water is meant to be beneficial - Nugzar saying that the oldest present having to drink a litre - & so wanted to know my age - ha - well, the 14th is also my birthday and so i had to confess to being 56 (not easy to write) (harder to admit)- curiously neither of us drank anywhere near a litre of holy water............

You get a cracking view of Tbilisi from here - up to where the TV Tower is; the botanical gardens are just behind and then out over a panoramic view of the city and St Trinity Church in the distance, complete with golden dome..........

We crossed the Mtkvari River to visit Sameba Chathedral (Trinity) - the largest Orthodox cathedral in the Caucasus - I'd read it was built on the Khojavank Armenian cemetery but Nina denied this - anyway, like St Sava's Cathedral in Belgrade - it isn't completed inside and so seems quite bare in comparison to the smaller & older churches but there lots of icons on the walls.........

We visited the nearby Metekhi church - much smaller, more cosy and with the feel of a much used, much loved church set in pretty gardens overlooking the river - and from where you can see the imposing Presidential Palace and the competing glass & steel house high in the hills on the other side of the Mtkvari belonging to the oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili.................

We visited the Sioni Cathedral and wandered around Chardin - with the shops being shut - clearly mass consumerism hasn't hit Georgia yet (hurrah) - then on to the steam baths and then back to the Tourist Tours shop - adjacent to their office in Tabukashvili Street - where they bake breads and cakes and also make wines - the aim being to create a centre where Georgian crafts & traditions can be kept alive and accessible to visitors........

So, a short visit to Georgia - much more to see but what I did see I really liked. Much like Armenia, Georgia has had a turbulent history and even now struggles with the issues of the break-away South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Religion clearly plays a big part in Georgian life - for the young & old - and there are so many churches just in Tbilisi.

I discovered that Katie Melua is Georgian - her song The Flood is fabulous - so learnt something else

In Armenia I was told that the Georgian alphabet was devised by Mesrop Mashtots - but didn't find anything to corroborate that - so will have to investigate further.

Plus learn a few words for my return visit........