From Mestia we were heading for a one night stop in Batumi before crossing over into Turkey. It was a 6 hour trip and we had booked our tickets the previous day, for an 8am departure. When I saw the very tired, old Ford Transit van that was to be our transport, I wasn't certain that we'd make it out off town, let alone Batumi. We had definitely booked 2nd class. For a while it seemed like we would be the only passengers. At the last minute a couple of Israeli hikers turned up and as we headed out of town more locals flagged us down. Before we knew it the van was full. I wasn't feeling excited about the descent from the mountains. I knew the road was twisty, narrow and the propensity for Georgian drivers to overtake around blind corners meant coming head to head with an oncoming car was a definitely possibility. And the smell of overheating brakes just added some unnecessary drama. But our driver showed some real skill. A cigarette in one hand hanging out the window (don't worry about the no smoking signs throughout the bus) , mobile phone to ear and steering with his elbow was a skill to be admired. It was best to concentrate on the mountain scenery, rather than watch the road. Throughout the last 6-7 weeks I have witnessed driving and traffic movement that makes me shake my head in wonder. But I haven't seen a serious traffic incident. Maybe there is method in the madness. Somehow we managed to make it go Zugdidi, where we transferred to a bigger, more modern bus and a driver who actually concentrated on his driving. Batumi greeted us with rain and a taxi driver who probably believed he had got us to where we wanted to be. What's a couple of hundred metres and the wrong street between friends? Batumi is a sea side holiday resort - popular with Russians. It's a mix of old and new and manages to deliver a great atmosphere whilst avoiding the tackiness which could be so easy to do. A 6km long beachfront boulevarde, parks, fountains, restaurants , kids fun parks. It manages to fit all this together. Sure it does have the bizarre. Like the building (soon to be a Le Meridien hotel) with a ferris wheel attached to the side. But it also has some beautifully maintained buildings. So our expectations of a tacky resort type town were replaced with the feeling that had time been on our side, we might have spent another night here. But Turkey is calling.