Sunday 30th June The tour finished yesterda,y so we spent most of today with Jeremy, a fellow traveler. After attending the Armenian church just near our hotel & listening to the fine singing & chanting of the various priests, we went to the State History Museum of Armenia, which has exhibits dating from pre-history to the present day. Some of the most arresting exhibits were 2 carts found in burial mounds of a wealthy people from the 15th Century ...

Friday 28th June After an excellent breakfast we were off to the Goshavank Monastery, another remarkable example of Armenian architecture with a series of churches all built in basalt in the standard design, which is designed & has coped with, severe earthquakes since the 13th century. One of the features of the churches are the finely carved slabs with elaborate crosses carved with fine celtic like, designs. The domed ceilings inside had huge ribs which...

Wednesday 26th June We travelled north from Gaudari towards the Russian border on a very winding & bumpy highway, very busy with heavy trucks, cars & buses following the Tergi River, stopping at the giant curved panoramic monument celebrating 200 years of Georgia & Russia's integration built in 1983. On we went to arrive at the giant Jvari pass, at 2379m, where there is a small cemetery to the memory of the German POWs who died during the buildin...

Monday 24th June Off we went this morning having been warned to wear 'comfortable shoes' & an hour later we found out why. First stop was at the Khertvisi Fortress, at the confluence of 2 rivers where it controls passage on the road. Noted in the 2nd century BC when Alexander the Great was there, the present one was built in the 11th century & has been added to since. It was quite a climb to reach it from the road & to explore it but the views m...

Sunday 23rd June We set out west from Tbilisi for Mtsksheta, the former capital & religious centre of Georgia at the confluence of 2 rivers. Climbing to the Jvari Monastery, with its ruined outer walls, we had a fine view over the town & the rivers. Descending again we went to see the cathedral at Mtsksheta which also sits within a walled compound. This Romanesque buil...