Kutaisi to Gori

A lazy start and a breakfast with real eggs, blintzes, dumplings, cherry compote, and walnut pastries began our day as we stepped off from the B&B for a walk up to the Bagarati Cathedral and the ruins of the old city walls and fortress.

Afterward we ventured into the local market for produce, supplies, and vodka. A fellow was selling "cha-cha" (Georgian fire water) so who could resist. Our livers will probably all explode!

We then hit the road and were on our way to Gori, birthplace of Stalin. Soon we were into the Caucasus Range and climbing fast. On a meadow overlooking a small valley we stopped to make lunch. Cows were grazing amongst us and along side the road. It was very peaceful under the blue sky.

Back on the road we started a chess match. The roads were a myriad of potholes and the going was slow. Soon we were in a canyon followed a meandering trout stream. The architecture changed and for a while I thought we were in Tennessee.

We arrived in Gori at sunset. Rainy and bleak, the city is a complex of rundown former USSR government buildings. Our hotel is on Stalin Ave. and was at one time the only hotel in Gori. Marble columns and chandeliers in the lobby, no furniture, and a stark marble stairwell to the third floor. The second floor was closed and had no lights. Flashlights were required to get further up. Surprisingly our rooms were quite nice with full baths and really comfy beds...AND...hot water for the first time in three days! Dinner was next door, included, and was a nice braised chicken breast with shroom sauce and a "few" glasses of wine! Can't stop thinking of that Beatles song, "back in the USSR."

We ended the night with a room party to sample the vodkas we has purchased earlier! Ugh....long night and an early start. LMAO!

Argo House in Kutaisi

Our stay has been at a really lovely B&B high on a hill overlooking the city. The hosts have a spotless twenty-room home and served an amazing included dinner and breakfast. The views from the marble tiled terrace were very nice.

Prometheus Cave

A leisure morning was wonderful. Slept in, did some sorting of my pack, shopped for some supplies and had lunch. Batumi was busy and not as pretty in daylight. We left around 1pm and drove across the huge coastal plain passing quaint villages and farms. The price of independence from soviet Russia was evident in the disrepair of buildings, homes, and roads. Georgia is still struggling economically.

We turned northeast and headed for the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains. Sasa wanted share us a Georgian natural wonder that not in our itinerary. There we enjoyed an unplanned visit to a recently discovered and opened cavern. We descended some 300 feet touring cavern hall after hall fill of magnificent formations and crystals. The cave was dramatically lit and piped in flute music serenaded us as went up and down hundreds of steps. It was great exercise after a bumpy four hours in the truck.

Our destination tonight was another hour to Kutaisi, an historical and cultural center. As we wove through the narrow streets and valleys we jogged under low power lines until being stalled by a huge open drainage manhole. It took some time to pass and then maneuver through the parked cars, often with less than inches to spare on each side of the truck. Dave and Frenchy are amazing drivers!