Sightseeing around Gurjaani

The Orthodox Church is by far the most predominant faith in Georgia, and we saw a lot of churches!

This was our first, a short drive from our host family's home.  Churches are always at the top of a hill or mountain, because it's good for you spiritually to work hard to get there...

A beautiful view!

Guka and the view.

 Lali, Ahneka, Me, and Maka

Most of the churches are very old... this was no exception

 Inside the church.... lighting candles at the icon of choice.  There is a really deep respect for the church, women had to cover their heads (if you didn't bring one you could choose from the scarves provided), and there were no pants allowed... even for Guka.

Inside the church.  I gathered from later visits to churches that picture taking inside of a church is pretty frowned on, so these are the only inside pictures I have of churches.  

 Outside the church

 We followed a nearby path down the hillside, that led to the spring.  Usually there is a spring near the churches and it is thought to be very good for you to drink from the spring.

 These are old wine making pots, (Qvevri) that Guka was anxious to show us.  

We made another trip the next day, this time a little further away and with Mako driving a Keti and Mari along.  This is the Bodbe Monastery where the patron saint of Georgia (St. Nino) is buried.  We saw her tomb, but no pictures, as it wasn't allowed.   

 There was a church and monastery (we couldn't visit that part) and the grounds were very pretty.

There was always a lot of fixing and construction on the churches because of how old they are.

The view from the top, before we went down many many steps to St. Nino's spring.

We didn't actually get a chance to drink from the spring because there was a huge line of people... almost American!  This was a cute little boy there.  

Really, the most exciting part of the trip was the car ride back up!  Mako brought the car down so that we wouldn't have to climb, but the road was AWFUL!  It was about as wide as one car, and full of boulders... not just little rocks but boulders!  It was also really steep and full of swithchbacks, so the most exciting part was when we were going around one of the turns at full Mako-speed and we met someone coming down!  Ahneka and I both just closed our eyes and prayed!!

First couple of days: in Gurjaani

After a long journey that took me from Wichita, to Minneapolis, to Amsterdam, finally to Tbilisi, we were met at the airport by Keti and her husband and daughter.  Mako, Keti's husband drove us to Gurjaani, an hour or so away.  His driving was very fast and sometimes a little too exciting!

He did have to slow down, though for the herd of cows that were in the middle of the road.  

 Lali, looking at the picture book of our family and home in Kansas.  Lali is the daughter-in-law of  Ahneka's host parents.  They are sitting at the table where all the meals take place in the summer-- outside but in a sort of patio/carport.

 This is Marina holding her grandson, David.  He was six weeks old when we arrived.  Lali and Mamuka (son) were visiting Marina and Gorami when we arrived.  Their home is in Tbilisi.  

 Mamuka, Lali, and Guka, admiring little David

The view of the yard and the back of the house.  We stayed in the room upstairs beyond that door.  

This is standing at our door looking out.

 Looking down on the yard from the stairs.  

 Georgian broom... I thought it was charming:)

 Marina had a large garden across the road.  These are her cucumbers, growing up sticks

.   Tomatoes, similarly staked

She had masses of raspberry bushes, and she loved us to pick and eat... we were only too happy to!.

Goromi and Marina's house from the street... you enter through the garage doors.  

 Ahneka and I went on a walk the next morning to see all her old haunts from the two years that she lived there.  This is a sort of park that is by the road that she took to walk to school every day.  

 Soviet era statue.

 The view from the top.. pretty impressive, but run down from lack of use.  We were uncertain what the use was, maybe, performances or something.

Bread in a little grocery store.  This is a sort of flatbread that they eat with every meal.  We loved it!

 This is the "bazaari" (sp?)  the outdoor market, where you can buy very fresh produce or other handmade food, but also clothes and shoes... they sell all sorts of things.

 Ahneka brought a Chinese tea set for her Georgian family, and here she is showing them the Chinese tea ceremony.  

Tea ceremony with Guka and Maka.

 The boy is Guka, Lali's son (9 years old).

 Keti had a "supra" in our honor at her house.  She is the one standing up. On the couch are Keti's neighbor, peace corps volunteer, and Maka (Lali's oldest).  

 The little girl is Mari, Keti's daughter.

 This is the view from Keti's balcony; it's the back of the school that she works in, and also the school in which Ahneka worked.  

 This was a little supper that Maka hosted as Marina was working (she worked 24 hour shifts as a nurse in a maternity hospital), typical of what we ate at Marina's house.  

Bread, of course, stuffed peppers, eggplant in mayonnaise, wine, cheese, and the ever present fresh fruit from the neighbors trees!  Did I mention that the food was really good?