It rained on and off during the night and packing up wet,and slippery tents was no joy. On the way to the main road in the fog and low clouds we could see the farmers taking their sheep, goats and cattle out to graze. (by the time we saw them it was too late to take photos).
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| Some are lived in |
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| A village, looks drab. |
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| Part of a large salt lake up in the mountains |
One the way to Signaghi we picked up some fresh bread as we did most days and usually in small family bakeries.
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| Bakery |
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| Shelling walnut to add to the bread |
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| Old wine jar |
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| Old wine press, fill with grapes then get in and stomp |
When we arrived at Signaghi we were split up into two guest houses, Nana’s and the Caucasian House which is where I stayed. These places are quite unique as they are family homes opened up to visitors and quaint in their own right. I shared a bedroom with Tom and Ian, they had a double bed each and I had the single bed, by choice, but we all had red heart shaped pillows on the bed.
The town was settled properly in 1762 when it was made into a fortress with a large town wall for protection. The main source of revenue is now tourism with it being a major wine producing area. Carpets are also made here and a traditional food called mcvadi, which I have not tasted.
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| Nana's |
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| Caucasian House |
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| My bed |
In the evening the landlady where I was staying offered to make a Georgian meal for us all. £9 per head including all the wine. This being a wine making area wine is fairly cheap here, about £5 for a 3 litre bottle at the roadside markets. I have been lucky so far in that I have been able to pick good wine as some of the others have offered their wine for cooking instead of drinking.
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| All together at the meal |
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| Nana teaching Georgian dancing |
In the morning we were given bacon and eggs for breakfast, quite a treat these days. I went looking for St. Ninos’s Monastery and ended up walking nearly down to the bottom of the valley before having to turn round and climb all the way up the mountain again. I realised that I had been given the wrong directions and when I asked again I was told that it was close by and in the opposite direction I had walked. The main problem was that the signpost indicated a nunnery while everyone had been telling me to look for monastery. Apparently in Georgia a nunnery/convent is also called a monastery. I did eventually find the monastery which had beautiful frescoes but no photos could be taken of them.
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| St. Nino's Monastery |
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| Me, with the valley behind. |
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| Looking over Signaghi |
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| A typical street in Signaghi |
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| Part of the old town wall |
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| 200 year old wine press with carvings of the Book of Job |
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| Georgian costume |
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| Slippers for sale in the market square |
Ian called Maggie ‘elderly.’ The word has been banned on the truck so age challenged seems to be the acceptable alternative now! Suzanne was invited to have tea at a man's house while walking round the town only to find that there were four men there. It was only the presence of Judy as a chaperone that saved the day. She hid the roses he gave her as well. These young ladies on the trip do lead exciting lives!
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