The Georgia Military Highway Birthday Extravaganza

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July 12, 2015 – I had to get up early to get to the pick-up point by 9:10. The subway connections went well and I got there early. The van was coming to get me in front of a Marriot, so I went in to use the bathroom. They were a little late getting there, but not bad. Sevi and Jeremy were there again, and there was another American, Matt, teaching in Germany. There was also a young Danish couple that I really liked, as well as assorted others. Another nice group. And the tour guide was cool too. Another young guy. It was my birthday. At first I decided not to tell anyone, and then later I thought, nah. I’ll mention it. J

The tour was along the Georgia Military Highway. It was built to allow Russian troops to access Yerevan quickly if/when needed. Today it is no longer used in this way. But we were going to be driving along it, to Kazbegi, a town 14 km from the border with Russia. It is in the mountains. Along the way, we stopped at the Zhinvali reservoir for pictures, and then we stopped a few minutes later to visit the Ananuri castle that was built near the water. The water actually flooded a city when the dam was built, which is still down below. The guide said when the water is low, you can see the top of the old church sticking out of the water. Another stop was at this circular monument to the “200 years of friendship” between Georgia and Russia, back when it was more of an imposition. But around it is great views. As we got higher, the day got cloudier and colder. But it was so nice to have a cool day, instead of the high 90s it had been.

When we got near Kazbegi, we stopped at a guesthouse that fed us lunch. The food just kept coming. So many courses. And then we were able to try our hand at making khinkali, the dumplings that are so good. I offered to go first, to try to be brave on my birthday. It turned out ok. Everyone made one and then we threw them in the pot to cook. The woman also made more, but by then everyone was stuffed. At the end, she brought out a birthday cake! I was so surprised. So thoughtful. I suspect she had made the cake already for the guesthouse, but she ended up making it a birthday cake and it was so good. Strawberries! It was also enormous.

We left there a little late and started a hike up to the Gergeti Sameba church that would take about 40 minutes. The guide told me this hike was much steeper than yesterday and I couldn’t do it with my flip flops. But I got him to ask the lady at the guesthouse and I was able to borrow someone else’s shoes to make the walk. The other girls and some of the guys chose to go up by van, but I wanted to walk. I was by far the slowest, but it felt good to do it. It also felt good to go down in the van afterwards. J



From there, we dropped off the shoes, and picked up some travelers heading back to the hostel that runs this tour. It was just a three hour drive back. I should have slept, but I chatted instead, of course. Got back later than expected, at 9:30pm, and went to the grocery store for the last time to check my mail. There were so many wonderful birthday messages on facebook – such a good day. I have such great friends and family. Back at the flat, it took me until 11:45pm to finish packing and shower. I knew Paul was coming at 3am to help me get a taxi to the airport, so I set my alarm for 2:45am and fell asleep pretty quickly.

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