A La Verdi
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Yes, Kakheti proved quite magnetic. We decided to stick around the region a bit after the exhausting ormotsi (40 days after death memorial feast) held for my father-in-law in the yard of his home. We both have plenty of friends locally, some of whom we hadn’t seen for years, and like the rest of Georgia, it’s full to bursting with history, relics, monuments, ruins and other items of interest. Plus, having the freedom of our own wheels, and being released from guests, school AND shop together in Svaneti, we had the golden opportunity.
We drove from Leliani, the family seat, to a village near Akhmeta, Telavi and the massive Alaverdi cathedral. This latter beckoned to me in far-off glimpses between houses from the long inter-village road we were on, magnificently situated in its stubbornly green valley with green mountain backdrops marching north despite the bone-dry rivers we crossed one after the other. I mourned my camera, waiting for me in our Tbilisi flat, and thought, soon, soon, I’ll have it back and start shooting everything which has inspired me these past months of equal drought. (The photo is from earlier, better, times with the big camera).
Our friend who hosted us lives alone in her parents’ old house, much too large for her now, though in its heyday it saw family gatherings sleeping everywhere they could and feasting in similar fashion, hugely. Her village too has a water crisis, not just because at the moment the climate is dry, but from supply issues themselves. Her washing machine doesn’t get enough to function; neither does her shower, so it’s “camp baths” with a bucket. How can a whole village not be getting sufficient water in its pipes? If only the crops of corn, mulberries, strawberries, cherries, walnuts and the many flowers can get enough liquid to survive!
We visited the Shuamtas (Old and New), both of whose churches I had seen before, so being disallowed in my knee-length shorts (they offered me a unisex “skirt,” which I wasn’t having) was fine. Also, a drive towards Tusheti, but not very far, just to get a flavor of the winding mountain and river road.
And a day around nicely restored Telavi (NOT to be confused with Tel Aviv, for which see the comedy film Mimino). Here, we ate outdoors from a restaurant whose homemade raspberry fizzy drink, garnished with orange quarters and mint leaves, was marvelous. We saw the palace grounds of Erekle II, Georgia’s King as it was being consumed by the Russian Empire in the early 19th century. He must be one of few historic figures who is known to have died in the same room in which he was born.
Our Pankisi visitation plans were changed on account of a dear friend not being there; my last times there were in about 2000, when one needed an armed guard to avoid being kidnapped by Chechens for a ransom, which has been documented. We left it at that, and moved off towards Tbilisi, with a few more sights and memories of our friends to succor us. Here we are, waiting for better weather in Svaneti than daily rain to begin my 400 km circular walk, and in the meantime planning and stocking up for that. It will likely begin at the end of June, as sunny weather typically begins to dominate then, starting and ending at our village home in Etseri.
Tony Hanmer has lived in Georgia since 1999, in Svaneti since 2007, and been a weekly writer and photographer for GT since early 2011. He runs the “Svaneti Renaissance” Facebook group, now with nearly 2000 members, at www.facebook.com/groups/SvanetiRenaissance/
He and his wife also run their own guest house in Etseri: www.facebook.com/hanmer.house.svaneti
By Tony Hanmer