October

To-date (31/10)

Trip duration: 66 days

Countries visited (exc UK): 7

Locations Visited: 19

Distance Travelled: 8,722KM

Steps Walked: 1,059,215

This month

Countries Visited: 2 (Turkey, Georgia)

Locations Visited: 9 (Plus Tbilisi twice)

Distance Travelled: 3,269KM

Days moving: 11

Longest stay: Tbilisi, Georgia  (7 days + 4 days)

Steps walked: 505,738

October has been all about Georgia! Having made the decision, sadly, that Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are not really viable on this trip (or at least not without doing far more flying than we want to) we are making the most of it by heading  to India a bit earlier to watch a Cricket match, and spending a full 4 weeks exploring Georgia.

1st to 4th

We started October in style, catching a 15 1/2 hour night bus from Cappadocia to Trabzon, on the Black Sea coast. This sudden push north and east was due to a spell of milder weather we'd spotted in the mountainous Svaneti region of northern Georgia As we'd thought we might not make it this far north, we were keen to take advantage of 4 day window before the heavy rains resumed.

In Trabzon we paused for a day to visit the incredible Sumela monastery, and then set off north once more towards the Georgian border. We spent a single night in Batumi, before getting on the Georgian version of Dolmus busses - Martrushka - to make our way into the mountains!

4th to 8th

We had three full days in Mestia,the largest village in Svaneti, staying in a lovely guest house with a very modern timber 'bungalow'. We managed two long hikes, including eating our lunch at the face of the Chalaadi glacier, and ascending over 1000 metres up into the hills above Mestia. We also ate some great regional food, and took a drive to the idyllic mountain village of Ushguli, where we sat and just stared at the mountains for at least an hour!

Mestia was fabulous.

9th to 13th

After the rush to catch the weather window in Mestia, we planned a few more relaxed days in Kutaisi, Georgia's second city.  As well as enjoying excellent food and a more relaxed few days, we visited a Georgian winery  and also traversed the scariest bridge I've ever considered using! We also got to explore some abandoned Soviet buildings in a nearby

Kutaisi was a welcome break, but also an enjoyable destination in it's own right.

14th to 20th

Tbilisi. It's one of those cities that you hear vague mumblings and rumours of, and for a while we had felt we must visit this allegedly cool capital city, where a third of Georgia's population make their homes. Well I can tell you, it is very cool. A thoroughly modern metropolis, with an easy style and a rich history,arriving in this city by train certainly  helped us to feel a bit more up-to-date.

As well as a great culinary scene, Tbilisi has world class museums, great coffee shops and cafes, and we even managed to go and see the Georgian football team demolish Cyprus 4-0 in a Euro 2024 qualifier (spoiler: neither team will qualify.)

We liked Tbilisi so much we planned to stay here for a few more days before catching our flight to India.

21st to 22nd

Looking at the map and the calendar, we realised that we might get another brief weather window in which to visit the mountainous region of Stepantsminda, home to one of Georgia's most picturesque churches, and the highly photogenic Mount Kazbeg. 

Situated 5 miles shy of the Russian border on the Georgian Military Highway, Stepantsminda is part of the region known as Kazbegi. The highay is a winding two-lane road  which crosses the main Caucasian ridge over 2000M above sea-level, and  runs to the only land border between Russia and Georgia. 1,000 HGVs traverse it each day carrying essential supplies in both directions, and also supplying Armenia.

The town itself is tiny, and the weather only allowed us 1 full day here, but we made the most of it with an epic hike to a 3,000M pass, which took us above the snow line, and thoroughly exhausted us!

23rd to 24th

From the mountains, back down to the far east of Georgia, and from the Russian border to a town that is within 25 miles of Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia, we headed to Sighnaghi, the city of love, and one of the prettiest towns in Georgia. Our two nights here allowed for a seriously good wine tasting at Okra's Winery, and a visit to the very beautiful Bodre monastery.

25th to 26th

I spent my birthday travelling 70KM along the road to T'elavi, the capital of the Kalkheti region. With good food, more winery visits in the nearby town of Tsinendali, and another fairly relaxed 48 hours, we're ready to return to Tbilisi!

27th to 31st

Backto Tbilisi to enjoy our last few days in Georgia, and prepare ourselves for the craziness of India!