Holiday in the Caucasus (9): Georgian churches
After two nights in Tblisi, we were out of the capital for a night (we will return to Tbilisi for another two nights). It was very much a church day as we visited no less than four such locations.
First, we travelled north to the town of Mtskheta where two rivers join for a scenic location. The town has been known as the spiritual heart of Georgia since Christianity came to the country about 327. On the hill above the town, there is the 6th century Jvari Church. In the town itself, there is the 11th century Svetitskhoveli Cathedral where King Erekle II is buried.
Then we drove further north to Ananuri where we had time in the 17th century Church of the Annunciation which overlooks the Zhinvali Reservoir. After some lunch nearby, we ploughed on northwards on the Georgian Military Highway, over the Jvari Pass, and down into the Tergi Valley. At our highest, we were 2,400 metres (which is almost 8,000 feet).
When we reached the town of Stepantsminda (formerly called Kazbegi), we had to transfer to four-wheel drive vehicles to reach the 14th century Tsminda Sameba Church which is located at a height of 2,200 metres (over 7,000 feet). Unfortunately the site was blanketed by black clouds and there was a splattering of rain. Furthermore one is not allowed to take photographs inside the church.
So the visit was literally something of a washout. But we were told that there will be thunderstorms in the next two days which will make the road to Stepantsminda unusable, so I guess we were lucky.
The day was not quite over and it was something of a relief that we did not have another church on the programme. Instead, down in Stepantsminda, we called into a private home to receive instruction in how to make (and eat) Georgian dumplings called khinkali and consume a Georgian spirit called pirali.
Our accommodation for the night was a resort hotel situated somewhere between nowhere and anywhere close to the border with the North Ossetia region of Russia.