Arrived in the Republic of Georgia

I consider myself a well-traveled person but the list of places I still want to visit is quite long. When planning my next overseas trip I came across a tour in the country of Georgia. Not knowing much about the country I started reading about the country that was once part of the Soviet Union. This particular tour is an all women group I am part of online; I have been intrigued with joining one of their tours for a few years now. I quickly booked the tour last fall, putting a deposit down on a single room – I don’t mind touring with strangers but sharing a room with someone I don’t know is just not what I am willing to do anymore (with the exception of a dorm thing that might be required on some hikes). The tour is short and concentrates only in a small part of the country so my intent is to tour other cities on my own. I start a list of all the other places I am interested in visiting and gathering logistic information. Originally I set off on planning a road trip for the solo portion of my trip. Meanwhile a friend inquires on joining me on part of my trip. She’ll travel with me before my scheduled tour.

I continue building the itinerary, filling in more details but it seems like the activities I have planned at best will leave us very exhausted. We devise a new plan to limit our stays to two cities and use day trips to visit locations outside the cities. In this plan we no longer need a car rental. Our new plan works out well for the most part with a couple exceptions that I’ll describe later.

There are two flights to get to Georgia and that includes an eight hour layover in Munich. Both of us have been to Munich before but eight hours seems to long to lounge at the airport. We make a plan to travel into Munich for our long break. The airport has other plans for us, everything we estimated takes twice as long. We wait for over an hour to pass through passport control in order to be able to exit the airport. They have us wait in a long line for the machines to complete our first steps and then are told to move to a “faster” line on a different floor but that line ends up being even longer. By the time we get past passport control it only makes sense go with our backup plan – take a bus to the even closer Bräustüberl Weihenstephan in the town of Freising. Weihenstephan is the oldest brewery in the world. Even though I don’t drink beer anymore I order a flight to sample some of them but eventually switch to a good riesling, I do miss the dry German rieslings. We don’t have too much time left to waste so we return to the bus station for our return trip to the airport. We pick up our checked bags and go find our gate for the next leg of our trip, Tiblisi.

We arrive at our hotel around at 5:30 am. Luckily we book the room for the previous evening so the key is waiting for us when we arrive. We shower and take a long nap; neither one of us slept much on our flights. Our alarm is set for ten in the morning. We will still be sleep deprived but we are determined to get on a normal schedule – we have a walking tour scheduled at noon. I wake up but I am having a hard time getting ready for the day. We are very jet lagged.

We are not ready for a welcome drink at 5:30am

We meet up at Freedom Square and a local guide starts our walking tour around the city. During introductions a dog joins us and makes his presence known by barking and approaching everyone in the group. He is one of many Tbilisi street dogs, the large group of unhoused dogs that roam the streets. The dogs are homeless but are vaccinated and somehow well cared for, at least most are. He protects us periodically running into the streets and barking at suspicious cars on the road. He stays with us a little while but eventually wanders off and we are joined by other dogs in our tour. It seems to be a common theme in Georgia.

We are told about the history of the city that has historically been on the Silk Road trading route. The land here has been sought after or fought for by Russia (and Soviet Union) but also the Ottoman Empire, Persians, Greeks and other invaders. Even after many different occupations they still maintain their unique language and culture. Their language is formed using a 33 character alphabet with unique sounds only heard here. The language has three different versions and to simplify it they can be referred to as the old version, the religious text version, and the current version. There is no gender in the language but there are words to describe people and some seem to be reversed to what is normal in Latin languages – mama means dad, and dada means mom. They also claim to have some of the oldest bread due to types of wheat that only exist here.

We see the remnants of the old city wall and we walk through old town and learn about the courtyard life. Many of these houses with the distinct courtyards used to be single family homes but now are often divided into different aparments or set up as a hotel for tourism.

We walk through old town and see the clock but it is not operational today due to a power outage. Luckily we are in town for multiple days so we have more opportunities to see the clock perform. It is right next door to a popular puppet theater. Unfortunately it is one of those tickets that have to be booked in advance so we probably won’t see a show during our stay in Tbilisi.

We walk over to the bridge of peace, the bridge that connects old Tblisi with the new.

We wander around a few other areas in old town then end up by the sulphur baths. The city was literally founded because of the sulphur spring. King Vakhtang I Gorgasali hunted in the area with a falcon and the story is the falcon is lost and later found dead in the sulphur spring. The king decided to create a town and name it after springs. If we have time we may come back for a massage or time in the spa rooms. I’ve heard it is a unique spa experience.

We leave the tour group and eat at a khinkali restaurant recommended by our guide. Khinkali is a similar to a soup dumpling, it’s usually filled with beef, beef and pork, mushroom, cheese or potatoes. Some have juice or a soup like liquid inside. We try two different khinkalis, one meat and one mushroom. I would have like to try more types but each order is a minimum of five and khinkali are already very filling. We also order one khachapuri and the waiter warns us it is very small and only enough for one person. Not sure how much he thinks we can eat but is more than enough food for the two of us. This is not my first khachapuri, my first experience is at a restaurant in Brooklyn, New York. There are different variations of this dish but my favorite is when it is shaped like a boat filled with melted cheese. A raw egg is put on top. You are to mix in the egg right away with the hot cheese to give a rich cheesy bread dip.

We are very tired and jet lagged but we decide it is best to keep going so we adjust to the time change. We pick a destination on the other side of the river to resume our sightseeing. We once again cross the peace bridge and spend a moment at Rike park on the way. We view a Ronald Reagan memorial statue, a group making a TikTok video, the now unused futuristic music theater, and some other interesting architecture on the way.

We arrive at Fabrika Tbilisi, a repurposed former clothing factory that is now a hip hotel and hangout area. There are clothing stores and hip cafes around. Seems like a good time to stop for a rest and a pick me up drink. Espresso martinis are a great idea right now. We spend some time enjoying the mild temperatures, people watching and observing the behavior of the street dogs that have seemed to make themselves comfortable in this district. This part of town also has the interesting courtyard and balcony architecture.

We cross the dry bridge and glance at the dry bridge market, vowing to come back to this area on our full free day. We now are aiming for the Atoneli Wine Window, a window that has a man waiting at the lower level for you to ring a bell to request a glass of wine for purchase. The first wine we order is tossed away for being inadequate after the host smells the wine poured and declares it bad. Not sure we would know the difference not being wine experts but we are impressed that he cared to make sure he was serving us quality wine. We drink our newly poured wine on the street outside and return our glasses back to the window.

Our next plan is to take the cable car up to to see Mother of Georgia, the large statute, up close but we navigate to the wrong cable car and end up by a large amusement park at the top called Mtatsminda Park. After watching the sunset from above we tour the lit up amusement park by foot, hoping to find a path to Mother of Georgia from here. We are unsuccessful so we admire the views some more and then take the cable car back down for our return trip.

We walk back towards our hotel which seems to be a long walk from here but we make a shopping detour as well and buy some chacha (Georgian homemade vodka) and homemade wine from a van on the street served out of reused plastic bottles. We are aiming for the authentic experience here.

We have a morning tour booked tomorrow so no late night adventures for us tonight.

Ait Ben Haddou

The next morning we drive by a movie studio and tour the ancient village of Ait Ben Haddou. In the past many movies have been filmed in this area because of the ancient village atmosphere. However in the last ten years filming reduced because modern technology such as AI has replaced realistic looking sets. The good news is that recently movies are being filmed in the area again including one coming up with Matt Damon.

Aït Ben Haddou is a UNESCO site that is a former ksar (or village) that was a stop along the trader route for caravans. It is now primarily used for movies and tourism. It is a wet day from all the recent rain so we walk carefully to not submerge our shoes in puddles of mud in the dirt pathways of the old city as we slowly walk towards the top. It is at the top we have marvelous views of the city below. You really feel like you have stepped into the past from this view.

While in Ait Ben Haddou we watch an artist paint in saffron, indigo stone, tea, and sugar. The art is invisible until it is put over a fire. A secret message or painting will be activated by heat. This method was used during times of conflict to pass secret messages. I purchase one of these paintings as a keepsake of the day.

Before we leave we stop at a women’s cooperative to learn how moroccan women make and sell rugs for the area. We learn the different types of rugs that are made and the symbolic meaning of images weaved into the rugs. In the past I have so much anxiety with carpet sellers that I walk away flustered without purchasing a desired carpet from my travels, but these women make me feel right at home and I even purchase my first carpet ever while traveling. I am still deciding where to place my lovely carpet back home.

We next travel to Marrakech through the Tizi N’Tichka pass. We stop for lunch and pictures at the top and the high point.

We arrive at our lunch spot to ladies and children engaged in a snowball fight. An adorable little girl whacks me with multiple snowballs while she laughs. I play along like she’s hurting me with each hit.

We visit another women’s group to see how argan oil is made.

After a stop for pictures in the snow we start our descent out of the mountains. We watch excited kids sliding down snow hills in the process. We eventually arrive in Marrakech and spend our first evening in town on our own. More on that later.

Casablanca day 2

This morning we only plan to be out for a little while to visit a couple places we missed the day before but we end up spending the entire day out before meeting our tour in the evening.

Our first stop is at the old Post Office to view the art deco interior.

Our next stop is at food market at the Central Market where you can see fishmonger, butchers, produce markets, and olive sellers try to sell their inventory. Surrounding the area are food stands where I learn will prepare any fish that you purchase at the market.

We walk by a garment like district where black plastic bags of clothes are delivered in the morning to store front after store front. We watch some get unloaded to add to the daily frocks available for sale. We find ourselves dodging bags of clothes that pile on the sidewalk.

We revisit the Church of Notre Dame of Lourdes to view it since there is now no service. The amazing stain glass windows cast beautiful colors along the sides of the church.

I light a candle for my mom as I tend to do.

We then plan to walk back to the old Medina to view all the shops but it has us walk through the expensive neighborhood in town. We see the royal palace off in the distance.

We exit the Medina and end up in the old neighborhood. The streets are alive with action and commerce. We are not in a tourist spot right now.

We are hungry though so we turn back around to get a snack at a cafe on the other side of the Medina. The pizza isn’t the best but it is nice to rest after walking all day. We people watch for while.

The city courthouse is not open to visitors but we try to sneak some pictures as close as we can go and are stopped by the guard. The doors are supposed to be very pretty when they are closed.

We also walk by a district full of the smell of grilled meats, the aroma of rotisserie chicken fills the street air.

We have to meet our tour group in a couple hours so we go back towards our hotel ending up on streets that are new to us. Today we have walked through some many varying parts of town, getting a really good feel of everyday life here even though today is a school holiday.

Our last stop is at the walk around the Arab Nations Park then back to the hotel.

We meet our group and have a nice dinner getting acquainted. The next few days we will travel all around different parts of the country and learning many things. So far the group and tour guide seem really nice.

Casablanca

We have a mostly uneventful flight to Morocco. Flight one is on time and as planned but I slept maybe fifteen minutes the whole time due to a fidgety neighbor that would change positions every couple minutes and startle me out of any sleep I managed. Our second flight was delayed but we were getting to Casablanca so late in the day that it wasn’t going to be a productive sightseeing day anyway.

We have a driver arranged from our tour company so it’s and easy ide to our hotel except he doesn’t have bills to break our larger bills acquired at the airport ATM so he gets a very good tip. We’ve heard it’s often difficult for people to make change for the larger bills (equivalent of a little over $20 USD) so we make it a mission to use grocery stores and such to pawn off big bills as much as possible during our travels.

We checked into our hotel but soon take the elevator to take a quick look at the loud dance club happening on the hotel rooftop. Thinking we’d have a nice view of the city and a nightcap before bed we instead have the elevator open to cigarette smoke, a bouncer, and very loud thumping. We take one look at the crowd and decide sleep is a better option tonight.

Both of us sleep completely through that first night, in fact we could have kept sleeping if we didn’t have a tour scheduled in the morning. That almost never happens. Everything is great about the room except the semi-opaque bathroom walls. I mean there is some privacy but when you are sharing a room with a friend there are bathroom walls that can give you more privacy.

Breakfast at the hotel is satisfying and a great way to start the day. Turns out it is the best breakfast spread of our travels.

We arrive a day early before our scheduled tour in Casablanca because we are so used to having flights delayed or worse that we wanted to make sure we make our official tour that starts in two days. In the morning we book a day tour since our upcoming tour does not include any sightseeing in Casablanca. Casablanca like every city in Morocco started as a nomad city along the trade route that has been governed by many different peoples but became the unique city it is because of the French occupation in the 1900’s. They set out Casablanca to be its crown jewel with all its ornate art deco architecture. It was also a key port city due to its location near the oceans.

Our first stop is at the Hassan II Mosque, a large mosque dedicated to the Moroccan King Hassan II. It is the second largest Mosque in Africa and was completed in 1993. So much detail is given to the interior including the painted parts using natural colorings and cedar wood from the Atlas Mountains. It is built over water as a floating island over the Atlantic Ocean. You can only tour this with a guide and we were luckily because it is quite empty when we toured.

After the tour we drive to Corniche, the waterfront region that usually is happening with poolside fun and outdoor cafes. It is off season so there is not much going on besides families walking along the water. We also stop to get a foggy view of the mosque and watch some fishermen during low tide.

We stop briefly at the Sacred Heart Cathedral which now serves as a function hall and is no longer open to the public.

We stop at the Arab League Park but I realize later we only see a small part of the park. This large oasis in the middle of town was inaugurated in 1919 while the French were still in power.

The we go to the Square of Mohammed V, the place also known as pigeon fountain. The square is surrounded by the opera house, and many French inspired buildings. It is here that I see the art deco post office which I will briefly visit the next day.

We stop at the Church of Notre Dame of Lourdes. There is a service going on so we only look inside quickly and decide to come back tomorrow during our self tour.

We visit the old Medina but we don’t actually shop today but just look around the area. We visit the surrounding neighborhood. Many of the buildings here are run down.

We view the large port under construction. The current king, Mohammed VI, is making an effort to expand the port for tourism and cruise ships and yachts.

Last on our tour we visit a spice place where we learn about spices and some of their other oils and natural remedies. I end up buying a thing or two there. It is before I learn the art of bargaining so I am sure I am getting ripped off.

Our tour is over and our guide recommends a restaurant near our hotel. It isn’t the most amazing meal but at least we are trying some new things. My friend who is mostly vegetarian is finding the vegetarian versions of dishes not as full of flavor as she likes. My chicken dish is bland as well. I am discovering that Moroccan dishes don’t add much salt and leave it to the individual to salt to taste. I am so used to everything everywhere being too salty for me so its definitely a change.

After lunch we visit the old souq. We walk down to the old Medina. We enter in a section that looks like it caters more to locals. Turns out there are very few tourists at all in the market, perhaps because there are no cruise ships in town today. We meet lots of cats along the way.

We stop briefly in an old riad converted into a nice restaurant in the heart of the Medina. It’s where we want to eat later but we never find our way back here on this trip.

We walk down a passage way that is decorated with random items. We watch some kids kick a ball around. It appears to be a pop up art installation in the middle of a residential street.

After our visit to the old Medina we walk under the United Nations Square and do an Art Deco tour of our own. When the French occupied Morocco they wanted to have Casablanca to be its showpiece. There are many cool Art Deco buildings that unfortunately are not all well maintained.

Street snails. I regret not trying them.

We finish the evening with dinner and a visit to a couple of rooftop bars near our hotel where we have nice views of part of the city.

The next morning we only plan to be out for a little while to visit a couple places we missed the day before but we end up spending the entire day out before meeting our tour in the evening. More on that next.

More Copenhagen

It’s supposed to storm today so I am heading out early to the gloriously historic theme park of Copenhagen, Tivoli Gardens.

First I stop at the nearby food hall to try smorrebord and some fresh strawberries. We grow many strawberries where I live and I am embarrassed at what we call a strawberry; I believed I didn’t care for them much because ours are usually tasteless and a large size. This market’s strawberries are the opposite – bite size and full of sweet flavor. I am a fan. I buy a box of them to carry with me today.

Tivoli Gardens, the 19th century amusement park, feels like a walk in a Time Machine with all the splendor of times past. Although most rides and exhibits are actually high tech now, it gives you the feel like you are experiencing something from 150 years ago.

I buy a ticket to just enter the garden, which you can do, but there are also options for passes for rides. There is even an app to buy passes for individual rides if you wish to do so. It is probably more cost effective to buy a ride package but I didn’t really come to do all the rides so I just buy one ticket for one ride I want to try. I spend the rest of my time admiring the decor and eating all the things. I even do a little shopping. I stop at a restaurant on site for a beer and some white asparagus, one of my favorites lately. Not long after my lunch the clouds get thicker and I decide to start heading back to my hotel to wait out the storm.

Before I go back to my room I buy some snacks and gin cocktails to hunker down with. I am being warned about this upcoming storm by locals. I am from Florida and we know how to prepare for a storm (aka Land of Hurricanes) but turns out the storm is actually just a large amount of rain. My local friend tells me a storm like this is a big deal here because they aren’t a car centric city. Everyone has to try to get to their buses or trains or ride their bikes to places in this terrible weather. It is very disruptive. I use it as an excuse to call it a night early and try to see if I now like gin.

The next morning I finally get laundry done. The place close by doesn’t take credit cards but the one ten minutes away does. I start my load and then go out to enjoy a coffee and croissant. The lady who served me asked why I am out so early when it is obvious I am not a local. Yes I get up early no matter what time zone I am in; its my curse: sun is up and so am I. This will explain why I try really hard to go to bed early when I can. My wake time will not change no matter what time I go to bed.

After laundry I go back to Nyhavn to catch one of those canal boat tours, sitting in the back in the open even though it might rain again.. and it does. Luckily I remembered my jacket and it is only a light sprinkle. I get to see other parts of town I have yet to see and probably won’t due to time like Freetown Christiana (an independent hippie squatter part of the city). Today will be another short sightseeing day because I have bought tickets for a concert tonight.

After the boat tour I decide to eat all the foods I’ve had on my list. This leads inevitably to a tummy ache. I go back to my room to briefly recover when I get a message from friends of friends to meet them at a bar before the concert.

I am going to see one of my all time favorite bands tonight – Depeche Mode. When I am traveling I do check to see if any good bands will be in town while I am there and I always just miss bands. This time I am lucky and there are tickets available. After I purchase my seat though I notice I have a warning of it being a possible partially obstructed vision. Darn it! My local friend is going with some other friends. They have tickets in general admission. I avoid floor seats and general admission these days because I’m short and my views are usually very obstructed. It might have been fun to be down below with the crowd and dancing; no one but me is really dancing my section.

I never find the people I am supposed to meet at the Depeche Mode pre-party. I have never met them in person and it is hard to locate them based on the photos I see in the group chat. I decide to go ahead and head down toward the stadium because I have no idea how long it will take me to get there.

I eventually find my seat and the obstruction isn’t the best but I should still be able to enjoy the concert with it. Only unfortunate thing is I am in the center of the row so I need to monitor my fluid consumption. It will be a pain getting past all those people to go to the bathroom.

The show is everything I wanted it to be, the perfect mix of cool new stuff and fan favorites (the last time I saw DM they played majority new music). I am very happy I bought tickets to the show.

Depeche Mode

As expected it takes a while to get back with the crowds thick. However they have non-stop trains arriving to move the crowds out. Copenhagen knows how to plan! I end up sitting in the front and there is a cool view of the tunnels I never noticed before.

Time for bed since I am heading to Berlin tomorrow morning.