Chronicles of Georgia

So on another hill across the city from us we can see this dark stonehendge looking monument....so today we went exploring.

The Chronicles of Georgia tell some of the history of Georgia, as well as, stories of Jesus. I was able to better identify the stories associated with Jesus.

So we parked and headed up some stairs. About 1/3 of the way up there was a landing. We were able to point out to the kids where our house was (and they were able to recognize our street/their school). We are about to head up the rest of the stairs.

I was really tempted to try and photoshop myself into that picture....lol.

At the top of the stairs, there was a group of 13 statues.  Mason thinks they may have been aspostles (plus Jesus). They were all holding different items (one even was holding a Georgian style church) so that makes me think they are Georgian Orthodox saints or Georgian kings.

This looks like when Jesus washed the apostles feet before the last supper.

Here's a view of the Mtkvari River out of town (towards Mtskheta).

Lots and lots (and lots) of Soviet style apartment buildings.

Clarissa is about 1 meter tall.....just for reference as to how tall these pillars are.

The Chronicles also overlook the Tbilisi Sea (a water reservoir, not really a sea).

Jesus fishing with some apostles.

Science dork in me is curious who the guy with the globe is.

We saw several Mary images, but I don't think this woman is her. Maybe Joan of Arc or Queen Tamar?

Jesus and the Devil? (you can see horns on the winged individual).

A scene of Jesus carrying the cross past Roman soldiers and a mocking crowd.

At the front, there were some stone scrolls. Those, as well as, inscriptions written by images were in Georgian. I think it would be much more interesting to go with someone who could read/translate them.

There was also a small church by the monument. It was closed though. The site isn't mentioned in any tour books but made for a nice morning adventure (before the temperatures got up to the forecasted 37℃ (aka 98℉)).

Uplistsikhe

Uplistsikhe is a cave town about seven km from the city of Gori. The town grew over several hundred years in the first millennium BC (aka during the Iron Age)! At one point in time about 20,000 people lived in the cave town and it was along a major trade route during the Middle Ages.

Some Mongol invasions of the 13th century, a  number of earthquakes, and the fall of Byzantine Empire cause most people to move out of the cave city. By the 15th century, only shepherds were still living here.

Resting after climbing up the first huge flight of stairs

At one point there was an entire town, with streets, churches, stores, palaces and residential houses! Everything was carved into the soft stone of the mountainside. They even carved little nooks and crannies to store things in. Not sure if the kids were really resting in the 'chairs' and 'beds' as they called them or not....

A nice staircase (it was a little narrow, so we walked around a different side).

Checking out the rooms and holes (there were some sacrificial pits noted on the map, not sure if these are them...eek, the Christians 'converted' the pits to storage) in the ground.

Sitting in a room in the medieval palace.

We were up pretty high and somebody constantly had to be remind to hold our hand.

The city overlooks the Mtkvari River (the one that flows into Tbilisi). The kids and I eventually left through a secret tunnel of rock that emerged right at the river.

My dad and Richard took a break from the heat to rest and watch lizards,

 while the kids and I went exploring more!

View from nearly the top.

The largest opening was the Three-Naved Cave Basilica.....the kids are obviously impressed (Clarissa was writing 'C's all over in the sand).

The three-Church Basilica was built in the 9th or 10th centuries and was used until the 15th century when the last of the clergy was killed. They were burning some incense and Clarissa didn't want to go in.

Little homes everywhere....we even happened upon the wine cellar but there was a large group in it so I didn't take any photos.

The kids did awesome climbing...once we made it up that first hill, we even kept exploring on our way back down!

Our GPS took us back home along a rural highway and we ran into some cows on the way.....Check out the super pregnant one in the back.

So that was our little adventure to the cave city. My dad said he enjoyed just driving through the countryside and small villages more than anything.

Svetitskhoveli Cathedral and Jvari Monastery with Papa

So Clarissa calls my dad Papa (shortened version of Grandpa I guess), she may outgrow it but it is cute for now.

Back a few months ago, we went to Mtskheta to explore. So I won't go into the history of the place, since you already know it.  One morning while the kids were in school, I took my dad to visit it. We arrived really early after dropping off the kids and Richard, the town was just starting to wake up. So we walked to the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. I remembered to wear a skirt and bring a scarf, but I forgot men are suppose to wear long pants. Since my Dad was wearing shorts, we just peaked our heads in.

My dad did sample the water from the interesting water fountains (after watching someone else grab a drink).

I also got a token photo by the church where I got a shot of the kiddos. At times, seeing the sheer size of the church compare to my dad really makes the fact it was built in the 11th century just that more amazing!

A couple days later. We all went up to Jvari Monastery. Jvari sits atop a hill overlooking the city of Mtskheta. You can see where the Mtkvari and Aragvi Rivers meet. (Mtkvari is the river that runs through Tbilisi). You can also the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral towards the middle of the photo.

A cross was built on this sight during the 4th century to mark the victory of Christianity over pagan gods. During the second half of the 6th century a small church was built north of the cross. This church is ruins, but the kids really enjoyed looking out the windows.

About a century later, a larger church was built around the cross. Other than some damage during an Arab attack in the 10th century, the church is in really good shape.

Inside the church you can still see the stone base of the original 4th century cross (can't see it in the photo....it was crowded during the service going on so we only got one shot)!! From the angle my dad, the kids, and I were standing at, a sunbeam from the window was hitting the cross directly. Richard got a photo in a different spot, but you can still see the sunbeam.

Since we had my dad with us, we took some family photos in front of the Georgian landscape.

I didn't say we were all looking at the camera smiling.....it may have been a tad breezy up on the top of the hill.

 She can smile nicely for photos!

 With my dad, Mason was a little uncertain of the edge/wall we were sitting on.

Cool tree with built in seat. Clarissa is blowing you kisses!

Richard announcing 'Livin' large!'

The old church ruins and the the current Jvari Monastery. After visiting the monastery, we took my dad to lunch to sample some Georgian food. We were too hungry....we did not get any photos of the food.

Mother of Georgia and Narikala Fortress

So Saturday the weather was beautiful! So we took the kids on an adventure....can you tell they were excited?

We were flying over the Mtkvari River and Old Tbilisi up to the peak of the Sololaki Range in an air tram (it cost about 1 Lari a person each way.....so about $1.20 roundtrip). This peak can be seen from any given point in Old Tbilisi. So it made the perfect spot to build a fortress.

When we got off the tram we walked towards the statue of Mother of Georgia. She is a 65 foot statue that symbolizes the nation's spirit. She holds a bowl of wine in her left hand and sword in the right hand. Georgians are very friendly to guests and have found the best defense is to drink/toast outsiders until everyone is friends. The sword is a warning to enemies. I feel it's a little like keep your friends close and your enemies closer (and keep those enemies drunk...lol).

Upclose....check out the glutes on that chick!

View of the city in front of Mother of Georgia. Richard got to go sightseeing up in the radio tower on the peak to the left of the photo. We live on the side of another mountain behind the one with the radio tower. One thing that really caught my eye is that all the roofs are metal, not a single asphalt shingle in sight.

So after getting up close and personal with Mother Georgia, we headed over to the Narikala Fortress. Along the pathway there were a variety of vendors selling paintings, souvenirs, food, there was even a carnival-esque game where you shoot a gun at a target to win a stuffed animal prize. One gentleman was carrying/selling what looked like bags of cheese doodles, while walking along the path he said something in Georgian to people he passed, when he passed us he said 'Chips'...apparently we scream Americans.... Mason was super excited to get cotton candy from one vendor....and it was only 1 Lari ($0.60)....next time I get cotton candy in the US I'm going to feel so ripped off!

So parts of the fortress were built around 300 A.D. A majority of what you see now was built during the second half of the 16th century. There is a temple on site that was built during the 12th century. The fortress was built as a military base to control people entering the city and has been under the control of the Turks, Arabs, Mongolians to name a few. It has been also used a residence of rulers/conquerors, an observatory, and a prison. To keep her attention, we told Clarissa is was a princess castle....which parts of it looks like one!

Princess Clarissa excited to enter the gates of the princess castle....

Mason contemplated being king and overlooking his kingdom....

For a little perspective.....to see how tall it is on top of the mountain

We let Clarissa climb a shorter tower (note Mason trying to ring the bells).

The boys on the other hand went to the top of the tallest tower....

Richard snapped a quick picture at the top, the temple is behind Mason.

I think I got several gray hairs looking at Mason up that high.....

Clarissa claiming her room in the castle.....

We only walked around a portion of the fortress due to our nerves being shot with Clarissa and Mason having no fear climbing around.....we stopped as the fortress got more rustic. Richard took an instagram of the view from the air tram on our way down.

I talked about the Peace Bridge the other day. One thing I read is that it is sometimes called the maxi pad bridge....I can definitely see that from the air!

After our adventure in the sky, we took the kids to the playground on the left bank of the river. It was quite fun. I have noticed there are a lot of public playgrounds around the city and there are always lots of kids at the playgrounds.

 

So before we arrived we heard there was a restaurant called the Elvis Diner....given Mason is a big Elvis fan (he was even Elvis in last years dance recital) this was on our list of places to visit. So we had timed our excursion to end with dinner at the diner. Mason was very excited. They serve American food (Elvis Cheeseburger anyone? Yeah, I'm talking to you Alysia!), they also serve (tasty from what I have heard) sushi, pasta, salads, milkshakes....a little bit of everything. There were lots of statues and memorabilia from that era.

Mason doing a few dances moves while Clarissa strummed the guitar.

Can't tell if he enjoyed hanging with Elvis or not......one thing Mason did question is why they weren't playing Elvis songs on the overhead music or Elvis movies on the TVs...... There are signs up in the Tbilisi Mall that they are opening another location there, which is super close to our house....I have a feeling we might become Elvis Diner regulars at that location :)