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Kazbegi and Georgian Military Highway

Gosia — Tue, 26 Jan 2021 19:37:18 +0000

I started my trip to Kazbegi just after sunrise. I want to return to Tbilisi on the same day. One-way trip takes about 2 and a half hour, plus I have to take into account the time for climbing to the famous Holy Trinity Church. I shouldn’t have problems to manage it. After getting off at Didube Metro station I went straight to the bus station. There are two ways to get to Kazbegi. Cheaper option is a marshrutka, the cost of singe tickect is 10 GEL – 3€. However, I took a little bit more expensive option – private bus for 15 GEL – 4,3 € one way (supposedly it’s currently 20 lari – data from 2019), as in the price are included two sightseeing stops. You don’t have to look for drivers, they find me, like everywhere in Georgia. We’re leaving Tbilisi to E117 road called – Georgian Military Highway. It used to be a trade route connecting the North Caucasus with the South. The name Georgian Military Highway, was intoroduced in 19th century, when it was expanded and strengthened by the Russians to transport the army to the area of Caucasus. Those times are over, no war activities are being carried out here now, while the moods remain warlike. I’m mainly talking about drivers who carry out blood-freezing maneuvers on this road. Georgian Military Road is one of the most beautiful routes in Eurasia. On the 200 km section, it crosses the Great Caucasus from Tbilisi to Vladikavkaz. What’s more interesting, this is the only way we can get to Russia. The only legal border crossing is located just 12 km from my destination – the village of Kazbegi. Georgian War Road is famous for its breathtaking views and rises to a height of over 2300 meters. However, regardless of the landscape outside the window, I’m still ot of breath watching the show on the road from the back seat. The driver has preapared a lot of attraction: overtaking on bridges and sharp corners, I won’t mention exceeding speed limits. I don’t know if you feel the gavity of the situation? If not? I’ve just forgotten to mention that the steering wheel is on the right side. Each overtaking maneuver is preceded by a special ritual. It starts with a making a sign of the cross, then he takes a look at the passenger sitting on the left, at first glance it may seem that the driver expects confirmation that he can overtake, but as a matter of fact the decision has already been made. The worst is that all users on this road just seem to belive in destiny. I’ve survived half of the way, first stop, what a relief… I can see crystal clear Żinval lake, located fabulously between the mountains with Ananuri fortress at the top. It can be seen on many marketing materials, advertising tourism in Georgia. After a short stop to take pictures and see the fortress, I’m getting into the viehicle with my heart in my mouth. This time it’s worse, the road is getting narrower, winding and higher and higher. This is not a game anymore, the driver is making the sign of the cross all the time. After another 60 kilometers, just behind the famous Gudauri ski resort, safe and sound we are reaching the monument of Russian-Georgian Friendship, it’s not a joke…. It was erected in 1983 on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the signing of the friendship treaty between Georgia and Russia. It’s worth stopping here not so much for a monument but for amazing views. Short stop for photos and I have to face Mr. Final Destinantion again. Fortunately, this time we have only 30 kilometers to cover to get to Kazbegi, actually Stepancminda. Kazbegi’s name comes from Soviet times, it was given in 1925 to commemorate Gabriel Kazbegi, who helped suppress the anti-Russian revolution in Georgia. Therefore, in 2006 the authorities decided to restore the town’s original name Stepancminda, given in honor of St. Stephen. The town itself isn’t special, but it’s a starting point to Georgia’s most popular attractions: the Holy Trinity Church also known as Cminda Sameba or Gergeti Trinity Church and famous Mount Kazbek. You can get to the church by 4WD car from a parking lot in the city centre, this pleasure costs 10 lari. I decided to take a walk. Trekking is not demanding, the road leads through the forest, there are sharp approaches, but you can easily go without special footwear. The entire route takes around 2,5 to 3 hours. The marvelous church from the 14th century is located at a height of 2170 m. This is where sacred relics were hidden in unstable times. If you want to visit the church, remember to wear modest clothes: long skirt or pants, head scarf and covered arms are mandatory. For sure the most impressive is the location of the church between the high peaks, with magnificent Kazbek in the background. It is one of the highest peaks of the Caucasus and it reaches over 5000 m. This is a dormant volcano, although it didn’t look like dormant during my visit 😉 It is the amazing landscape that makes this place unique. It’s best to spend in Kazbegi more than just one day, because there you can find a lot of more attractions. However, being in Tbilisi, even one day here will be unforgettable experience.

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Ohrid Lake – weekend break in Macedonia!

Gosia — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 14:24:36 +0000

Macedonia isn’t a popular holiday destination. It’s located much farther than for example Croatia and in addition, furthermore it has no access to the sea. However, this small country has a lot to offer and prices here are really low in comparison to other holiday directions. In Macedonia there are over 50 lakes surrounded by high mountain peaks, which can reach even 2000 meters. Macedonia is recognised as one of the highest countries in Europe, right after Switzerland and Austria. What’s more, this country has a huge number of monuments, temples and old monastries. All of this in the area less than 26 000 square kilometeres. In a word, the perfect plan for long weekned 😉 Macedonians’ favorite resort is Ohrid, located on a lake of the same name. Lake Ohrid is a natural border between Macedonia and Albania and it’s one of the deepest lakes in Europe. At the deepest point, it’s reaches almost 300 meters. Moreover, it’s also one of the oldest lakes on our continent. It’s estimated that Lake Ohrid can have up to 4 million years, while most of this type of reservoirs in Europe is dating at least tens of thousands years. Thanks to specific ecosystem and crystal clear water, there are a lot of species which are typical only for this area. Lake Ohrid is powered by numerous sources, most of which are located in the southern part of the lake in the surroundings of St. Neum Monastary which is located about 30 km from Ohrid and only 2 km from the Albanian border. In 10th century St.Neum – the student of Cyril and Methodius (creators of the Cyrillic alphabet) decided to create a monastery here. Currently Naum is the main place of pilgrimage in Macedonia. Legend has it that when you put an ear to the holy crypt, you can hear his heart beating. Ohrid was once called Jerusalem of the Balkans, as there used to be 365 sacral buildings: monasteries and churches. At present there’re much less, while some of them are still important places of worship. The largest such a building in Ohrid is St. Sophie Church, located in the Old Town. During the Turkish reign, it served as a mosque. However, the symbol of Ohrid remains undeniably the Church of St. John at Kaneo. It is neither the biggest sacral building nor the greatest and most valuable. On the other hand, it gained popularity due to its location on the high cliff overlooking Lake Ohrid and nearby mountains. Ohrid city is located in a beautiful mountain setting at about 800 metres above sea level and it’s surrounded by high peaks of theGalicica National Park. The best views of the city are from Tsar Samuel’s Fortress. It was built at a time when Ohrid was the capital of the Bulgarian State, ruled by Tsar Samuel in 11th century. Now the fortress is in poor condition, while high walls and towers give an idea of its former greatness. It’s worth climbing here for an amazing view of the lake and the city. On the way back is ancient amphitheatre, which was able to accommodate 4 tousand spactators in its heyday. Outside the walls of the Old Town you can visit the port and the promenade with numerous restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops. It’s the best place to taste local cuisine and excellent coffee. Don’t miss also the Bay of Bones – a unique archaeological site with amazing views of the Orhid Lake. The Museum was made available to visitors in 2010. On a wooden pier, you can find a small prehistoric village. It is worth to add that the traces of human found here are dated even for 6 thousand years BC. Inside the museum you’ll see a lot of objects of everyday use, furs and animal bones. Orhid is also an ideal place for hiking. National Park Galicica separates Lake Ohrid from Lake Prespa. You can cross the park driving on serpentine with numerous view points and hiking trails. It is a little farther away from Ohrid and can only be reached by car. Admission to the park costs 200 MKD for a car, which is approximately 3€. Personally, I think it was the best spent 3€ during the whole trip. The entire route through the park is less than 30 km. Initially on the way, you can admire the amazing views of Lake Ohrid and Albania, then serpentine runs through the valley surrounded by high mountain peaks. The last part of the road is a beautiful panorama of Lake Prespa. Macedonia isn’t an expensive country and it hasn’t been “discovered” by mass tourism yet. There are no large hotels, ubiquitous stalls with “Chinese” souvenirs, and you can meet here mostly Macedonian tourists. ” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]

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Only in Lviv!

Gosia — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 18:20:31 +0000

We’ve been waiting for a trip to L’viv for a long time. This city is a part of long Polish – Ukrainian history. We hadn’t known what to expect there but our visit turned out to be a journey to the past. Having got off at local bus station at 8 o’clock, we saw another reality. This city brought us back to the old, pre-war Warsaw times and resembled Polish conditions around 30 years ago. It was a very important cultural center. Many famous Polish writers, scholars or artists lived here. A lot of Polish prominent figures were buried in the old Lychahiv Cemetery and in the city many monuments are connected with common history. In the city center you can see the most beautiful statue of Adam Mickiewicz – the famous Polish poet. Another Polish artist – Nikifor, who sits in front of Dominican Church. In museums are numerous exhibits important to Polish history and in the Old Town Square are a lot of old Polish townhouses. But on the other hand, we must admit that we didn’t know what to expect there because L’viv was within Polish borders for around 600 years. What’s more, Polish and Ukrainian history was sometimes very rough. To our amazement, after getting into the first restaurant we received Polish language menu and heard Polish old music from late 20’s. And this makes this city amazing. Our difficult relations seem to be a thing of the past. Lvi’v has been a multicultural for years. It has been a city of Polish, Ukrainians , Jews, Russians or Armenian people and this is apparent even nowadays. One can see it in the architecture where Orthodox churches coexist with Catholic ones or even Armenian Cathedral. The city has been trying to catch up with West Europe for years but then again one can get an impression that it got stuck in post – socialist malaise. Bumpy roads, uneven sidewalks, contorted tram tracks or neglected townhouses are common here. To top it all off, chaos in public transport, unmarked stops and routes which remain secret even for local residents. What’s more, public transport facilities are in poor condition and simple activity like tickets validation can be really baffling However this is a charm of this city. During our only 1-day visit, we heard many negative opinions about L’viv. Some people were disappointed by the omnipresent chaos and city and overall city’s condition. To our mind, these things create a unique atmosphere of the place which seems to be locked in a time warp. This city is a one of its kind, we’ll get back here again. ” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]

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