Sataplia Caves are a natural wonder of Georgia. It is a unique sightseeing place and even has huge dinosaur footprints that one can see.

One of the caves is called Tauiskhvati Cave, which is inside the huge nature park. There is also the Navenakhevi Cave Natural Monument. This is a 250-meter high, two-story cave comprised of four caverns with diverse and beautifully formed stalagmites and stalactites. These have been formed over millions of years as water drips from the rocks, causing deposits to grow and jut out like spears from the rock formations.

I walked through these cave formations. Sataplia was the first cave that got equipped with modern services and utilities, making it accessible for tourists. The caves represent a natural bed on the river Oghaskura, with headwaters located 200 meters away from the cave. During the past thirty million years, the small river has passed through the caves, significantly widening its corridors. The cave has several branches, and its total length is 900 meters. The length of the path within the cave is about 309 meters. An incredible world opens up in front of you when you first enter the cave. Pinkish-purple colors are proof that iron is contained within. The growth process of stalactites is terminated in one section, which is why this hall is called the “Transparent Hall.” After the hall, the corridor leads to the north. Here, the growth process of stalactites is terminated, and that is why this hall is called the “Sinister Stone Garden.” One of the stone structures looks like the shape of a human heart, with a height of over 3 meters and a diameter of over 12 meters. From the stalagmites on the ceiling, calcium-enriched water permanently drips down. The constant temperature of the caves is 14 degrees throughout the year.

Meandering through the Sataplia Caves

The caves are illuminated with green and red neon lights that give them a distinct look and feel. The caves contain many organisms adapted to the darkness, such as feral water mollusks, blind crayfish, spiders, and worms. The most interesting inhabitants are bats, which use the caves for hibernation.

The summer has been receding in Batumi, and the rain has just arrived. I spent the evening on the beach, taking pictures of the sunset and watching the surfers catch waves. It is solitude that I seek in life. People have always seen me as a loner, and yes, a loner I am. But I am not lonely; I just enjoy my own company and love solitude. Now that I am a full-fledged professional writer, I need the space to create. I hate noise, I hate fights, and I hate arguments. Maybe that is why I am still single, and that gives me great joy. I seek being alone, and a creative mind needs space.

I have been spending my evenings staring at the sky from my balcony and watching people take runs near the beach. I have also discovered the joy of enjoying corn cobs and ice cream. Additionally, I have been gorging on sausages and hot dogs laden with mustard and red sauce, which has been my breakfast for the past few days. I like the food in Georgia—the kebabs, the soups, the pasta, and the khachapuri. The salads are fresh and delicious. The food and wine of Georgia are amazing. It is a great contrast to the food I was served in Mongolia. Mongolian food was very bland and smelled horrible.

Prancing Around Ropeways and Driving Tuk Tuk in Batumi

“I will take you to the ropeway today; you can see the entire city from the top of the ropeway,” Joseph told me as we drove across the streets of Batumi towards the ropeway. I paid twenty lari for the ticket and jumped into one of the ropeway carriages, taking pictures from high up.

I enjoyed some ice cream as they took my picture before I went for the ropeway ride. “I will take you on a tuk-tuk ride as well,” Joseph told me as we both sat on a tuk-tuk, and Joseph finally took me back to my hotel room.

The days in Batumi have been adventurous, and I have been learning a lot about the history and culture of the people of this great country.

“Look, Anuj, today I will take you for lunch at a floating restaurant near a waterfall. The restaurant floats on the river, and we can sit there and enjoy our meal,” Nino said as I sat in Joseph’s BMW, which he had come to pick me up in the morning.

“That is wonderful. I have enjoyed my time here, and I would love to enjoy a meal on the floating restaurant.”

“Today we had a problem with our BMW. The gas had run out, and we had to fix the car in the morning,” Joseph said.

We proceeded towards a waterfall and then to the floating restaurant. Suddenly, in the car, Nino started to sing. She had played some new Russian pop song and was singing and making some chants and noises.

“What is that chant you keep making, Nino?” I asked.

“It is just something that I do when I am happy and joyous,” she said.

The Floating Restaurants of Batumi

“Oh! It sounds like the Haka chants, you know, the Haka dance that the New Zealand rugby team does before the game starts,” I said as I showed her the Haka dance videos from my mobile phone.

“It is so wonderful; it’s like a war dance, you know, a tribal dance,” Nino said. We drove past the green mountains of Batumi. Today was a sunny day, and it was a bit warm. There was a waterfall gushing out of the mountains, but it was a small one. I managed to take some pictures of Nino and Joseph sitting on a stone next to the waterfall when an old lady came and stood next to her.

“You are a very beautiful girl,” she said as she admired Nino’s beauty.

“Yes, I keep telling her that. I am a Bollywood actor. I told her she should travel with me to India and work in Bollywood films,” I told the old lady.

“Yes, indeed she will do well in modeling. She can make a career for herself in films,” the old lady said, looking at Nino lovingly. Nino blushed a little, but I knew that inside she was happy to get all the attention and admiration from me and the old lady.

I was now getting a bit bored with the waterfall and decided to move along with Joseph back to our base in Batumi. I yearned to be next to the sea; the cool breeze was what I wanted, and the blue sky was what I wanted to see. It was a perfect setting: the blue sky and the crimson clouds on the horizon. It was as if there was a magnetic pull in them, calling me.

“I have to take the car for washing tomorrow and get things touched up, Anuj,” Joseph informed me politely.

“Okay, I think that’s fine. It is a Sunday, and we can relax. I think we can take a break, no more sightseeing tomorrow. We can all take a welcome break,” I replied.

I had been observing Nino for some time as we meandered through the hills and mountains of Georgia. She came across as a fun-loving lady who enjoyed making TikTok videos at leisure and listening to Russian rap music. When she would get excited or feel happy, she would take her head out of the car window and admire the sun and the rain pouring down from the sky. That was Nino, an ardent animal lover who was respectful of others and obedient to her brother Joseph.

“Why don’t you send me a friend request on Facebook?” I asked her.

“No, I would love to, but my brother told me not to send friend requests since it is only for the family,” she replied. So, in that way, she was listening to her brother’s advice.

The Pain of Nino

But today, as we strolled through a castle near the Turkish border, I got to know about the sadness and pain hidden inside of her.

“I had a huge heart problem, Anuj. I was operated on, you know. I had a hot wire put through my veins, and they did not even give me any anesthesia. I was in real pain. The doctors held my hand, and I was in so much pain when the operation commenced,” she told me about her painful heart surgery.

“Oh! At such a young age, you had a heart problem. You are only twenty-nine, and you had a heart issue,” I replied, feeling sad for her medical condition.

“Yes, I have not had an easy life. I lost my father early, you see,” Nino told me as we walked through the opulent gardens of the castle.

“Here, let me take a picture of you near the white and red roses,” I told her, and Nino posed as she plucked a red rose from the gardens of the castle.

“One more. You look so lovely I can’t take my eyes off you,” I told her and clicked a few more pictures of her. I wanted to keep clicking, she was that gorgeous, but she got bored after the fourth picture and lost interest.

We walked all the way around the castle. It belonged to an old Georgian king and had large catapults that were used to throw large rocks and boulders at the enemy during wars and battles. The wooden catapults would be launched with rocks that would be thrown at the enemy’s castles in an endeavor to break the walls so that attacking armies could then move in during an invasion.

After a few hours, we decided to venture into a waterfall dedicated to St. Andrew, an enlightened being of Georgia. Next to the waterfall was a huge statue of St. Andrew. I walked down into the pit where the water was falling, and Nino took some of my pictures.

“So where does your mother live now?” I asked Nino.

“My mother lives in Russia. She comes to meet me once in a while, but she does not live with me,” she replied.

“Why does she not live with you?” I asked.

“Well, she says that when I have a stable life, she will come to live with me. Until then, she would stay in Russia,” Nino told me.

“So she thinks you don’t have a stable life now?” I asked her.

“No, she thinks I am just meandering in life, you know, like a hippie,” Nino replied.

“Yes, I too am like a hippie. A traveler has to live an uncertain life, but that’s the fun of it all. That’s what adventure is all about,” I told her.

After lunch, we drove back towards Batumi, and then the rains started to fall.

“What do we do now? It’s started to rain,” Joseph said.

“Let’s go back. It seems summer is over now. It will keep raining. The rains have arrived for sure in the city,” I replied.

“Tomorrow we leave Batumi, Anuj, and we will move towards Tbilisi,” Joseph told me.

“Ok then, I will do all my clothes washing today and be ready with my bags tomorrow. But where do I stay in Tbilisi? We have not booked any hotel,” I asked.

“We will put you in an old people’s home if we don’t find a hotel,” Joseph said, gurgling with laughter.

“No, no, don’t do that, please. I want to stay in a hotel, not an old people’s home,” I replied as I got out of the car and ventured back to my room.

I have always loved nature, and if there is one thing that gives me immense joy, it is being one with nature. It has been raining for a few days in the city of Batumi, and I have been enjoying the cool weather a lot. “Today we will go to the Botanical Gardens. It is the biggest one in Batumi and has many types of birds and lilies and different kinds of flowers. You will love it, Anuj. We can spend an entire afternoon there,” Nino said as she called me up in the morning.

“Yes, I am sure it will be great fun. Let’s go there and spend some time chasing lilies and watching exotic birds,” I replied. So, it was decided that we would all proceed towards the Botanical Gardens of Batumi.

The entry fee is 20 lari; it’s more expensive for foreigners than for locals. After munching on a chocolate bar, we moved into the garden. It was a slow walk up and down the Botanical Gardens. I decided to sit on a bench and get my photo taken. When I got bored, I took a buggy cart and was driven up and down the garden path. The colors of the flowers were dazzling. There were lilies, roses, and daisies. It was all so wonderful. It would occasionally drizzle, and sometimes I would sit on a rock and meditate for a while. There was a railway track behind the garden, and after the railway track, there was a beach where people could sit and enjoy themselves.

Chasing Lilies in the Botanical Gardens of Batumi

I took a quiet stroll around the beach to gather my thoughts. The blue sea was pristine and tranquil, and it was very soothing for me to just sit there and count the waves. It was wonderful. I have not seen so much greenery anywhere. One thing I have to admit is that Georgia is very green, and its mountain areas are extremely beautiful.

People also celebrate their weddings here, and I could see a lady decorating a stall with flowers. She was preparing the stall for a grand wedding. I could see her putting white flowers in and out of the stall. The garden looked like a perfect place to have a wedding party. When I got tired of walking, I would sit on wooden stools and have a fruit drink. This was a perfect place with no stress and no worries.

Georgia is an Orthodox Christian country, and it is full of beautiful churches. I managed to visit many of these churches along with Nino and her brother Joseph. Orthodox Christians are deeply dedicated to Christ. They believe in the doctrine of one God and one divine essence, who shares His divine essence with all of humanity. According to Orthodox faith, Jesus is both fully human and fully divine.

The most fascinating aspect of the Orthodox churches is the murals and the enigmatic wall paintings. Most churches have candles that people light to pray in front of Jesus Christ and the holy cross.

Many churches have gardens and large conical domes with a cross on top. I enjoyed seeing the murals on the walls and praying in these churches. Until then, enjoy the pictures of the Orthodox Christian Churches of Georgia.

The Orthodox Christian Churches of Georgia

It’s been two days in the port city of Batumi. I have positioned myself in an apartment on the 23rd floor of a tall building. This morning, I stepped out to get some washing powder. There is a washing machine in my room, and I will have to do my own laundry and ironing for the next week or so.

I spent the entire afternoon doing my washing and ironing and the entire evening taking in the breathtaking view of the city through my camera. It was a stunning panoramic view from the top.

I decided to skip my tour around the city and informed Nino that I would be busy doing my assignments today. The lady was kind enough to help me out with my washing as I was a bit confused about how to use the washing machine. The knobs and the buttons felt a bit obtuse to me, so I got Nino to give me some advice through WhatsApp. I finally managed to get it right and finished all my washing for the week.

In the afternoon, I would take long walks in the park and enjoy eating sausages and hot dog rolls. I would then wash this down with a cola. To change my taste, I would have some boiled corn. I’ve been enjoying ice cream because it gets hot in the afternoon, and the ice cream cools me down.

Nights in Batumi

While strolling around the park, I managed to sit with some elderly Georgian men who were busy playing a board game. It was fun watching them play and fight with each other at the same time like little children.

I will be spending a long time in this city and will start exploring it from tomorrow. Until then, enjoy some more of my pictures from the balcony of my room.

Vardzia is a cave city and an ancient monastery in Georgia. The city is an excavation from the slopes of the Erusheti Mountains on the banks of the Kura River, located thirty kilometers from Aspindza. The caves stretch along the cliffs for some five hundred meters and have up to nineteen tiers.

The city includes the Church of the Dormition, dating back to the 1180s during the golden age of Tamar and Rustaveli. It features some amazing wall paintings, which are a delight for travelers to see. However, the site was abandoned in the 16th century.

Cave settlements, such as Uplistsikhe, have existed across the Kura River since at least the 5th century BC.

The caves are situated very high up, requiring a significant climb to reach them. There are deep caves with extensive tunnels that one has to navigate carefully. The cave city was actually a monastery where nuns and monks lived in seclusion to meditate and dedicate themselves to the service of Christ.

Vardzia was built during the 12th century and is associated with the reign of two monarchs, Giorgi III and his daughter, Queen Tamar. At that time, Vardzia was a hub of cultural and religious life.

In its heyday, this rock-hewn burg consisted of 6,000 rooms spread across nineteen levels, including 25 wine cellars, a nunnery, and 15 chapels. All this came together to create a vibrant city and monastery.

The Mysterious Rock Cave City of Vardzia

Under the reign of King Giorgi and the watchful eyes of his daughter, an elaborate series of caves and chambers were chiseled deep into the belly of Erusheti. Among them were secret escape tunnels and a tangle of dead-end halls to confuse enemies. Over the years, it evolved into a sprawling monastery with over two thousand monks, thanks to fertile terraces and a complex irrigation system.

Literature and art flourished in this region. A medieval poet named Shota Rustaveli became the most popular poet in Vardzia.

However, the region’s prosperity was short-lived as Vardzia was hit by a massive earthquake in 1283.

Now, after eight hundred years, a handful of monks still tend to Vardzia. Further into the mountains are labyrinths of untouched tunnels, some more than 600 feet long, connecting everything in an ancient web.

One of the most fascinating structures is the bell tower jutting out of the rocks. The only problem is that the bell is missing, stolen by the Mongols during their raid of the city.

I climbed deep inside the tunnels with my friend Joseph. It was exhausting, as the tunnels were very narrow, and I had to watch my head all the time. There were a series of wooden ladders that I climbed bit by bit to explore the winding caves that seemed to go on endlessly.

Mtskheta is one of the oldest cities in Georgia, as well as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It is situated 20 km north of Tbilisi, at the confluence of the Mtkvari and Aragvi rivers.

Mtskheta was the ancient capital of Kartli and the place where Christianity was declared the official religion of Georgia. To this day, it remains the headquarters of the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church. The historic monuments of Mtskheta are amazing, beautiful, and worth exploring for all travelers who visit Georgia.

Due to its strategic location, Mtskheta was a favored trade route with the Roman Empire. Even after the capital was moved to Tbilisi in the 6th century AD, Mtskheta continued to play a leading role as one of the important cultural and spiritual centers of the country.

The town is also the seat of the Jvari Monastery, a sixth-century monastery near Mtskheta. Built on top of Jvari Mount, the monastery is very serene and tranquil, making it a perfect place to meditate. It is said that an early 4th-century female saint named Nino, a female evangelist credited with converting King Mirian III of Iberia to Christianity, erected a large wooden cross on the site of a pagan temple. The cross was believed to perform miracles and drew pilgrims from all over the Caucasus. A small church was erected over the remnants of the wooden cross around 545 AD during the rule of Guram I, and it was named the Small Church of Jvari.

Mtskheta: The Ancient Capital of Georgia and the Jvari Monastery

In 914, during the Sajid invasion of Georgia, the church was burned by Arabs but survived with only minor repairs. The importance of Jvari increased over time and attracted many pilgrims. The complex was later fortified with a large gate.

The monastery has some fantastic fresco paintings, and visitors can light candles and pray to the Lord Jesus or Mother Mary.

“I like the way you respect our culture and God, Anuj,” Nino said to me. She had been watching me from afar and saw how humbly I had gone on my knees and offered my prayers to the Lord Jesus Christ. I would fold my hands and bow my head, sometimes even kneeling, to pay respects to the Lord Jesus. Nino felt that I was a humble man who gave a lot of respect to their religion and to the Lord Jesus himself.

Nino and I wandered around the place, taking pictures and chatting about the history of the monastery until late evening, when it was time for us to move on to our next destination.

Khertvisi Fortress is one of the oldest fortresses in Georgia and was functional throughout the Georgian feudal period. It is situated in the Meskheti region. This old stone castle is located near the Paravani and Mtkvari rivers, on a tall rocky mountain in Javakheti.

According to legend and history, Alexander the Great visited the city and the fortress during his eastern conquests.

During the Ottoman expansion in South Georgia in 1578, Arfaksand, the son of Lotham, fortified Khertvisi along with another fortress.

Khertvisi was reconstructed several times, with an early medieval building layer noticeable. The fortress consists of the citadel and the wall. The citadel stands on the narrow edge of a rocky mountain. Water was supplied to the fortress from the northeastern side.

The fortress appears to emerge from the cliff, making it difficult to discern where one ends and the other begins. The interior of the fortress is divided into sections, with a small hall-type church and remains of other buildings within.

The Khertvisi Fortress

According to the chronicle, Khertvisi was once a town, with the last mention in the second half of the 18th century. The current Khertvisi Fortress was presumably built in the 10th and 11th centuries. The fortress was temporarily reclaimed from the Turks by King Erekle II, during which a large amount of valuables and goods were evacuated from the fortress.