Stepping into the World in Georgia

So, my trip to the Republic of Georgia starts in 8 days. My backpack is pretty much ready, the plan of my trip still needs improvment but it's almost done. Today's post will be mainly about my backpack and my gear. I'll post another article next week right before taking off to detail my plan a little bit more.

Before buying anything for my first solo/packpack trip, I went to a trek and alpinism store in Brussels to get some advices and tips and it was very useful. The store is called LeComte and all the clarks really know what they are talking about. Since I will go up and down mountains for most of my trips, they told me that my backpack should not exceed 12 kilos and that, of course, I needed great shoes. Unfortunately, I have tiny feet so they didn't have my size in the store. So, after checking every possible website on the Internet as to know what shoes were the best for this kind of trip, I had a few pairs selected but I needed to try them on before buying them (I cannot order any shoes on the Internet since I have such tiny feet, I always prefer to try them on first). It then came down to two pairs of shoes: either Lowa or Salomon. I tried both of them in Decathlon and felt better wearing the Salomon. Now, this is only my personal point of view, others might prefer the Lowa, this is why you should always try on hiking shoes before buying them, you cannot risk hurt your feet during the adventure of a lifetime! I had the opportunity to walk about 15 kilometers (+/- 10 miles) with my Salomon and it felt like I was wearing slippers! I didn't get any blisters, my feet didn't hurt, my legs didn't hurt, my knees didn" hurt, everything was great!

Then came the choice of the backpack. I have one that my parents bought me a few years ago but I never found it very comfortable so I needed to invest in a new one. I've heard a lot of good things about Osprey and after trying one on, I understood why! I got the Osprey Aura 50 AG. The Osprey bags are some of the most expensive but they are also the most comfortable ones I tried! And they are very light and there is a two-year-guarantee! I bought it at the hiking store in Brussels and got a 10% discount because they made me a client card.

Now, what to take for a six-week-trip? On the first picture, I have three t-shirts, one jacket, one raincoat, one pair of shorts, two leggings, one pair of pants that can turn into shorts, and one pair of rainpants, and of course, underwear. I bought two of my t-shirts in Dectahlon, they are in synthetic material, which makes them dry faster. The other t-shirt is a regular coton one. My two leggings come from a regular store, and I can't even remember which one because I've had them for years. All the rest of the clothes come from Decathlon. On the plane, I will wear one of the legging with another t-shirt, and a shirt.

On the second picture, I have one fast-drying towel (from Decathlon) and one "mummy" (from the store LeComte in Brussels), that is like a light sleeping bag and we sleep in it in youth hostels. I also have a water bottle from the brand "LifeStraw" because it filters water directly. I got this water bottle on Amazon, the delivery was really quick and I have tried it right away and I'm already 100% satisfied with it! Furthermore, each bottle sold helps African children get access to drinkable water! I thought it was a nice initative. Each filter filters about 1000liters of water and then, you can buy filters individually on the Internet.

As for the toiletries, I will be using my regular products, except for the shampoo and the lotion. As you can see, I am totally sold on Lush. I love this company, I've been using their products for about six months now and they are just amazing (and cruelty-free!). I will try their hard shampoo and their hard lotion for the first time so I will keep you updated on them. I regularly use their "Charity Pot" lotion but I will put it in a smaller container and only use for when I am sunburnt (which will happen for sure!) because it is like magic on sunburns (and all the benefits from this lotion are given to different associations that work for the environment!). Once I get to Georgia, I will buy some sunscreen (or else I will turn into a giant ripe tomatoe within minutes) and but repelant (as I am allergic to mosquitobites). Also, I still need to get my first aid kit, so next week I will post what you need in it when you go trekking in Georgia!

On the last picture, you can see the little extras I will take: my tablet, a notebook to write about my experiences, my guide though Georgia and a book to read in the plane. When loaded with everything that you can see on these pictures, my backpack weights 7 kilos, which is quite good for a siw-week-trip.

Since it is my very first time backpacking, maybe I took things that I won't need, or maybe there are things that I won't take but will need to have taken,... I can't get it right the first time but I will post about some tips and advices that I will learn along the way. For this first time, I bought most of my clothes at Decathlon because that's where they are less expensive. I guess that from trip to trip, I will invest in better quality clothes if I'm not satisfied with mine this time but I think that the priority of any backpacker is good shoes and comfortable backpack, the rest will do.

I hope this post is useful, I will keep you updated on what I think of everything as I go along.

After a 28-hour-journey, four planes (including one cancelled and one delayed), two vegetarian plane meals, one nosebleed, and one gorgeous sunset, I finally set good on Georgian land on August 2nd, 2017, at 10:45 pm!

At the airport, the passport control went really fast and the lady was really nice and welcoming. I got my suitcase really fast (it's a first, usually my suitcase is the last one coming!) and the taxi driver of my the hostel Regulus was waiting for me already. He was really nice and though it was dark already, he showed me some buildings on the way and explained some interesting facts about Tbilisi. He was surprised by my level of Russian and I felt really proud of myself for it! Then at the hostel, I went to bed almost right away. It was hard to sleep though because people kept coming back and forth in the room and the wood floor makes noises. But everyone is the hostel is really nice: the owner, his helpers, the travelers,... I enjoy their company a lot.

In the morning, I went to change money, get a Georgian SIM card, get sunscreen and spray against mosquitoes. All the Georgian people I've met were really kind and helpful! I mainly walked on Rustaveli Avenue because since it is the main Street in the part of town I'm staying in, I figured I would find everything I needed. There were some cute little sculptures every few steps and I thought it was really pretty and enchanting. When I started to get hungry, I decided to go to a place called "Lagidze Water" because one of my friend had told me about it. So I walked a few kilometers uphill across the city . The restaurant is located right next to Sameba Cathedral, basically, the biggest cathedral in the city! I ordered Khatchapuri (some flat bread with Georgian cheese and one egg on top of it, so delicious!) and a glass of chocolate-and-plum Lagidze Water. I cannot explain what it tasted like but it was quite tasty! I would definitely recommend it to everyone (though I'm not sure many people would like it but the glass is so cheap, it's at least worth a try!)

Then I went back to the hotel to pick up my big suitcase because I found a place where I could leave it for some time: Luggage Storage Tbilisi. It was literally five minutes walking from my hostel and the guy there was really nice and gave me some tips for my trip, which was really helpful. Since I'm leaving my suitcase for over a month, he made me a special price, which was kind of him. Now, I will know when I take it back of it it is a great place to leave your suitcase or.if it was a disaster. Then I went to the Tbilisi Tourist Information Center on Freedom Square. They noticed I was struggling with some words in Russian so they switched for English and their English was flawless! They told me how to get to Mtskheta tomorrow and they explained to me how to get to nice viewing point of the city. There are three of them: one takes you to old town with the cable car, one is the funicular, and one takes you to the lake a bit outside of the city. I decided to do the Funicular today and leave the rest for when I come back. It was AMAZING!! You climb the entire cliff in a cabin that takes you 727 meters above sea level and the view is breathtaking. And it only costs 6.5 Kari back and forth!!

Today was amazing and I cannot wait for the rest of this adventure!

Yesterday, 5th of August 2017, I went to Tbilisi from Mstkheta to take another minibus to Kazbegi, up north close to the Russian border. As the day before, I had a hard time finding the right marshrutka to Kazbegi but once I found it, I was ready for this 2,5 hour-trip. I mean, that is if the car doesn't broke on the way. We ended up taking a bit over 3 hours to get there. I am a bit ashamed to say that I fell asleep a bit during the trip: the road makes me sleepy and I can't help myself. But it was less than an hour on and off and from what I saw from my middle seat, the landscapes were gorgeous!

My hostel (Botengai guest house) is not in Kazbegi itself (now named Stepantsminda) but two villages away, in Arsha (about 5,5 km , 4 miles), so it is not as well located as it is said on booking.com. The host barely showed me my room and then left, he was really the most unwelcoming person I've ever met. The room was nice though and the bathroom really clean! Then I decided to get to the village walking, following the Georgian Military Road: best decision ever, the mountains are gorgeous! I even saw some cows just chilling in the middle of the road!

My plan was to climb up to the Gergeti Trinity Church (1270 meters above sea level) but when I finally got the city, dog was coming down from the mountains so I decided to just walk around the city and find something for dinner. I have to say that I was a bit disappointed by the city. After visiting Tbilisi and Mstkheta, Stepantsminda is not that pretty at all. Plus they are doing a lot of road work for now so it is a real mess, but I guess it is only temporary. So, I walked back to my hostel and then I felt really lonely: I was the only one there, the host was nowhere to be seen, I hadn't done what I wanted to do... It wasn't my best day ever. And I felt awfully guilty about it because backpacking Georgia is such an amazing opportunity and experience, it didn't feel right to feel that way.

This morning my plan was to go to the Gergeti Trinity Church and thanks to the amazing App MapsMe, I found a way that didn't go through the city! On my way, while the walk was still on flat land, I saw a beautiful waterfall up in the mountains and decided to go see it from closer. It was beautiful! And I realized that the walk up is a lot easier than the walk down! And once you are up and see all the beauty around, you just want to stay up. But it's true that when you are down and you see the steep hill, it's easier to be satisfied with the life down. I feel that life is like a mountain: once you are down, you don't want to go up because it seems to hard but once you're up, nothing can bring you down.

On my way to the church, a few children say hello to me in English: the young generation learns mostly English while the older ones learnt Russian. Only my generation speaks only georgian, it seems. I also had a taxi drive stop and suggesting to take me to the beginning of the trail to Gergeti but I politely declined.

To go to the church, you have two ways: one is practicable by cars or pedestrians and one, only by pedestrians. I took the second and boy was that hard. It's so steep I had to step every five steps to catch my breath! Who thought about building a church so up high?! When you get to the top though, the view on the mountains is so beautiful, I had tears in my eyes! I got in the church (build in the 14th century, but how?!), I had to wear a long skirt (it is provided) and cover my hair. It was full of icones and burning candles. Then I admired the landscape for about 45 minutes before decided to go down. But then something interesting happened to me and I was so inspired, I will share my text with you:

The best thing about traveling alone is not that you can change your plan at the last minute or meet amazing people. It is that you set your own limits and you are the only one who can challenge them. And once you can challenge your own limits, you can conquer the whole world. This is what today feels like to me: the limit I had set to myself was the climb to the Gergeti Trinity Church. And on the way there, the only thing I could think about was "What a stupid idea to build a church so high up. And what a stupid idea to decide to go there!". But when I got there, all my exhaustion was swept away by the amazing view on the mountains. I stayed there 45 minutes, admiring the landscape. Then I decided to head back down to the city but before, I took one last look at the mountains. They were calling me... So I took one step toward them, and another one, and another one, each baby step challenging my own limits, challenging my strength, challenging my willpower, challenging my whole world. Some people say "Don't look back, you are not going that way". But sometimes, it is good to look back and just see how far you've come, it gives you strength to keep on going. But when I realized my body couldn't take me any further, then... Then I took one last step forward, to challenge my limits one more time. And that is by far my biggest achievement in life.

As I started walking up again, my only plans was to go as far as I could. I couldn't get to the top of Mountains Kazbek even if I wanted to because you have to cross the Russian border to get to it and at this border control, only Russian can get through and maybe people who already have a Russian visa. I could have gone to the nearest glacier but at about 3000 meters above sea level, my legs couldn't carry me up any longer. So I took on more step up before heading down. I got back to the church and then decided to go back to the city using the long way in order not to fall and hurt myself. I didn't go one kilometer down when a Georgian guy stopped his car and suggested to take me down. I could not refuse! And when I saw all the way I had left, I was glad I accepted! He was really nice and talked to me to distract me from the road: at this point, we cannot say that there were holes in it but rather craters! He got me to the city in one piece for free, which was really nice!

For dinner, I decided to get a shaurma without meat, and as usual, the cook laughed when I asked but he made it anyway and that was delicious! I also got some icetea and chocolate to reward myself for such a long day of walking! I then got a taxi to get back to my hostel (couldn't walk five more kilometers!) And funnily enough, it was the guy you suggested to drive me this morning who drove me back in the evening! He was quite upset that I didn't accept earlier and teased me much of the way. But instead of 20 laris, he made me pay only 15! And then he insisted to take me to a party tonight but I was so exhausted I refused and he was upset again. In the hotel, I finally met the other host ( the wife of the one I had see yesterday) and I could pay for my stay. Also she suggested to call the bus station in the city tomorrow to keep me a seat to the bus going to Tbilisi so that they can pick me up from the hostel tomorrow morning without me walking all the way back to Stepantsminda. It was really kind of her! Let's hope she will do it!

So after one night in Tbilisi, in the Hostel Balcony (a nice hostel for travelers who like to party!), I was back on the road, to Gori this time.

The most important thing you have to know about Gori is that it is the city was Stalin was born and raised. I arrived yesterday (August 8th) and went to the hostel right away. The hostel I chose is called Guesthouse Levani and it has really good reviews on Booking.com. And it's easy to understand why! George and Marina are really nice and they speak French (George) and English (Marina) as well as Russian and Georgian of course! They are of great help to know what to do in the region and where to go and how to go to which place! Also, they are good at history and during these two days with them, I learnt a lot of interesting facts about Georgia and Gori. Since it was the afternoon when I decided to visit the city and it was too hot to really do anything outside, George and Marina advised me to visit the three museums of the city: the museum of history and ethnography, the museum of war, and of course, the Stalin museum.

I started with the Stalin museum and I loved it! The propaganda pro Stalin is quite subtle but it works really well! Someone who doesn't know the Soviet history might be a Stalin fan when leaving the museum! I know Soviet history but my point of view on Stalin changed a bit with this museum: not only was he really good looking in his youth but he also wrote poems and he was well educated! Other than that, you don't really learn anything about him. After the museum in itself you get to see the house where he was born and lived (only from the outside) and.visit the wagon where he traveled to the different conferences he attended.

Then I went to the museum of history and ethnography and it was quite small but interesting! I just regretted not asking for a guide (their guide speaks English really well!). Then I went to the war museum. The very interesting part of this museum is that it is not just about World War 2 but also about the 1990-1993 war against Russia and the 2008-five-day-war also against Russia. Otherwise, everything is written only in Georgian and Russian and there are no guides available. And there is no explanation as to why the last two war started. But my host told me that Russian groups got to Gori in 2008 and that the city was bombed and people died! It seemed incredible to me that it happened less than ten years ago and I was standing right there where it all happened!

After the museums I decided to go eat in a bar called "Bar" (very original I know!). I had a Georgian limonade (it was kind of creamy and not at all what I expected but it was tasty!) and what I would call a Georgian pizza made of cheese and potatoes! It was delicious but so filling I couldn't finish it! Behind me were sitting two Georgians who really wanted me to drink with them but I politely refused and they were nice about it and we got to talk a bit! Before leaving the place, they had one last shot of vodka and yelled "Belgium forever!". It was funny and made me feel really welcome.

After I ate, the weather was not too hot anymore and I decided to go to the fortress of Gori. It's not a hard climb and the view on the city and the mountains is beautiful! I wanted to get there to say that I conquered Stalin's city but actually, it conquered me! I did not expect to like this city because 1) I didn't like Stepantsminda in itself (though the mountains were gorgeous) and 2) I had heard there were still a lot of Soviet buildings so it's not a pretty city. But actually I really like it and found it charming: the museums, the history, the people, the view from the fortress, and even the colored zebra crossing!

When I went back to the hostel in the evening, I met a French couple and their son. They were kind and suggested I went with them to the stone city of Uplistsikhe with them in the morning instead of taking a taxi and I accepted! We got a bit lost on the way but then I got my MapsMe app out and we found out way! It was beautiful! The view on nature, the city in itself, amazing! I really recommend it to everyone!

Then we went back to the hostel and my French friends left for further adventures. It was early afternoon and again, it was too hot to do anything so I decided to stay inside and rest. When I got hungry, I got to a store to buy muffins and the clarks were curious of where I was from and so on and they were very welcoming. Back at the hostel, I met two German guys and we talked quite a while about Europe and so on and it was interesting. Later I went to talk to George and Marina about Stalin and the wars and I got a full history course on Georgia! It was so nice to learn about all of these things, unfortunately, it was all in Russian and translating everything would be too long and complex. Then they told me about their daughters and I felt like a part of their family with then sharing everything.

In conclusion, Gori is a city where you always feel welcome, no matter where you are and who you are with. It is definitely a must see!

I left Kutaisi with three people from my hostel. It took about five hours to get to Mestia because we stopped to eat food on the way, which was an amazing idea! It is a little cafe, located close to a magnificent turquoise lake and right in front of a beautiful waterfall! A cheese Khatchapuri costs 5 laris and it is amazingly delicious!

When we arrived in Mestia, two of the guys from the hostel and I went to the tourist information center right away to get maps of trails and hikes that we wanted to do in the region. Then we went to separated ways to our hostels. On the way to mine, I saw the third guy I left with in the morning and we ended up in the same hostel (in the same room actually!). That day, I just walked a bit around the city and rested in the hostel. Then we met an American guy and went to eat dinner with him. Mestia is quite touristy so there are plenty of places to eat! But make sure to get there early or there won't be any place left to eat!

On the next day, my new roommate and I decided to hike to the Ushba Glacier. We had a 17 kilometers walk to the city of Mezari before the actual walk so we decided to hitchhike to the city. It was my first time hitchhiking, it was exciting! We were in a car with a Georgian driver and two Englishmen going to Abkhazia. They dropped us off about 5kilometers away from Mezari. Rasmus (muy roommate) and I got a bit lost on the way and we wanted about an hour but we found beautiful landscapes!

Then we arrived in Mezari and we're ready to start the hike when we met a very nice Georgian couple who were going to the waterfalls (about four kilometers before the Glacier) and we decided to walk together. When we were walking and sweating in the midday heat, a Georgian guy in his car stopped and we got in. He dropped us off a few kilometers away, even though we weren't hitchhiking.

The hike up to the waterfalls was hard but the landscapes were gorgeous!

After the waterfalls, our friends left us and Rasmussen and I decided to go further. We were about four kilometers away from the Glacier. It was really steep and slippery because of the rain. We met people coming down who told us that there was no snow on the Glacier and we were disappointed but decided to keep on walking. We got to the point where it was so slippery that for each step forward, I was sliding two steps backwards. At that point, I decided to turn around but Rasmus kept on going up.

I fell many times on the way and hurt my right hand quit badly. I even thought it was broken. But at the hospital, they told me my hand was in perfect condition. Rasmus caught up with me almost at the bottom at the hike. There we met our Georgian friends again who had stopped in a little camping to dry their clothes and eat something. They had left their car in Mezari so we walked together to their cars. It started raining quite heavily and we we're lucky that someone stopped to pick us up and drive us to Mezari! Then we went back to the city with our friends and decided to meet them again for a well deserved dinner, after a 8 hours hike.

We met at the Central Park and walked to the end of the city to a nice restaurant that was completely full except for the garden (no wonder, it was raining!). We agreed to stay in the garden and have a seat inside as soon as someone left. We ordered meat Khatchapuri, Georgian salad, eggplant with nut sauce, 20 meat Khinkali and 5 cheese Khinkali, as well as a bottle of water and home white wine. I don't know about the meaty food but all the other was delicious! It was a really nice dinner and I enjoyed spending it with my new friends! I learnt a lot of traditions in Georgia.

Hike from Mestia to Ushguli -- Day 1: Mestia - Zhabeshi (14km). Technically, there is a pedestrian trail between these two cities. The thing is, with my handicapped hand I was afraid that it would be to steep and I'm not sure I have the luxury to fall on my hand one more time. So I took the road. I didnt even leave Mestia that two Russians traveling in car picked me and dropped me off 7 kilometers later. Nice! Then I started walking. The weather was nice: not sunny but also not rainy. I had to cross a river without bridge, I saw Beautiful landscapes.... And about two kilometers before Zhabeshi, a Georgian man picked me and dropped me off at my hostel! My host struggle with English and Russian but they are kind and the room is light and nice with a view on the mountains.

Hike from Mestia to Ushguli -- DAY 2: Zhabeshi - Ushguli. In the morning of my second day of hiking, my hand was still hurting quite bad so I had to make a decision: either take the trail to Adishi or walk on the road to Iprali, as the road doesn't go to Adishi. I went for the second option. I was quite disappointed at first but then I was so glad to have taken this decision. Otherwise I wouldn't have met Georgian road workers and talked to them, I wouldn't have seen all these people stopping and asking me where I was going and suggesting to pick me up,... Honestly, the look on Georgians people when I told them I wasn't afraid to roam their country alone was priceless and made it all worth it.

Then when I arrived in the Lala region, three guys suggested to pick me up and drive me to Ushguli and for some reason, I accepted though I wasn't tired. At first it was really nice and they were telling me about Svaneti and it was interesting. One of the guy suggested to show me around on the next day and I thought it could be a great idea to discover things that most tourists don't see so I agreed. But then he started flirting with me and I got really uncomfortable. They dropped me off in Ushguli and I booked a hostel really fast on hostel.com and showed up five minutes later to the place. After having rested for half an hour or so I decided to visit the highest inhabited place on the European continent. It is awesome! I was thrilled and still am the be here! Just one advice: don't wear sandals, there are cow's and horse's poops everywhere! When you are in Ushguli, you feel like you have traveled through time and it is just mind blowing!

DAY 3: the Shkhara Glacier.

I woke up at 8Am to have breakfast at the hostel. It was filling and tasty and I had homemade natural yoghurt! The host had also prepared some meat and I felt terrible because I had forgotten to tell her that I'm a vegetarian! She didn't seem bothered by it though and she just ate it herself a bit later. Then I had to decide wether I was going to meet the Georgian guy from the day before or not. I decided that my safety was more important than his pride and decided not to meet him and go to the Glacier instead. A dog, that I affectionately called Buddy, followed me all the way to the Glacier! Maybe the fact that I was feeding him helped a bit.

I walked for about 45 minutes when I met a group of four people: one German, one Spanish, one Dutch, and one American. After talking to them for a few minutes, I decided to walk with them. The walk there took us about four hours but we stopped a lot to take pictures, drink tea, Pat The dogs,... I mean, we took our time. At one point, we had To be careful because the path was going through some poisonous plants that give severe skin reactions. But other than that, the trail is quite easy, not too steep and not too slippery.

The walk back took us about two hours. Then we ate in a cage and off they went to Mestia. I am also going back to Mestia, but tomorrow. And I'm actually considering walking there. And walking the rest of the country, really. Once I start walking, I feel myself, I feel at home, I don't feel any tiredness. When I walk, I feel at home no matter where I stand. I belong to the place I'm walking in. And I want to experience that more.

Back at the hotel, I met a German couple. On the next day, we took a taxi together to Mestia. They wanted to see the Shkhara Glacier and I wanted to go back to Mestia walking but it was raining so we all changed our plans. In Mestia we decided to have dinner together. We are at the Cafe Laila. The food was good, but I liked best was the traditional songs and dances that they perform every evening! Since we were all staying two nights we decided to meet again on the next day for dinner. This time we went to the cafe/restaurant Sunseti. Again, the food was really tasty, the service always a bit slow but we had a lot of time so we didn't really care. We agreed to meet on the next day to take a bus to Zugdidi together before going in separate ways: they were going to Batumi and I was going to Poti.