It is day 2 of our stay in Georgia. On the first day we visited David Gareji monastery and new "tourist face of Georgia" - city of Sighnaghi. Now we are on the road with our host Vadim traveling in Mtskheta-Mtianeti region along Georgian military road.
The tour started with important religious sites - Jvari, Mtskheta (with Svetitskhoveli cathedral) and mountain monastery of Shio-Mgvime. After an abundant meal we are on the road again.
Our next stop is Ananuri fortress but first we stopped at a viewpoint overlooking Zhinvali reservoir. It is an artificial lake formed by the construction of Zhinvali dam on Aragvi river.
The rock at the viewpoint gives a perfect opportunity for touristic shots. How could we resist the temptation?
Vadim (first from the right) uses the picturesque location to tell us more about the region.
As you see the tours in small group are conducted in a much more relaxed and personal atmosphere.
And here we are: Ananuri castle opens up right next to the road. Next to it there is a parking spot, but make sure to walk a little back by the road to get the general view.
The castle was built in different periods (one tower is said to date back to 14th century) as a seat of the eristavis (Dukes) of Aragvi. Located in a narrow part of valley, its main function was to control the road and block it if needed. Modern road is new as the old road with a cute little bridge is now covered by Zhinvali reservoir most of the time.
The oldest tower of Ananuri castle is also its biggest mystery. Its purpose is unclear: the towers of this type are used in mountainous regions of Georgia as snow-breakers, but it is not positioned 45 degrees towards the mountains. It is not a watchtower: there is another tower much more suitable for this purpose, not only is it higher, it is also placed higher on the slope. The tower dates back to 14th century, but when the Church of the Assumption was built in the 17th century, not only did the builders keep this useless tower, they also went through a great deal of trouble to build the church so close to it that it might seem that they belong to one building.
Only when you come closer can you see that there is a narrow gap between the two structures.
And finally, the tower covers beautifully carved grapevine on the western facade. What was the reason to hide such elaborate carving behind the tower? I guess, we will never find it out.
Other facades are also beautifully ornate with stone carvings: grapevine cross remains a popular motive.
Below the cross there are tow angels: one barefoot and one wearing boots. Why? Another mystery of Ananuri.
From the castle walls you can see lower fortifications and beautiful Zhinvali lake. On the right you can see the remains of old road, usually located under water. That day the level went down and we could see it and even drove by it.
Lower part of the castle lays in ruins.
Not always the things change for better, but the lake created in the 1980's adds to the castle's charm.
Georgian cross with dropping sides on the tombstones.
Little Yaroslava immediately made friends with a local cat and looks like her feelings were reciprocated.
By the old tree roots we are climbing to the towers.
Our efforts are rewarded: from the towers the entire castle opens up in front of you. The three towers (starting from the left) are the older Church of the Virgin, the mysterious tower and the larger Church of the Assumption (Ghvtismshobeli).
The dark arch on the right leads into the old church.
The interior decoration did not survive and the brick walls are bare. Despite the fact that the only object of interest of interest is a stone baldaquin erected by the widow of one of the Dukes, the church is still impressive with sort of solemn beauty.
From the window shows richly decorated Church of the Assumption.
Even though most frescoes here were destroyed during the fire in the 18th century, some still survived and try to scare us with visions of hell.
Last look at the Ananuri churches...
...and it is time for a swim!
The level was lowered so we could see the old road and the bridge that are normally covered by the water. Not only did we see, we even drove by it.
The low "tide" made us walk on what normally is the bottom of the lake.
The cracked surface of the bottom gave a surreal lunar impression
The biggest and the smallest members members of our group - Erkki and Yaroslava - went for a swim.
A group of local youngsters also plunged into the water.
And again was the time to continue the drive: Beso, our driver, is taking his pilot seat.
An unplanned stop: we tried to help a car in trouble. Vadim explained that the gravel you can see on the other river bank is the result of a mudslide that smashed down three villages and changed the riverbed.
Behind the green grass you can see where the slide came from.
A group of kids was picking flowers on the roadside. We watching them and they were watching us photograph them.
We drove past the ski resort Gudauri. Located at an elevation of 2,196 meters (7,200 ft.) above sea level, it boasts perfect skiing opportunities. The slopes of Gudauri are completely above the tree line and are generally considered to be avalanche-safe. The skiers say that even the texture of snow is perfect. In the resort area there is a big hotel built during Soviet times and a couple of smaller motels and campings. Unfortunately, at the moment Gudauri does not operate full power, despite perfect skiing conditions. Uncertain political situation with Russia caused the break in transport communication and in the absence of direct flights, Russians had to fly through the third countries. Of course, this affected the popularity of the resort.
We stopped and one of the organized viewpoints to admire the mountains.
The viewpoint is decorated with a monumental composition built in 1983 commemorating 200 years of Treaty of Gerogievsk when Russia promised Georgia its protection against Muslim neighbors in exchange for loss of certain privileges.
During the Communist rule this event was classified as positive. Nowadays its role in Georgian history is debated and it is impossible to tell "what would have happened if...". But what is incontestable that the territories that at the time of the Treaty were under Turkey never rejoined Georgia and are now Muslim.
The weather in the mountains changes quickly and before we knew it the clouds started coming both from the top...
...and from the bottom, the Source of the Aragvi River.
The clouds made it pointless going further so we did not make it to Kazbegi mountain, one of the major mountains of the Caucasus, that was supposed to be the final destination of our today's trip.
But what can you do? We cannot control the weather so we turned back.
On the way back the clouds condensed into heavy rain. The rain poured with southern generosity in many areas of Georgia causing destructions especially in Kakheti region. Hats off to Beso driving in the heavy rain by pitch dark road.
On the next day, our 3rd day in Georgia, Vadim was departing for Kutaisi on a two-days trip to Gelati, Prometheus caves near spa-town Tsqaltubo, overnight in Akhaltsikhe, the next day - Khertvisi fortress and cave city Vardzia. He suggested to join him and how could we say 'no' to that?
The tour started with important religious sites - Jvari, Mtskheta (with Svetitskhoveli cathedral) and mountain monastery of Shio-Mgvime. After an abundant meal we are on the road again.
Our next stop is Ananuri fortress but first we stopped at a viewpoint overlooking Zhinvali reservoir. It is an artificial lake formed by the construction of Zhinvali dam on Aragvi river.
The rock at the viewpoint gives a perfect opportunity for touristic shots. How could we resist the temptation?
Vadim (first from the right) uses the picturesque location to tell us more about the region.
 |
| Vadim compares the exploit of 300 Aragvians to 300 Spartans |
And here we are: Ananuri castle opens up right next to the road. Next to it there is a parking spot, but make sure to walk a little back by the road to get the general view.
The castle was built in different periods (one tower is said to date back to 14th century) as a seat of the eristavis (Dukes) of Aragvi. Located in a narrow part of valley, its main function was to control the road and block it if needed. Modern road is new as the old road with a cute little bridge is now covered by Zhinvali reservoir most of the time.
The oldest tower of Ananuri castle is also its biggest mystery. Its purpose is unclear: the towers of this type are used in mountainous regions of Georgia as snow-breakers, but it is not positioned 45 degrees towards the mountains. It is not a watchtower: there is another tower much more suitable for this purpose, not only is it higher, it is also placed higher on the slope. The tower dates back to 14th century, but when the Church of the Assumption was built in the 17th century, not only did the builders keep this useless tower, they also went through a great deal of trouble to build the church so close to it that it might seem that they belong to one building.
Only when you come closer can you see that there is a narrow gap between the two structures.
And finally, the tower covers beautifully carved grapevine on the western facade. What was the reason to hide such elaborate carving behind the tower? I guess, we will never find it out.
Other facades are also beautifully ornate with stone carvings: grapevine cross remains a popular motive.
Below the cross there are tow angels: one barefoot and one wearing boots. Why? Another mystery of Ananuri.
From the castle walls you can see lower fortifications and beautiful Zhinvali lake. On the right you can see the remains of old road, usually located under water. That day the level went down and we could see it and even drove by it.
Lower part of the castle lays in ruins.
Not always the things change for better, but the lake created in the 1980's adds to the castle's charm.
Georgian cross with dropping sides on the tombstones.
Little Yaroslava immediately made friends with a local cat and looks like her feelings were reciprocated.
By the old tree roots we are climbing to the towers.
Our efforts are rewarded: from the towers the entire castle opens up in front of you. The three towers (starting from the left) are the older Church of the Virgin, the mysterious tower and the larger Church of the Assumption (Ghvtismshobeli).
The dark arch on the right leads into the old church.
The interior decoration did not survive and the brick walls are bare. Despite the fact that the only object of interest of interest is a stone baldaquin erected by the widow of one of the Dukes, the church is still impressive with sort of solemn beauty.
From the window shows richly decorated Church of the Assumption.
Even though most frescoes here were destroyed during the fire in the 18th century, some still survived and try to scare us with visions of hell.
Last look at the Ananuri churches...
...and it is time for a swim!
The level was lowered so we could see the old road and the bridge that are normally covered by the water. Not only did we see, we even drove by it.
The low "tide" made us walk on what normally is the bottom of the lake.
The cracked surface of the bottom gave a surreal lunar impression
The biggest and the smallest members members of our group - Erkki and Yaroslava - went for a swim.
A group of local youngsters also plunged into the water.
And again was the time to continue the drive: Beso, our driver, is taking his pilot seat.
An unplanned stop: we tried to help a car in trouble. Vadim explained that the gravel you can see on the other river bank is the result of a mudslide that smashed down three villages and changed the riverbed.
Behind the green grass you can see where the slide came from.
A group of kids was picking flowers on the roadside. We watching them and they were watching us photograph them.
We drove past the ski resort Gudauri. Located at an elevation of 2,196 meters (7,200 ft.) above sea level, it boasts perfect skiing opportunities. The slopes of Gudauri are completely above the tree line and are generally considered to be avalanche-safe. The skiers say that even the texture of snow is perfect. In the resort area there is a big hotel built during Soviet times and a couple of smaller motels and campings. Unfortunately, at the moment Gudauri does not operate full power, despite perfect skiing conditions. Uncertain political situation with Russia caused the break in transport communication and in the absence of direct flights, Russians had to fly through the third countries. Of course, this affected the popularity of the resort.
We stopped and one of the organized viewpoints to admire the mountains.
The viewpoint is decorated with a monumental composition built in 1983 commemorating 200 years of Treaty of Gerogievsk when Russia promised Georgia its protection against Muslim neighbors in exchange for loss of certain privileges.
During the Communist rule this event was classified as positive. Nowadays its role in Georgian history is debated and it is impossible to tell "what would have happened if...". But what is incontestable that the territories that at the time of the Treaty were under Turkey never rejoined Georgia and are now Muslim.
The weather in the mountains changes quickly and before we knew it the clouds started coming both from the top...
...and from the bottom, the Source of the Aragvi River.
The clouds made it pointless going further so we did not make it to Kazbegi mountain, one of the major mountains of the Caucasus, that was supposed to be the final destination of our today's trip.
But what can you do? We cannot control the weather so we turned back.
On the way back the clouds condensed into heavy rain. The rain poured with southern generosity in many areas of Georgia causing destructions especially in Kakheti region. Hats off to Beso driving in the heavy rain by pitch dark road.
On the next day, our 3rd day in Georgia, Vadim was departing for Kutaisi on a two-days trip to Gelati, Prometheus caves near spa-town Tsqaltubo, overnight in Akhaltsikhe, the next day - Khertvisi fortress and cave city Vardzia. He suggested to join him and how could we say 'no' to that?
I'm just coming back to this post after having done the Kazbegi trip myself, and I'm sorry I missed Ananuri - it does look amazing!
ReplyDeleteI guess it's lucky your driver stopped, coming back from Tusheti we had to go through the heavy fog on a mountain road that was much worse than the Jvari Pass (most of it had been destroyed by a landslide the night before!) It was the most terrifying experience of my life and not one I'm in a hurry to repeat. I guess our driver went on because we wanted to get out of Tusheti.
It looks like we did the one trip between the two of us - you did Ananuri and the lookout tower and I did Kazbegi ;)
We work on a cruise ship and we know first hand the meaning of 'Safety first'. So if even a Georgian driver decides not to go somewhere for safety reasons, I guess i must be really scary.
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