July 20th:
Back in Borjomi, and Erica’s mother, Julie, is now in Georgia and she, Erica and Giga have come to Borjomi. Arrangements for Erica’s and Giga’s wedding are presumably being discussed.

A walk in the park with Erica and Julie.

Preparing for a dip in the park’s natural warm-water pool.

The dip.

Chiko wishes he could dip too.

July 18th – our last day in Istanbul. Diana’s plane was leaving earlier than ours, so she and Gill went to the airport, while Mako and I went to look for presents for her friends and relatives back in Georgia. We succeeded fairly quickly, took a couple of photographs and scurried off to the airport in time to say another good-bye to Diana. A most enjoyable, but very brief, holiday.

On the next day, July 16th, we went to Topkapi. We went to the Harem and then had lunch in the Topkapi restaurant overlooking the Bosporus.

In part of Topkapi.

In another part of Topkapi.

In another part of Topkapi.

Mako (dead center) in the Harem.

In another part of Topkapi.

In another part of Topkapi.

Waiting for food.

Diana’s impression of a Dervish.

Still waiting for food.

Later in the day, we all went to the cistern. It was interesting, but compared to Topkapi (the same price), a bit of a disappointment. Then Diana and Gill went back to the hotel – Diana’s foot was bothering her – and Mako and I went to the Grand Bazaar. Mako is a tough bargainer! She got two pairs of genes at rock-bottom prices. (Sorry.)



In the evening, we took a boat-ride on the Bosporus. Included was dinner and entertainment. Finally, there was dancing and we all had a good time.

July 15th – our first day in Istanbul. There was much confusion because it was decided that Diana’s ankle, which been restricting her activities, should be looked at by a doctor. So Gill and Diana went off to find a doctor and Mako and I went off to the Blue Mosque. The intent was that we would meet up later, co-ordinating by cell-phone. Unfortunately, we had a spectacular thunder storm and Mako and I, who had seen the mosque and had gone off for an ice cream, sheltered from the storm. Consequently, we couldn’t get to the Blue Mosque in time before Diana and Gill, who had texted us from the Blue Mosque, having failed to find a suitable doctor and having seen the mosque for themselves, decided to park themselves in a restaurant nearby. All would have been well had it not been for the fact that text messages to Diana were taking hours to get through. Their being routed via the UK was assumed to be responsible for this, but that doesn’t explain why messages from Diana were received promptly. Of course, Mako and I did not know this at the time, and couldn’t understand why she wasn’t responding to our messages. She got one message the next day!

Mako and the Blue Mosque.

Anyway, we eventually met up outside the Hagia Sophia. We took a guide whose English was so poor that none of us could understand him.

Inside the Hagia Sophia.

Later, in a restaurant, a cat befriended Mako, who loves dogs but is somewhat leery of cats.

Diana eventually relieved Mako of her new friend.

In the evening, we went to see some “whirling Dervishes” who performed in the waiting room of the Istanbul railway station (!?)

The station was one of the terminals of the Orient Express.

July 14th: We began the trip to Turkey; a taxi to Khashuri and then the train to Batumi where we spent the night. We had an interesting Chinese meal where the Peking duck was not what we were expecting - don’t ask - but the restaurant did have electric swans! The next day, we took a taxi to Sarpi at the border, walked across the border, took a taxi to Hopa and then two buses to Trabazon. After a meal and some heel cooling in Trabazon, we caught the plane to Istanbul.

It was really a joy to be with Mako (who is always a pleasure to be with, but had never been outside Georgia or flown in an aeroplane before). She was excited but poised and apprehensive but thrilled. She was a delight.

The farewell photograph.

Waiting for the train to Batumi.

Chinese restaurant menu in Chinese, Georgian and Russian.

Waiting for Peking Duck.

Outside the restaurant with electric swans. Georgians love lights.

In a Trabazon restaurant.

In a Trabazon restaurant.

In a Trabazon restaurant.

Two passengers waiting at Trabazon airpoer.

The start of Mako’s maiden flight. Gill, as usual, is trying to break her ankle.

July 12th was when we took off for Vardzia. Vardzia is a very large cave city "built" in the twelfth century.

A castle en route.

Mako with the castle en route.

There is a smaller cave city, Uplitsike, near Gori which is older, but Vardzia is very much larger (about 400 rooms). It was once significantly larger, but an earthquake in the thirteenth century destroyed much of it and the Turks sacked what was left when they defeated the Georgians in 1551.

A view of Vardzia from across the valley.

Gill in Vardzia.

Gill and Mako in Vardzia.

Another view from inside.

Gill and Mako with the marshutka driver, his wife and daughter.

On the way back, we stopped at the Green Monastery. It’s a curious place with nothing in particular that’s colored green. As in many other places in Georgia, they are restoring or replacing the murals that were defaced or destroyed by the communists and/or the Turks.

The Green Monastery has some new murals.

Waiting to drive home.

July 11th: We took Diana to Gori, birth-place of Stalin, the local lad who went out into the world to make a name for himself.


And so, if it’s Gori, it must be the Stalin Museum – a fascinating place that covers Stalin’s life from start to finish but does not mention the Gulag, show-trials, deaths by starvation (whether deliberate or as a result of ill-conceived collectivization) or the other less celebrated results of his rule.


The museum has a cast of his death mask, the carriage that took him to Postdam to meet Churchill and Roosevelt, the house where he was born (apparently in the original spot) and many busts and statues of him.


The carriage is very heavy because it is armor-plated. Inside it is not particularly grand, but it looked comfortable and functional with a kitchen, radio room, bedrooms and a conference/dining room.

The emblem on the side of the carriage.

The mandatory photograph.