OF MOUNTAINS

WITH MARVELLOUS ARCHITECTURE, DELICIOUS WINE, SPELLBINDING SCENERY AND HOSPITABLE PEOPLE, GEORGIA IS A PLACE RIGHT OUT OF A FAIRY TALE

LAKSHMI K. VENUGOPALAN

True to its name, Georgia is a gorgeous country. I visited Tbilisi, the capital and the largest city in Georgia, with my closest friends. Everything about the city is beautiful — the streets, lively flea markets, jewellery, colourful buildings, fabulous wine, and the genuine hospitality make Tbilisi a hotspot for holidays. The unbelievable cleanliness adds to the beauty of this country. With the best time to visit between the months of May and September, Georgia has something for everyone.

A mountainous country, Georgia stands at the intersection of

Europe and

Asia, divided into eastern

( Iberia) and w e s t e r n

( Colchis) halves by the Likhi Mountain Range. The country was a part of the former Soviet Republic that’s home to Caucasus Mountain villages and Black Sea beaches. The deepest- known ( 2,197m) cave on earth, Krubera ( Voronja) Cave, is situated here.

On my first day in Georgia, I arrived at Tsiskvilli for lunch, a very simple restaurant tucked away in old Tbilisi, filled mostly with the locals. We ordered a few dishes from the fabric- covered menu. Little did we know that Georgians don’t eat — they feast! Eating is taken very seriously and it stretches on for hours.

Georgia is also known for its freshly baked breads, which is a reason why the country has a lot of bakeries. Our visit to Georgia would have been incomplete without tasting the khachapuri, a warm cheese- stuffed bread. Cheese is a major ingredient in all Georgian dishes. The local cuisine also includes a variety of salad, soups and pizzas. Georgians mostly prefer having some kind of meat in every meal, be it poultry or red meat. The food is decently priced and each meal would range between 6 to 10 Lari.

Another fascinating aspect of Georgia is its winemaking tradition. Locals believe there is no better way to spend a night than sipping wine with friends and family. It is believed that the C a u c a s u s Mountains of Georgia are the birthplace of wine, and the country is one of the oldest wine producing regions of the world. Wine is a part of the country’s heritage, including architecture, poetry, and songs, and is associated with celebrations, holidays, rituals and most importantly with Georgia’s Christian Orthodox Church.

I was privileged to taste a wide range of natural and low- intervention wines, which were amazing with an array of food, especially grilled meats. Georgian wine is available in almost every corner of the city. I returned with almost six bottles of wine for my friends, family, and myself.

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