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We were told to head down to the
ground floor of the old Intourist hotel for breakfast, which is served in
the cafe. Boy, they must think we are hungry. It is a huge
spread. We are four people to a table and it is covered with dishes
with cheese, meats, breads, cakes on other items. Then they bring us
cooked eggs and coffee and tea and we have no where to put it - there is not
room on the table. We make a valiant effort, but can only make a small
dent in the food. We even try the cakes, but they are too sweet for
breakfast.
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Then it is off on our city
tour. They have supplied a mini-van and we all pile into it and head
off. The first stop is at the Metekhi Church. At this site there
has been a church since the 5th century. It is a simple, small
church. From the outside we have a good view over the city.
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From there we drive back across
the river and up the hill to the Narikala Fortress. A fort has stood
on this site since the 4th century. Much of it, however has been
ruined as a result of an explosion in the Russian munitions depot in
1827. The views over the city are fantastic.
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Back down we head, arriving at
the sulphur baths in one of the oldest parts of Tbilisi. The baths are
underground and have been famous for centuries. From there we headed
over to a traditional bakery where they make bread in the large ovens.
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We finally finish our tour at the
Anchiskati church - the oldest in Tbilisi. It was built in the 6th
century and continues the cross made by the founder of Christianity in
Georgia. Georgia was the second country in the world to become
Christian. It is dark, with rays of light coming in from the
windows. The candles flitter in the breeze and their smoke creates a
haze in the air.
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We finish our tour back at the
center of town. We have a quick snack from some of the vendors on the
street and then wander around doing some shopping. We find a few
things of interest and then decide to slowly make our way back to the
hotel. But first we check out an open air market. That does not
turn out to be very special but on the way there, we find another form of
market. There is a an area where people walk around with big signs
around their neck stating what they have to sell or offer, from apartments
to skills.
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Back on the main street, we come
upon a museum that has an exhibit on the attacks on the World Trade
Centers. It has been sponsored by the Embassy and has photos of the
rescue efforts and clean up. There are actually quite a few people
that seem to be taking a look. That is good. It is a long walk
back - further than we thought - and we break it up with a stop at the
internet cafe.
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We get back to the hotel just
before 6 PM and return to our room to relax. An hour or so later, we
join Lotta and Rick to go have some dinner. We catch a taxi back into
the center of town and they take us to a small, local place that they have
been to before. And the food is good. We get shashlyk and
vodka. The shashlyks are huge and the serve them wrapped in
flatbread. They have excellent chili sauce to put on top, so we are
very happy.
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