In which I climb a mountain and buy some books

Last weekend was a weekend which means, as it usually does, traveling. This weekend I opted for Tbilisi, seeing as last time I was there I was never able to see it in the daylight. I managed to get a friend of mine to travel with me, which I must say, is much more convenient than traveling in a group of 22 (see my brief post of photos from Bakuriani). I missed the train, but luckily found a man who also couldn’t get a ticket and we finagled our way onto a marshutka (minibus) headed to Tbilisi. He gave me a lovely charm of the Madonna to keep any further misfortune from my path, and provided me with some Russian conversation during the 4-hour ride through the mountains. From there I met my friend at the bus station, hopped on the metro, and for two days we explored the city as much as possible. We started with the English book-shop (a God-send, since I have been reading novels adapted for high-school English learners) and picked up Robinson Crusoe and Sense and Sensibility. I finished the first within three days of returning to my village, so it’s a good thing I bought two… After that we decided to take a hike up the many stairs that go up the mountainside to various churches, ruins, and Mother Georgia (much like the Mother of the Motherland in Kiev) The views were great, here are the photos --- Enjoy!

Love,

Sarah