Day Two in Tbilisi (June 16)

This was an interesting day in the Georgian capital. Basically it started with us looking for the bus station to see what our options were in terms of getting back to Turkey. I was contemplating staying for an extra day or going back tonight so that I don't have to pay for another night in a hotel. It took us nearly 90 minutes to find the bloody place. The directions the hotel gave us were way off, and we were wondering in every different direction looking for the bus station that seemed to not even exist. Also, the second language of choice in this country is Russian, unlike in Turkey where it is English. So communication was quite difficult at times. Eventually we just gave up and hired a cab to take us to the terminal. The cab tried to rip us off as usual but we just gave him the amount we agreed on and left. While at the station we were looking for times in which buses were leaving for Trabzon. There was unfortunately only one leaving at seven. We wanted to look around for other bus companies but while we were doing it we just got harassed by employees from every different bus company trying to tell us what we needed to buy, when all Ross and me wanted to do was think. We started telling them in Turkish that we understood, and to literally leave us alone for a bit. As we contemplated, we decided that we weren't going to need buy tickets immediately so we just walked away. This way we could think more clearly about how long we wanted to stay in Tbilisi, and get some lunch.

The lunch we had was unusual but very good. Here is a picture.

Our first place that we both wanted to visit was the castle overlooking the city. Walking there was kind of tricky though since almost every road leading to it was under construction. While walking there though we passed by what seemed to be a predominately Muslim part of town, complete with Turkish Baths. I did ask the owner of the baths if in Georgia, woman could message a male client but she responded in Turkish "Hayir" and I left with my hopes dashed. I wouldn't mind experiencing a Turkish bath sometime, but to get serviced by another male goes a little out of my comfort level.
When we got to the castle area, which was also turned into a park, we realized that this was like the makeout point of Tbilisi for young couples. The park was loaded with young, twenty something couples just enjoying each other in their own private little areas scattered throughout the park. This made walking with Ross extremely awkward. I needed a woman on this part of the trip. It did have a romantic setting. However near the top of the castle we saw a couple going all the way while hiding under a bush. Too bad for them that the bush was right next to the walk way that I was walking on. Ross and I debated as to whether we should continue walking on the path, or to find another path to other side of the fortress. At that point though I figured it didn't matter because they were the idiots that decided to depants right by a walking path and in a public place. So I just walked on by them. They noticed me, which caused the guy to pull up his pants and the girl to pull down her skirt. The glories and follies of youth...

In the same park though we saw Tbilisi's version of the Statue of Liberty except it is referred to as the Mother of Georgia. This 65ft woman holds a bowl of wine in one hand and a sword in the other. Basically this is how you interpret the symbolism. Because Georgia has a history of being invaded and conquered but also a history of defiance and nationalism, Georgia believes that the best defense is to treat all outsiders like guests, which they feed and wine until they become friends. The sword then obviously stands as a warning to potential enemies. Apparently it wasn't very intimidating to the Russians.
The castle was very impressive though. I was under the impression that invaders of all sorts probably wouldn't want to invade Tbilisi unless they had a weapon derived from gunpowder because it would be very difficult to overtake its position on the hill overlooking the city and its location near the river. It was fun to climb up the walls though. The path Ross and I took to get to another section had to bypass the walls of the keep. Thankfully there were some places where I could put my foot and fingers in, so I climbed up and over. Ross had some difficulty since he doesn't climb much, but he got over with only a little help. The view from the top was great. You could see the parts of the city that are remnants of the soviet era, which were primarily located on the edges of the city.

After that, we crossed a good portion of the city to see the Holy Trinity Church, the second largest Eastern Orthodox Christian Church. The largest is in Moscow. It is a symbol of the Georgian Resurrection, unity and immortality. Parts of the complex are still under construction but most of it is finished. Some of the walls still need to be painted. This church however is still breathtaking. The height of the cathedral, which can hold up to 15,000 people is 85m and towers over the entire city. This is without a doubt a doubt one of the largest structures in all of Georgia (What does that say about the culture of Georgia as compared to the US?). Inside the church is a great collection of new and old paintings of specific angels, the Holy Virgin Mary, and of Jesus. This was however a place for worship, not for tourism. Our presence was tolerated as long as we remained respectful.
After the visit to the church, the weather turned from being sunny to having thunderstorms. We ran back to the hotel. On the way, we both decided however that we both missed Turkey and that we both didn't want to spend money for one more night in a hotel. So we got our stuff at the hotel at around 6:30pm, called a cab that came at 6:55 to take us to bus terminal for a bus that was leaving at 7:00.

I wish I could say more about this day, but I am currently studying for finals.