Friendship, food, and dancing, Georgian style

The connections my family re-kindled and made while in Georgia were filled with warmth, dancing, singing, wine and long toasts of appreciation. I want to use this post to share about Georgian food, friendship, and dancing through photos and videos. Every night our hosts in every city treated us to all of the Georgian food there is and taught us how to dance. We drank wine and chacha! I haven't even mentioned chacha yet?! Chacha is a brandy which is also called "grape vodka" and we were offered shots of this everywhere we went. Georgians love their cheese and bread, too. Eggplant and pomegranate seeds also make it into many dishes. The best way to eat at the table is for the plates to keep stacking on top of each other for everyone to see just how much food the table has eaten! And of course, the whole night is devoted to making long toasts led by a toast master.

Remember how everyone has their own wine?
Valeriy called his first wine #1 for his first grandson. Roma.

First lunch complete with Georgian cheese, salad, bread. Reminds you of Turkish breakfast, no?

on the left: Soup Kharcho which was my favorite - a lamb soup.
on the right: Khashi soup - a tripe soup

I love pickled cabbage.

Savva drinking chacha and wine with locals at the Dry Bridge Bazaar.

Nothing like day time chacha shots with strangers who welcome you quickly.

That time we drank wine and ate cake at a dental office.

Beka's mom, me, Eteri, my mom, Tamara (Tamara's daughter)

You won't understand it, but we are the Tverskiye Gruzini.

Churchkhela is a traditional Georgian sausage-shaped candy.
The main ingredients are grape must, nuts, and flour.

Churchkhela and fruits sold in Tbilisi

First dinner with the Russians and Georgians.
Valeriy and Eteri really took great care of us.

The danced, sang, and ate together 30 years ago, now for a repeat.

Learn to dance in Tbilisi

Delicious eggplant rolls with walnuts sprinkled with pieces of pomegranate.
Badridzhani nigvsit

Every night is a night to celebrate friendship, love, and Georgia!

Cornmeal producing mechanism

Nothing like a private tour of this Georgian restaurant in Tbilisi

Khinkali - Georgian dumplings. They are huge!

Masha and Savva!

When all the kids went out together and the parents cried from joy.

Long lost sisters. Tamara and Dasha.

Fun times on the Bridge of Peace

Savva and Eteri getting ready to dig into khachapuri in the Ajarian style.
Bread. Cheese. Egg. Dig in.

Khachapuri in the Megruli style

Meat was a rarity at the table. 

This is elarji a cornmeal/Sulgani cheese dish. It is delicious.

Wine, tarragon drink, and Georgian food in Ankalia.

Masha playing with elarji.

Toasts with the drinking horn

Vepha drinking white wine like a boss.

Women do not drink from the horn.

The dancing begins!

Vepha gave me a run for my money with his dance moves!

Below are photos and videos of the Erisioni Ensemble and Choir performing at the Tbilisi Concert Hall. Enjoy they costumes and how the men jump and dance with swords, while the women exude elegance and poise with every movement.

  

Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia

Tbilisi is the capital of Georgia (Sakartvelo) and is its largest city with a population of 1.1 million. (Kutaisi is the second largest city in Georgia with a population of 200,000 - quite the difference.) Cobblestone streets spread out in mazed while the Kura River (named 'Mtkvari' in Georgian) runs peacefully through the city center as well. Once called Tifilis, Tbilisi means "warm place" due to the legend of the founding of this city. The legend goes that King Vakhtang was hunting in the woods and caught a falcon. However, when he tried to find the bird it was nowhere to be seen and he agreed to award big money and recognition to the person who could find this bird. After a few days, the bird was found cooked in the hot springs in the area. The King was so impressed that he set out to create a city on this amazing land in the year 479 A.D. The hot springs are now the site of the sulfur stinky baths. The city became the capital in the early 500s, taking away that honor from Mtskheta.

After a 20 hour flight experience with a layover in Istanbul, we arrived in Tbilisi around 5am.

Sunrise over Tbilisi!

The view by day.

Niko Pirosmani is the most popular Georgian artist.
His art is everywhere, i.e. this is the Feast of the Three Noblemen,
which is also the name of the restaurant our friend owns.

Pirosmani was alive and active between 1862-1918. His art is used everywhere and he captures the Georgian culture and rural life quite accurately, for example in the painting above the men are dressed in traditional Georgian garb and drinking wine out of horns at the dinner table. 

Valeriy and my dad reunited after almost 30 years!

My dad and Valeriy 30 years ago. *insert laughing to tears face here*

Georgian Sparkling Drink in tarragon flavor

Savva getting in on that Khachapuri in the Megruli style.

Tbilisi, Georgia

Street signs

Georgian and Russian meet to honor a Georgian chemist and metallurgist.

I love my brother! And we love Georgia!

First look at the Caucasus Mountains in the distance!

All over Georgia we saw people doing tricks in their cars!

Sunlight peaking through on Rustaveli Avenue

Georgian National Opera and Ballet Theater.
Wish we could have gone inside and seen more of the Moorish style

Dad and art

Just your average street.

Freedom Square is the beginning of Rustaveli Avenue.
Rustaveli is the center of Tbilisi with theaters, government buildings, and shopping spots. 

Elegant dancers

Ah, Tbilisi streets.

Theater!

Just like in Turkey, there are orange and pomegranate juice stands. Delicious!

Weddings were the main event that Sunday with people driving around and
honking their horns in celebration of a new marriage!

Walking The Bridge of Peace

Kura River with a view of Narikala Fortress

Then our friends joined us! Welcome Sasha, Valya, my mom, Jenya, Masha, and me!
Jenya and Valya have been friends with my parents for almost 40 years!
Masha, you may remember, from Philadelphia and DC jaunts.

View of Tbilisi with it's futuristic structures made to look like mushrooms (Tbilisi Public Service Hall)
and metal Georgian jar-tunnel looking things which is a defunct project

My travel companions. Get ready for the group photos, guys.

My dad and Jenya have been friends for 40 or more years.

Kura River with a statue of King Vakhtang - the king who made Tbilisi the capital

"One day you will ask me what I love more: you or wine. I will answer that I love wine more.
You will get upset and leave. Sad that you wont be leaving to pick up some wine."

"You cannot buy happiness but you can buy wine which is basically the same thing."

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

The grounds of Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

Epic photography skills

She was calling us her sweet honeys and other grandma type nicknames.

So much interesting architecture!

Parts of Narikala Fortress

Hi, mama!

Tbilisi Funicular

Being familial on the funicular

Group shot with our super tour guide.

Ew, my parents are kissing in the Narikala Fortress.

The group at the Narikala Fortress overlooking Tbilisi.

Masha is so epic.

Holy Trinity Cathedral from old Tbilisi

Old Tbilisi layers

Can you see the hidden waterfall?

Hidden waterfall called Tbilisi Waterfall

This is to capture our stubbornness over who is the smartest.
Tbilisi waterfall.

Georgian baths under the sulfuric hot springs.

Shhhh we're in front of the Georgian baths.

We spent a couple hours at the Georgian bath house.

Wine bottles dressed in traditional Georgian outfits!

Little brother enjoying a soda and a view of Tbilisi.

The Dry Bridge Bazaar is a huge flea market in Tbilisi featuring antiques, paintings,
Georgian specific items, and all sorts of knick knacks.

Dry Bridge Bazaar

Dry Bridge Bazaar

Dry Bridge Bazaar

Father and daughter eating khachapuri in the ajarski style.

Our Georgian family (Valeriy, Eteri, Beka, and Tamara) on our last day.

Georgian dancers are pretty fantastic.

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

The bath houses and Narikala Fortress by night

View of Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi in the background.

Group shot in front of Tbilisi!

I love the Bridge of Peace at night.

Good night, Tbilisi.