I had an appointment in Lisbon. It’s a 3 hour drive so I decided to spend the weekend and purchased tickets to Belem Tower and Jeronimos Monastery in advance for Saturday. I had visited both these sites my very first time in Lisbon, in 2004, when I was visiting with my daughter. I had also purchased tickets to both sites a year and a half ago when I was on a longer road trip of central Portugal. When I arrived…
After saying goodbye to Zezva, Colin, Kylie, and Bjorn in Tbilisi, Garik drove us to the Armenian border. We were able to leave our bags on the van this time but had to walk through passport control. Garik and our new guide, Manya, met us after we all went through immigration. There was a big market, or welcome center, on the border so many of us also changed money or used the ATM. I had verified the exchange rate, over…
We met Zezva, our great guide for Georgia, and Garik, our driver, after crossing the Azerbaijan border and passing customs and passport control. Recommendations Khareba Winery Tsinandali Estate Sighnaghi Bodbe Monastery Metekhi Church Narikala Fortress Rike Park Bridge of Peace Shavteli Street Rezo Gabriadze Puppet Theater and Tower Anchiskhati Basilica Sioni Street Sioni Cathedral Meidan Market Anunuri Fortress Kazbegi Gergeti Holy Trinity Church We drove to a small local restaurant and winery, the Chateau Re-Vazis Marani soon after arriving in…
I was going to use ExploreWorldWide again but their trip was quite expensive so I looked for alternatives for a tour of the Caucasus countries. Some searching found Cascade Travel, a local travel agency in Armenia. I booked the 13-day trip through Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia. “The itinerary begins in Baku, Azerbaijan, continues through Georgia, and ends in Armenia. This route ensures smooth border crossings. Starting in Azerbaijan helps you avoid these problems. That’s one reason we structure our Caucasus…