As we walked down one of the main streets we passed many theaters, the post office, schools, office buildings, and the Parliament building. We met up with Big George, another former FLEX student who did an exchange with the FFA in California. George and Sesili were amazing guides, giving us both historical facts and cultural commentary ... George knew all the best places to eat!
We have so many pictures, we'll have to explain them through several posts. But here are a few highlights:
The Churches: There are so many of them! Georgia's primary religion is Christian Orthodox. Today was St. George's day, so the churches were flooded with people, and we saw several people in traditional Georgian clothing. Some churches were build in the 16th century, while the most modern cathedral was built just two years ago. All were extremely beautiful, with soaring architecture and intricate icons made of gold and colored stones. The church service itself lasts from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. It is very ritualistic with the priest leading people in prayers and songs. And there are no pews--everyone stands. People can light candles and say special prayers in front of one of the many icons of the saints. Women wear skirts and cover their heads. Everyone makes a sign of the cross when entering, and then exit facing backwards, again making the sign of the cross.
Some of the churches are nestled in between old buildings, while others are high on hills overlooking the city. We took a taxi only to the new cathedral, the rest we walked to ... and got a lot of exercise (we might be sore in the morning). It was worth it though for the amazing views!
The Baths: Below are pictures of the outside and inside of the sulfer baths. You can rent out a room at one of the baths to relax and refresh your skin (although the smell was anything but refreshing ... it was reminiscent of hard boiled eggs).
The Bread: The bread here is delicious. We walked down a flight of narrow dark stairs to an underground bakery where they sell traditional fresh-baked bread for about 50 cents per loaf. The bakers pressed out a ball of dough into a tennis-racket shape and then used a wooden paddle to slap it onto the side of a stone oven (see below). The resulting loaf has a thin and crispy outer crust and chewy inside. The flavor is a little salty, almost like sourdough.
We sat down in a small park to enjoy our bread before moving on.
After a three hour nap back at the hotel, we ended the day with iced coffee with icecream and hot chocolate at a local cafe.
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