28th of May, 2022.
Not many cars are passing, and the ones which are, do not give me a good vibe, as I would get out of here soon. But I am wrong! In about 10 minutes, Lugo stop his van and ask if it is only me. What is it with people asking that? Can’t you see me alone standing in here? Anyway, I tell him I cannot pay him for the lift and he seems a bit disappointed but accept to take me anyway.
Lugo does not speak English so we don’t talk much for the over three hours it takes to get to Mestia. The way it is absolutely astonishing! I have no idea what I am going to see in Mestia but honestly, this gorgeous way to it already worth it! It is truly beautiful! And very similar to Switzerland and Austria. Big and fatty wonderful mountains are showing off all over the place. It makes a beautiful contracts with the shinning green of the fields and trees plus the blue sky, full of fatty and snow white clouds. It is so pretty that you cannot put all this beauty in a photograph.
And let’s talk about the fact that I get one direct lift to Mestia. I didn’t think that could happen. Yay! We make a stop a little before Mestia, in a Monastery where Lugo needs to drop some stuff. He is delivering things. Next stop is in Mestia.
But let’s talk more about the view. It is seriously pretty! I still cannot believe I haven’t heard more about this Svneti region. People have told me about Georgia and its nature, but come on! You have to be more specific! The Svneti region is like a paradise in Earth! And there are these cute and tiny villages at the bottom of the mountains. How lucky are the people living there!
I ask for a free bread in the first bakery I find. There is an elderly man working in there and he has an eye made of glass. He also has some strong features, as he is in a bad mood, but he gives me the bread without hesitating.
I sit by the park and eat my bread with the tiny piece of cheese I brought with me from Zugdidi. I drop off me backpack in a local cafe, fill up my bottle in a fountain, and go to explore the town.
Mestia itself does not surprises me much. In somehow I was expecting that. I had the feeling that it would be just another touristic town. It is cute but I don’t see why you should stop here instead of in any other small town or village nearby.
There are though, not so far from here and reachable by a hiking trail, some pretty cool lakes, called Koruldi Lakes, and for what I see in the photographs in an informative board, they look gorgeous. I would love to go there. But the it is almost 10 Km one way and, as they say in the board, all the way up. I am sure if you are prepared and start early in the morning it is totally possible to do it and probably it worth it. It seems to me that most of the walk it is through the forest, which sounds amazing, right? Ah… only if I have read about this before.
So yeah, there are a few museums in town, and when you go up towards the Ethnographic museum, which is also the way to the Koruldi Lakes, you can have some views from town and a very famous tourist attraction: Svan Towers. They are very popular and were build for protection against the enemy and natural disasters, like avalanches.
I don’t have to walk much to get out of town but it is uphill so I get quite exhausted. But the view of the mountains from the road is also quiet astonishing! I don’t know about the rest of Georgia, but this region is so pretty!
Where will I camp? At first, it seems all hilly, so no flat surfaces where I can pinch my tent. But suddenly I see an area where the pine trees seem to be aligned. And it is not so steep to go up as well so I take my chances.
I first get to a small flat area, green grass, big enough for my tent and some extra space. But when I drop the hulk down and go check a bit further, I found a bigger place, also quite flat, all green and clean, without real traces of human being except for one plastic bottle of coke, which seems to be here for quite some time. I believe that this area is used for the people who do the maintenance of the power towers nearby here. And for the way the place is clean, even though I am a bit reluctant to remain here because it seems too good to be true, I don’t believe anyone has come or will come here tonight. So I vote for staying.
Even before starting my camping (not only to enjoy the daylight and the fresh air but also because I am thinking that if somebody shows up, at least I haven’t started my camping yet, so I can just leave), I carry on reading one of the books which was given to me in Zugdidi: A little war that shook the world, by Ronald D. Asmus.
When the sun disappear behind a mountain I make my camping. I have some more of my bread, this time plain, and as a reward for that (even though I love the taste of this bread), I eat a small chocolate cake I have bought with my last Georgian coins.
I have a peaceful and great night of sleep.
