In Tusheti and Svaneti, Georgia

A few weeks ago, I visited my friends Friedrich and Laurie Peloschek and their son Lucas in Rehoboth, Delaware.  They were staying there for one week as part of their main trip to Washington D.C. where they used to live.  When Friedrich retired from the World Bank some years ago, he and his family went to live in Vienna where he originally hailed from.

Friedrich and Laurie in Rehoboth

While I was with them, Friedrich showed me some photos of his trip to the Tusheti  and Swaneti regions in the rugged Caucasus mountains of Georgia, a country which he came to know through his work at the World Bank.  I was so taken with his photos that I asked him to send me some of them.  Here they are--in the order that Friedrich sent them--showing some of the wild and wonderful places he visited in the mountains.

Valley near Pasma

My thanks to Friedrich for his wonderful photos (and the captions which are his).  You should also see the amazing photos of his Himalayan treks, far out heli-skiing in the mountains of Iceland, and sailing adventures on the turbulent waters of South-East England.  Another time, another blog!

Click on “Read more” below to see more photos and learn a little about the Tusheti and Svaneti regions. 

It is always helpful to start with a map.  You will not be able to see too much from this highly reduced map; but you will see it in exquisite detail if you go to: www.tusheti.ge and click on the overall map of Georgia and then click on “Resize”.  That same website will also introduce you to the National Park of Tusheti and give you some background on the geography and history of the region and various tours that you can take.

Map of Tuesheti: Courtesy www.tusheti.ge

As you will see, Tusheti is far off in the north-eastern part of Georgia on the northern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains.  It is crammed up against Chechnya and Dagestan to the north and east; and bordered by the Georgian provinces of Kakheti and Pshav-Khevsureti to the south and west.  Those are wild parts of the world.  Friedrich did not give me a full rundown on the whole trip but he went with two good Georgian friends into some very remote parts, not all of which were suitable for your average tourist--or even average adventurer.  You have to be careful and know exactly where you may or may not be welcome.

 Friendly man with a dog on the horse

 Omalo, the center of Tusheti

Giving our horses a rest in Shenako, Tusheti 

 Highest point of the Abano Pass between Kakheti and Tusheti

 Dartlo, Tusheti

The next photos are from the region of Svaneti, well to the west of Tusheti.  This map shows where Svaneti is in relation to Tusheti.  Once again, you can see a much larger version of this map if you go to:

http://wikitravel.org/shared/File:Georgia_regions_map2.png

Courtesy: Peter Fitzgerald, commons:User:Pmx

 Mount Shkhara, under veil of clouds seen from the bells of Lamaria Church

 Houses en route to Ushguli

Ushguli, in Swaneti, the highest village in Europe

The towers that you see in the photograph above (and elsewhere) served as protection against invaders; and were used as living quarters, fortresses, personal treasuries and places where precious livestock could be protected.  Have a look at: 

http://www.slate.com/blogs/atlas_obscura/2015/03/10/towers_of_ushguli_in_svaneti_georgia.html

Once you start googling the various regions of Georgia, you can spend hours (as I did!) absolutely engrossed by this ancient land and its people.  Here is a photo of Ushguli that I came across in the Georgian Journal.  If you click on:

http://www.georgianjournal.ge/discover-georgia/30436-away-from-the-chaos-the-amazing-mountain-region-of-svaneti.html?slcont=5#my_onnext_page_title

you will find the article from which the photo below was taken.  But if you scroll down further in the Journal, you will find a series of articles about many other beautiful parts of Georgia.  Please take the time to have a look.  You will not be disappointed.  And you can thank Friedrich for introducing us to these amazing regions of Georgia.  When are we going?

Last word.  One of the random things I came across when browsing through all the Georgia websites, was this wonderful group of Georgian dancers who just leave you breathless.  If that doesn’t make your day, I don’t know what will.  Have a look at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujo65bBRQ4I