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Kutaisi...the second "city"

At first sight, Kutaisi does not look promising. the bus station lies a fair distance from the centre, in a high-rise suburb, and strangely the bus station is silent as soon as the bus leaves. There was just no one around, and I didn't really have a clue where I was! It was more humid here than in Tbilisi, so by the time I'd walked the few kilometres into town, I was dripping in sweat. I had a brief look at the central ex-Intourist Hotel, but it did not look promising from the outside, even less so on the inside, so I decided to try a homestay, picking one of the names recommended in my guidebook. Lali Jalaghania's house on Ukimerioni hill across the Rioni river from Kutaisi sounded like the best bet, and it turned out to be a fantastic place to stay. Lali doesn't speak a word of English, but we managed to have some lengthy conversations with a little help from my Georgian phrasebook! I was not the only guest this time, as two British cyclists had arrived an hour before, so we spent that night comparing notes about other places in Georgia while gorging ourselves on a delicious meal, washed down with a little too much local wine!

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The view from Lali Jalaghania's house. Lali charges $20 per night, including enormous breakfasts and evening meals, and one of the hottest showers in Georgia.

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The main sight in Kutaisi is Bagrati Cathedral on a hill overlooking the city. It is undergoing serious restoration work, but this does not mean it is covered in the vile scaffolding which blights a thousand monuments in European cities...no, Bagrati was covered in very basic wooden ladders with not a single electric tool in use. In fact, the restoration work adds to the charm of the place.

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The cathedral is just too big to fit in a camera lens, so you'll have to make do with these odd shots of various walls and belltowers!

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A large stone cross stands on the hillside with great views over the city beneath.

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The overall impression of Kutaisi is that it is a sleepy kind of place. It is hard to believe that this is Georgia's second city, as it seems to be something of a backwater. Due to the weather (humid and wet), Kutaisi seemed a damp and mouldy place, dilapidated but all the more likeable for that.

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To the north, you'll come across a huge dam forming a reservoir...the waterside suburbs seem almost tropical (I don't know why I think that, as I've never been anywhere tropical in my life...just the corrugated iron roofs and the green hills made me think tropical!).

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On a smaller hill just north of Kutaisi's tiny Jewish Quarter is a small Russian Orthodox Church, easily spotted due to the onion domed bell towers. The church was locked on my visit, but the cemetary is worth wondering in to see the bizarre headstones, and also to admire the view back to Bagrati Cathedral.