Georgia

Georgia

The drop in living standard is apparent immediately you enter Georgia. The road infrastructure is in dire need of repair and abandoned buildings are simply left to fall to the ground.
Good roads are a definite plus when you are dealing with suicidal drivers. With all the ducking and weaving you don't know whether they are dodging holes in the road, they're pissed, or they're stoned.

That's the Turkish Georgian border up ahead. It took a while to get out of Turkey only cause there was no-one at the customs post so we waited with Iranian and Georgian truck drivers for half an hour. After the Georgian formalities it was off up the road to buy our third party insurance at a tiny little building at a service station.

There are very few trees in the countryside so villagers dry cow dung for burning in the winter.

The roads near the southern border were the worst we had encountered in all our travels around the world including Africa.
Fortunately they improved a little as we drove north.

The country houses often have a stone building half in the ground with a turf roof for their animals in the winter.

Khertvisi Fortress impressive high on an outcrop at a river junction.

Vardzia is an ancient cave community with Monastery, Churches and dwellings set in a cliff overlooking a river. 

Our wild camp site down stream from the Vardzia cave dwellings

We assumed these were gas pipes which were all above ground, over roads and driveways. Armenia was the same.

The appalling roads were worse in the villages with trucks and cars zig zagging all over the road trying to find the least damaging route.

More cow dung drying for burning.

Churches were often built on hilltops for the most impact.

This church was in a small mountain village and had beautifully carved arches.

Typical early morning sight, cows being shepherded to their daily pasture. 

A lovely Dutch couple and the first Overlanders we had met in four months. They had a Sprinter camper converted to a six wheel drive.

Small castles dotted the countryside.

Many of these unique Georgian churches.

In some areas you'd pass about ten small stalls selling large ear shaped bread, each with a small oven inside.

Filling our outside washing water tank from one of hundreds of roadside springs.

Here we go again. The Georgian Turkish border on the Black Sea. They didn't like our Vicroads document either.