Cathedrals of Tao

Day 1, May 19, Tbilisi
Guests arriving at the Tbilisi international airport (TBS) will be met by chauffeur and transported
to a boutique hotel in downtown Tbilisi. The first organized activity will be a champagne toast at 6:30pm, followed by a welcome banquet at 7pm.

Day 2, May 20, Tbilisi

We know that you’ll be excited to explore the fascinating capital city of Tbilisi, founded in the
fifth century and retaining many important historical buildings. After visits to the impressive, newly renovated National museum, there will be a walking tour of Old Town, featuring visits to the Catholic church, several Georgian Orthodox churches, an Armenian church, the one remaining historical mosque, one synagogue, the historic Persian baths, and the Narikala fortress. Option to
attend Vespers service at 5pm to hear traditional chanting, or go off exploring on your own!

Day 3, May 21, Borjomi
Departing Tbilisi, we’ll travel West to explore the UNESCO heritage sites in Mtskheta, Georgia’s ancient capital city. After lunch, we continue west to tour the cave city of Uplis-tsikhe (1500 BC), and eventually into the Borjomi National Park, where we’ll spend one night.

Day 4, May 22, Artanuji (Turkey)
After traveling south, we cross the border into Turkey and steadily climb the flanks of the Anatolian plateau until above tree line (7500 feet). Here we’ll picnic, then cross another high mountain pass and stop at the renowned Tbeti Monastery, surrounded by forests and meadows,
one of the most important eccleasistical centers in the region. New chant texts translated in Jerusalem and Greece were approved for distribution to the wider Georgian Orthodox church by scholar-abbots who convened at councils at Tbeti. In the late 19th century, Ekvtime Taqaishvili photographed and documented the status of the cathedral. Unfortunately, arsonistsm blew up the dome of the church in the 1950s. The ornamental stonework seen on the remaining walls is impressive, the site magnificent. After winding through a narrow canyon,we arrive to arrive at the village of Artanuji, once the capital city of King Ashot of Klarjeti. On a natural promontory above the town, his citidel still dares the intrepid hiker to scale its walls.

Day 5, May 23, Trabzon

Today we drive the Black Sea coast to Trabzon. Along the way, we’ll see the 10th church of Dolisqana, the city of Artvin built on a steep hillside, an impressively large hydro-electric dam, the British tea plantations near Borchka, and the medieval Rize Fortress overlooking the Black Sea. Trabzon itself is now a bustling city at the center of a developing region in Turkey.
Its history stretches back 4000 years to a time when bronzeage settlers defended the rocky outcrop between two river ravines. Later, a safe port for Greek trader ships gave birth to a merchant capital city. The city become an important and wealthy fief state during the Byzantine era, and especially in the 14th-15th centuries. We will avoid the coastal resorts in favor of staying in the old city center.

Day 6, May 24, Trabzon
Our destination today is the renowned Sumela monastery, a historic Greek-Byzantine cliffside hermit’s retreat that later blossome into a large-scale monastery following the model of similar monasteries built on Mount Athos in Greece. Almost unassailable in its cliffedge position, the monastery has served both as a place of ascetic retreat and a defensive bulwark against invasion. In the afternoon, we will explore other nearby sites, leaving time for exploring Trabzaon itself, especially the Hagia Sophia church in the center of Old Town. A number of excellent restaurants should offer a range of excellent Pontic-Turkish coastal cuisine.

Day 7, May 25, Yusufeli
Today we drive back over the mountain range to explore th cathedrals of the kingdom of Tao. Arriving in the town of Yusufeli in the late afternoon, we’ll wind through narrow lanes along rushing streams to find the magnificent 9th c. basilica called Otkhta (a guest favorite location). The basilica is set in a deserted wooded canyon, and receives hardly any visitors despite its incredible size, beauty, remnants of intact frescoes, wonderful carvings, and the ruins of a scriptorium adjacent to the sanctuary. For two nights, we’ll stay at a little oasis of river-side cottages run by our friend - a Georgian host!

Day 8, May 26, Yusufeli

Today we see several of the most magnificent cathedrals of Tao. Our first stop is the 10th c. church of Khakhuli, where the great medieval hymnographer and translator Giorgi the Athonite was raised and educated. The church is still a functioning mosque, thus its roof and infrastructure are
in relatively good shape, the grounds also well cared for. A famous myrical working icon that was kept here through the Ottoman period was taken by the Russians to St. Petersburg in the 19th c. and later brought to Tbilisi, where we will see it in the Fine Arts Museum. Lunch at the Tortum waterfalls! Later, we visit the grandiose Oshki Cathedral, built by Kuropalates King David Bagrationi in the early 10th century.

Day 9, May 27, Kars
Two of the most beautiful monasteries of Tao are seen on this day’s voyage to the East: the Ishkhani cathedral is only reached by climbing a the towering walls of a forbidding
box canyon. At the top, a surprise awaits. A spring irrigates a patch of small fields, and a dense
patch of trees hides one small village - a venerable oasis in the dry canyonlands all around! In the middle of this village stands the magestic 10th c. cathedral, an unexpected jewel. We’ll rest here.

Driving further East, we encounter the ruins of the 9th c. cathedral at Bana (feature photo on brochure cover), a once grandiose clover-shaped cathedral circumnavigated by an arched colonnade. A royal wedding took place here in the year 1032, when a Byzantine princess married the Georgian heir to the throne. The site was fortified into an arsenal by the Ottomans prior to the Russo- Turkish war of 1878, perhaps in hopes that the Christian Russians would not destroy a Christian cathedral. By evening, we will have driven over a high pass onto the Anatolian Plateau, arriving at our hotel in the Russian frontier town of Kars -- now a bustling Turkish university
town famous for ski-resorts and local cheeses. At dinner, bards serenade us with the longnecked
lute called a saz.

John Graham Tours - Cathedrals of Tao cultural tour - Georgia & Turkey Page 10 Day 10, May 28,
Akhaltsikhe (Georgia) First, we climb to the top of the medieval Kars fortress to survey the city. A 12th c. Armenian cathedral is still in good shape below, having been converted into a mosque for several centuries. The grave of a sufi saint nearby is the focus of Shia pilgrimage, while the legacy of the mystic Gurdjieff also lingers on many visitor’s minds. Our focus today is the abandoned
city of Ani, once an Armenian medieval capital with a reported population of 100,000. The city ruins encompass a vast area, allowing for several hours of exploration of its 40 church ruins, impressive battlements, hermit caves, and river canyon vistas. In the afternoon, as we drive north towards Georgia, we stop at the most impregnable fortress in the Caucasus: the Sorcerers’s Citadel.

Defending neither trade route nor city, this fortress perhaps provided a final retreat for Queen Tamar’s court (and perhaps her burial place) during the Mongol invasions of the early 13th c. Just over the Georgian border, we check into our hotel in the Rabat Fortress.

Day 11, May 29, Akhaltsikhe

In the morning, we drive under the shadow of the Tmogvi and Khertvisi fortresses, those that guarded this important trade route through the Caucasus, enroute to the 12th c. Vardzia cave complex. Here Queen Tamar held a summer retreat, and the city was expanded to include 19 stories of cave dwellings on the face of a sandstone cliff. After lunch we’ll have a restful afternoon back in Akhaltsikhe, with an option to take a walk in the Abastumani forests near a Romanov summer residence.

Day 12, May 30, Tbilisi

Our day starts with a visit to the secluded monastic complex at Sapara, where 14th century frescoes
appear as if they’re freshly painted. Our drive to Tbilisi includes passing through the narrow gorges of the Borjomi National Park and into the broad valleys of Kartli. Here we can visit churches, museums, fortresses, or just make a beeline for Tbilisi depending on our mood. Final banquet in Old Town Tbilisi.

Day 13, May 31, Tbilisi

Taking advantage of a full day in Tbilisi at the end of the tour, we’ll start with a walking tour of
the 19th century districts, finishing with a visit to the Dry Bridge flea market where all manner of
art, trinkets, and books are sold. After lunch, we’ll have a chance to take a refurbished funikular
to the top of a commanding hill above Tbilisi for some of the best views of the city. We’ll also
have time for last minute souvenir and carpet shopping before our final banquet with singers in
the evening!

Day 14, June 1, Tbilisi

Breakfast at the hotel, airport transfers as necessary. If you have extra hours, you can stow your
luggage at the hotel to continue exploring the city on foot.