Date: 17th May 2026ย
Travelled: 160 kms from Tbilisi to Gori return in Georgia ย
Visited: Uplistsikhe Archeological Park and The Stalin Museum
Stayed: Holiday Inn Express, Tbilisi
Today we have taken an optional tour on what was a free day. Our guide informs us the road closures for family day will require us to meet the bus down at the Peace Park so we start with a brisk walk. Once on the coach we escape the city relatively easily.
Visiting the Cathedral yesterday and listening to our guide for a few days now weโre starting to get a feel about Georgia and Georgians. The Georgian Orthodox Church is a significant feature in their lives as is their troubling history of domination by who our guide refers to as โour big brother to the northโ, Russia.
The freeway north-west is smooth and the scenery interesting, we capture some glimpses of the snow caped Caspian mountains on our right. We arrive at the Uplistiskhe Archeological Park and play follow the leader..
Uplistsikhe is the first settled area mentioned in manuscripts dating from the 2nd millennium BC and translates literally in English as โthe fortress of Godโ. The town was an important point on the silk trade route linking Byzantium, India and China.
Nowadays archaeological excavations uncovered several layers dating from the Early Iron Age to the late Middle Ages. Take a walk through the narrow streets carved into sandstone rock, explore the caves, visit several pagan temples and see the Agama lizards that have taken over the abandoned city.
It all starts with a long ascent up series of metal stepsโฆ
The site is huge and we only focus on 4-5 specific areas. Some pagan temples and the chapels and throne room from the Middle Ages. The path through can be difficult at times and itโs slow going for some of our group.
At the crest of the hill the Church of Saint Marys. Late 18th century according to our guide.
All safely back on the coach we backtrack 10 kms back into Gori for lunch and the Stalin Museum.
We could not pass up a visit to the Joseph Stalin Museum. Why would the people of Georgia have a museum dedicated to Stalin. Work on the museum started shortly after Stalinโs death in 1953 when Georgia was a central state of the great Soviet. Stalin grew up here in Gori, his parents simple cottage now part of this grandiose complex.
So when Stalin wasnโt studying to become a priest, being a revolutionary, seizing power and helping forming the Soviet, purging counter-revolutionaries, forming a pact with Germany then partnering with the Allies to defeat the Germany, more purges and lastly sending 1.5 million Soviet citizens to the gulags in Siberia never too return, he was to some a hero.
Our guide tells the family story of his great grandfather who was classmate of Stalin at the seminary. Years later his great grandfather receives a letter personally signed by Stalin warning him to stop associating with critics, ignoring it he received a second letter a month later which he also ignores. Another month later two cars arrive and arrest him.
He is never heard from again.
The final photos, Stalinโs family home. Apparently something is being repaired so it has a 6 foot high metal fence all around so thatโs the best I could get. The second Stalinโs personal rail carriage. Three times the weight of a similar carriage thanks to the heavy armour platting and bullet proof glass.
No photos but it was interesting to walk though. Then back on the coach to Tbilisi.
Another long but very interesting day. We have a shower and a drink in the bar chatting to some of the red team before wandering off to old Tbilisi for dinner. We find this tiny restaurant with seating for 10-12 people. We order some 15 minutes later she walks across the laneway to a house and comes back with our dinner.
The meal was delicious less than A$40 with drinksโฆ
Michael + Pam
