The Grain and Grape

We’ve long wanted to visit the country of Georgia—especially since Rob is from the other Georgia—so this year we decided to spend Thanksgiving in Tbilisi. After a full day of flying, we touched down just in time for our holiday “feast” of grilled lamb and local wine, a deliciously unconventional Thanksgiving dinner.

Exploring Tbilisi

Georgia is 3+ hours from central European time, so we enjoyed being up late, then having a leisurely sleep-in. On our first night, we enjoyed our Thanksgiving dinner of a grilled lamb plate, sitting outside under a heat lamp. Then, strolling through Old Town, we found MacLaren’s Irish Pub and shared a table, and lots of laughs, with new friends visiting from India.

Tbilisi’s Old Town is small and very walkable, despite the crazy cobblestones, and mostly pedestrian-only. Within Old Town, it’s one interesting neighborhood after another to explore.

We rode a Cable Car up the mountain to the setting of the Mtatsminda Amusement Park. We were with only a handful of visitors to this big park, a spooky experience. The empty rides and stalls played carnival music, and the haunted house was especially haunting, hearing screams from inside, but no one in sight. During warmer weather, the Funicular is another option to reach this mountaintop park.

The Cable Cars also take visitors up another mountain to the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue. With the valley smothered in thick smog and the fortress wrapped in scaffolding, we decided to admire both from below and spend our time wandering Old Town instead.

Old Town is a wonderful mix of churches, synagogues, museums, shops, and relaxing restaurants. We found the famous picturesque Marionette Theater, right beside the Basilica, in time to see an Angel come out of the clock tower and ring the bell at the top of the hour.

Wine Tasting in Georgia

There are very interesting looking wineries in Tbilisi, and the best one is Vinoground. We tasted wines in a 17th century cellar, a storybook setting. We tried red, white, and amber Georgian wines. Each one better than the last, while our sommelier hosted us like we were old friends. He also gave us the hot tip of visiting the Dry Bridge Market the next day.

Treasure Hunting in Tbilisi

The Meidan Bazaar is a must-see in Old Town, a museum of amazing treasures displayed in the original bazaar underground space. Although nothing there is for sale, it prepared us for what we might see at the largest and best flea market in Tbilisi – Dry Bridge Market. Spread out over several blocks was an eclectic mix of antiques, Soviet relics, vintage and craftwork, everything so unique to Georgia’s history. Next time we’ll have to come back with a Transit van for all the treasures we could buy!

Traditional Georgian Cooking Class

We spent a fun afternoon at a cooking class in Tbilisi, making Khinkali (meat dumplings) and Kachapuri (cheesy bread). Both surprisingly easy to make, and very delicious.

The weather was warm enough that we could sit outside for most of our meals, at least under heat lamps. Everywhere we went, the food was hearty and comforting—stews of lamb, veal, chicken, or beef served in clay pots, or plates of grilled meats and vegetables always hit the spot.

One More Day

If we had one more day to travel, we would book a day trip to see the scenic countryside and do a tasting in wine country. We didn’t have time for a full day trip on this visit, but other travelers we met seemed to really enjoy their tours.

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We had a wonderful time on our Thanksgiving in Tbilisi!

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Tbilisi Logistics

Flights from Germany	Turkish Airlines: Stuttgart – Istanbul, Istanbul – Tbilisi Reverse for return flights Excellent service from Turkish Airlines, TV’s at every seat, and a meal served on each flight
Where we Stayed	Ibis Styles Old Tbilisi Great room, people, price, and location!
Tbilisi Irish Pubs	MacLaren’s Irish Pub – good Guinness pour, live music Pub 44 – good Guinness pour, we sat outside
Wine Tasting	Vinoground Wine tasting in an old cellar with entertaining and friendly wine maker; if the weather is nice it would also be lovely to sit outside Highly Recommend!!
Good to Know	Phones: Use an eSim, our provider’s international phone plan did not work off WiFi Plug-in: same as Europe Currency: Georgian Lari, Euros are also accepted, bring money to exchange for Lari, there are more money exchange shops than ATMs Visiting Churches: Women must wear a long skirt and cover their heads to enter many of the churches Language: Most people speak English as well as other languages; many signs are in both English and Georgian Time zone: GET, Georgia Time, +4 from London, +9 from New York Use bottled water only!

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