From Turkey we continued our trek around the Black Sea into Tblisi, Georgia. We had not planned on going to Georgia and neither of us knew very much at all about the country or the people.
Last comment 04/19/22.

Ed was excited to visit a Georgian church and purchase an icon.

We were pleasantly surprised by a lot of things in Georgia.
Last comment 04/19/22.

The people were so friendly and the countryside was stunning.
Last comment 10/13/14.

All that I knew of the country was that it was a former Soviet Republic and that it was at war with Russia in 2008, and the border with Russia was still tense.
Last comment 07/05/18.

As far as we could tell from our internet research, the border was supposed to be closed to anyone except for Russians, Georgians, Armenians, and Azerbaijanis.

We fully expected to be turned around at the border, but given how incredible the scenery was in the Caucasus mountains enroute, I was ok with being stuck there for a while.
Last comment 04/19/22.

The weather must get pretty intense at this altitude in the winter, there were tunnels at the side of many places of this road.
Last comment 04/19/22.

The Georgian border guard confirmed that Russian border was closed to westerners, but said that we could go and try if we wanted. When we got to the Russian side, no one spoke English and the mood was pretty tense. Another traveler came up and introduced himself in excellent English, and I explained to him about the rally and how we were trying to donate the car to a charity in Mongolia. He spoke to the guards for a few minutes, and after that the mood completely changed. I filled out the paperwork as Ed was plied with coffee and pastries, and offered a shot of vodka. We made it through!
Last comment 11/23/20.