We arrived at Tbilisi airport at 10.00 am local time. Georgia is four hours ahead of British time. It took a little while to get through customs. Forms appeared which we had to fill in, these seemed to be totally ignored by customs. Fellow travellers Ken and Meg were taken aside and interrogated. I think Ken went to get help, but Meg was kept hostage in case he did not come back. All turned out well and we all boarded a bus to be taken to our hotel. This was a worry, being an Explore virgin, I was not sure if this ex USSR bus was going to be the mode of transport for the rest of the week.

The hotel was good and, and had large rooms. Bar and restaurant at the top of the building. This is a picture of the hotel, with the coach, Ken and Meg about to board.

The streets of Tbilisi were lined with poplar trees, the street the hotel was on was no exception.

During the afternoon, we took a trip around Tbilisi. We took some taxis down to the town and walked through the old part of town. Visited a couple of museums, the Museum of Fine Arts and the State Museum of Georgia.

The Museum of Fine Arts had many Christian icons from the 7th century onwards. There was also a large collection of modern art. This art was a great insight into how the country lived during the 20th Century. Rosemary was not so sure.

The State Museum was a secure museum because we were to see lots of gold found at Archeological sites throughout Georgia. Much of this gold came from the 3rd millennium BC. There were fantastic necklaces and diadems. Some tiny figures had gold coins in their mouths. On this visit, we had a very well-spoken guide who spoke English.

That evening we had a meal in the hotel:

• Soup
• Meatballs
• Salad
• Water Melon