July 18, 2011
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The Silk Road Overland
Thursday 14 July 2011
This is my third day in Georgia and yet again I had an embassy visit on the agenda for the morning. Our hostess Dodo – at Dodo’s Homestay – is great. She helped me get a taxi for the Kazakh Embassy. She even made the taxi driver wait while I was finishing my tea.When the Kazakh Consulate in Dubai suddenly stopped processing visas for a week – just after I had applied for a Kazakh visa – they promised they would send the visa electronically to any embassy in the world once it was available. So, this morning I went to the Kazakh Embassy to pick up my already approved visa. When I arrived at the embassy I was told that under normal circumstances this would not be a problem, but since the Consul was away for a week, I would have to wait seven days.
Once again, I felt how my whole Silk Road Overland project hung in the balance. With only a Kyrgyz visa and a promise of an Uzbek visa, I don’t really have anything. The entry into China is via Kazakhstan, and if I’m to visit Uzbekistan overland (provided I get the visa), I also need the Kazakh visa. So, without a Kazakh visa I’m stuck.
Anyway, just before I was about to leave the Kazakh Embassy empty-handed, I asked how long it would take to apply for a fresh visa and was told “probably one day”. I can wait for a visa for one day but not eight, so I quickly filled in a fresh application form.
For the first time since coming to Georgia, I then finally had some time to have a look at Tbilisi this afternoon. I very soon found the bookshop I had bee told about – called Prospero’s – and lo and behold they sold copies if the Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan LonelyPlanet guide! As soon as I walked out of the bookshop, I was walking the Lonely Planet city walk. Much if thus walk takes you through the old town, and I saw a completely different side to the quite drab parts of the city I had seen already. Great little alleyways and very interesting churches.
When I rang the Kazakh Embassy in the afternoon, I was told my visa would be ready for pickup tomorrow morning at 10.00. Good news! Now, I have at least something of a Silk Road tour – though having to skip Azerbaijan (and as a consequence the ferry trip across the Caspian Sea and the opportunity to apply for a transit visa for Turkmenistan), I will probably have to remove the word “overland” from my trip. The reality is that I will probably have to fly directly to Almaty in Kazakhstan from Armenia.
Anyway, my Silk Road trip has not collapsed – yet.
The Silk Road Overland
Friday 15 July 2011
As this was our last day in Georgia – Bahrom has seen a lot of Georgia already! – I decided to join him on his DIY-trip to Davit Gareja as soon as I got my visa, instead of trying to “catch up with him” and go to Mtskheta, where he went two days ago (these are two of the Must Sees in Georgia).Good choice! I got the visa on time. In fact, the friendly lady at the Kazakh Embassy said “sorry” again and again, feeling apologetic for the fact that I had to pay twice for the same visa. What a difference to the rude behaviour and incomprehensible visa requirements at the Azerbaijani Embassy! The trip to Davit Gareja took two and a half hours – the last hour in a taxi driving along very poor gravel roads in the border area with Azerbaijan. And when we got to the first monastery in Davit Gareja, Larva, what a gem!
We also walked up into the mountains to another church, though the most gorgeous scenery. This church was at the very border of Azerbaijan – literally metres from the fence. The fact that our taxi driver told us afterwards that we have walked to the “wrong” site mattered little.
In the evening we took the night train to Yerevan in Armenia. I thought the old Soviet-style sturdy sleeper cars were wonderful (Bahrom didn’t), with their two layers of frilly curtains and stuff. The border crossing was surprisingly quick. The only problem was that train had no restaurant car and I only had water and some dry bread.
Needless to say, I slept like a baby, I always do on trains.
