The toughest day was followed by some less tough days. From Tsana the road got easier. The biggest problem was that because of the rainy days it was very muddy and puddles took completely the road from one edge to the other. The most interesting were the different tracks in the mud. We saw a bike track so probably somebody went down from the pass just before us but unfortunately we have never met. Then we saw bear foot print or at least we thought it was that. A little bit later we found horse track which was already a good sign that people live somewhere near but we got even more certain about this when we saw the first cows after 40km. The signs were not lying, after a few km’s we really entered the first living village. We saw a strange kind of transportation method, it was a big sled like Santa has but instead of reindeer it was pulled by 2 cows and it was sliding in the mud. We proceeded in the mud slowly.
Muddy road
Once we reached a river which went through the road, it over swelled probably because even cars couldn’t get through it. When we got there some bulldozers were working on the road, it took a few hours until it got ready. That evening just when we were looking for a place for our tent a car stopped next to us and asked where we were from, where we went etc. We told we wanted to pitch our tent and so they immediately invited us to stay at their place. It turned out that our host was a police in Lentekhi. Again there was no bathroom in the house, only one tap outside in the garden. We had dinner with the family and a few neighbors. Georgian people really like to drink their local vodka and also like when the guest drinks a lot. It was impossible to explain that we don’t really want to drink especially that 50-60 % alcohol. However we objected our glasses were filled again and again. So we came up with another tactic, we clinked the glasses and after that we just put down the glass on the table without drinking it. It was not suspicious after a few shots.
Next morning we experienced another over swollen river, even a bus got stuck there but we didn’t wait until the road was built this time, we just walked through it.
No bridge over the river
Good thing that the panniers were waterproof so nothing got wet at all. Finally we reached Lentekhi where suddenly the road was just perfect. Our joy was too early because after a few km’s of the city it got bad again. Anyway it was good to reach Lentekhi because we could by some food (and Nutella of course – Jucus, sorry for making you addicted). Here Felix called the guy from Poti who offered us possibility to get on a ferry for 50 $. The guy said that there will be a ferry in 3 days which was enough for us to get to Poti. This day we also got some rain, cycled hours in actually, even on a pass which surprised us before Tskhunkuri. We couldn’t really find good place for the tent, we almost slept in a cabin but then we discovered some bees’ nest so we had to go on and look for another place. Finally, it was too late so we ended up sleeping in a very windy place which is not good for Felix, we learned that already in Turkey, he feels like that the tent will be blown away. Because of that he was quite mad in the morning and complained about not sleeping enough. As compensation next day we found the best place on the trip so far, I think. It was in a small village, Kutiri. First we wanted to pitch the tent in front of a house on the street which was quite abandoned but then some locals came and told us that we can go in a garden nearby, nobody stayed in the house that time. They said it is better because at the other place we will meet cows in the morning. So we stayed in a nice garden, trees gave shade in the morning, there was a bench where we could cook and we could take a shower from the water-bag in a kind of garage that belonged to the house and was open. The bad thing was that we left the rocks there which Felix collected from the Caucasus and also my comb which was combined with a mirror. Now I have to use Felix’s which is not the same… Later that day, the guy from Poti called and said that the ferry will leave 2 days later than planned so had plenty of time to get to Poti.
That day we had again an interesting accommodation. Again the same thing happened, we looked for a place for our tent when we got invited into a house. There we learned and later saw it as well that usually in a garden there are 2 houses. In the nice big one no one lives, it is empty and it waits only for guests. There is a smaller one in the garden as well, in our case it was composed of 2 rooms, a little kitchen and a living room. Our hosts lived there, a couple, their son and a grandpa. In none of the houses were there any bathrooms but got not surprised about this anymore. We were though wondering how they wash themselves. Especially that most of them, as this family as well, worked with animals. Later we unpacked the bicycle and took the panniers to the room. I saw something running suddenly under the bed but it was so fast and I really saw only for a second I wasn’t sure if I saw it or not. A few minutes later Felix heard some sounds and as he looked there he just saw a rat running up to the roof. That night I had bad dreams because I was afraid that the rat wants to turn back to his room.
We got to Poti one day before the ship left. Felix went to the ticket office to talk to the guy and arrange the trip. It turned out that the price is not 50 $ but the original price plus 50 $. He couldn’t figure out why the extra 50 $ was for then. He felt he was fooled and thought the 2×160 $ is too much. There was a Bulgarian office there as well and they let us use wifi. We checked mails and Felix’s mom sent an email in which she copied opinions about the ferry trips from Poti which frightened me. So finally we came up with a new plan: we go back through Turkey, we will visit Kappadokia and the Mediterranean sea and speed up traveling a bit with hitch-hiking.
What could have happen was that they thought we were asking for normal post address and so they wrote their names what we can write on the envelope. The reason of taking so long to write their own names was that they don’t use latin alphabet. They speak Georgian and Russian but both alphabets are different. We were suprised that Irakli called me 2 and 4 days later in the evening just to ask where we are.
