f the Caucasus Joanna Booth joined an Explore fam trip to Georgia to discover why you should send clients now


DESTINATIONS GEORGIA | ESCORTED TOURS


t travelweekly.co.uk


he music is mesmerising. The complex vocal harmonies rise and fall,


intertwine and almost jar before chiming into accord. The church is nearly empty – just a handful of congregants among the gilded saints and flickering candles. The vaulted ceiling rises high above us, a shaft of light from a narrow window illuminating drifting motes of dust. Outside, swallows dart and


chirrup in a cloudless sky, and we amble alongside a walled vineyard – a living museum of traditional grape varieties,


tended by monks. Friendly dogs outnumber tourists. Here at the rural Alaverdi Monastery, tranquillity is easy to find. The Georgian countryside in spring is astoundingly beautiful. Drive out of the capital, Tbilisi, and tower blocks soon give way to verdant valleys. Rainbows of wildflowers blow in the meadows and you’ll see more cows than Costa Coffees. Flocks of sheep are still guarded by shepherds with crooks, and fertile fields yield grapes, sunflowers and wheat. It feels as if we’ve travelled back in time.


² 8 AUGUST 2019 41


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