Journeys with Johnny

Our third day, Friday, June 26th, was another full day in the Kakheti Region of Eastern Georgia. After a leisurely morning, where I had the opportunity to go for a nice run on the beautiful estate that our hotel sits on, we left our impressive hotel and travelled further east, reaching the town of Sighnaghi. At this point we are almost in Azerbaijan – it was probably a day’s walk away. We visited Pheasant’s Tears Winery near Sighnaghi with a wine tasting and tour of the vineyards with John Wurdeman, who founded the winery 20 years ago. Afterwards, we had an amazing meal at the winery on a delightful porch…

Our second full day in Georgia will be all about personal hospitality — being entertained in people’s homes. We left Tbilisi in the morning and travelled  three hours through the Bombori Mountains into the Kakheti Region in Eastern Georgia, where much of Georgia’s wine is produced.  One thing we learned from yesterday was that wines in Eastern Georgia, which is hot and dry, tend to be more full bodied than wines in Western Georgia.  When we arrived in the beautiful Alazani Valley, we went straight to the little village of Zemo-Alvani, where we visited Shota Lagazidze and his family. A small producer, his company, Lagazi Wine Cellar, only produces three…

After arriving in Tbilisi on Tuesday afternoon, still feeling melancholy, I checked into our hotel, the Iota Hotel, and then walked around for a few hours to check out Tbilisi. I decided to buy street food and eat dinner at Rike Park, located across the Kura River, which runs through the middle of the city. It is one of the longest rivers in the entire Caucuses Region.  To get across the river, I walked across the beautiful pedestrian Freedom Bridge. After exploring some more, I went back to my hotel and watched some World Cup Soccer – still feeling melancholy.  The next day, our first full day in Georgia was to…

Last night a few folks from our trip went out to a late dinner at a restaurant called Amra for Abkhaz cuisine.  Jonathan, the owner of Supra, wanted to go there because the food from that region of Georgia is unique.  But sadly, that region is no longer a part of Georgia.   While Abkhazia is recognized by most countries, including the United Nations, as a separate republic inside of Georgia, it really is not.  The border between Abkhazia and Georgia has been closed since 2020 and you can now only enter the country through Russia.  To be blunt, It has become a Russian puppet state. It is a complicated…

Background I was playing golf earlier this week with the Chairperson of a very important non-profit organization in our community when I told him that I was leaving for a two-week trip to the Republic of Georgia. Having travelled all over the world himself, he asked, “What in the heck made you decide to go to Georgia? Over the next 16 holes, I told him in bits and pieces why I chose to go to Georgia. There is also an episode of the show “Feeding Phil” on Netflix where the host visits Tbilisi, the capital of that wonderful country.  It is worth the watch.  Phil opens the episode with “Most…

Our 7th and final day on the Via Francigena took us from the shore of Lake Bolsena to the hilltop town of Montefiascone, navigating the crest of hills that surround the eastern side of the Lake. We encountered a greater variety of landscapes than on other days, with dense woods as well as open fields.  One of the sacred spots along the trail was a 20-foot waterfall. We sat at the top and enjoyed the sound of the rushing water while soaking in the cold misty air.  Like many of the hill towns we stayed in, we had to hike uphill for the last part of our walk. Upon entering…

It’s very early on a Sunday morning here in southern Tuscany as I sip tea on the veranda of our apartment at La Selvella. I am processing or attempting to process the two days we just experienced. I listen to the birds sing and chirp to each other and cherish the crisp morning air as the sun makes its presence known as it peeks over a nearby Tuscan hill. This place is so peaceful and beautiful.  Due to three blisters on my feet and the fatigue in our legs we are not hiking the full 20 miles to Proceno. Instead, we took a morning transfer to Ponte a Rigo, shortening our hike to 10 miles. I…

This trip will be the first of many father-son trips I hope to take with each of my sons every three years. Davis chose this itinerary based on a trip we took thirteen years ago. That trip, the first my family took to continental Europe, took us to parts of France and Italy before spending time in Tuscany. One of the small towns we explored was Monteriggioni, nestled between the cities of Florence and Siena.   While in Monteriggioni, Davis and I ventured out and discovered a portion of the famous Via Francigena – a historic, 1,200-mile pilgrimage route stretching from Canterbury, England, to Rome, Italy. Thirteen years ago while…