We visited Telavi for a couple of days which included some of the surrounding areas. Telavi is in eastern Georgia, in the foothills, and has somewhat over 20,000 inhabitants. Like much of Georgia, archeological findings date it back to the Bronze Age. It's sort of on the rim of a large valley and it was a very beautiful area. We were told it is the wine capital of Georgia. Telavi has a long and interesting history.

Our hotel was right across the street from the Telavi Fortress, or the Batonis Tsikhe Fortress, or "The Lord's Castle." The original palace was commissioned between 1664 and 1675. It's reminiscent of contemporary Persian palaces. The complex includes two royal basilica chapels and bathhouses, which is all encircled by a monumental wall crowned with corner towers. I took the first photo out the window of our hotel as we ate breakfast one morning.

Next is the Elena Akhvlediani Art School building. It's named after a famous Georgian artist and reflects her commitment to high standards of art education and creative development. Elena (1901 - 1975) was a painter, graphic artist, book illustrator, and theater and cinema artist. The school is suitable for both children and adults in such disciplines as drawing, painting, composition and graphics. The school is in a very old building, and you can see an artwork on the left side. You might also notice a grape vine growing up the same wall. The vine provides grapes through the windows on both the first and second floor. This was not an uncommon site in Georgia.

The next building was another near our hotel. I liked it but I also have another reason for including it. I've noted before that most of the Soviet era buildings were about function and not form. This, however, is a Soviet era building, so I'd like to give them a little credit for it.

The next photo also serves dual purposes. I'm showing a little of Telavi's architecture in their buildings but I'm also showing a sign. You can't go very far in Georgia without seeing a "Wine Route" sign. Wine routes were like spiderwebs on the Georgian countryside, and even in the cities.

And keeping with the wine theme, the wine girl statue is another Soviet era addition to Telavi and its heritage, located in the Telavi City Center.

We walked to the Telavi Bazaar or Market on our second day here. It was downhill all the way. When we got to the market, I had a decent view of the valley below Telavi, so I took this photo. No wonder we had such wonderful fruits and vegetables.

Only a block from our hotel, I found this eye-catching situation. Here you have two small businesses, maybe ten feet apart, and between them, you have all four of the main food groups: wine and chocolate on the left, and coffee and ice cream on the right. Telavi, WHAT A TOWN!