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Georgia

After completing customs and immigrations formalities we arrive in Georgia at our first stop the Alaverdi Monastery. It is a Georgian Eastern Orthodox monastery located in the Kakheti region of Eastern Georgia. While parts of the monastery date back to 6th century, the present day cathedral was built in the 11th century by Kvirike III of Kakheti, replacing an older church of St. George.

No one is allowed into the church with shorts on which I was wearing. So I am modeling the local fashion worn over the shorts. It was one size fits all. I think the waist could have gone the length around a washing machine The pants were huge.

What do you think?

Alaverdi Cathedral was the tallest religious building in Georgia, until the construction of the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi, which was consecrated in 2004

Situated in the heart of the world's oldest wine region, the monks also make their own wine, known as Alaverdi Monastery Cellar.[

This area is for the resident Monks that reside at the Monastery

Inside the Monastery

More living facilities for the Monks in residence.

The grounds are very peaceful. Great tranquility.

Could not resist this photo shot through the side open doors into the valley. It was like a framed photo.

I walked up the road and away from the Monastery to take this photo of the Monastery in its entirety. The open gate you see is the other side of the previous photo from inside.

Nothing like a little bit of hay on a truck bed passing over a bridge.

The national flag of Georgia. I might add the day we visited the Monastery it was so windy I really thought the flags would be ripped from the poles.

View from the parking areas and a small restaurant for tourists visiting across the road from the Monastery complex..

David Gareja is a rock hewn Georgian Orthodox monastery complex located in the Kakheti region of Eastern Georgia, on the half-desert slopes of Mount Gareja, some 42 miles southeast of Georgia's capital Tbilisi.

It was founded in the 6th century by the Christian Father St. David. The Monastery is remarkable for the original frescoes that date from the 8th to the 13th centuries.

The site is considered one of the most important landmarks of Georgia.

After the violent Bolshevik takeover of Georgia in 1921, the monastery was closed down and remained uninhabited. In the years of the Soviet–Afghan War, the monastery's territory was used as a training ground for the Soviet military that inflicted damage to the unique cycle of murals in the monastery

Inside the Monastery. The renaissance of fresco painting chronologically coincides with the general development of the life in the David Gareja monasteries. The high artistic skill of David Gareja frescoes made them an indispensable part of world treasure.

Two young sisters in the gift shop and office of the entrance of the Monastery.

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