Part 22: Against the Grit on Georgia’s Streets

On our way to Georgia, another coastal road beckons with its unique views. However, the weather has struck a double blow: it is both rainy and oppressively hot. We make good progress from Trabzon in Turkey to the border with Georgia, however, until our journey comes to an abrupt halt. Traffic jams – the arch-enemy of every biker! Up to 10 km before the border, the trucks are lined up waiting to be cleared.

Just meander through? Only with the utmost caution! Time and again, trucks swerve forwards or backwards to park. And their drivers keep getting out to stretch their legs – not to mention the succession of roadworks. In the end, we manage to wriggle past all of them to get to the front. The border officials are very friendly and very interested in our tour – they visit us on the spot on Instagram and on the website. Even the tiresome issues of SIM cards and insurance are quickly resolved here at the border. Less than half an hour later, we are back on the road – and finally reach the Black Sea metropolis of Batumi.

Batumi – Georgia’s Gateway to the World

Oh, Batumi! The city on the Black Sea has a reputation for being a real pearl. But we didn’t expect it to be so cosmopolitan. As the second largest city in Georgia, it is not only home to people of many nationalities – from Indians to Russians and Turks. It is also surprisingly busy.

So we decided to pay a visit to a Turkish barber store straight away. The barber’s skilled hand trimmed back the hairy souvenirs that had spread across our faces over the weeks of traveling to a pleasant level. It was good to look a bit more groomed again.

But the stopover in Batumi was short-lived. The very next morning we turned the throttle around again to get to Kutaisi – our starting point for exploring Georgia. The journey was a little bumpy in places. The roads to Kutaisi vary from well-maintained – from smooth asphalt to gravel tracks. Even the so-called highway on our way was largely a roughly milled road surface. But don’t worry: the Georgians are already working on it. Or rather: the Chinese are. On closer inspection, the companies entrusted with the construction of new roads and expressways turned out to be Chinese construction companies.

On Adventure Highway – From the Sand into the Land

At least the patchy condition of the roads doesn’t seem to bother the Georgian livestock much. We keep our eyes focused on the road, as cows, horses, dogs and domestic pigs keep walking alongside and on the road. The cows in particular seem to love the warmth of the road surface and sometimes even take a break in the middle of the road.

Incidentally, the vehicles seemed to be just as fragmented as the roads. Every now and then we came across cars without bumpers, without doors, without lights or without the insight that it might be more appropriate to drive on the right side of the road.

However, the local police seemed to be more interested in us. Shortly after a traffic circle with only one exit to the right, a traffic patrol stopped us about 2 km later: Driver’s license, vehicle registration, passport, the whole nine yards. They accused us of not indicating when leaving the traffic circle – a behavior that the road users in front of us also displayed. And where were we supposed to indicate when there was only one lane? Well, we got away with a warning, which we were able to pay directly at a ticket machine.

From Batumi to Kutaisi, what a trip…

The World Visiting Kutaisi

In Kutaisi, our stomachs also started to rumble. Our hunger for something hearty and the desire for a good cup of coffee led us to a nice café. And as is the case with us, we naturally struck up a conversation. This time with Michael Moritz and his wife Anna, who were on a long trip with their daughter Anouk. They were on their way to Mongolia in their camper van to work from there. You can follow the whole story on Michael’s website. Really worth reading.

And we made another new friend in this café. Tristan, a young Frenchman, found us a nice guest house, which we promptly booked into. The place was a real melting pot of cultures and we felt very much at home there. Travelers from the Netherlands, Korea, China, France etc. shared the hostel with us – and we as Germans were in between. Interestingly, Tristan had the same route ahead of him on his motorcycle as we did – all the way to Kazakhstan. We stayed in the guest house for a few days and explored the area with Tristan.

We will soon be reporting on what Georgian churches and stalactite caves have to offer.

---

We ride from the Rhine in Germany to the Ganges in India – and all for a good cause. Help us with a donation and give the action group Kinder in Not e.V. the means to give disadvantaged children in India a future.

Berthold and I want to collect at least 1 euro in donations for every kilometer ridden – in the end this would be around 50,000 euros. The money will be used by the action group Kinder in Not e.V. to set up educational opportunities that will benefit children from poor population groups in India. We look forward to your donation!

Donation account: DE40 5745 0120 0030 5199 46
BIC: MALADE51NWD
Purpose: Rhein2Ganges

Give a like, share it or subscribe on social media! 📱

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC78Qj5GNfZzM0137D9Lv5PQ
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Rhein2Ganges/

@kinder_in_not @wunderlich_gmbh @stadler_motorradbekleidung @nolan_helmets_de @continental_reifen @paintmonkeysgarage @aktivita_fitness @hakvoort_hanko_gruppe@bmwmotorradde @bmwmotorrad

#bikersofinstagram #bikersofgermany #makelifearide