When a town boasts healing waters, a mountain atmosphere and a long history of being the playground for royalty, you add it to the itinerary. After all, if it is good enough for Russian Tsars, it‘s probably good enough for us.
We left the hipster, big city feel of Tbilisi and traveled a little more than two hours through fertile agricultural valleys and into the mountain village of Borjomi. A small town of only 16,000 people, Borjomi has a big reputation as the water bottling capital of Georgia and is home to baths built in the 1st century AD. Home to over 150 springs, Borjomi is where families go to relax and soak, literally.
As we continue to grapple with how to properly describe Georgia based on his geography and history, Borjomi is one of those towns that throws into the process. Driving into Borjomi, you could easily be convinced you had taken a few wrong turns and you landed in a small village in the Swiss Alps. From the mountains to the architecture, it felt like a different world from the one we had left just a few hours before in Tbilisi.
We found the town to be and easy to navigate, with numerous cafes, shops and honey stands. The mountain air and mountain views were rewarding, but maybe it was a spot better suited for families and people on weekend getaways. Feeling kind of like Coney Island without the beach, we strolled through the amusement park attractions and all the magnets that would entertain children for hours.
We sampled the famous water and agreed with the reputation that it might indeed be an acquired a taste. We briefly hiked the trails, but sadly Covid made us leery of dipping our toes in the springs.
Ultimately we found some nice spots to stroll, enjoyed the well manicured and natural landscape and consumed way too much good food.
**For more stories and photos about our travels, please follow along on Facebook at Valeri Crenshaw and on Instagram at Valerispassport!***
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