The contributors ...

... are (for sure you must have been wondering already):

 

Of course you cannot expect that everybody has his eyes open when a photo is taken ...

Traditional Blacksea cuisine dinner

I always say it's not important who you are, it's important who you know! It turned out that our driver knows the chef of the hotel we stayed in Hopa. As a result, we were treated with a dinner full with mouth watering traditional regional specialities: Corn and black cabbage soup with different corn breads, black cabbage leaves stuffed with minced meat, hamsi ( special small fish from blacksea ), pilaf with hamsi and delicious salads.

 
 

Afternoon on the beach near Kempinski construction site

Long pebble beach with refreshing waters of Blacksea! Don't forget your swimming gear ! 

If the ambitious looking Kempinski hotel project will ever be completed? - The construction site actually looks like as if it will become a ruin soon ...

Taking a coffee in the sun

Rustaveli Ave, Batumi, Georgia http://m.google.com/u/m/d1vfjs

Strolling through Batumi city center

 

 

Lunch in the turkish quarter of Batumi

Arhavi Majurani


My Location@14:09,7/13 Nikoloz Baratashvili St, Batumi, Georgia http://m.google.com/u/m/dHNk2V

Eggplant kebap is a mouth melter! The restaurant and its toilets are very clean, WiFi is available and for free!

The old cable car

Close to the south entrance of the Batumi botanic garden, there is the beach station of an old, abandoned cable car, which seems to originate from Soviet times. A pity that it does not operate any more ...

 

Batumi's botanical garden

From Gonio fortress we drive further north, passing Batumi's airport and the city center until we reach the famous Batumi botanical garden (see for further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batumi_Botanical_Garden, or, in German: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botanischer_Garten_Batumi - the botanical garden's web site unfortunately does not seem to work.)

The botanical garden extends quite a lot, it would not be exaggerated to recommend reserving half a day to pass it on foot. When tired, one can take the electric shuttle bus inside the garden as well!

 

 

Gonio fortress near Batumi, Georgia

The "Gonio fortress" (see this Wikipedia article for more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonio) is a good place to visit. It now hosts also an archaeological exposition besides an impressive garden where Kiwis grow next to colorful flowers,

Nice garden well kept castle. Water system used was very developed for its time,which could be also seen in Ephesus!

 

 

Driving from Hopa to Batumi, Georgia

Driving from Hopa to the border village Sarp with our Turkish tour car. The Turkish car has to stay in Turkey, as we are told that only pre-registered cars are allowed to pass. Anyway, the queue of cars waiting at the border is long.

Passing the border thus on foot - surprisingly modern Georgian border control facilities - the process of leaving Turkey and the immigration to Georgia takes a whole hour in total though.

On the Georgian side Kadir, or driver makes a deal with a Georgian taxi driver (btw. all Taxis seem to be Mercedes in Georgia), who will bring us to the castle, the botanical garden and back to the city center of Batumi.

Breakfast at Peronti hotel ...

... was unfortunately disappointing. Cheap Metro products with plastic taste, especially compared to the authentic village breakfasts of the previous days ...