Monday, August 23rd, 2021AD
~9 days left
We are back on the road! This morning we left the beautiful monastery after a small breakfast, and went through the woods and back to town. Just outside town we went to a church supply shop, I got a fes (small hat) for my dad and nia gvidanto was measured for a new cassock.
After that we stopped for lunch at the other place the orphanage has for older kids, which was nice. They’re all in summer school because of the pandemic, so we didn’t have a chance to visit with them.
As we were about to leave, we had a sudden change of plans. The president of the orphanage was going to accompany us on the rest of the trip, but wasn’t able to because of a surprise inspection from the government. We switched from his car to a microbus. We drove up to the Mountain City, but got stopped by a huge traffic jam on the way. It was a parking lot, and the microbus (ok, van) had no air conditioning. Fortunately it didn’t last too long. I read a book on my phone.
What a beautiful place! This town was the summer home of the king, back when there was one. It’s remarkably cool, a little touristic, and generally pleasant to visit. We walked up to a beautiful monastery with two churches, one decorated with a very ancient style of iconography and the other decorated with a blend of traditional iconography and Art Nouveau! Both churches are interesting and beautiful.
We walked around a bit more and ate at a good restaurant. I had some ribs with a tasty barbecue sauce.
I’m content. WiFi and a good meal makes me happy, and I’m glad that we have a moment of rest. This trip is intense.