The Georgian Stonehenge, which is actually called the Chronicle of Georgia, was my favorite part of the trip. I found the monument itself interesting, but perhaps equally amazing is that no locals seem to have a clue about it. When I asked in Tbilisi, people questioned that it was in Georgia at all. One woman even tried calling a taxi dispatcher for me. After much discussing back and forth the person
thought he knew what I meant, but had not been there and did not know that it had a name. It just seemed weird that there is so little information about it. It was almost like a secret destination.
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| I mean, this thing is big. How can you miss it? |
Now if you are actually trying to FIND the place, here are some hints. This blog
thealoof.com has better pictures and instructions for how to get to the there. Based on the directions from this blog and from a friend, we went to the Sarajishvili metro stop even though google maps and the metro map make a couple of other stops appear closer. Google Maps does show Chronicle of Georgia (labeled in English and Georgian), but even with it written in Georgian and a screenshot of the place I had on my iphone, it still took the taxi driver a brief discussion with a couple of other drivers to figure it out. We were also told to try saying that it is near Temca (Tem-kuh) by the Tbilisi Sea and to call it the Black Monument. While those things were not helpful for us and the map and screenshot was enough to clue someone in, these other tidbits might be helpful to others trying to find the place. It's up above the city and visible as you get nearby. It is located near a popular swimming spot. How can the locals not know where it is?
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| See, nice view, especially if it is a pretty day. |
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| Wouldn't this be great with a blue sky? |
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| I have no idea who these people are. |
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It looks like either it was never completed or else it was damaged.
It would be so cool if the bottom wasn't just bare wood panels. |
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Many Biblical scenes makes me wonder why it is not a more popular spot
in a Christian county. |
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| View of typical apartment buildings. |
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| Walking back down to the taxi. |
As we were leaving I noted our taxi driver was chatting with the two guards(?) park police(?). Since I don't understand Georgian, I made up my own translation of the conversation in which the taxi driver was asking where we were and what this was supposed to be. I had the guards respond that they had no idea, they were dropped off here each morning for work and picked up in the evening. I can't say that we were the ONLY people there because we did see a group of three people while we were there.
Now the boys alternated between being totally bored at the monument and running around like madmen. Since it was all but deserted, running was fine. They gained their strength again when we said lunch was at Wendy's.
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| 3 floors. Evidently one of the bigger Wendy's in the world. |
We ate typical Wendy's food, though they didn't have some of the items on their menu. Instead of a cheap toy prize, you get game tokens with your kid's meal or combo meal. We got to go upstairs and play games to spend our tokens.
An air hockey game for up to four players was our favorite. Not only is there a big puck (worth 100 points), but there are tons of little pucks (30 points) that are sometimes released. It makes it crazy and is fun for everyone to participate.
End of Part 3. Working on Part 4: Funicular and Amusement Park
