What you learn by not traveling alone
After several weeks of hurrying and stressing to arrive on time for my friend Mathieu, I am finally in Tbilisi. I take advantage of a few days of rest, and celebration, before hitting the road together.
Tbilisi
Youth hostels are great places to meet people from all walks of life. I like to stop there while passing by cities, not just to wash myself but also for the possibilities of sharing. And the stars were perfectly aligned for Mathieu's arrival.
To help me welcome him were incredible solo travelers from France, Austria, Sweden, Iran and China. And how can you resist this northern warrior swag ?!
With this happy band, and helped by my little Bluetooth speaker, we have a dancing party at the hostel. Each with their own suggestions, the Tribu de Dana rubs shoulders with German electro-pop and Iranian dances.
We obviously also take the time to visit the beautiful city of Tbilisi, founded in the 5th century. Before heading east, Mathieu is also kind enough to accompany me on a small photo expedition on the heights of the city. This is probably the best place to see the harmony between old and new architectural wonders.
Tbilisi, capital of Georgia.
Solène, the crossed out step at 40
Solene.
From Tbilisi to Azerbaijan, 160 km.
Solène is the French representative of our hostel group. After studying for a year in Moscow, she traveled on the go before returning to the mountains of Haute-Savoie, near Lyon.
She, who did not know a word of Russian less than a year ago, now speaks it fluently and is of great help to us in this former Soviet republic. Our schedules matched, Mathieu and I, as well as her and Mehmet, an Iranian also from the hostel, we meet in Manavi, whose only quality is to be at a good cycling distance from Tbilisi.
When we got there, Mathieu and I noticed that the place had nothing to offer other than a field to pitch our tents. Never mind, we don't need more. It was without counting that the charismatic and energetic Solène speaks to all the people she meets.
- But stop telling everyone where we are going, Solène, you are going to point out to us!
- Well, that's the point!
Completely different technique than what I'm used to, that is to say to hide while hoping that no one visits me during the night.
The inevitable happened. A van arrives just as I finish preparing the meal. Mathieu looks at me with a worried look. It is already almost night. The guy gets out of his van, and without saying a word, opens the side door. Other guys are coming out. Mathieu is on the eve of leaving to run. Mehmet is behind.
The driver then takes out huge bundles of wood and settles on the ground. We come to make kebabs !, he announces to us. And we brought 5 liters of house wine!
Camping in a field in Manavi. Mathieu on the left, Mehmet on the right.
Our impromptu BBQ. Mathieu still has no idea what's going on.
Signaghi
Sighnaghi, and his incredible sight.
The same plan is repeated the next day. Mathieu and I drive to a meeting point with Solène. Mathieu is however a little worried about the altitude of our meeting point. Well no, I don't think it's that much worse than that, I tell him.
I was wrong.
Sighnaghi is literally perched on top of a cliff. From the city, one has the impression of being able to see the whole Earth. Reluctantly, Mathieu accepts half-heartedly to tell me that the view was worth it. Already there, Solène found an inn and reserved the rooms. I could definitely take a liking to this team.
The Mathieu method
We leave the next day, this time just Mathieu and I for good, in an incredible hairpin descent of seven kilometers. We will now follow the valley for several days. Having more or less well planned our food, it is almost 15:30 pm when we finally stop to eat, a few kilometers from the border of Azerbaijan.
We've been looking for a restaurant or a grocery store for several tens of kilometers. Mathieu, not having the patience to be barked by a dog in front of the restaurant's front door, uses a method that I do not know. He stops in front of the mastiff, dressed in his shorts and his colorful tight sweater, and looking the dog in the eyes, shouts at him with all his might:
SHUT UP ! I AM HUNGRY !!
Immediate success. It's good not to always travel alone. It allows you to share your culture and experiences, learn to get out of your comfort zone, accept new and different adventures, and discover new techniques for talking to animals. And it's especially good to laugh in the presence of old and new friends.
