Our Georgian Adventure (Part 2)

It took me a lot of time to follow up on this post... I have no other reason aside from being occupied...I am still occupied actually my hands are full right now and Ramadan is so busy but I still have some spare time to do some blogging while I eat my lunch...

After that hearty meal at Chashnagiri...we went strolling the streets of Rustavelli

I forgot this building's name but it is just adjacent to Marriott and have luxurious shops on the G/F
like Chopard, Burberry, etc.

My lovely daughter and her dad

Courtyard Marriott at dawn

We ended the night by going back to the hotel and start another adventure in the morning.

We started the next day with a breakfast buffet at Marriott

We burst into laugh because the waitress who took our picture told us why you are all so serious

we went to this area where you can see Tbilisi at a Glance.. breathtaking

The area above is at the foot of "Mama Tbilisi" a big shrine on top of the hill that believes to be guarding Tbilisi it was written that she stood in a place where a church has stood since the 5th Century. 

This is she who the locals call as Mama Tbilisi

Me walking down the path leading to the bathhouses...long walk but worth iy

Me and my sweetie

So we started walking and we reached Narikala Fortress, thanks to the Filipino Tourists we saw who gladly took this pic below

Narikala Fortress at the background

Abanotubani (bath houses) down below

Narikala Hotel at my back

Underground museum

at the clock Tower- Tbilisi's Town Center

Of course I have to take a selfie here...

The James Bond and Charlie's Angel of my life

After some selfies and more we went to the bathhouses of which Georgia is famous for..

We ended the day by going to the Marionette Theatre and the Quirky Clock Tower...

Marionette Theatre

Paintings at the base of the Quirky Clock Tower

Shavtelli St.

We ended the day by going to the Friendship Bridge...The next day was spent on shopping and visiting flea markets and parks

Early morning shopping at Giordano

In front and opposite the street is the Georgian Museum

one Catholic Orthodox Church we stopped by

This is what happens when everyone has a camera 

at April 5 Park 

Afternoon treat at a Gelato Parlor

and of course another Georgian Dinner before we travel back to the Desert in the morning...Good bye for now see you on our next adventure...Happy Reading!!!

Our Georgian Adventure

One of the perks of being a GCC resident is being able to travel to Georgia without a VISA. All you need is to present your passport and original residence permit (Iqama). Since I know that Georgia only speaks English, Georgian and Russian I took the initiative to have an English translation of our Iqama.

Geographically, Georgia is part Europe and part Asia that is why it is called as Eurasian country.

So Why Georgia? 

1. It saves me the trouble of applying for a VISA in advance.

2. Reviews over the internet about Georgia are all positive.

3. We want to please our eyes with nature and have a break from the dessert views we had all year long. 

4. Georgia is not just an open country when one can express themselves and break the rules. It makes you taste Europe at a lot cheaper price. 

Travel to Georgia can be booked through Flydubai. Gassim to Dubai is a 2-hour flight and Dubai to Georgia is a 3-hour flight. Prices ranges from 789 SAR to 1,200SAR (one way) depending on the time you booked the ticket. 

Two months ago,during the Eid of Ramadan while I was checking where to go (Dubai, Qatar or Georgia) the ticket to Georgia was only 789SAR per person but I did not book it because the dates of the vacation is not yet sure. Everyday the prices increases that I have no choice but to reserve the tickets even if the vacation dates were not yet confirmed. Our tickets cost 7,000 SAR (return for 3 persons)

I also booked our hotel at The Courtyard Marriott- Tbilisi in Freedom Square. In all our travels I choose a hotel that is accessible to almost all the major destination. The Courtyard Marriott is along Rustavelli avenue, it is walking distance from the Friendship Bridge, Narikala Fortress, Marionette Theatre and Dry Bridge. There is also a metro station nearby and the City sightseeing hop on hop off Bus tour ticketing office. I booked it through Booking.com as usual, because most bookings through this site can be cancelled up to 1 day before check in. 

The Courtyard Marriott @ Freedom Square

Me and Denisse @ Marriott Desk waiting for check in

So How is Georgia?

On landing we felt we are still in KSA, not so much views to ponder upon. Tbilisi Airport is not a busy airport although tourist flock in Georgia almost at anytime of the year. 

  

I don't know if it is only my perception but Georgians are not very friendly. Let us start with the immigration officer who checked our documents. I know all immigration officers are serious with flat affects. She asked for our VISA and I told her we are GCC residents so she asked for our Iqama, I was being so nice offering her the English translation of our Iqamas and she said she don't need English translation, maybe she felt offended by my voluntary action. Then she asked when is the expiry of our Iqama saying she cannot read it because it was in Arabic. I wanted to tell her "that is why I am offering the English translation" but my next action would either make or break me so I kept my cool and asked her " Would you like the english translation?" and she said "OK give me"

English Translation of my Iqama

I arranged for an airport pick up with Marriott Hotel Shuttle but it was not confirmed by the hotel so we just took a cab from the airport. We went to the information section to get a map and ask where to get a taxi and the man at the information section is also not smiling. Taxi drivers take advantage when they know you are a tourist. One told me 25 gel per person so that would be 75 gel but I know that the Marriott shuttle charges 75 gel so ordinary taxi should be cheaper than that. Although it was posted all over the Taxi pick up area that the price is 25 gel per trip to a certain point, drivers don't agree so we settled for 50 gel.

After some needed rest we walked around freedom square. 

Freedom Square

we came along this store that sells "Churchkhela"- Georgian traditional delicacy

typical street in Tbilisi

Georgia is also know for wine making. The oldest vineyards are located here. Of course we will not leave Georgia without tasting their famous Georgian wine called "Chacha"

souvenir shot inside a wine store called Vino Bar

bottoms up : 3 shots of Georgian Semi Sweet Red Wine and 3 shots of Chacha

with Nikka our wine server.

After becoming dizzy from the wine tasting we got hungry so we decided to try the Authentic Georgian Cuisine and Nikka our wine server recommended Chashnagiri which is not so far from the Vino Bar.

They have 4 branches in Tbilisi 

while waiting for our food

I forgot the name but this is delicious- made of mushroom, tomato and cheese

SOUP: Kharcho ( Beef in Tomato soup) 

Smoked Georgian Sausage

Georgian Bread- soft and chewy in the inside, crunchy on the outside

Barbecue but taste more like a fried Liempo 

The famous Khinkhali- Beef Dumpling with delicious soup inside

Georgian Lemonade - not actually a lemonade but a sparkling juice 

I have to cut this post and make a part 2 of our Georgian Adventure... Happy Reading!

Raffles Hotel Dubai & the Many Reasons Why

Vacation is one thing everyone is looking forward to, especially those working here in the Middle East for 6 days a week.  EID Al Adha is set on a fix date unlike the Eid of Ramadan which depends on the moon, so planning your vacation for Eid of Hajj is more feasible.

I searched the all time reliable online booking site Booking.com for hotels. It will be our first time in Dubai and I want our short stay to be a stress free and memorable one.

My criteria for this particular trip are:
1. A Five Star Hotel
2. A Hotel near the airport
3. A Hotel with a bathtub and free wifi
4. Breakfast Inclusion
5. A Shopping mall beside the hotel.

I run search and put all the filters and only 7 hotels appeared on the list. What caught my attention are the Grand Hyatt and The Raffles Hotel so I booked them both. I checked out the pictures of the rooms of both hotels, I refuse to compare the rooms but I guess the pictures in the website will show the differences. However allow me to enumerate the reasons why I chose the Raffles Hotel.

I know I did not give justice to Raffles in this Hotel Facade Pic, sorry I am in a moving cab.

1. A picture paints a thousand words and so they say...the room offered by Raffles are all with private balcony and with enough space. I arrived at Raffles with all my expectations met. Nice wide room, balcony overlooking Burj Khalifa from afar and the Raffles swimming pool down below. A nice corner tub and a separate shower room with candles to set the mood.  An executive desk and a sofa bed, being in this space makes you want to stay there all day and not leave the hotel room.

Executive Desk

Raffles Club Room

Raffles Swimming Pool viewed from our balcony

2. Raffles is interconnected with the Wafi Mall - one of the stations of the Big Bus Tour and the only station that one can access both the Blue Route (Beach Tour) and the Red route(City Tour).

3. The Wafi Light and Sound Show which is one of the highlights of the Big Bus Night Tour can be easily accessed and just a walking distance from Raffles.

4. There is a library inside the hotel, the very first hotel that I have been to with a library, not to mention the SPA, the pool and the gym.

Raffles Library

5. The International Buffet Breakfast at Azur Restaurant offers a wide variety of foods.

6. Lastly and which I consider as Raffles best asset is it's friendly staff who always have a smile on their faces and make you feel at home.

If you book directly at their website you will have an option to choose between hypoallergenic pillows or feather ones, sparkling or non sparkling complimentary bottled water, and your choice of daily newspaper (I chose Wall Street Journal)

There is a complimentary fruit basket and Raffles Signature Toiletries.

I booked the Raffles Club room and some of the perks included is the access to the Club Lounge which serves daily continental breakfast, afternoon tea and evening cocktails and canapés which we really enjoyed.

French Macarons, Salmon Ceviche, Mushroom Tarts

enjoying cocktails with the persons I love

and they have the best wines

My rating for this hotel is 5 stars and a 2 thumbs up!!

I will definitely go back and stay at Raffles whenever I am in Dubai.