We finished our tour of Georgia with a long travel day on the bus going from the far north (Mestia) to the far south of the country to reach Rabati castle, staying in the town of Akhaltsikhe (and no, I still cannot pronounce it even after staying there for a day…).  Lower-left is the view from our hotel room the previous evening in Mestia, a Unesco world-heritage site, when the towers are lit.  The other images are landscapes enroute to the castle with views of the Caucusus mountains.

Our main photographic target today was the castle of Rabati, originally built during the 13th century.  We arrived in the late afternoon, and then stayed to photograph into the “blue hour”  (the hour after sunset when the sky turns a deeper blue if weather cooperates), when the lights from the castle are lit up.

We also stopped by a small village to capture a view of the castle and to stretch our legs during this very long travel day.  Our cameras caught some scenes of local daily life. Center image shows Mehmet (our tour leader) photographing and talking to a local farmer.  The lower group shows a couple of kids that were playing together, at first unknown that we were taking their photos, then with them hamming it up for the cameras and for our local guide.

Here is another view of Rabati castle, showing the overall complex just after sundown.