While Dan provides the content, I will add the pictures.

Batumi

Atcharuli Khatchapuri: Every region has its own version of Khatchapuri, which is bread filled with cheese.  Batumi's version is inspired by the sea.  It is boat shaped and has a raw egg placed on top of the smoldering cheese in the middle of the bread so it looks like a little man in a boat.  You break of the end of the crusty hot bread and use it to mix the egg with the hot cheese-cooking it a little.  Then you dip chunks of the boat into the molten cheese and enjoy.  They are not that big but Dan and I together have trouble finishing one.  You will notice a giant pad of butter to the left of the khatchapuri.  We took it out because it is served with two but we thought one giant pad would be enough.  

This is the fortress in Goris, outside of Batumi .  Dan talked about this in the last blog.  It is where Matthew is buried.  It was a rainy day, but the fortress was very beautiful and it had a quaint little museum. We were allowed to walk the ramparts all the way around it.

I have come to realize since I have been in Georgia that me and heights are not that great of friends.  It took Dan two days to convince me to go on the Ferris Wheel in Batumi. It's really high--higher than any building in the entire city.  It was a white knuckle ride.

 Trabzon, Turkey

This is Sumela Monastery.  It is carved into the side of an enormous cliff in the middle of nowhere in the mountains of Turkey.  It was incredibly beautiful.

The hike up to Sumela Monestary was very foggy.  It really set the mood.

One of the frescoes inside the monastery.

Turkey was full of tasty sweets in shop windows.  We gorged upon baklava like nobody's business.  They have a special local variety that is tubular and is made of hazelnuts and chestnut honey rather than pistachios

Food has color in it?  Here in Georgia our diet is all white--potatoes, yogurt, bread, white polenta, white chicken, and white cheese.  It was so exciting to get this served to me.  It was delicious.  The hot pepper and the tomatoes were skewered and grilled.  The onions and cabbage were pickled and amazing and the lamb was nice and spicy.  

Everywhere we went to eat in Turkey we were offered tea after the meal.  It is part of the meal at no extra cost.  The tea is never made in the restaurant, but there are men running up and down every street just delivering it on these silver platters with little spoons and sugar cubes.  It's very delicious.  We spent many an afternoon in the restaurant trying to figure this whole tea service thing out.  They even deliver to guys just hanging out on street corners.  I don't know if a phone call is made, or they just walk around looking for thirsty pedestrians, or how a profit is ever made.