Georgia & Azerbaijan

Location:	Sheki
Mileage:	3,942

We cross in and out of Georgia in only two days, with just one overnight stop in Tblisi. Georgia is a Christian tiny country surrounded by its Muslim neighbours and Russia to the north, with whom it had a big spat with in 2008.  The back roads are quiet until you start to get close to the capital.

Amidst kamikase Mercedes drivers and crater size potholes, there’s a lot of dodging about to be done getting in to Tbilisi.Our hotel is located with a spectacular view of the golden statue of George and the Dragon (yes, “our” St George – am I the only person who did not appreciate that St George was not English , but of Middle Eastern origin whose mother was Palestinian and father was Turkish?)

From here, it’s Azerbaijan; Azerbaijan is one of those countries that doesn’t appreciate getting visitors and makes it difficult. Their London Embassy refused to issue a visa to Jeff, our NZ driver. He had to fly to Berlin to get one! Even at the border, they won’t allow you more than a 3 days transit visa for the bike. On the plus, they got us through pretty quickly and it was a short ride onto Sheki for the night, staying at the 18th century caravanserai.