Svaneti offers so many thematic possibilties for the tourist or visitor to explore that one is simply spoiled for choice. Consider:

Cheese, including local sulguni and how it is made, from start (milking) to finish. Try your hand at any part of the process.

Local dishes, of which there are quite a few more than just the better-known meat pie, k’ubdari. Don’t just eat, find out how they are made.

Gold panning. Well, this, although a historically ancient industry, is currently a controversial one due to protests in Ieli over foreign exploitation. Handle with care! You might be limited to asking a few questions, and not be able to try it yourself.

Bird watching. Svaneti is home to many different birds, from tiny songsters and the largest raptors to a few surprising seasonal visitors, such as the hoopoe, which comes up from southern Africa.

Horse riding. One way to get a bit off the beaten track into less visited places and landscapes. Available all over, either with an accompanying guide or without, for all levels of experience from novice to expert.

Farming. Anything from the grains to temperate fruits and potatoes, corn and beans, and everything made from them.

Song and dance. Of course, like every part of Georgia, Svaneti has its own traditions in these arts, unique and worth

getting to know. Try to see and hear a concert, or ask for lessons of any length and number, as your time, budget, and local conditions allow.

Language lessons. Perhaps not for the faint of heart, as Svan will make Georgian seem easy, what with its eighteen vowels and some other quite challenging consonants among four dialects. But the respect to be gained from asking, and trying, is huge.

Photography/video. Almost so obvious as not to be worth mentioning, as every season has its unique landscapes and festivities on display, all spectacular. But with virtually every phone also a camera these days, drones on the rise, andprofessional equipment also in use, the possibilities are vast, depending on your needs and experience. You have the chance not only to make and take away memories forever, but also to help in publicizing this hidden corner of the world by what you record and share.

Museums. There are more than the main one in Mestia and another in Ushguli! Both communities have others worth visiting, and there are various types, such as towers and old houses, residences of famous people, and so on, here and there.

Churches. Pretty well every village in Svaneti will have at least one, usually ancient (up to about 15 centuries type of ancient). Each is unique in history, setting, architecture, and possibly fresco and iconographic art as well. After all, nearly inaccessible Svaneti was Georgia’s royal treasure storehouse during the many centuries of invasion which the country suffered, and most of the treasure sent here ended up staying...

Local crafts (wood, stone, textiles, metal, etc). Not only to buy, but to see how they are made. Carving in wood is a local specialty, to a world-class level, and commissions may be undertaken also. Svan felt hat making can be shown to guests, too, not just the finished product.

History lessons, either in the museums themselves or from other resident histori- ans, of which there is likely to be at least one in each village. There is so much to learn here, century upon century of fascinating stories and details, going back millennia, to help give context to what one is seeing and discovering.

Hiking. Another way to get off-road, at your own pace, again either with a guide or without. Just be sure that you have the right clothing and safety equipment, as well as knowledge, to cope with possibly rapidly changing mountain weather conditions, and good communication possibilities, too!

Biking. Either with your own equipment or rented from a place such as Mestia’s Tetnuldi Hotel. A third way to break out of the ordinary travel mode and strike out for wilder parts.

Artists and writers to meet. Many commu- nities will have these, too, and you need only ask where they are and how to visit them. See a studio and hear some local poetry or prose.

Local government. Not only in Mestia but, for example, meeting the gamgebeli (mayor) of any village. Find out how the community is run, what its needs are, what its dreams are.

Local industries to explore (logging/ sawmills, mining, dams, cement and gravel production, stone work, road construction and renovation). Or, how is your job being done here? Another consideration: what’s missing but needed (e.g. garbage removal, storage and, dare one even say it, recycling services)?

These are just a few of the ways in which one can interact on deeper levels than the superficial typical tourist ones. They will widen one’s experience of Svaneti and give unforgettable, multi-dimensional memories, as well as strengthening one’s connections with communities and people and possibly contributing to their cultural and social enrichment into the bargain.

By Tony Hanmer

Tony runs the “Svaneti Renaissance” Facebook group, now with over 1300 members, at www.facebook.com/groups/SvanetiRenaissance/

He and his wife also run their own guest house in Etseri: www.facebook.com/hanmer.house.svaneti