Mtskheta

Mtskheta is where Georgia adopted Christianity in the 4th century, and it still feels like the country’s hearth: a UNESCO-listed cathedral town sitting exactly where the Mtkvari and Aragvi rivers meet. From Jvari Monastery on the bluff above, the confluence draws a two-tone line you can see from the church door.

• Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, the coronation and burial church of Georgian kings.
• Jvari Monastery, the 6th-century hilltop chapel above the meeting rivers.
• Samtavro Monastery, nuns, ancient vines and royal graves, two streets away.
• The old lanes, churchkhela strings and wine stalls between the churches.

Sundays fill the cathedral with services and coach tours at once; go on a weekday morning. Shoulders and knees covered inside churches, wraps are lent at the doors.

It is 25 minutes from Tbilisi by taxi or marshrutka from Didube station; Jvari needs the taxi leg. Half a day covers it, which pairs naturally with a Kakheti wine afternoon or an early return to the baths.