So you saw The Death of Stalin and now you’re intrigued by the birth of Stalin. Or perhaps your curiosity arose after hearing about the social(ist) experiment where someone created a fake Tinder profile posing as Josef (unfortunate for those who ended up on his match list). Either way, this fascination warrants the 1.5 hour marshrutka ride from Didube station in Tbilisi.
Places to Eat in Gori
Known for cutleti (minced meat cutlets) served with a zesty tomato sauce and mashed potatoes.
Berikoni
If proximity is a plus for you, be it due to lethargic nature or the ticking time, consider this central location for your midday munch. Although a popular place, intimacy is achieved by enclosing conversations within gated, private booths encircling the dining room.
Gori Cutleti (გორის კატლეტი)
If you’re attempting to go incognito and lunch like a local, head here. Unimpressive in appearance, this dive cuts no corners with their cutleti.
Things to do in Gori
Stalin Museum
A brief history: Joseph Stalin led the USSR after Lenin from 1924 until his convenient death in 1953. Son of an abusive, alcoholic shoemaker, Ioseb Dzhugashvili, was born into poverty. Ironically, young Dzhugashvili found inspiration from Georgian literary hero Koba who fought for independence against the Russians (undoubtedly the two had differing definitions of freedom). Rebellious from the beginning, he was expelled from school in Tbilisi, funded Bolshevik beliefs via bank robbery, and served several Siberian prison stints due to his revolutionary ideology. Undoubtedly a foreshadow to the intense industrialization to come, he rebranded himself as Stalin, derived from the Russian word for “steel.” Plagued with trust issues, he used show trials to eliminate enemies and rumored rivals. Although this period of Great Terror sentenced a near million deaths, Stalin was responsible for tenfold more fueled from famine. With the pragmatic belief that “one death is a tragedy, a million deaths a statistic,” he clearly left his gory footprint on the world.
Unlike Tbilisi museums, this one is open 7 days a week and costs 10 GEL for entry.
Join the guided tour as otherwise the museum monologue will be left to your imagination with signs lacking English descriptions. With perhaps a dash of prior USSR knowledge along with his preserved family birth home, personal memorabilia, bulletproof train cart and one of twelve death mask copies on display as prop narratives, build your own biography. Stories may vary but the fact that young Stalin was a stunner, as evidenced by the endless portraits, will remain a consistent character detail. No shame in calling a spade a spade.
Gori Fortress & Memorial of Georgian War Heroes
Gori Fortress, there is nothing ambiguous about the name to a native. To clarify for an outsider, the name carries a double meaning describing both the town it protected as well as its location. Gori translates to hill which is precisely what the fortress lies on. The dilapidated design is primarily due to natural causes, resulting from an earthquake in 1920. The citadel is open 24/7 and is free for your viewing pleasure. Don’t be caught off guard by the security man.
War takes a piece from all of its participants, be it appendage, sanity, or life itself. Surround yourself in the remnants of these eight broken warriors. The memorial originally guarded the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Tbilisi’s Vake Park and was relocated to Gori in 2009. Perhaps this movement was due to an unsettling resemblance with the nine mortal men from Lord of the Rings, but more likely brought strength to those still recovering from the 2008 air raids.
Great Patriotic War Museum
A brief history: As anticipated, this term is majorly used amongst the former Soviet countries as nationalistic names tend to be country specific in meaning. Originally coined for the resistance to the French invasion under Napoleon I, the Soviets reapplied this title to both world wars, apparently lacking in creativity.
The Great Patriotic War museum details the conflicts between 1941-1945 on the Eastern front during World War II with the spotlight shining on the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. A poignantly patriotic part of the museum additionally covers Gori’s involvement in the 2008 war with Russia over South Ossetia. Once again a guide is instrumental for those with limited Georgian and Russian language levels. Closed on Monday, the entry fee is 3 GEL.
Gori Historical and Ethnographic Museum
Peak into the past using the exhibits of textiles, ceramics, and weapons. Entry is 3 GEL for adults, 1 GEL for students, 50 tetri for kids, and free for kids under six and those with disabilities. The museum is closed on Sunday and Monday.
Street Art
Tbilisi street artist Gagosh emphasizes the impact of the 2008 war and continuing border creep of the South Ossetian boundary through his depiction on a building scarred by the conflict’s bullets.
Uplistsikhe Cave
A brief history: As this is a cavetown, I suppose at one point it was comprised of cavemen although currently abandoned. Translating to “Lord’s Fortress,” their leader may surprise you. Obviously not a reference to Stalin, this once thriving settlement was sculpted into existence around 1000 BC and pre-dates the Christianity cascade. The town began to trail Tbilisi in prominence following this theological twist. Resurgence struck subsequent to Arab conquest of Tbilisi in 645 AD causing the Kartli kings to relocate to this rocky residence as well as its addition to the Silk Road trading route. Destined for misfortune though, the town dwindled to a diminished population and eventual desertion courtesy of recapture of Tbilisi in 1122 and 13th century Mongol invasions.
There is a 15 GEL entry free (kids under 6 are free) with the occasional offseason price drop to 7 GEL. Hoping to hear the historic details? Hire a guide for 45 GEL or opt for the audio guide for 15 GEL. Taxi drivers will charge a flat fee for the round trip from Gori and patiently wait while you ruminate on these ruins. Supposedly, it is possible to arrive by bus. I attempted this by boarding a vehicle with an Uplistsikhe dashboard sign and ultimately took a roundabout scenic route to end up exactly where I started. Choose your own adventure.
