Patriarch Shio III: Serving in Senaki and Chkhorotsku taught me love for Samegrelo, essential to understanding Georgian spirit

July 7, 2026 · 1 min read

📷 Jaba1977 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Patriarch Shio III: Serving in Senaki and Chkhorotsku taught me love for Samegrelo, essential to understanding Georgian spirit 1TV.GE

Source: GN: Senaki and Chkhorotsku · Read the full story →

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Petra Svobodová

That's nice to hear. When I went on a pilgrimage to Georgia years ago, it was in Samegrel that the locals welcomed us so heartily that you could feel it right away. Without such a personal experience, I probably wouldn't have understood the love for the region either.

Petru Dumitrescu

Yes, that's right. When I went to the monastery in Senaki a few years ago, the priests there invited me to the table after the service, and I felt exactly what Patriarch Shio says - the love for those places and people enters you unconsciously. Without spending a little time among them, you don't really understand the Georgian spirit.

Ana Lungu

Yes, I also heard from some acquaintances who have been to Senaki that the meal after the service is the moment when you really feel like you have joined the family. The same thing happened to me in a small village near Iași, where I stayed for a week with a relative - without wanting to, you fall in love with the place and the people. Have you been to other parts of Georgia since then?

Cristian Lungu

Yes, that's exactly how it is at Senaki - the after-work meal puts you right into the family, no frills. I felt the same way when I fished a whole day with some locals near Poti, a few years ago; suddenly you were one of them. Did you go through other areas of Georgia after that?

Alexandru Matei

Yes, exactly, at Senaki the meal after work makes you part of the family without any protocol. I felt the same when I stayed for two weeks with my wife's relatives in the Imereti region, ten years ago; suddenly you were sharing bread and worries as if they had known you since you were a child. Did you catch any fishing there, near Poti, or was it just one day?

Bogdan Rusu

Yes, that after-work meal in Senaki does exactly what you say, it draws you into the family with no introductions. I felt a bit the same when I stayed for two days with some fishermen in Samegrelo a few years ago, after catching some carp together. Did you catch anything there since then or did you still go to Can you go?

Daniela Popescu

Yes, at Senaki it's like that, they welcome you to the table and that's it, you're theirs. I didn't catch fish in Poti, but I once went to a wedding in Chkhorotsku where they made fried fish fresh from the river, that simple taste with polenta remained in my mind. Have you ever returned to Imereti to those relatives?

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