STUCK AT THE BORDER | Driving from Georgia to Armenia

Oh.

Gar left her phone in the car, so now I'm stuck. And I have no way of telling you that I can't leave Georgia. Oh, this is a mess. It's a mess.

Today is day three on our road trip, and this morning we left Siknagi and we are en route to Armenia. But in order to take a rental car from Georgia into Armenia, you have to have some special paperwork. So we have to swing back through the capital, Tbilisi, to pick up the paperwork and then it's on to Armenia.

Which if we'd have known that we were going to rent a car, we could have done the paperwork in advance.

We're doing everything very last minute on this trip, including booking our accommodations. So we booked our Airbnb before we left our hotel this morning, and then our Airbnb canceled on us. So right now we have nowhere to stay tonight.

Being okay, because we think we're going to stay outside of the city now, which might be more fun and exciting.

Our plan was to spend two days in the capital, but now we've been doing a little bit of research and there is a huge lake that takes up 5% of our miniac. And so now we're thinking we might go stay on the lake.

We need to get this fish in some water.

Oh, that's for you.

We pulled over on the side of the road because there was a castle. We thought we'd check it out and then this very nice van with a horse and a sword invited me for a ride.

Invite you for a ride?

This is why you get a rental car, so you can make random stops like this. One second we're on our way to Tbilisi, and the next second we're in a castle and Kara's on a horse.

See you later, Charlie.

Bye, man.

Bye. Thank you.

Great way to start the day.

Don't lose this paper because you need it when you are driving back to Georgia. Thank you so much. Thank you too. All right, let's go to Armenia.

Thank you, Nate. Didi Matzloba.

Maybe this is why people don't do road trips from Georgia to Armenia. We've been sitting in this coffee shop trying to find a place to stay for a long time now. It's a fun five hour drive to where we want to go in Armenia. So we really need to get on the road because it's already.

It's a five hour drive plus 2:30 plus plus. We're still not 100% sure where we're going in the country.

We all know what happened last time we tried to cross the border with the car.

Charlie is going to get our passports back. Why is he still in there now?

The cops just slammed the door and kept Charlie in the hut with him. You look a bit nervous. If nothing else, this will turn out to be a good story.

Dragged me back into the thing by the neck. It all got a little bit heated with our passports. And then he's, like, yelling in Croatian at me. It was quite hectic. I thought we were going to get arrested, thrown in a Croatian prison. I'm going to stay very quiet in the car.

All right. We did it. We booked it. We just left Tbilisi, and we are heading to Armenia, our 79th country, right?

Yeah.

Hey, don't forget me, I beg.

We are four and a half hours away from Lake Saban, which is where we're staying, but it might take a bit longer than that because of the border crossing. We will see. And until then, we're gonna jam in the car.

We're at the border.

Here we go into Armenia. Hopefully not talking.

We need to get out of the car and quietly go cross very politely through the building while Nate takes the vehicle through alone.

All right, I better get out.

Okay, bye.

Nate seems to be leaving the country again.

I'm nervous. So it's been at least 15 minutes since Nate turned around and left the border crossing, and we have no idea where he is or why he got pulled aside. There's, like, a million more cars now and no signs, and we don't know what to do.

Well.

Just like everything else in Georgia so far, that did not go as planned, this is. This is the aftermath of me rummaging through the glove box and every other compartment in this car, trying to find a car passport, which is apparently a little green card that is not in this car that we need to cross the border. I think that Kara and Charlie made it across because they had to get out and just walk through. And so they're out of Georgia, and I'm still in Georgia, stuck with no way of getting there. Unless I can find this little green card. I'm just. I'm hoping that it's stuck inside one of these 12 maps that's in the glove box. I've called the. The rental car company, and they're supposed to be calling me.

I am giving this a. I would say there's a 60% chance that the car passport is not in this car, and we're gonna have to drive all the way back to Tbilisi.

Where are y'? All? Nathan.

Starting to get really nervous.

Kara Left her phone in the car. So now I'm stuck. And I have no way of telling you that I can't leave Georgia. Oh, this is a mess. It's a mess.

Found it. There is a little hidden compartment right by your knee. If anybody ever finds themselves in Georgia renting a Toyota Corolla, this is where they hide the passport.

Looks like Nathan Buchanan.

Hop in.

What happened?

This woman down. Please. She's done nothing wrong. Let her live.

So where are the police? Just standing there watching you?

No. So they let me, like, go through, turn around, and then we saw that. Did you really?

Where's Nate going? Why did you tell you that? K's like, let's go and buy perfume.

And then it's like.

So Nate is inside buying our car insurance, and we are almost done with this border crossing experience, and we're gonna pull a little trick on him.

We'll see how he takes it. I don't think he's gonna take it. Well, what do you think?

We had a little moment right before we finished the first step of the crossing.

I feel like we're about to lose the camera.

Yeah. Let's look at. Let's just do it. Let's do it.

It should be all fun.

We're all set. I think leaving the border area was the right decision. We paid half of what I read it was gonna be online. Fantastic. It was seven. So we paid $14 for. For 10 days worth of insurance.

Fantastic. A lot cheaper. We've made it through.

One hour and 45 minutes later.

It's a really, really long time.

There were a lot of steps to that.

I think there's one other thing that we should point out. If you are planning on coming on a road trip from Georgia to Armenia.

Although it's warm, it's lovely, and it's lovely to kind of film a video and enjoy your time at the border crossing. It's probably not that advisable.

You might not want to have your camera out on the border while Nate is inside, because an officer might come over and take your camera and take out your memory card and snap it in half. No.

And if you haven't backed up your videos for three days beforehand, I think it could be pretty difficult.

No. He broke it in half and put.

His foot and boot and crashed it into the ground.

No way.

Cursed at us in Armenian.

You don't like curse. You don't know Armenian.

You sounded very cursive.

So we don't have a vlog from our entire road trip.

That camera.

No.

No way. When did you have this camera?

We were sitting out in the sun. You were still inside that building, you know, when you had the window.

Yeah.

So we were out there. But it would have been a really good video because we're very upbeat.

Everything's gone as planned.

Let's go to the lake. Georgia's great. We're in Armenia, so. Well, mate.

What are you upset about?

We made you gift of the nice memory card that we had in that camera.

Well, I have good news for you.

Okay.

He didn't break the memory card. We just had to delete the last two videos that we took in the parking lot.

Oh, fantastic. I'm so glad I handled that. Well, you did go nuts.

I'm a little disappointed in how.

Well, what if? I just would have started screaming at everybody.

You too.

Irresponsible.

Look at. That's a crater. We have just driven on to the worst road. Ah, that might not be true.

Definitely. You are being very dramatic. Go to the line.

I'm not being dramatic with how bumpy the camera is.

It's driven onto a road with some of the biggest potholes that I've ever seen. I don't think I can dodge this.

At least you're not in the middle. I think that one went all the way through to China.

Hey, Daisy.

What you doing, bro?

What you doing?

Whoa. Shoot. He almost hit one of the cows.

Go. How cool. I'm up.

After eight hours of driving and sitting at border crossings, we are within one hour of the hotel that we're staying at tonight. We've just stopped at a Syrian restaurant in Armenia that Charlie found on a blog post about crossing the border with.

A car with blankets.

But it is fantastic. And it's also very cold in Armenia.

It's crazy. And we're seen by a river being ravaged on the speed. And our hands feel moist.

And we're talking.

I'm not quite sure why.

I am ready for us to get to our hotel.

Yep. Where we're going to share a bit.

That may or may not be open when we get there. It's been a very interesting day.

Long and interesting day.

But the food looks incredible.

It is good.

Hello, Josh. Josh, how are you? Mini mascara.

I really like it.

Oh, lovely.

We already turned bleach. And here is Robustro. Honestly, extra bed for third person.

Yeah. Right.

There's tea, coffee.

Hi. Look great. Can you pull the sword out?

That's probably a good thing.

Y' all had a beautiful.

Hated it. Hated it. There's not a single piece of food left on any of our plates I'm not paying now now because why am.

I don't have any Armenian dollars or whatever they call them second I don't have any US dollars third I now have yeah they don't take Georgia we.

Have 8000 which is equivalent to six.

$16 not $18 and we're very hopeful.

That that buys There were no prices.

On the menu the only bad thing is is that Nate's order the most.

Expensive thing I've got some Georgian dollars.

Which is an imported drink it's carbonated beverage Coca Cola I have high class the rest of it cheap so if we're over that's on Nate and we're wearing traditional Armenian blankets Just the fans.

Again.

You'Re welcome.

I have no idea what's going to come out of this gift box so far it's a very thin gift comes to how much do we think who's gonna have a bet?

Kira?

I think it's gonna be 16,000, mate 16,000?

I'm gonna say it's 10.

How much do we have?

Eight.

We're short.