Bodbe Convent

The convent, set among tall cypresses, is dedicated to St Nino, who is buried here. The little church was originally built, over her grave, by King Mirian in the 4th century. It was converted into a triple-church basilica in the 8th or 9th century and has been renovated several times since. Nino's fairly simple tomb, beneath a recently installed marble slab, is in a small chapel in its southeast corner. The murals were painted in 1823 by Bishop John Maqashvili.

A convent, founded here in the late 19th century, then turned into a hospital in Soviet times, has functioned again since 1991. Through an opening just northeast of the church, and then down a steep path of 800m, you can reach a small chapel built over St Nino's Spring, which burst forth after she prayed on this spot, where today locals queue up to drink and splash themselves with the holy water. Bodbe Convent is 2.5km south of Sighnaghi, an enjoyable walk on country roads, or you could take a cab for 5 GEL or 6 GEL round-trip.