About Sights – Gergeti Trinity Church
Gergeti Trinity Church (Georgian: წმინდა სამება) is a popular name for the Holy Trinity Church near the village of Gergeti outside the town of Stepantsminda (Georgian: სტეფანწმინდა) in north-eastern Georgia. The church is situated on the right bank of the river Chkheri (the left tributary of the river Terek) close to Georgia’s 3rd highest mountain, Mt. Kazbegi. View of Stepantsminda … Continue reading
About Sights – Dariali Gorge
The Dariali Gorge (Georgian: დარიალის ხეობა) is a river gorge at the east base of Mount Kazbegi on the border between Russia and Georgia. The local people call themselves the Mokheve (habitants of the gorge). The gorge has become known as one of the most romantic places in the Caucasus and has been immortalized in Russian poetry, notably by Lermontov … Continue reading
About Sights – Akhaltsikhe Fortress
Akhaltsikhe (Georgian: ახალციხე, literally new castle); also known as Lomsia, is a small city in Georgia’s southwestern region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. Established around 800 years ago, it has had Georgian, Ottoman, Russian and Soviet rulers. The city is situated on both banks of the river Potskhovi, which separates the old city in the north and new in the south. The old city … Continue reading
About Law Enforcement – Georgia is now one of the safest places in Europe
According to a 2011 crime and security survey conducted by Jan Van Dijk, Professor of Victimology and Human Security at Tilburg University in The Netherlands, Georgia is now one of the safest places in Europe and its capital, Tbilisi, has become one of the safest capitals in the Western world, comparable to Lisbon or Vienna. The results of … Continue reading
About Recreation – Skiing in Georgia
High accommodation and piste costs mean that more and more skiers are looking for resorts that are a little further afield than the norm. Look no further! Georgia’s mountains offer some of the best skiing in the world. In fact, skiing in Georgia was listed in a New York Times article, ‘The 41 Places to Go … Continue reading
About Sights – Narikala Fortress
Narikala (Georgian: ნარიყალა) is an ancient fortress on a steep hill overlooking Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, and the Mtkvari River. The fortress was established in the 4th century and considerably expanded over subsequent centuries. Much of what remains today dates from the 16th and 17th centuries. In 1827, parts of the fortress were damaged by an earthquake and demolished. … Continue reading
About Sights – The Bridge of Peace
The Bridge of Peace (Georgian: მშვიდობის ხიდი) is a bow-shaped pedestrian bridge over the Mtkvari River in Tbilisi, capital of Georgia. The 150 metre (490 ft) bridge was designed by the Italian architect Michele De Lucchi and was officially opened on May 6, 2010. The wavy steel and glass canopy is fitted with thousands of LED lights that are switched on 90 … Continue reading
About Sights – Aerial Tramway in Tbilisi
On 23 June 2012 a new aerial tramway opened in Tbilisi. It connects the newly constructed Rike Park, that sits just across the Mtkvari river from the Old Town, with Narikala, the fortress that overlooks the city. The terminus at Rike Park with the Bridge Of Peace in the Background A one-way journey costs 1 GEL. … Continue reading
About Food – Mchadi (Georgian Cornbread)
Mchadi is a very popular cornbread traditionally eaten with lobio (beans) and cheese. Ingredients (for 6 servings). 400 grams of stone-ground cornmeal (preferably white), 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1 cup of cold water (may need more depending on the cornmeal). Stone-ground white cornmeal Preparation. Add water to the cornmeal little by little so that the cornmeal becomes … Continue reading
About Development – Tbilisi Trams
In 2004 the Tbilisi electric tram network celebrated its 100-year anniversary but just two years later it was closed due to its declining popularity and the prohibitive cost of overhaul. The story of the tramway began in 1883 with the first horse-drawn tramcar. These were replaced in 1904 by an electrified tramway line. One of the first electric … Continue reading
About Shopping – Traditional Carpets and Rugs
The history of carpet weaving in the Caucasus region dates back to the Middle Ages. Pieces of knotted pile carpet from the 13th and 14th centuries have been found in cave complexes in Georgia. Over the centuries, traders from Istanbul to Athens traveled to Tbilisi, Georgia, to trade in hand woven carpets at bazaars known … Continue reading
About Wine – Introduction to Traditional Wine-Making
Thousands of years ago the ancient people of the South Caucasus Region discovered how to transform wild grape juice into wine by leaving it to ferment in clay vessels called Kvevri, which they buried in the ground. It was from Georgia that the method of wine-making in Kvevri spread to Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and the rest … Continue reading
About Sights – Ananuri Fortress
Ananuri (Georgian: ანანური) is a fortress situated on the foreland by the Aragvi River, not far from Zhinvali water reservoir and about 70 km from Tbilisi, Georgia. It was built by the Dukes of Aragvi and its earliest parts date from the 13th century. The fortress is on the UNESCO Tentative list. The fortress consist of two fortifications joined by a crenellated curtain … Continue reading
About Food – Georgian Lobiani
We recently returned to our bakery, Trepezi, in our neighborhood in Tbilisi to see how our baker, Zaur Skhirtladze, makes Lobiani (boiled bean bread). Lobiani is enjoyed all year round and especially eaten on the Georgian holiday of Barbaroba, or St. Barbara’s Day (December 17). The main ingredient of Lobiani is boiled kidney beans. Zaur … Continue reading
About Food – Georgian Imeretian Cheese
Imeretian cheese from the Imereti region of Georgia is a very popular curd cheese made from cows milk. It has a soft and springy texture and a slightly sour, salty taste. It is a “quick cheese” maturing in just one or two days. A typical handmade Imeretian cheese is shaped as a flat disc, 2.5 to 3.5 centimeters thick. … Continue reading
About Sights – Abanotubani Sulphur Baths
The “Abanotubani” is the name given to the district in the Old Town of Tbilisi where there is a whole street (Abanos kucha) of public bathhouses that use the sulphurous waters of the many hot springs in this area. Abanotubani is the place, where according to legend, King Vakhtang Gorgasali’s falcon fell, leading to the discovery of the hot springs … Continue reading
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