Wednesday, July 1, 2020
Friday, March 30, 2018
Gori Fortress
Gori Fortress (Georgian: გორის ციხე, "Goris Tsikhe") is a medieval citadel in Georgia, standing above the city of Gori on a rocky hill.
The fortress first appears in the 13th century records but archaeological evidence shows that the area had already been fortified in the last centuries BC. The fortress controlled major strategic and economic routes and accommodated a large garrison. In the 16th century the Ottomans captured it to overawe Tbilisi. In 1598 the Georgians besieged it to no avail; in 1599 they feigned a relaxation of the siege for Lentbefore launching a surprise attack at night to regain the citadel. The fortress continued to change hands between the Georgians and the Persians in the 17th century.
The citadel acquired the present-day form under the Georgian kings Rostom of Kartli in the 1630s and Erekle II in 1774. After the Russianannexation of Georgia in 1801, the fortress was garrisoned by a Russian grenadier battalion, but its importance gradually declined and the fortifications went defunct. The British Encyclopædia Metropolitana reported in 1845:
Gori Fortress was significantly damaged by the earthquake in 1920. The best preserved structure is Tskhra-kara ("the Nine-gated"), which looks to the west, and is adjoined by the supplementary walls on the south and east.
Tbilisi AutoMuseum
The Tbilisi car park was created on the basis of a private collector's personal collection. He collected this collection for 18 years and only now decided his public exhibition. The collection, of course, will continue to grow. At this stage in the Tbilisi car market, 25 rarity cars issued from the beginning of the 20th century are endowed with the Soviet Union.
History of Georgia (country)
The nation of Georgia (Georgian: საქართველო sakartvelo) was first unified as a kingdom under the Bagrationi dynasty by the King Bagrat III of Georgia in the 8th to 9th century, arising from a number of predecessor states of the ancient kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia. The kingdom of Georgia flourished during the 10th to 12th centuries under King David IV the Builder and Queen Tamar the Great, and fell to the Mongol invasion by 1243, and after a brief reunion under George V the Brilliant to the Timurid Empire. By 1490, Georgia was fragmented into a number of petty kingdoms and principalities, which throughout the Early Modern period struggled to maintain their autonomy against Ottoman and Iranian (Safavid, Afsharid, and Qajar) domination until Georgia was finally annexed by the Russian Empire in 1801, which got nominally confirmed in 1813. After a brief bid for independence with the Democratic Republic of Georgia of 1918–1921, Georgia was part of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic from 1922 to 1936, and then formed the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic until the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The current republic of Georgia has been independent since 1991. The first president Zviad Gamsakhurdia stoked Georgian nationalism and vowed to assert Tbilisi's authority over Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Gamsakhurdia was deposed in a bloody coup d'état within the same year and the country became embroiled in a bitter civil war, which lasted until 1995. Supported by Russia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia achieved de facto independence from Georgia. The Rose Revolution forced Eduard Shevardnadze to resign in 2003. The new government under Mikheil Saakashvili prevented the secession of a third breakaway republic in the Adjara crisis of 2004, but the conflict with Abkhazia and South Ossetia led to the 2008 Russo–Georgian War and tensions with Russia remain unresolved.
The history of Georgia is inextricably linked with the history of the Georgian people
Monday, March 26, 2018
Mtirala National Park
Mtirala National Park is a protected area in Adjara region, Georgia. Covering approximately 15,698 hectares in the western Lesser Caucasus, it is situated between the Black Sea and the Adjara Mountains. It also adjoins Kintrishi Protected Areas
The park offers hiking, horse-riding and eco-tours.
The best times to visit are spring, summer and early autumn.
How to get there? From Tbilisi to Chakvi is 350 km (5–6 hr by car). Minibus from Tbilisi’s Didube and Vagzali bus terminals to Batumi every day (20 Gel, 6 hr). Train from Tbilisi Central Railway Station every day (15/30 Gel – day (6 hr)/night (9 hr). Minibus from Batumi Central Station to Chakvi every day, every 15 minutes (1 Gel, 20 min).
The park offers hiking, horse-riding and eco-tours.
Trails are marked and picnic and camping areas are provided. A visitors center is located in the village of Chakvistavi.
Mtirala is home to a variety of animals and birds, including Chamois, Roe deer, Wild boar and Brown bear, Booted eagle, Eagle owl and Golden oriole.The best times to visit are spring, summer and early autumn.
How to get there? From Tbilisi to Chakvi is 350 km (5–6 hr by car). Minibus from Tbilisi’s Didube and Vagzali bus terminals to Batumi every day (20 Gel, 6 hr). Train from Tbilisi Central Railway Station every day (15/30 Gel – day (6 hr)/night (9 hr). Minibus from Batumi Central Station to Chakvi every day, every 15 minutes (1 Gel, 20 min).
