Where is Georgia? Studded at the crossroads between West Asia and Eastern Europe and covering an area of 69,700 square kilometers, Georgia is embraced by both the Lesser, and Greater Caucasus mountain ranges. Bounded by the Black sea to the West, Georgia shares it northeastern, southern, and southeastern borders with four countries. Georgia’s north and northeastern borders are bounded by Russia while it shares its southern borders with Armenia and Turkey. Azerbaijan meets its southeastern border.
Where is Georgia in history? Owing to its exotic yet harsh mountainous terrain, the country has always found itself geographically, culturally, and climatically divided and diversified. For instance, the beautiful stretch of the Likhi Range divides the country in eastern and western halves, each of which historically were known as Iberia and Colchis, respectively. Additionally, the mountainous terrain has isolated, and naturally protected, the northern region of Svaneti. However, over the course of time, the country has become a unitary, semi-presidential republic that maintains healthy relations with its direct neighbors.
So, what are the most inspiring and relaxing places to visit in Georgia? Owning to its location, Georgia boasts a plethora of places you can visit. Start by heading to an ancient cave city by the Silk Road that is 3,600 years old. This was once the regional center of Caucasian pagan religion. The area is known as Uplistsikhe.
Alternatively, take a tour of the magical scenery with a ride across the Georgian Military Highway, along which you will also come across the Pasanauri Ski Slopes, a ski resort in the Greater Caucasus Mountains. Next, sip delicious wine and become mindful of the beautiful grounds of the Tsinandali Estate and more, at the Kakheti wineries.
Other places to visit in Georgia include:
The Mount Kazbeg
Home to one of the most ingeniously located monasteries in the world, the Tsminda Sameba (Holy Trinity), Mount Kazbeg is also one of the highest mountains in Europe.
A UNESCO World Heritage site and home to the mysterious Svans, it is the highest inhabited region of Europe.
The Village of Mazeri
Another Svaneti mountain village located amidst stunning waterfalls and beautiful lands, Mazeri is also the starting point for a range of exciting Svaneti trekking routes.
The Village of Shatili
Located in the deep Arghuni gorge, the village is a unique complex of medieval-to-early modern fortresses and dwellings that once guarded the outskirts of the country near the Chechnya border.
Brand new in 2011, the National Gallery is entered from the park beside the Kashveti Church and is well worth an hour of your time. For most visitors the highlight is the hall full of wonderful canvases by Georgia’s best known painter Pirosmani (Niko Pirosmanashvili, 1862–1918), ranging from his celebrated animal and feast scenes to lesser-known portraits and rural-life canvases. There’s also a good selection of work by other top 20th-century Georgian artists such as Lado Gudiashvili, Elene Akhvlediani and David Kakabadze.
This grand (and for its time, enormous) building dates from the 11th century, early in the golden age of Georgian church architecture. It has an elongated cross plan and is adorned with beautiful stone carving outside and in.According to tradition, Christ’s robe lies buried beneath the cathedral. Apparently a Mtskheta Jew, Elioz, was in Jerusalem at the time of the Crucifixion and returned with the robe to Mtskheta. His sister Sidonia took it from him and immediately died in a passion of faith. The robe was buried with her and as years passed, people forgot the exact site. When King Mirian decided to build the first church at Mtskheta in the 4th century, the wooden column designed to stand in its centre could not be raised from the ground. But after an all-night prayer vigil by St Nino, the column miraculously moved of its own accord to the burial site of Sidonia and the robe. The column subsequently worked many miracles and Svetitskhoveli means ‘Life-Giving Column’.In the 5th century Vakhtang Gorgasali replaced Mirian’s original church with a stone one, whose modest remains are visible to the left of the cathedral today. The present building was constructed between 1010 and 1029 under Patriarch Melqisedek, and is still one of the most beautiful churches in the country. The defensive wall around it was built in 1787.Christ’s robe is believed to lie in the nave beneath a square, towerlike pillar that is decorated with colourful if faded frescoes of the conversion of Kartli. The tomb of Erekle II, king of Kartli and Kakheti from 1762 to 1798, lies before the icon screen (marked with his birth and death dates, 1720 and 1798). Vakhtang Gorgasali’s tomb is behind this, with a raised flagstone and carved stone sword.
Visible for miles around on its hilltop overlooking Mtskheta from the east, the Jvari Church is, to many Georgians, the holiest of holies. Jvari stands where King Mirian erected a sacred wooden cross soon after his conversion by St Nino in the 4th century. Between 585 and 604 Stepanoz I, the eristavi (duke) of Kartli, constructed the church over the cross. Jvari is a beautifully symmetrical little building and a classic of early Georgian tetraconch design. It has a cross-shaped plan with four equal arms, the angles between them being filled in with corner rooms, and the low dome sits on a squat, octagonal drum. The interior is rather bare, but the site provides spectacular views over Mtskheta and the convergence of the Aragvi and Mtkvari Rivers. The road up to the church from Mtskheta takes a highly circuitous route; a taxi costs 20 GEL to 25 GEL return trip, including waiting time. If you’re feeling energetic, you can walk from Mtskheta in about one hour by crossing the footbridge from Teatron Park, walking about 1km down the busy highway, then heading up the hillside to the church.
Brand new in 2011, the National Gallery is entered from the park beside the Kashveti Church and is well worth an hour of your time. For most visitors the highlight is the hall full of wonderful canvases by Georgia’s best known painter Pirosmani (Niko Pirosmanashvili, 1862–1918), ranging from his celebrated animal and feast scenes to lesser-known portraits and rural-life canvases. There’s also a good selection of work by other top 20th-century Georgian artists such as Lado Gudiashvili, Elene Akhvlediani and David Kakabadze. </p>