On the slopes of Mtatsminda in Georgia

On the hills of Georgia lies the night mist;
Shumite Aragwa before me.
I am sad and easy; my sorrow is light.
My sorrow is full of you,
With you alone... My sadness
Nothing torments or disturbs,
And the heart burns and loves again.
That it cannot not love.

Alexander Pushkin

There are places where an inexperienced soul, pampered by trips to good old Europe, is not particularly ready to go. For example, Georgia. What's weird? We tend to treat many things with too much prejudice, to a large extent, guests from the Caucasus. But what is this country hiding, what kind of people live on the other side of Aragva?

A trip to Georgia, albeit with a tour operator, left me so many impressions that perhaps not all the trips before. The main destination is the capital of Georgia Tbilisi. Narikala Fortress, on Mtatsminda Mountain, is the first thing to visit. It is difficult not to notice it, it is the most ancient landmark of the city, built in the IV century. Since then, it has survived many wars and earthquakes, but it has never been restored, so it delights the eye with its pristine beauty.

The next mandatory place to visit is Zion Cathedral. This is the main temple of the city, built in the 6th century, but due to numerous destructions, it was restored several times. The facing of the temple refers to the beginning of the XVIII century, and the frescoes are made in the XIX century.

You can not pass by several more attractions, among which the Metekhi Rock, according to legend, begins with it the history of the city, and it is located more than once rebuilt the temple of Metekhi. Having reached the old town, pleasing with its unusual and charming beauty, it is worth paying special attention to the Tiflis baths. It is believed that King Vakhtang Gorgasal saw a pheasant drink water from a healing spring and was healed. He ordered the founding of a city called "warm", and on the site of springs - baths. They are made in oriental style, some still work.

And in the evening you should walk along the main street of the capital - Shota Rustaveli Street. It is quite wide, it has many beautiful houses, there are museums, in the dark it is illuminated by myriads of small lights that adorn the trees.

But perhaps the most important attraction of Georgia is its people, so incredibly friendly and good-natured, joyful, despite all the adversity, and believing in the best, sociable and lively.

Walking through the small, time-lost streets of the heart of the country, you can be sure that someone will talk to you after hearing Russian. Especially the older generation, they all know our language well and are very happy to practice it, for half an hour of conversation, the first person you meet will easily tell you his whole fate - about how he was born not here, how he moved to his historical homeland and how he murmurs for its fate. And the fire of love for this unruly mountainous terrain will burn in my eyes. Another stranger or stranger can intercept in the middle of the street and spend the whole day with you, accompanying you around the city to various events, and in the meantime, several more people will not fail to say a few words.

After the collapse of the union, Georgia was in a rather deplorable state: devastation, incessant civil wars and changes of rulers. They still have a lot to do, to restore, in the middle of the capital you can easily stumble upon the ruins of houses and beggar settlements in the old dilapidated church.

It is amazing to realize that the state allocates a lot of money for the restoration of houses, resettling citizens in good apartments. We are used to treating Georgians not very kindly, but in vain. Yes, they joined NATO, but only in Georgia you can hear: “Why all these political games, we have a long history together and should maintain good relations.”

Text by Veronika Khityaeva