Sakartvelo and its secrets

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Georgia is a country known for the highest mountains, wine and hot khachapuri, rare churches, centuries-old history and legendary hospitality.

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But what about the warm Black Sea? Resorts on the Black Sea coast of the country are becoming more comfortable and more popular every year, new hotels are being built, infrastructure is improving.

Georgia borders Russia, Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Now the state is considered as part of Eastern Europe.

Despite the small size of the territory, Georgia has always been considered and is considered a country of contrasts and interesting combinations. Here you can see spectacular mountain landscapes, visit ancient cities with their old monasteries and churches, relax in the resorts of the Black Sea and eat a variety of delicious food. 

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Mtskheta and a thousand and one more sights of Georgia

Everyone who planned to visit Georgia should one day visit its heart — Tbilisi — the capital of sunny Georgia, located on the banks of the Kura River. A city with an amazing aura and energy, modern and old culture, in which you will definitely leave a part of your heart. 

Ancient and beautiful Mtskheta is the first capital of Georgia, as well as the stronghold of the country’s Orthodoxy. The Lazsky Kingdom is only 20 km from Tbilisi. It is the old Mtskheta that is considered the heart of Georgia, its soul. 

From all the surroundings of Mtskheta, the Jvari monastery temple standing on the mountain is very clearly visible. To this day, Jvari is an active monastery, in which several monks live. An unforgettable view opens from the territory of the monastery: against the background of endless expanses, the Aragva and Kura rivers merge into one. 

Kazbegi. Kazbek is no less famous than Elbrus. Its height is 5033 m. Who has not glorified him in his poems, works and canvases. It’s worth going there even just for the spectacular views. 

Svaneti is an incredibly beautiful region, the kingdom of mountains in the northwest of Georgia. It is divided into Upper and Lower Svaneti. I think we can just say that Upper Svaneti is included in the UNESCO list.

A hundred kilometers from the city of Borjomi, the Vardzia cave complex is located. This is a whole city, 900 m long, carved into the rock of the mountain above the Kura. Vardzia has about 600 cave rooms: churches, storage rooms, libraries, stables, chapels, cells for monks, refectories. 

Of course, these are not all the sights of the country, but, as I believe, the main ones to visit. 

Eat up on the dump

Not only Georgians live in Georgia: there are also Kakhetians, Adjarians, Svans, Megrels, and everyone cooks something different and comes up with their own dishes. Drink wine in Kakheti, taste khachapuri in Adjara, and eat satsivi in Megrelia. They say that you can even go to Georgia only for a gastronomic tour. 

Bread or Puri is a business card of any country. In Georgia, there may be special bread on the table for certain dishes — for example, mchadi, mrgvali and dedas-puri for kharcho, shoti.

The dish, known far beyond the borders of Georgia, is a small envelope with suluguni cheese inside. There are different types of khachapuri:

  • in Megrelian —megruli) – round tortillas with cheese on top.
  • in Imeretian (imeruli) – round tortillas with cheese inside.
  • in Gurian – tortillas with a crescent moon.
  • in Adjarian – boats with cheese, egg and butter.

There is a main dish in Georgia, which is not supposed to have either bread or sauce: khinkali. It is customary to eat a lot of them — if you order two pieces in a restaurant, the waiter will surely be surprised. This is a kind of our dumplings or oriental manti. 

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The kharcho, beloved by many, also comes from this country, and it is definitely worth trying in Georgia. The soup is made from beef, rice, walnuts and tklapi (dried pulp of sour plum). 

Meat dishes. Salivating at the smell of only cooked shish kebab or chakhokhbili, chicken tapaka. In Georgia, not only meat dishes are popular, but also poultry cooked in different ways. For example, chakhokhbili is chicken stewed in vegetables. The bird is cut into small pieces, be sure to fry them in a dry frying pan, and then stew in a sauce of fresh peeled tomatoes, onions, sweet peppers, local herbs and spices. Chicken stewed in vegetable dressing turns out to be incredibly juicy, tender and, at the same time, spicy!

The main cheese is, of course, suluguni. This is a young fermented milk cheese aged in brine. It is added to various national dishes. Imereti cheese, unlike suluguni, is prepared for at least six months. This is a kind of hard cheese, where nuts and spices are added.

The main and most popular drink of Georgia is wine: saperavi, mukuzani, kindzmarauli, khvanchkara. Any feast is accompanied by some delicious wine, and, by the way, is clearly not limited to one bottle. All winemaking is concentrated in Kakheti, where you can even go on an exciting wine tour. If you are not offended by alcohol, then Borjomi is one of the symbols of gastronomic Georgia — especially for you. The natural springs of this unique mineral water were discovered at the beginning of the XIX century and the popularity of the drink has not decreased since then, but is only growing. Natural healing water is used not only as a means for the prevention and treatment of many diseases, but also as a refreshing drink.

And finally I want to tell you about the sauces. No meal in Georgia is complete without famous sauces: tkemali adjika, which is made from spices, red pepper and garlic, satsivi – sauce intended for poultry dishes. All this adds to the food a special taste, aroma and flavor of Georgia. 

It seems to me that not every country is worth such a detailed description as Georgia — after all, it is better to feel the flavor and history of the local people if you come there yourself. It doesn’t matter whether you go on a gastronomic, pilgrimage or family vacation in Tula, but the main thing is that you will feel for yourself why Georgians consider guests to be messengers of God.