Georgia, 4th

by Burford, Tim

• ISBN13: 9781841623573
• ISBN10: 1841623571
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-10-18
• Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides

Summary

At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, Georgia unassumingly offers visitors the best of the Caucasus region--beautiful churches, wild and unspoiled countryside perfect for hiking and cycling, welcoming locals, homemade wines, and marathon toasting. With up-to-date details on a growing number of ecotourism and adventure-tourism initiatives and the latest on the political situation and break-away states, Bradt's Georgiaaids you in avoiding meal-time faux pas, reveals the country's hidden cultural treasures, and offers practical details on varied activities from countryside caving, visiting ancient pagan ruins, or tackling four liters of wine in a sitting. A land of cultural and natural diversity, Georgia greets you with open arms and an open bottle--or two.

Author Biography

Tim Burford spent five years in publishing before writing hiking and ecotourism guides for Bradt. He is the author of Bradt's Chile, Dresden, and Uruguay.

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter 1 Background Information Chapter 2 Practical Information Chapter 3 Tbilisi Chapter 4 Shida (Inner) Kartli Chapter 5 The Georgian Military Highway Chapter 6 Samtskhe-Javakheti Chapter 7 Imereti, Racha and Mingrelia Chapter 8 Svaneti Chapter 9 Adjara Chapter 10 Kakheti Chapter 11 Kvemo (Lower) Kartli Appendix I Georgian Language Appendix 2 Further Information Index

Excerpts

Many things in Georgia are in a poor state (the roads, hotels, postal system and electricity supply immediately come to mind), yet it’s one of the most heart-warming and exciting of all European destinations. This is above all due to its people, who are some of the most hospitable and generous you could meet anywhere. In addition you’ll see fantastic scenery, including Europe’s highest mountains, and lovely ancient churches and cave-cities.

This does in part beg the question of whether Georgia is in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, or some other region: travelers can easily spend half their trip debating this issue. If the Caucasus is the dividing line between Europe and Asia, it’s unclear which side is European and which is Asian. Armenia and Russia have international phone codes in the European 003 series, yet they are separated by Georgia and Azerbaijan which have chosen codes in the Asian 009 series. Despite this, in 2007 Georgia competed for the first time in the Eurovision Song Contest, finishing in a very credible twelfth place. Certainly the Georgians seem to spend a lot of time squatting on their haunches in an Asian way waiting for the good times to come around, yet civil society (non-governmental organizations, pressure groups, a fair judicial system and so on) is stronger here than in the neighboring countries.