In the Tbilisi basin, on the two banks of the Kura River, at an altitude of 525 meters is the capital of Georgia - Tbilisi. The city is stretched by a narrow strip along the Kura and along the slopes of the mountains. In the southeast is its historical center - the Old Town with narrow streets, small houses of stone, wood and brick. They are decorated with carved wooden balconies.
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the center of present-day Tbilisi, the New City, appeared. It had a rectangular grid of streets. Many
public buildings were built
, as a rule, in the style of classicism: the Zubalashvili Hotel (today it is the Museum of Art), the Headquarters of the Caucasian Army, the Viceroy's Palace. At the beginning of the twentieth century, banks, apartment buildings, office buildings were built.
According to archaeologists, the territory in which the capital of Georgia is now located was inhabited by people in the 4th-3rd millennium BC. The first written mention of the city dates back to the fourth millennium BC.
It is believed that Tbilisi got its name thanks to warm sulfuric springs (in Georgian, "Tbili" means "warm").
The capital of Georgia is the most ancient city of the state. Its history spans fifteen centuries. In Tbilisi, the industrial facilities of the Soviet era and the ancient buildings of the early Christian period are wonderfully intertwined.
Mecheti is the oldest place of human settlement on the territory of the Georgian state. This unique district of Tbilisi is built on the banks of the Kura River on a high rock. At that time, the monarchs built their palaces there. Today, the most famous is the palace of Vakhtang Gorgasale, which gave the name to this area of the city. Translated from local dialects, it means "the vicinity of the Palace."
The main attraction of Mecheti is the Assumption Church, which was built in the thirteenth century. In Soviet times, the Beria government tried to destroy it, but for unknown reasons did not implement its plan. In the eighties of the last century, the church in Mecheti regained its status.
The capital of Georgia has its own cable car. Its construction began in 1900, when many predicted Tbilisi's huge growth in popularity. There was an amazing similarity between Mount David and the famous volcano Vesuvius, which also had a cable railway. In 1905, all construction work was completed, and the funicular with three stations became a favorite social holiday destination. Later, a park was set up on a mountain plateau and various attractions were installed in it; a large restaurant appeared at the middle station.
Georgia, whose capital is considered one of the greenest cities in the world, is proud of Tbilisi. Residents of the city always speak with special warmth about the Botanical Garden, which is located in the very center of the Georgian capital. It was created in the late nineteenth century. Over the long history of this reserve, its area exceeded 15 hectares, beautiful bridges were laid over the most impenetrable sections of the garden, and picturesque man-made fountains and waterfalls appeared.
Old Tbilisi is gradually being restored. Narrow streets are being rebuilt. Old houses turn into hotels, and ancient wine cellars into cozy cafes. Everything is saturated with antiquity. This is especially noticeable in the famous courtyards of Tbilisi, between which mosques and synagogues are “attached”.