Sakartwell (Georgia)
Georgia is geographically part of Asia, but culturally part of Europe. It is a country in the southern Caucasus, on the eastern shore of the Black Sea.
Tbilisi is the capital of Georgia and the country's largest city, with a population of around 1.5 million. The name of Georgia's capital, meaning "Warm Springs", comes from the natural hot springs that mark the city centre.
Tbilisi existed as an ancient "spa" (wellness centre). Its old town attracted many famous people such as Marco Polo, Alexander Dumas, Pushkin, Lermontov, Tchaikovsky....
According to a folk legend, when God was dividing the land among the nations, the Georgians were late because they were feasting. When they turned up, they heard that there was no more land available. The Georgians made the excuse that they were hungry, stopped for a bite to eat, then for a drink, toasted God, and so on... God was pleased with their answer and decided to give them the land he had reserved for himself. That is why Georgia is also called God's personal land.
"God sent a guest" is the saying in every Georgian's home when a guest knocks on the door. Friendliness and hospitality are the characteristics of every Georgian. The main dishes are hearty and very tasty. Georgian cuisine is truly an art and has something to offer to everyone - gourmands, culinary connoisseurs and food lovers alike...
Supra is the Georgian table where there is always dancing and toasts. The meal ends with traditional Georgian song and dance, with male jiggers and beautiful women singing folk songs echoed by the mountains. Georgian arranged singing is about 3 000 years old without musical instruments. Recently, UNESCO has proposed to declare Georgian song as an intangible world heritage.
Georgian winemaking technology is more than 8000 years old, a fact of which all Georgians are immensely proud. Georgia is the country where grapes were cultivated and the first wine was produced. Today, Georgia has hundreds of unique wines, many of which are still produced according to the old traditions. During a visit here in September, you can take part in the grape harvesting and wine making processes.
Georgia currently has three UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the old capital Mtskheta, the huge Bagradi and Gelati Cathedral complex. And the Svaneti Mountains, where every family home has its own defensive tower....