A trip to Mtskheta is equal to a journey through time. This city was founded in the first century BC, it is the very first capital of Georgia - after this title was taken by Tbilisi. But Mtskheta remained the spiritual heart of the country: it was here that Christianity was first adopted, back in 327 AD.

By modern standards, Mtskheta is not a city, rather a big village, but former grandeur, and most importantly - the spirit of the time here will be felt by everyone who simply walks the streets. Mtskheta is popular among Christian pilgrims and just tourists around the world, because the Georgian authorities are investing in the restoration of surviving monuments.

According to modern standards, Mtskheta is not a city, rather a big village, but former grandeur, and most importantly - everyone will feel the spirit of the time, even just strolling through the streets. Mtskheta is popular with tourists around the world, because the Georgian authorities are investing in the restoration of surviving monuments. In the city itself there are few, in fact the three main ones: the Samtavro monastery, the Svetitskhoveli cathedral and the Bebriscihe fortress.

How to get to Mtskheta

To get to Mtskheta, you must first get to Tbilisi .Direct flights are offered to Georgian Airlines and S7 .Two and a half hours fly - and you in the capital of Georgia .The ticket will cost 10 thousand rubles (March 2014 g .) .Variants with transfer in Riga, Warsaw, Kiev or Istanbul are offered by Air Baltic, Belavia, LOT, "Turkish Airlines" .But, pay attention, these carriers have prices lower only where there is a long time between flights .If the docking is short, then the price is like a direct flight .From Tbilisi to Mtskheta you can leave on the minibus: they depart every 15 minutes from the metro station "Didube" .Or by taxi - to Mtskheta 20 km .

A trip in a minibus will cost one lari - 20 rubles without kopecks. You need to pay at the ticket office, before boarding the bus.

Climate Mtskheta

The best time to travel to Mtskheta is from March to November, because during this period it is warm and comfortable. Although the winter in Georgia is famous for its softness and dryness. The average temperature in January is about 2 ° C, in the hottest months (July and August) - 25 ° C.

Book popular Mtskheta hotels at the best prices

Guest House IBERIA from 2 092 rub. Mtskheta 29 arsukidze str. Hotel Aragvi from 2 790 rubles Mtskheta arsukidze st
Zedazeni Hotel from 2 615 rubles Mtskheta Tbilisi Highway 23/800
Mtskheta. View from the sky

Sights of Mtskheta

There are no more such historical and religious monuments, as in Mtskheta, in Georgia. The city is also called the second Jerusalem. First, for the fact that one of the most revered saints in Georgia, Nina, came to Mtskheta with good news. Secondly, for the fact that the chiton of the Lord is kept in the city, in the cathedral Svetitskhoveli, which not only has been remarkably preserved, but still works today.

Mtskheta and its environs are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Svetitskhoveli

If Mtskheta is the spiritual heart of Georgia, then the heart of the city itself is Svetitskhoveli Cathedral .It was built in the 11th century on the site of the first in the state Christian church of St. Sidonia, built in the 4th century from a tree .There is a legend connected with this church: a resident of Mtskheta obtained in Jerusalem a chiton of Jesus Christ and gave it to Sidonia's sister, from touching the garment the girl died, she was buried along with the jacket .Cedar grew on her grave, and when King Mirian decided to erect a temple in the place where the Lord's tunic is buried, the tree was cut and cut from its branches by seven columns .Six established, and the latter did not yield, hanging in the air .Only thanks to the prayers of Saint Nina, the pillar itself took its place and mitered .Hence the name of the cathedral: Svetitskhoveli means the life-giving pillar .The church still holds the main ceremonies of the Georgian Orthodox Church, including the enthronement of the Catholicos-Patriarch .

Local guides, which Svetitskhoveli has a pond of ponds, are very intrusive, offer their services for 20 lari, but you can also bargain. And about why the fresco of the temple depicts the 12 signs of the zodiac corresponding to the 12 apostles, none of them will tell you. And yet the fresco is the only one of its kind.

In the cathedral, in front of the altar, Georgian kings are buried: the founder of Tbilisi Vakhtang Gorgasali, the ruler of Kakheti Irakli I, the dynasty of Bagrationi.

From the cathedral you can stroll through the center of Mtskheta. It is, of course, a stylized antique, but very beautiful: all houses are tiled, have the same facades and fences, the roads are paved.

Jvari

Look at Svetitskhoveli and it's on top - from the observation deck near one of the famous sights of Mtskheta - Jvari temple. The Georgian church stands on the very edge of a steep rock, harmoniously continuing it, already from the 6th century. It was built by the Georgian tsar in place of the cross, which Saint Nina established here, not unknown to the reader. That's why the temple is called Jvari, which means cross in translation.

It was in Dzhvari that Lermontov's Mtsyri grew up. Remember: "A few years ago, Where, merging, noisy, Embraced, as if two sisters, the Aragvi and the Kura Streams, Was a monastery"?

Get together in Jvari with the children, hire a taxi that stands at the foot of the mountain - the lift is heavy. For 20 lari the driver will take you to the temple, wait and return to the place where he landed. From the observation deck, there is a breathtaking view of Mtskheta itself and the two merging rivers, about which Lermontov writes. The city is really impressive not only with its history, but also with nature!

Bebrisciche

Another beautiful, however, dilapidated monument is on a steep cliff on the northern outskirts of Mtskheta. This is the fortress of Bebrisciche, which once defended the city from invading enemies, although in appearance it is very small and probably contained very few people. In the literature the fortress is mentioned in 1156 - here died the tsar Demetre I. In the spring of 2010 the monument was seriously damaged as a result of a landslide.

Georgian diary: Mtskheta

Samtavro

The second largest church in Mtskheta - Samtavro - was built in the 11th century. It is one of the oldest women's monasteries in Georgia, it still maintains its services. Christian pilgrims travel here because of the remains of the Georgian king Mirian and his wife Nana, they took their faith in 337

Monastery of Shio-Mgvime

The monastery of Shio-Mgvime is interesting with its cells, which the monks dug in the caves of the surrounding mountains. The monastic church was built in the 6th century, in architecture it is a unique building for Georgia.