Kutaisi
Kutaisi was the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Colchis. Archeological evidence indicates that the city functioned as the capital of the kingdom of Colchis as early as the second millennium BC. Nowadays, Kutaisi, Imereti’s main town, is Georgia’s second city after Tbilisi. Old Kutaisi is a very attractive place to stroll around after taking in the wonders of Bagrati and Gelati. The elegant, tree lined streets of the 19th century houses stretch down to the banks of the fast flowing Rioni River, and there are several of attractive parks. Bagrati Cathedral
The Cathedral of the Dormition, or the Kutaisi Cathedral, more commonly known as Bagrati Cathedral , is the 11th-century cathedral church in the city of Kutaisi. A distinct landmark in the scenery of central Kutaisi, the cathedral rests upon the top of Uk’imerioni Hill. It was built in the early years of the 11th century, during the reign of King Bagrat III due to which it was called "Bagrati" Cathedral, i.e., Bagrat’s cathedral. An inscription on the north wall reveals that the floor was laid in "chronicon 223", i.e., 1003. In 1692, it was devastated in an explosion by the Ottoman troops, which had invaded the Kingdom of Imereti. The incident caused the cupola and ceiling to collapse leaving the cathedral in its present state. The conservation and restoration works, as well as archaeological studies, which began in 1952, are still underway. In 1994, the Bagrati Cathedral, together with the Gelati Monastery, was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site list as a single entity. Gelati Monastery
The Monastery of Gelati is a monastic complex near Kutaisi, Imereti, western Georgia. It contains the Church of the Virgin founded by the King of Georgia David the Builder in 1106, and the 13th-century churches of St George and St Nicholas. The Gelati Monastery for a long time was one of the main cultural and intellectual centers in Georgia. It had an Academy which employed some of the most celebrated Georgian scientists, theologians and philosophers, many of whom had previously been active at various orthodox monasteries abroad or at the Mangan Academy in Constantinople. In 1994, Gelati Monastery was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The site was included in the 2008 World Monuments Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World Monuments Fund to draw attention to deterioration caused by prolonged neglect. Motsameta Monastery
The monastery and church is beautifully surrounded by forest,. From the higher parts of town you can walk there along the train line, from where you have a nice view. Next to the entrance of the church you can descend to a swim place along the Rioni river. The foundation and erection of Motsameta church is connected with two brothers David and Konsntine Mkheidze, who sacrificed their lives to Georgia in the battle against Arabians. Georgians built the burial-vault for the saint parts of their bodies and called the village and the monastery “Motsameta”, i.e. “Martyrdom”.This little monastery has very beautiful views over the gorge of the river Tskhastsitela . The name of the river derives from 8th century and in English it means the red river. To make your dearest wish come true, simply crawl three times under the tombofthetwo princely martyrs for whom this church is dedicated. Locals say that it never fails! In the south side of the church tower has inscription: that it is built by Imereti metropolitan David’s order in 1845. in the Church yard are burred XIX-XX servants of the monastery. Motsameta is very important monument, It has sited in the Georgian nation heritage treasury. Sataplia cave
Sataplia is a famous karst cave in Georgia . Besides breathtaking speleothems, it is famous for archaeological findings - dinosaur footprints. The cave is located approximately 6 km from the town Tsqaltubo . The name Sataplia is derived from the Georgian word "tapli" i.e. honey as the locality is well known for bees. The Sataplia karst cave is situated within the Sataplia preserve. It is 300 m long, 10 m high and 12 m wide. During the tour around the cave interiors you can admire magnificent stalactites and stalagmites. The Sataplia was discovered in 1925 by P. Chabukiani, local teacher and naturalist. The dinosaur footprints, aged 120 million years, were found in 1933. Two different layers of the Cretaceous limestone revealed nearly 200 dinosaur footprints. When in the Sataplia cave, you will come across footprints made by other species as well. For example, there are 30 cm long footprints in the lower layer that belong to an unknown predator, while the upper layer offers a view of 48 cm long footprints of the ornitopod herbivore. Navenakhevi cave
Navenakhevi cave complex or ‘mgvime’ is about 25 million years old. The Navenakhevi cave is located near the village of Navenakhevi east off Kutaisi. The walking paths here have been made by tourists similar to Sataplia. This cave has diverse shapes. The caves where people used to live are to be noticed in different places around Imereti. The cave is two-stored and located 235 m above the sea level.
