Abkhazia and Southern Ossetia were in the news last summer in what was dubbed the 2008 South Ossetia War. If you are interested in this "skirmish" and the subsequent fallout, I would recommend you research on your own, looking at different points of view.
Located on the Black Sea, Abkhazia has a stretch of coastline that is supposed to be stunningly beautiful. And, just a smidgen north of the Abkhazia Republic northern boundary is the Black Sea city, Sochi. Sochi is the city that was awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics. The day the Winter Olympic Committee was going to announce the winner of the Games, then President Putin went to the ceremony and made a personal sales pitch. I say this last bit simply to say that President Obama's going to Denmark was not unprecedented for a world leader and was politically a good maneuver and good for the country, despite the fact Chicago wasn't selected.
The images below were taken in Abkhazia. After Abkhazia, Timour and Marina drove their car through Volgograd and all the way to Cheboksary (to visit Marina's parents), then to Vladimir (to visit Timour's father) before driving east 120 miles to their home in Moscow.
Using the maps below, see if you can spot Timour's native country, Uzbekistan, and his current home, Moscow. Also, make sure to spot Abkhazia and see where it is in relation to Georgia and Sochi. Click each map once to enlarge. Not on these maps is the city of Vladimir, which is about 120 miles east of Moscow. Marina's family home, Cheboksary, is between Kazan and Nizhny Novgorod (map one).
A post about Timour's father and the Golden Ring city where he lives can be seen after this one.
This mountain wall is a cave monastery of the 2nd century. It's still not known how monks climbed up/down to the caves. Nowadays, only professional climbers with special equipment can reach them.
Abhazia is a beautiful place where mountains are gradually comes to the coast of black sea and nice beaches. It has history that goes back to the centuries. There were romans, greeks, Genove's trades. There are still some ancient castles. Also in the place called Novoy Afon there is a cave there use to live Simon Canonite. He use to be one of 12 Jesus prophecies. See the picture where I pictured near entrance on the stairs to the cave.
ReplyDeleteBefore revolution of 1917 in the city of Gagry Russian Prince Oldenbourgsky has established a resort that suppose to become a Russian type of Nice (France).
During Soviet time it was favorite resort of Stalin and Beria. In 1930-1980th there was build many hotels.
In our days those former well known in USSR places are looking abandoned. By that I mean that for 18 years starting from first Georgia-Abhazia war in 1991-1993th all those big and nice resort-hotels were empty. Now they staying with broken windows, without electricity, hot water etc.
Although private people renovate their private houses for some sort of small home-type hotels where people can stay for some 15-20 $ per day. But the big resort-hotels that located along the coast of black sea are still empty as there is no modern renovations and no modern comfort as required for beach hotels on modern level.
Before recognition Abhazia as an independent state there was uncertainty and no stability that is required for attracting finance for restoration of resorts.
Only in 2009 , after recognition of Abhazia by Russian Federation and some other states in the world they were able to attract financial flows into the economy and start to renovate old Soviet hotels for tourists to come in 2010.
All products, grocery, building materials are coming from Russia. In Abhazia itself there is no production and agriculture as it was frozen during 18 years of uncertainty and instability.
Timour Rasulov