Borjomi |
Borjomi |
Borjomi |
Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park |
About twenty minutes' drives out of Borjomi and the land transforms completely. The lush greens of the forests are replaced by a barren, mostly brown, semi-desert landscape. Riding shotgun in a taxi through this with the windows rolled down, wind blowing in my face, there's no doubt in my mind that we have left Europe. The driver points in one direction, and says it's that way to Armenia; he points another direction, that way to Turkey. Two enormous lorries drive past, both with Iranian number plates. While in Tbilisi any signs not in Georgian are usually in English, and in Borjomi they're normally in Russian, out here it's not uncommon to see signs in Turkish. Due to Georgia's recent history having been dominated by Russia, and the devout Christianity of most Georgians, I almost forgot about the country's proximity to the Middle East, but here I can really feel it.
After a few windswept villages we reach Akhaltsikhe, the capital of the Samtskhe-Javakheti region. This is a town with a multicultural heritage. Up until the 1940s it was inhabited predominantly by ethnic Turks, as was much of the surrounding area. These Turks, known as variously as "Meskheti Turks" or "Ahiska Turks", had lived in the area since the 16th century, when it was part of the Ottoman Empire. After the Ottomans ceded the territory to the Russian Empire in the 19th century, these Turks remained and lived peaceably with their Georgian neighbours. During the Second World War, however, Stalin was planning to launch a pressure campaign on Turkey. Fearing that the Meskheti Turks might betray the Soviet Union and collaborate with the Turkish Republic, he had the whole population deported to Central Asia. Tens of thousands died during deportation, and those that survived were never allowed to return to their homes. Today Akhaltsikhe is home to one of Georgia's largest Armenian communities, with a population of about 61% Georgians and 37% Armenians. There's little ethnic tension between the Georgian and Armenian communities here, a fact for which the Georgian government is very grateful; but the authorities fear that if the Meskheti Turks were to return, it would upset the delicate ethnic balance and result in unrest. As a result, to this day no Meskheti Turks have been granted the right to return to Georgia. Despite this refusal to accept back these former inhabitants and their descendants, Akhaltsikhe's main attraction is a remnant of its Ottoman past. The Rabati, the walled old town, has an undeniably Turkish feel to it, and includes a mosque, a madrasah and a synagogue (none of which are still in use). The fact that the Rabati was all recently renovated means that it feels a bit inauthentic, and I imagine it was a lot more atmospheric before, but it's nonetheless interesting to see.
Akhaltsikhe's Rabati |
Akhaltsikhe's Rabati |