Old Tbilisi

Georgia’s capital city, Tbilisi (თბილისი) or Tiflis, has seen its fair share of visitors. Located strategically in the heart of the Caucasus, a crossing place between east and west, the city has changed hands repeatedly. Its founders were local Iberians, who were defeated by Sassanid Persians, and then Arabs, Turks, Mongols, Iranians and Russians all came and went over the next 1500 years. Georgia’s golden age was the 12th and 13th centuries, when Tbilisi became a regional power with a thriving economy and astonishing cultural output. The old town, shown here at sundown, is where you can best experience Tbilisi’s hotchpotch of cosmopolitanism.