Sametke-Javaketi

Sametke-Javaketi lies in the south of Georgia, adjacent to the Armenian border and has a large Armenian population. The signposts are written in Armenian and Georgian, two distinctive and different curlicued scripts, side by side. The region is also home to Georgia’s most spectacular tourist site. Vardzia was originally a monastery city — at its peak home to 50,000 people — carved into the limestone cliffs of the Erushia mountain. It was ordered built by Queen Tamara in the 12th century as defence against the Mongols and was only accessible by secret tunnels. In the 13th century an earthquake sheared the city in half and today the cells and hollows, worn steps and ruined cupolas are maintained by a small community of monks.