Motorcycle trip

Georgia

Georgia’s geography

Georgia is bordered by Russia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, Armenia to the south and Turkey to the southwest. A small mountain country with a surface area similar to Sri Lanka, it is overlooked by the Greater Caucasus to the north and the Lesser Caucasus to the south, and opens out onto the Black Sea to the west. The capital, Tbilisi, is sandwiched between the peaks in a central depression, and is where most of the population lives. The city once stood on the Silk Road –the crossroads between East and West– but today is ideal for experiencing Georgian culture in the heart of a cosmopolitan capital city. To the north, the Greater Caucasus acts as a natural border with Russia with peaks standing at more than 5,000 m altitude, including the country’s highest point Shkhara (5,193m). Several protected spaces, national parks and nature reserves can be found throughout the country. During a motorcycle tour in Georgia, you can discover a wide range of flora, including tea plantations, Kakheti wine regions, woodlands with oak, maple, beech, chestnut trees, orchards and mandarin trees.

Georgia’s history and culture

It is hard to pinpoint the beginning of Georgia’s history, but is believed to be marked by the Scythians arrival in the sixth century BC, which was followed by invasions by the Persians and lastly Alexander the Great. The country was immediately divided in two with Colchis to the west and Iberia to the east, coveted by Greece and Armenia, respectively. The Romans placed the Caucasian kingdoms under trusteeship and the country bore witness to long conflicts between the Romans and the Persians. It was not until the tenth century when King Bagrat III regrouped all the Christian lands within Transcaucasia and officially founded the state. After centuries as a battlefield of empires, Russia annexed the whole of Georgia at the start of the nineteenth century. In 1917, the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic, which included Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, became independent, and then one year later, the Democratic Republic of Georgia was declared. The Red Army then invaded in 1921. In a nationalist spirit, independence was restored 70 years later with the fall of the USSR, soon leading to conflict with neighbouring countries. During the noughties, Georgia lost two historic regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Since 2008, the country has been experiencing a period of peace boosted by economic growth, which you could discover for yourself on a motorcycle tour in Georgia.