Georgia emerged as a major tourist attraction with soaring mountains in the north of the country towering over tiny villages and peaceful country sides where life continues much as it has done for centuries. Traditional lifestyle, an unparalleled glimpse of nature, warm friendly people and an untamed wild landscape attracts people from all parts of the globe to the Georgian territories. Dwelling between the South Caucasus and the North Caucasus mountain ranges, Georgia has a vast coastline of Black Sea to its west. The Likhi Mountain range justifies this Southeast Asian country’s historical division of the western portion as Colchis and the eastern plateau of Iberia. The Javakheti Volcanic Plateau is home to numerous hot springs and lakes, including Tabatskuri and Paravani. Georgia also includes the Abkhazia and Ajara autonomous republics and South Ossetia in its jurisdiction.
Historically, Georgia once ruled over the whole of Transcaucasia and one of the earliest nations to adopt Christianity. With the Treaty of Georgievsk, the country became a vassal to Russia in exchange for protection from the Turks and Persians. In 1917, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan established Bolshevik Transcaucasian Federation before being annexed to USSR. Georgia proclaimed its independence from the USSR on April 6, 1991.