Theme Week Georgia – Kutaisi
Friday, 27 November 2020 - 12:00 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: European Union / Europäische Union General , UNESCO World Heritage
Reading Time: 5 minutes
Downtown Kutaisi and White Bridge as seen from Mount Gora © Kober/cc-by-sa-3.0
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Kutaisi is one of the most
ancient cities in the world and the
third-most populous city in
Georgia , traditionally, second in importance, after the
capital city of
Tbilisi . Situated 221 kilometres (137 miles) west of
Tbilisi , on the
Rioni River , it is the capital of the western region of
Imereti .
Historically one of the major cities of Georgia, it served as political center of Colchis in the Middle Ages as capital of the Kingdom of Abkhazia and Kingdom of Georgia and later as the capital of the Kingdom of Imereti . From October 2012 to December 2018, Kutaisi briefly was the seat of the Parliament of Georgia as an effort to decentralise the Georgian government.
Downtown Kutaisi and White Bridge as seen from Mount Gora © Kober/cc-by-sa-3.0
The landmark of the city is the ruined
Bagrati Cathedral , built by
Bagrat III , king of Georgia, in the early 11th century. The
Gelati Monastery a few km east of the city, is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site . One of the famous churches in Georgia is
Motsameta monastery . It is named after two saints, brothers David and Constantine. They were the Dukes of Margveti, and were martyred by Arab invaders in the 8th century. Besides the churches, there are many interesting places in Kutaisi, such as: Sataplia Cave, where one can observe footprints of
dinosaurs ;
Geguti Palace , which was one of the residences of Georgian monarchs; “Okros Chardakhi” – Georgian Kings’ Palace; and the
Pantheon , where many notable citizens are buried. The
Kutaisi Synagogue which was built in 1885 is also an interesting sight.
Kutaisi has traditionally been an important industrial center in Georgia, but after the collapse of the
Soviet Union most of the old manufacturing lines either stopped working or had to greatly reduce their operations. Nevertheless, the city continues to be an important regional center for the greater Imereti area, acting as a commercial hub for the surrounding countryside. In recent years, the city has started attracting more investment from various multinational corporations. The
Auto Mechanical Plant , originally established in 1945, is located in Kutaisi. There are two free indurstrial zones in Kutaisi: The Kutaisi free industrial zone (Kutaisi FIZ) and the Hualing free industrial zone (Hualing FIZ). The Kutaisi FIZ was created in 2009 and was established on the initiative of Fresh Electric, an
Egypt -based home appliances producer. The Hualing FIZ operates since 2015, and specializes in wood and stone processing, furniture and mattress production and metal construction. Both of the free industrial zones offer multiple incentives to investors such as tax exemptions and reduced barriers for trade. In 2019, German
solar panel manufacturer
AE Solar opened a new, fully automated manufacturing line in Kutaisi. With a total output of 500 MW per year it is the largest solar panel factory under one roof in Europe. During the same year
Changan Automobile announced plans to construct an
electric car factory in Kutaisi, with an annual production capacity of up to 40,000 vehicles. The company plans to export annually about 20,000 cars to the EU. The factory plans to employ about 3,000 people.
Here you can find the complete
Overview of all Theme Weeks .
Read more on
Kutaisi ,
Wikivoyage Kutaisi and
Wikipedia Kutaisi . Learn more about the
use of photos . To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (
Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State -
Weather report by weather.com -
Global Passport Power Rank -
Travel Risk Map -
Democracy Index -
GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank -
Global Competitiveness Report -
Corruption Perceptions Index -
Press Freedom Index -
World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index -
UN Human Development Index -
Global Peace Index -
Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index ). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at
comment@wingsch.net . Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.
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