Tiflis comes in sight during the latter half of the stage. The
prospect of the town charmed me much; as, with the exception of a
few church towers, it was built in the European style; and, since
Valparaiso, I had not seen any town resembling the European. Tiflis
contains 50,000 inhabitants, it is the capital of Georgia, {309} and
is situated tolerably near the mountains. Many of the houses are
built on hills, on high steep rocks. From some of the hills there
is a beautiful view of the town and valley. The latter, at the time
of my visit, was not very attractive, as the harvest had deprived it
of all the charms of colour; there were also but few gardens, etc.
On the other hand, the river Kurry (generally called Cyrus) winds in
graceful curves through the town and valley, and in the far distance
sparkle the snow-crowned summits of the Caucasus. A strong citadel,
Naraklea, is situated upon steep rocks, immediately before the town.
The houses are large, and tastefully ornamented with facades and
columns, and covered with sheet iron or bricks.
Pages:
839
840
841
842
843
844
845
846
847
848
849
850
851
852
853
854
855
856
857
858
859
860
861
862
863