However, there is a beautiful railway going there from Zestaponi through a valley. It's an ubelievable series of bridge-tunnel-bridge-bridge-tunnel-bridge etc..., as it literally cuts through the meandering valley. The train goes slow enough (actually very slow) to enjoy the ride, but it is obnoxiously smoky.
Only Soviets had the free resource of forced labor to make the construction of the railway feasible. The operation is now, of course, much cheaper, that it has already been built and the Georgian Railways are, as usual, very negligent on its maintenance. It was (and still is) used also for ferrying the manganese ore or alloys in a very environmentally friendly way - now that's something to say about Soviets!
Chiatura itself is famous for two things - it's sitting on the world's largest manganese reserves, and has cable cars as a means of cheap public transport (less than 10 cents a ride). There are three lines from the central hub and they all lead to different cliffs within and above the city, which itself is sprawled over a narrow valley. Of course, the views are amazing. The city is so steep, that cable cars indeed are the most efficient & ecological way to cover the distances. Well... not all the Soviets did was bad for environment.
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| No, this is NOT a working cable car line. |
