The main reason I went to Gori was to visit the Joseph Stalin Museum. Outside of that, there isn’t much to see, but I took my time to discover what the town had to offer.
Outside of Old Tbilisi, I walked down Rustaveli Avenue to get a look at the more modern parts of the city. I generally stayed along the busy street but wandered off it to see a few things.
Old Tbilisi is the historic area of the city of Tbilisi. It has a number of colorful reconstructed buildings and historic churches to visit. It’s a great place to wander just to admire the architecture and colors. I started exploring the area at Gorgasali Square and worked my way north.
On the east bank of the Mtkvari River across from Old Tbilisi sits Avlabari. Avlabari is the traditional Armenian quarter of Tbilisi, although there aren’t very many Armenians left there today.
I started my exploration of Abanotubani at Gorgasali Square (Gorgasali Moedani) in Old Tbilisi. It had a lot of nice reconstructions, especially the hill behind it. There are some restaurants and hotels around the square.
Before the Ottomans ruled Konya, the city was the capital of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm, a powerful empire that dominated Anatolia for nearly 300 years.
A small green hill in the middle of the city, Alâeddin Tepesi, is a place where many people of Konya like to gather to socialize and relax. Also on the hill is the most important Seljuk building in Konya, the Alâeddin Mosque (Alâeddin Camii).
About 100 years after the fall of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm in 1307, the Ottomans conquered Konya and ruled for 500 years. Many different mosques and buildings stand in the city as evidence of their legacy.
The Mevlana Museum (Mevlânâ Müzesi) presents the tomb of Rumi, who was buried in Konya on December 17, 1273.