Travel Guide Manglissi

From Tbilisi in the direction of Tsalka, one crosses a high plateau of meadows and forests. Before climbing the austere Tsalka plateau, we pass through Manglissi in the Algueti valley. It is a former Soviet health resort located 56 km from Tbilisi. Manglissi guards the Algueti National Park, which covers a heavily forested part of the Trialetian chain. The town also has a magnificent church, a prototype of classical Georgian architecture. The Cathedral of Sion was built in the 4th century, but its present appearance dates from the 6th-7th centuries. Its black stones, from the basalt of the Lesser Caucasus, are characteristic. The church is at the southern exit of the village.