5 Things You Didn’t Know About Georgia

Nooo, not the US state! Georgia is a little-known, but very lovely country in the Caucuses (it’s next-door to Russia…) And as we’ve got some amazing teaching opportunities there, we thought you might like to learn a few little-known things about it.

Georgia…

1. Has the deepest-known cave in the world

At over 2km deep, the Voronya Cave (or Krubera Cave) is the deepest known cave in the world. It nabbed the title from the Lamprechtsofen in the Austrian Alps n 2001, when a band of brave Ukrainians reached a depth of 1,710. Other explorers have since recorded a maximum depth of 2,191m.

That's one deep hole... (Photo: cavevisit.com)

2. Has had a lot of landlords over the years

At the crossroads of East and West, Georgia is a melting pot of different cultural influences. Over the years it’s been ruled by Romans, Persians, Arabs, Turks, Mongols AND Russians, before breaking free and declaring independence in 1991.

3. Is the only country to ever have been banned from the Eurovision Song Contest

Stephane and 3G, Georgia’s 2009 entry, were banned from the spangled song contest after their 70s disco number, We Don’t Wanna Put In, raised a few eyebrows amongst Eurovision officials. The organizers thought the song sounded rather like a dig at Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. Georgian officials pleaded innocence and refused to field an alternative song.

The moustachioed Stephane and the non-moustachioed 3G

4. Is the birth-place of Stalin

That most Russian of Russians, Stalin was actually born in Georgia, and the country remains the only ex-Soviet state to still have a statue of Stalin.

5. And the birth-place of Katie Melua

Jazz singer Katie Melua was born in Georgia and her family still have links to the region. In fact she’s vowed that the country is still her home, despite being granted British citizenship in 2005.

Photo: Kirk Stauffer

And if that’s not enough to convince you, then the amazing scenery, awesome people and great employment conditions should… click here to check out opportunities in Georgia and give it a go!

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