Trolleybus during rush hour in Tbilisi . Dilapidated public transportation was cheap but due to both the condition of system and electricity cuts, was not very reliable.Since 2004, the public transportation system has been upgraded. New buses have replaced the old electric trolleys in Tbilisi.

Freedom of Speech protest following the murder of journalist Giorgi Sanaia, July 2001. 50,000 people marched across the city to attend the funeral of the popular Rustavi 2 anchorman, whose death most believed was politically motivated. Rustavi 2 was known for its investigative reporting and editorial policy which challenged the ruling status quo. The station would play a significant role in the 2003 Rose Revolution Today it is considered a main pro-government broadcaster.

Dancer Shalva Chochua of Sukhishvili National Ballet, preparing for his performance of the Khorumi; a dance which incorporates themes themes of search, battle, and the celebration of victory in a tribute to the historically martial nature the Georgian people. The Georgia National Ballet was founded in 1945 by dancer/ choreographer Nina Ramishvili and her husband Iliko Sukhishvili. It is run by the same family today. Together, they transformed the national dances of Georgia by integrating major principles of modern ballet and ideas of Sergei Diaghilev and George Balanchine, himself Georgian and friend of Iliko Sukhishvili.

The gala opening of the Georgian edition of Playboy Magazine, at a Tbilisi night club.

Woman smoking in front of Liberty Theater.

Underground passage next to the opera house. In the 1990s, this passage was a popular scene for Tbilisi's young musicians and their friends.

Circus artist at a beauty trade show in Tbilisi.

Reburial of Zviad Gamsakhurdia, Tbilisi, 2007. People mourn next to President Gamsakhurdia's coffin.He was a dissident, scientist and writer, who became the first democratically elected President of the Republic of Georgia in the post-Soviet era. In 1992 after fleeing the country during the coup d'etat , the house was allegedly burned by Gamsakhurdia's political opponents.Critics of Gamsakhurdia blame him for the wave of nationalism which sparked the wars in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Granted asylum in Chechnya in 1992, Gamsakhurdia returned to Georgia to regroup his forces and retake his seat. He ultimately failed and died in western Georgia in 1993 from a bullet to the head. His body was subsequently taken to Chechnya for burial. In March 2007, his remains were brought to Tbilisi for reburial.

Watermellons being cooled in a swimming pool .

Tbilisoba. Once a year , starting in late seventies capitol hosted harvest festival in the city center -Republic Square, where Rustaveli Ave. begins. For few days, villagers would come with fresh meat, produce and wine to sell there on the street and feast out in the open with city residents till late at night . On one side of the square stood bizarre concrete arches known as “Andropov's Ear's,” a sarcastic reference to the man who had led the USSR when the arches were built. Across the street was Hotel Iveria, which had been Tbilisi's best Soviet-era hotel but became a home to hundreds of refugees from Abkhazia in 1993. Andropov ears have since been removed, the refugees resettled as hotel Iveria becomes the new Hotel Radisson, and Tbilisoba has been relocated and totally diluted in an effort to “Europeanize” the festival. Republic Square is now officially known as Rose Revolution Square.

City Bus passenger on Kostava Street .

Kiosk with cheap wine at Didube Bazar.

Grandmother playing Tbilisi songs at the wedding of her granddaughter, Nino. Nino is a ethnically Georgian and Greek. Greeks have inhabited Georgia for centuries. Tbilisi's multi-ethnic heritage is evident in how Tbiliseli will often inform you of their mixed ethnic background with pride, although they are Georgians first.

Men resting on “kvevri”- earthenware vessels for wine.

Road to Tusheti. People traveled by foot and horse until a road built in the 1980’s linked the high Caucasus region of Tusheti (bordering Chechnya and Daghestan) to the lowlands of Khakheti. Nowadays, only a few people stay in the high villages throughout winter.

Pushing an airpline to cool down an engine at Mestia Airport of the Mountain region of Svaneti While preparing for take-off, one engine would not start, so a group of men turned the plane into the wind, hoping that would cool the motor. When that didn't work, people brought buckets of water and poured it on the engine.-which eventually worked and airplane took off to the capitol.

Group of female teachers from local schools dance during their gathering to celebrate by Alaverdi Cathedral in Kakheti. Kakheti is Georgia main agriculture and wine growing region in the East part of the country.

This Tusheti family lives in Tbilisi but spends summers in Omalo with kinfolk and friends. Most people who moved from the regions to the capitol are maintaing strong links to the regions they came from and to the family members who remained there.

Minstrel rehearsal. Koro, who set up this family band, used to make regular tours throughout the Soviet Union. He claims to be the only musician to have mastered the miniature accordion. Now he plays in villages festivals across the country.

Sacrificing a chicken by the Orthodox Christian Cathedral. Many pagan rituals, such as animal sacrifice have become incorporated into the Georgian Orthodox liturgy. At the Alaverdoba festival, in Kakheti, animals are walked around the church three times and blessed before being slaughtered. Such rituals are even practiced in Tbilisi, where I have seen people walking sheep and chicken around the church across the street from Parliament.

View of Tsalka from main road towards Armenia. Tsalka was traditionally a Greek town in Javakheti, when Greeks formed the second largest ethnic group in the region. Due to economic and social hardships, the population reduced drastically in past 12 years. Most Greeks left to Greece while some moved to the capitol.

Monks at Sapara Monastery after the last prayer of the day. Mama (father) Saba and Nika, discovered their calling before they reached thirty years old. Mama Saba was directing his diploma theater show, when he came to Sapara Monastery on holiday. He never returned to secular life. Sapara was one of the first monasteries opened after Georgia’s independence, when the country was experiencing a rebirth of national identity ,which in a big part is formed by religious practices .

Traditional wrestling competition in Alaverdi. One of the main events during the Alaverdoba festival was chidaoba, an indigenous form of wrestling, accompanied by traditional music. Boys from surrounding villages came to compete next to the church.

Chiko in the river. Chiko and Layla at an artist’s retreat, north of Tbilisi. Chiko, a veteran of the first Ossetian war, had difficulty after the war readjusting to his profession as a stage set designer. For past few years he has been living in a monastery - only his mother knows which one. Wars of early 90-es left the whole generation of people now in their early 40-es traumatized by that experience. Stories like Chiko’s are to be found on all sides of today’s cease fire lines of South Caucasus.

Flea market salesman in Tbilisi. Stalin is undoubtedly the world's most famous Georgian. His legacy in Georgia, however, is mixed. There is a strata of society who have been most negatively affected by the transition to a free market economy. These people, generally pensioners, look back at the Stalin years as the most stable and prosperous times of their lives. They easily blot out his horrible crimes from consciousness. However, there are many Georgians who understand that Stalin's policies in Georgia were particularly harsh in comparison to other Soviet republics. He violently purged Georgia of its intelligentsia and forcibly displaced hundreds of thousands of people. His policies directly contributed to the future wars in Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

Girls in Santa Claus costumes sit in a bas parked in front of the Parliament during City Hall sponsored Christams Carnival. On the back window of the bus is a campaign poster of Mikhail Saakashvili. Snap presidential elections would occur the next day on January 4th, 2007.

Every day of Rose Revolution more people joined the protest in front of Parliament. For weeks there was a very genuine feeling of overwhelming unity among these people who came from all over Georgia to join the protest. However, while thousands protested daily, there were many others who recalled the last time a major protest occurred in front of Parliament in 1989, when scores of people were shot.

On the first day of the Rose Revolution opposition supporters leave the Tbilisi Philharmonic for the first protest rally along Rustaveli Avenue On November 2, 2003, Georgia held parliamentary elections which were widely denounced as unfair by international election observers. Two days after the election, the opposition coalition, lead by Mikheil Saakashvili began to hold continual mass protests, calling for Shevardnadze's resignation. Protesters led by Saakashvili, who was clutching a rose, broke into Parliament on November 21 as the first session of the new Parliament was beginning. President Shevardnadze escaped out the back door with his bodyguards. He resigned two days later.

Central government supporter with a cross, facing the autonomous region of Adjara. In the first months of his presidency, Saakashvili –the leader of Rose Revolution which brought him to power -faced a major political crisis in the southwestern Autonomous Republic of Adjara ,run by an authoritarian regional leader, Aslan Abashidze, who largely ignored the central Georgian government and was viewed by many as a pro-Russian politician. The crisis threatened to develop into an armed confrontation, but Saakashvili's government managed to resolve the conflict peacefully, forcing Abashidze to resign on 6 May 2004.

Protesters listen to speeches by opposition leaders in front of City Hall on Freedom Square n the first days of Rose Revolution in Georgia.

A camper learns how to disassemble a Kalashnikov rifle blindfolded. In September 2004, the Georgian Ministry of Defense co- sponsored summer camp for 30 children between the ages of 12-18 , many of them orphans. Attendees received basic military training and instructions on how to survive in extreme conditions. Instructors at the camp, located a short distance from Tbilisi, were commandos in the Georgian military. Georgia has a tradition of Youth Legions which traces back to times before 1921 revolution when Georgia lost it's independence and become part of Soviet Union.

Chechen women refugees in Tbilisi. Each of these three women lost family members in the 1999 war in Chechnya. Most Chechen refugees moved to the Pankisi Gorge, just over the border into Georgia, a region inhabited by the Kisti, who are Chechens that had migrated to Georgia about 200 years ago.

The united opposition anty-government rally on Georgia Independence Day. White mask is a symbol of the protest. While Mikheil Saakashvili and invited guests watched military Parade in front of Parliament united Opposition organized protest rally by Palace of Sport .Later on they marched towards parliament.Special forces and police which protected area around the Parliament left and opposition supporters took over the square in front of Parliament.

Woman attending Pro-Government rally . Evening concert was organized in the yard of Ilia Chavchavadze State University in Tbilisi . Flyers with number five on it were provided for participants along with free wine. Number 5 was number of Mikheil Saakashvili on the voting list. After police dispersed opposition rally on November 7th with extensive use of force followed by closure of opposition TV station Georgia faced major political crisis since rose Revolution. Next day on 8 November 2007, President Saakashvili announced a compromise solution to hold early presidential elections for 5 January 2008.

Farewell Party for Georgian Soldiers leaving for Iraq. Tbilisi, 2005. Since 1997 Georgia received U.S. military aid program and US trained Georgia troops to assist in the war against terror in Iraq. By 2007, Georgia's military presence in Iraq reached 2,000 troops, becoming the leading contributor in terms of per capita troop deployment in Iraq. Georgia aspirations to become NATO state remains the key disagreement between Georgia and its biggest neighbor-Russia which consider Georgia to be within its traditional sphere of influence.

Abandoned house with the tree growing inside of it .

School for Georgian IDP students run by IDP teachers from Abkhazia in Zugdidi . As Georgian troops retreated from Abkhazia during the 1992 war, approximately 250,000 ethnic Georgians were forced to flee the region. The population of the border city of Zugdidi doubled practically overnight. While some 40,000 Georgians returned home to the Gali region of southern Abkhazia, many IDPs continue to live in substandard housing in Zugdidi and elsewhere in Georgia, with very little hope of ever returning.

Sleeping Horse, Village of Bargebi, Gali region. Abkhazia In Abkhazia, Georgians are allowed to live in the Gali region in the south. An estimated 40,000 Georgians have returned since the war. Virtually every house owned by Georgians was burnt down there in 1993. Some were rebuilt upon their return to Gali, but when Georgian partisans raided the area in 1998, Georgian residents flee yet again and have many homes razed once more.

Birthday Party at Georgian IDP's (Internally Displaced People) temporary home – a former kindergarden. Zugdidi. As Georgian troops retreated from Abkhazia during the 1992 war, approximately 250,000 ethnic Georgians were forced to flee the region. The population of the border city of Zugdidi doubled practically overnight. While some 40,000 Georgians returned home to the Gali region of southern Abkhazia, many IDPs continue to live in substandard housing in Zugdidi and elsewhere in Georgia, with very little hope of ever returning.

The center of Ochamchira. Ochamchira is a virtual ghost town between Gali Region and De Facto Capitol Sukhumi located on the Black Sea coast. After Russia recognized Abkhazian Independence in 2008 it announced that a Russian Naval Base will be constructed in Ochamchira. Thirty thousand people once lived here, and city had mixed ethnic populations . Ochamchira was also the scene of heavy fighting and one of the last area Georgians held before retreating.

Megrelian Construction Workers in Ochamchira. Megrelians are an sub-ethnic group of Georgians living in North-West Georgia and Abkhazia .They speak their own language related to Georgian and have been a part of Georgia for centuries. In Abkhazia, Georgians are allowed to live in the Gali region in the south. An estimated 40,000 Georgians have returned since the war. Because of their quasi-legal status, they often are viewed with suspicion by both the Abkhaz and Georgian sides - as a potential Fifth Column or as a betrayers who cooperate with enemy.

Belongings of late Muratia displayed in his home . He was Abkhaz Security Boss in Gali killed by bomb explosion in outdoor cafe in Gali. In nearby town of Gali -Georgian family was mourning Iveta- girl Muratia was suppose to marry. She died in the same cafe talking with Muratia and their friends. On July 6, 2008 explosion ripped through the outdoor café in Gali, a predominantly ethnic Georgian town in southern Abkhazia, leaving four people dead and six badly injured. The explosion followed a series of blasts in Abkhazia during the summer of 2008. Georgian and Abkhaz officials blame each other for the blasts.

Rewaz and Artimon - by the Memorial for War Heros and Victims from Tamysh village . Memorial is under construction and to be completed for Abkhazia 's Independence Celebrations. Rewaz refused to give his last name- as he is Georgian who during the war fought on Abkhaz side.Tamsyshe is a village located by main -coastal road from Sukhumi to Gali.

Familly mourning Iveta Toria -Georgian woman who died from bomb blast at the open air cafe in the center of Gali. On July 6, 2008 explosion ripped through the outdoor café in Gali, a predominantly ethnic Georgian town in southern Abkhazia, leaving four people dead and six badly injured. The explosion followed a series of blasts in Abkhazia during the summer of 2008.Georgian and Abkhaz officials blame each other for the blasts. In nearby village of Achiguara -Abkhaz family was mourning their dead son-Muratia -Abkhaz Security Boss in Gali which died in the same blast talking to Iveta. Some say they were planning to marry each other .

Girl at the Sukhumi TV station at a competition dedicated to an Abkhaz poet. For last 15 years, a whole generation of Abkhazian youth has grown up with no memories of having a Georgian neighbour or friend. Very few Abkhaz travel to Gali, unless they have to for work. Once I drove to Gali with an 18 year-old boy who was very scared to go to that Georgian enclave in Abkhazia.

AIS Rehabilitation Center, Sukhumi AIS is an Abkhazian NGO set up by four war veterans who became disabled while in their early twenties. Originally for war veterans, AIS now accommodates all invalids. Here, veteran Stanislav Kocba does push-ups.

Factory in Sukhumi. Once a symbol of a strong Soviet economy and the largest employer in the city, the factory has been closed since the fall of the USSR

Local residents rest on the beach in Sukhumi .

Waiter at a cafe with Soviet-era mozaik in Novyj Afon. July, 2008 In June and July 2008 a series of bombings took place in Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia, killing 4 and injuring 18 people. Abkhazia accused Georgia of the attacks, to destroy the tourism season in Abkhazia. Tourism is the main source of Abkhazian revenue. Georgian denied the accusations.

Ossetian youth in military uniforms get ready for a parade. For the last several years, aggressive rhetoric for the main part replaced other forms of dialog between conflicting sides.

Russian Peacekeeper (Mirotsvortsa -MC) at the Mehvrekisi Check Point in South Ossetia. Peacekeeping missions in Abkhazia and South Ossetia were dominated by Russia since their deployment in 1994. In recent years, Georgia continuously called for a change of the format of the peacekeeping forces in the breakaway regions, demanding more active involvement from the west. According to the Georgian government, Russia was failing to maintain neutrality in the conflict zones and should have been replaced by a truly International peacekeeping forces. The breakaway regions and Russia however, strongly opposed any changes.

Billboard in South Ossetia capitol-Tskhinvali with the slogan: “Vladimir Putin -Our President”. For few years South Ossetia had two de facto presidents whose headquarters were located within 10 km from each other and the road between them was blocked by military check-points. In 2005 South Ossetia held Presidential elections with two main candidates and political enemies -Dimitri Sanakoyev-ethnic Ossetian backed by Georgia and Eduard Kokoyty-backed by Moscow .Each became the president in respectively-Georgian and Ossetian controlled territories of South Ossetia.

South Ossetian Soldier tombstone in a cemetery overlooking Tskhinvali.2006 Between 2004 and 2008 there had been no major armed clashes between the two sides, although shootings of individual soldiers and policeman occurred regularly on both sides.

Bypass road to Georgian villages in South Ossetia and the capitol of the alternative government of Sanakoyev, located in Kurta.2007 When Sanakoyev moved to Kurta, Kokoity cut access to the town as it was situated just north of Tskhinvali on the main highway. Georgia built a bypass road through Georgian villages to connect Kurta and nearby villages to the rest of the country.

South Ossetian nurses at a parade in Tskhinvali center in 2005. After the military parade during the South Ossetia Independence Day Celebrations -representatives of all possible professions marched past the tribune for officials and guests, much like in Soviet times.

Dancers await to perform in Tskhinvali on 20 September 2005.

Dukhobor Children by Russian School in Gorelovka village. The Dukhobors are a religious sect of Russian origin. They rejected secular government, Russian Orthodox priests, icons, all church rituals, the Bible as the supreme source of divine revelation and the divinity of Jesus. Their pacifist beliefs lead to a mass exodus from the Russian Empire. In 1841 they established a few villages in southern Javakheti and only in Gorelovka are they a majority today. Russian school number one was named after Lev Tolstoy who partly financed its construction. Many Dukhobors immigrated to Russia after the collapse of Soviet Union and the resulting economic hardships in Georgia. After a prolonged argument with local authorities over land privatization, a majority returned to Russia as a part of a Russian sponsored resettlement program for ethnic Russians.

Russian soldier cleans the window of the tank so he can see without showing his face at the Russian Checkpoint blocking the road to Gori. War Over South Ossetia, August, 2008 The previous day the Russian Army entered Gori, the regional Georgian capital,less than 30 kilometers from Tskhinvali. The local population and administration fled in panic, along with the Georgian police and army. The main highway connecting west and east Georgia was completely cut off for days by Russian Army.

Russian soldiers and Ossetian militia hide their faces as they pass by on an APC. They accidentally drove past their checkpoint towards Georgia police stationed down the road a few km outside Gori, towards Tbilisi, the capitol.

People from villages around Gori flee in panic towards Tbilisi after Russians entered Gori and irregular fghters from Ossetia started entering Georgian villages. According to stories of people from Georgian villages in the conflict zone, the Russian army's move into Georgia was followed by irregular North Caucasus paramilitaries and Ossetian militia which looted and burned homes in areas occupied by the Russian Army. According to these accounts, the Russian army did nothing to prevent this or protect the local population who had remained behind.

Georgia--Gori residents survey the bombed apartment buildings. Earlier that day Russian planes bombed various locations in the city .

Father and son, Zaza and David Mezvrishvili, stand in front of a Russian tank. The fled their village, Patara Gareddzvari, only after the women, children, and elderly had left two days earlier. 15 August 2008,

Year after the war ended Ramaz cries on the grave of his cusin who died during the bombing of Gori Tank Base along with other 15 soldiers.

Kabisova Zalina (younger woman,in the middle)-Ossetian woman whose brother was killed in the war during 3 days fighting in the village.Next to her Mamiyeva Raya-wearing black for her husband who died in car crash few weeks before the war started. Zalina said "Nation (Georgian) is not guilty of what happened.Its politicians fault-Saakashvili's and others" Village Hetagurovo is Ossetian village.There were no Georgians living there.During the first days of war village was a scene of heavy fighting .Georgian army on its way to Tskhinvali entered the village from the north - Avnevi -Georgian Vilage near by.

Tskhinvali residents on the wreck of Georgian Tank left in the city centre from the war in August 2008 which lasted for 5 days. On the tank left behind by Georgian Army somebody wrote with charcoal in Russian Script- "A Georgian".

In a bus in Vanadzor. This city was the third largest city in Armenia and major industrial center. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the earthquake of 1988 and energy crisis of the 1990s, all factories ceased operation.

Armenian Apostolic Church in Gyumri In 301 AD, Armenia was the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as a state religion. No other factor has had a greater impact on the national character, particularly since the country had repeatedly been invaded by Muslim countries for centuries and then had religion severely repressed by Communism. More than 90% of residents practice the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox faith to varying degrees today.

Armenian competitors rest during Caucasus Wrestling Championship in Tbilisi. Georgia is essentially the only place in the Cacuasus where Armenians and Azeri may meet, since the Karabakh war effectively closed the two country's borders in 1993.

Tbilisi Armenians celebrate the wedding of a friend in a restaurant. Armenians and Azeri count for two biggest ethnic minorities of Georgia.

The Hotel Black Tulip, located in the heart of Bagramyan Street the most upscale neighborhood in Yerevan. The Linsey Foundation, set up by Armenian-American Kirk Kirkorian, provided millions of dollars for the development of tourism related infrastructures which included renovations of the Opera and Theater nearby.

View of Metsamor City- South Caucasus' only nuclear power plant is located near Metsamor, which was built in 1979 to house workers from the plant. It was shut down due to damages sustained in the 1988 Spitak earthquake and was partly restarted in 1995 due to the country's dire need for energy. Today, it generates roughly 40% of Armenia's energy needs. It is located about thirty kilometers from the Armenian capital of Yerevan. Many of Metsamor's inhabitants left the city after the Soviet Union fell and more departed after the Spitak earthquake closed the plant down.

Head of Lenin at the Yerevan post office, where second-hand mobile phone retailers have their shops.

Armenian Priests by the portraits of Armenian heroes of World War II at The Mother Armenia Museum.

Man packing their “photo stand” used for familly photos , after day of work in the city center. Gyumri also known under its Soviet name-Leninakan is Armenia second city. Under Its russian name- Alexandropol -when Armenia was part of Russian Empire ,Gyumri was third most important trade and cultural center in the Trans-Caucasus after Tibilisi and Baku .The city suffered major damage during the 1988 Spitak Earthquake, which devastated large parts of it and killed at least 25,000 people.

Opposition meeting two days after the first presidential run-off election. The opposition contested the victory of incumbent Robert Kocharian at a rally by Matenadaran, the ancient Armenian manuscript library. February 2003 After success of Georgia’s Rose Revolution in November 2003 both Armenia and Azerbaijan opposition politicians made an attempts to brought political changes thru similar street protests. None of them succeeded.

Quba-Museum of Nagorno-Karabakh War displays dead soldier Uniforms and photos

Armenian Soldier on guard duty at the trenches on the front line with Azerbaijan, by the city of Agdam. Agdam is a ghost town which once had 160,000 residents and an airport. Under Armenian control since July 1993, most of the refugees from Agdam now live in camps and makeshift cities in Azerbaijan. Because of the level of destruction the city ruins are commonly known as the "Hiroshima of Karabakh."Officially cease-fire line is called “Nagorno Karabakh Line of Contact “ As the USSR crumbled, Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a war over Nagorno-Karabakh, a regional conflict that was never fully resolved when Stalin redrew borders and placed the largely Armenian populated region within Azeri jurisdiction. With Russian help, Armenia took control of the region by 1994, resulting in an estimated 800,000 displaced Azeris and 230,000 Armenians. The conflict remains unresolved, both sides still regularly exchange small arms fire. The conflict is the main obstacle to any plans for any Transcaucasus project.

Ali Karimov opposition leader meets his voters at an opposition Freedom Block rally ahead of Parliamentary Elections. A peaceful opposition protest against fraud in Azerbaijan’s parliamentary elections continued weeks after elections - thousands of people demonstrated. Inspired by the Rose and Orange Revolutions in Georgia and Ukraine, they used the color orange and the carnation as symbols to their struggle, which ended in defeat on November 26 after riot police, armed with truncheons, tear gas and water cannon, brutally broke up an attempted sit-down protest.

Azeri girl on her way for a prayer at Abu-Bekr Mosque in Baku.2006 Abu-Bekr Mosque is one of Baku’s few Sunni Muslim mosques (most Muslims in Azerbaijan are Shia). Some 7,000 worshipers used to attend Friday prayers until it was closed on August 17 2008 after a bombing which occurred during evening prayers and  left two worshipers dead and more than a dozen wounded. The mosque, which receives funding from Kuwait, was carefully watched by  authorities for its alleged links to Wahhabi groups. After its closure, a nationwide "temporary" ban – still in force – was put on praying outside of mosques throughout the country.

Baku Square by main railway station. Although Azeri are Shia Moslem, Baku has always been a very cosmopolitan city. Women generally prefer stylish European clothes and appearance to traditional Islamic styles. In the provinces women are more traditional and conservative. After Soviet Union fell apart and Karabakh-War finished many ethnic minorities left along with the almost whole Armenian population.

During Sabbath, young men in Jewish Settlement in North Azerbaijan do not drive cars, use mobile telephones, etc. Instead they wander around the three main streets of town. Majority of young men live in Moscow most of the year, where their families work. They use their stay in the village as an opportunity to practice the traditional way of life in their natural Jewish Community.

Two man talking at the train station, Apsheron Peninsula. Right off the shore of the Apsheron Peninsula is Pirallakhi Island. In ancient times Zoroastrians worshiped fire at the island. It is is also said to be the among the first places that oil was extracted in Azerbaijan. Oil extractions lays in the bases of historically multiethnic nature of Baku. As for today it is a main tool allowing Azerbaijan Government to chose their geopolitical partners according to their needs rather than ally with only one of them-as it is West for Georgia or Russia for Armenia.

Elders together with the local Rabbi Natan Iliaguyev returning home from first morning prayers in Synagogue. Mountain Jewish Settlement is located in North Azerbaijan -across the river from Quba-Azeri town.

Passengers at the train from Yerevan to Gyumri .Train goes two times a day and travels from 3.5 hours along closed Armenian -Turkish border. Rusted railway wagons are scattered around the railway stations . Under the protocols signed in Switzerland in October 2009, Turkey and Armenia are supposed to establish full diplomatic relations and re-open the border, which has been closed for more than 70 years. Relations between the two nations have been strained for most of the past century due to a number of conflicting political and historical issues; namely Turkey’s denial that an Armenian genocide occurred in 1915 by the Ottoman Empire. Turkey did, however, recognize Armenian independence following the breakup of the USSR but hopes for developing diplomatic ties were dashed in 1993 when Turkey sided with Azerbaijan in its war with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.