if you just joined us a very well to marty right here mr top stories now past the hour standard and poor's is stripping us of its highest credit rating infuriating the country's lenders with charlie suggesting it's time to find a new reserve currency through a place that. thousand people gathered on the streets of israel another round of unprecedented anti-government mass protests some already compared the country's apply to that of the revolutionary to. the nato helicopters beamed down the eastern afghanistan killing thirty one u.s.

special forces personnel and seven afghan soldiers with the taliban claiming responsibility it's the biggest single american law since the military operation started. well that's it for me today that treasure will continue with the news and less than half an hour from now here not in the meantime it's all documentary showing how the republic of a cause here has risen from conflict and its journey to becoming once again a stunning holiday destination. ancient greeks and romans built that trolls here live so it by side with local tribes in two thousand five hundred years ago. is the app has principalities tempest in the eighth century later became known as the app has came down. the modern day republican up cuz he covers an area about

nine thousand square kilometers because he is south is situated on the eastern coast of the black sea. the greater cook's is mountain range towers in the republic's north. it is a land where some tropics and the lakes adjoining the place yes. come on let's go locals remember who needs to well the tragic events going up causes more than the history. of. eighteen years have passed since then the liberals to my contact about it without my lips trembling and with probing hearts i can talk about that. because it is returning to normal and again becoming a tourist hub for the black sea region.

if travelling by sea and old lighthouse points the way to kasi is capital so whom. they keep a finds it difficult to open the massive bills it is at least one hundred fifty years old. he then climbs the leading to the lamp. for the crane yes three this is part of a long stairwell made in the nineteenth century. it was built together with his lighthouse in eight hundred sixty one feet. it's beautiful but it's the way they

don't make anything like it nowadays. the lighthouse is one hundred feet high it's a powerful light can be seen thirty kilometers away. this is whom lighthouse has french origin as the russian empire is navy placed an order for its construction with a company that was at the same time drawing up a blueprint for the eiffel tower. at that time there was an oil lamp here. it was quite an advanced lighting fixture by the standards of the day. but compared to modern one thousand watt lamps it was three or four times a week or if it's maybe if you work. with the permitting these black sea coast can be seen on the horizon the lamp has gone out

only twice in the history of the lighthouse turkish troops took it away as one of the spoils of war of the occupying our cause in eighteen seventy seven it was put out for the second time after the abkhazian george moore in the early nine hundred ninety s. . the war that broke out in abkhazia and nine hundred ninety two lasted for two years a cause had the status of an autonomous region at the time and sukhumi invoked its claims to choose the right to self-determination of the lads georgian troops ended up under the pretext of protecting a railway they were driven out in the course of severe fighting. some thoughts about causal liberates and nine hundred ninety three and georgian troops retained the op a couple records but i'm just teaching regions. following

george's attack on south sets here in two thousand and eight the abkhaz military carried out a special operation in the could dorie region with the russian support georgian forces would driven out of the republics entire territory russia and several other countries have since recognized a concious independence. the turbulence could dorie river this is the entire length of the goal which this place was part of the silk road now is the way leading straight to him cause he is capital so whom from the greater caucuses mountain range. the road clings to the gorge down below there's a chasm with a mountain stream carrying its clear waters. whenever the rocks step

aside the i can see rooftops in the valleys this is the abkhazian region of spain this year many local people left their homes during the conflict in georgia now they are coming back. the could was a favorite tourist attraction before the war but it seemed few travels in the past two decades and now visitors come once again admire the picturesque landscape mountain lakes rules the fools and the unique flora. tourists who used to come to. when it was still a serviette republic. travellers. they knew every mountain that anybody tourists come in now because this is the peaceful place again.

the folks would forest is one of the most revered places an all of them cause as well as in the glory of. the stream running through the narrow which creates a special microclimate. the grooves of most covered trees look like they've been sprinkled with emeralds. a village as sits near the fairy tale scenery. each morning the by tea ships go about their household chores. they have cows only goats every day husband and wife batali and make salumi

a traditional abkhazian cheese the secret place produced is in the fermentation. the cheese making begins with the ferment and process. they will use the x. tracks from the stomach of a car. this is how we do it. the foot quickly brings the curd in the batch to the right temperature once it's really needed the cheese can be so today look at people like that but she ships can again plan for the future vitali is going to set up a tourist camp in the courtyard of his house he would treat the guests to homemade cheese and take them on guided tours. cheese is a form of income for us it's like our national currency or why do people

always need to eat and cheese is always in demand here a couple of girls. there is a three hour drive from the farm to sue for most people in the app cause capital say the city has taken on a different look in the past several years ruined homes and hotels have been restored. the waterfront has been so being transformed it's a traditional rallying point for tourists and locals alike and it has a long history. because of what is is but a merchant ships came here from greece and other places yes that there is evidence in jest and there was a marketplace here in the first century b.c. you just get the merchandise from nearly the entire black sea coast brought the group here. of just a stand up

a kin often visit succumbs main pier. the paintings are inspired by the city and the sea it sits upon. what this city is it's big in now in the both part of this land. don't come here just to have a good time and leave already got the sea and this land as part of all sounds. one of the stand his paintings commemorates her friends from force in the war but never returned. the father is still missing but a stand hopes is a lie. which. i because he is a college minister and i'm on the bus teaches at sickroom state university. today

he tells his students up kasi i can boast a vast reserves of pure water due to his glace years and driven as. if we conserve water in the upper reaches of our rivers the republic will have the most valuable resources for many years to come all of mankind needs this resource nowadays the value of a liter of ecologically clean water exceeds the cost of a later of oil revenue. streams and is a cool cruise in law in that stands in the downtown area it is more than three hundred years old in the early nineteenth century a botanical garden was laid out around it it is one of the most beautiful areas in the city. this is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the

world. and it currently features over five thousand plants from every continent. this place is a veritable treasure trove of plants exotic florence such as the japanese. have adapted to conditions in. these plants or groups of the black sea coast at the beginning of the last century scientists was surprised to see them bearing fruit kochi two palms and only of trees only say to be found in the patella. but most of all a botanist pride themselves on the sago palm. him here in the garden you can find plants which are one hundred to one hundred twenty years old and they are thought to be some of the oldest on earth the history goes back to the college that is to say they're related to the trade. today the park is still

being restored to its former glory but soon it will once again open for the public to enjoy. the people of the united states and their friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder his regime as an active program to acquire and develop nuclear weapons and let there be no doubt about we know for a fact that there are that. this work is being carried out in the direction of dr david kay respected scientist and former u.n. inspector was leading the weapons search in iraq we are determined to take this apart you have a tremendous a group of dedicated american men and women involved in this with the best assets of the intelligence community and for by. david kay he is not going to be done with this for quite some time david kay wants more time he says it could take another

six to nine months to make a definitive finding ministration is asking congress for hundreds of millions more six hundred million dollars to fund a continuing search have not yet found shiny pointy things that i would call a weapon before we can draw from conclusions we need to let the iraq survey group complete its work. we were all wrong probably in my judgment and that is most disturbing. sometimes the true patriots takes the unpopular course but helps the country and wooden stakes and even if they come this way at least from tonight patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels and i think these are scoundrels they have no argument now they have no defense for what they did the country is in a terrible international security situation and i think it's perilous so they're attacking the patriotism of others.

the v.f.l. ministry is situated on the black sea coast twenty kilometers from sioux whom it was founded eight hundred seventy five by monks who'd arrived in cars here from greece soon after that the close to came a leading religious center in the caucasus the ministry stands on an elevation surviving defensive fortifications of the and a copy a fortress around a nearby hill and appear is the name of the capital of the ancient abkhaz kingdom

just before wars broke out here at various times georgians gentle ways romans turks and persians invaded this place but the mountains protected the local people we associate ourselves with the mountainous rather than with people related to the sea . where. the end of compare fulcher stands on a mountain top beneath the mountain speedy ologists have discovered a vast cabin it attracts numerous tourists the true of the cave begins with the tourists boarding an electric train locals jokingly refer to it as the abkhaz metro i there is some room that let's get in. the know the i phone cave is one of the world's largest its volume is about one million cubic metres tourists get to experience or inspiring view she is on the ground kingdom of god lead them through several grottos and many who enter this

cave have another motive other than just a tour of this mysterious world people suffering from asthma or allergies come hits a breathe in the medicinal effects of it's humid as everything you did after noon our dinner guests i'm going to take you on a fascination tour of the underground chamber ship and i'll be off on. the ship. tourists form a line is they go from one holds when the other to the sound of trickling the streams small bridges and narrow passages run along the stuff like tights and stuff like modes crafted by nature. water dripping from above has taken centuries to form these intricate limestone columns. that ninety feet please it's slippery here. in the largest

hole of the lobby and foam there is enough space for three football pitches. and one of the most spectacular sights is a wall to form calcite rock. it's large drops drip. down from a height of two meters but never reached the caves bottom. a winding road of relic plants looks between the rocks of the ritz and national park the park is under the special protection of a cause it covers a total of forty thousand hectares many of the plants are unique in that they can only be found in this region. that. h. patch of land in abkhazia is unique because it is inhabited by rare

plants and animals. the road goes uphill only way to the much celebrated pride of the republic lake rita it was formed of nile chewed of nine hundred fifty meters above sea level following a rock slide is described as a remarkable natural creation and the most attractive site on the black sea shore of the caucasus. always a. lake or its own as a result of an ancient earthquake. that's how it was filmed. in stances about one hundred thirteen meters but they're not yet that of the lake is the jewel of the entire caucasus as well as at highs here is a question of several of them. i'm causey is nature reserves a constantly expanding another national park is being laid out in the dory gorge it

will be adjacent to the reach of park america plants nature reserves will gradually cover almost one third of the republic's territory. stallion's country house still stands on one of the scenic banks of lake greets a soviet leaders were fond of vacationing here they often invited leaders of foreign communist parties to visit them to form a state country house stands playing pool age old trees today it is a terse aren't. a trip is found tucked away in the foothills of a mountain in that cause of the situation on the banks of the maci stare river which boasts clean water and a strong current in the old days monks fishtail they lived in a monastery high in the mountains hidden away from will be a fed as legend has it that in the one nine hundred thirty s.

then soviet leader joseph stalin went fishing in the river. the catch was so bountiful that he ordered the trout to be built here. today there are some three hundred thousand rainbow trout in the farms palms. all the while all of what i catch. so much of this female is five years alt. it come up it's a spawn in school of frayne trout we get baby trials from and. the trout farm is situated on the banks of a unique river. it is filled with water gushing from a giant subterranean spring and it is thought to be europe's largest spring of this current.

the village of drips stretches across the foothills several kilometers from the black sea shore it's called the heart of our cause. the backyard of nearly every house here has a distinctly as a look a backyard is one of the keys symbols of the traditional way of life in abkhazia each backyard is supposed to have a cabin made of rhododendron. it is in fact a kitchen where family members gather over meals but her idea. of. the fireplace is in the center of the cabin far as can lawn the clay full with a cauldron that hangs over it on

a chain of this is filled with memory go a name given in some black sea countries to corn flour porridge that was one thing i think i might as well put a lead on it for a while but that's not really necessary. here people leave long lives because the o.e. natural food cooked over fire you have i know that's moldavian snake momma they got to even a puzzler which normally gets cold ugly stuff. i also know that italians call it pollen. bases on the log. because i always try to make sure the fire in their cabins is constantly lit it is both a symbol of affection in the home and the place where food is cooked. for an. aloha load great to see you.

the guests always welcome in our cars homes at any time of the day the. the gentleman let us celebrate may god give us health peace understanding happiness love and joy to all our nations to all our presidents. a stand up a kid in the abkhaz artist is going to paint a new picture she poses a building that was shelled during the war members of parliament used to meet in session here whenever asked on the record as the app has georgian conflict she's always reminded of her father. she went away during the night and never came back. and there were also people i treasure and to remember eighteen years

have passed. and i don't know how much time will pass before i can talk about it without my lips trembling and his throat in heart. i still can't bring myself to do it. i. assume the lighthouse has witnessed many events during its long history. it's still serves as a beacon for the growing number of foreign ships arriving at a cause his main harbor. day captains know full well that it is been sending signals over the abkhaz waters of the black sea for more than a century. d.h.

and i wouldn't wish that we turkish merchant ships were quick to turn up here but. no doubt they had information telling them about the location of the lighthouse and the harbor here there were these during storms the light horse always filled its vital role with great precision. the large house keeper has yet to repair the pockmarks in the tower left by bullets from the abkhaz georgian conflict. on the same token cause you will take some time to rid itself of all traces of. life in the republic is clearly returning to normal.

good.