Stalin’s spa resort once dubbed ‘Riviera of Soviet Union’ left to crumble for decades…but it may be brought back to life
HIDDEN in the middle of the forest lies Joseph Stalin’s abandoned luxury resort town – famous for its natural springs with “healing powers”.
Tskaltubo, in Georgia, is currently a collection of crumbling hotels, bath houses, and sanatoriums, but it might come back to life.
The Soviet destination once attracted the elites of the Communist party, including Joseph Stalin himself, for its elegant natural springs that were said to have healing powers.
However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the town faced a decline in tourism.
Haunting images show a glimpse of what was once the “Riviera of the Soviet Union”, now left to crumble.
In one of them, a frieze of Stalin can be seen on a bathhouse, while another picture shows a private bath where the tyrant soaked himself in 1951.
Some baths would also be juxtaposed in circles, that now lie empty among crumbling walls and ceilings.
The town’s train station was also left to rot, as only a few lined up cushioned chairs can be seen catching decades of dust and debris.
In another ruined spa, ivy can be seen creeping over its perimeter fence.
There are only a couple of buildings in the surrounding areas which host the town’s small population.
A couple of crumbling hotels and sanatoriums became the homes to thousands of ethnic Georgians who were driven out of their houses after the 1992-1993 war in Abkhazia.
Efforts have been made to revive Tskaltubo, with some of its historic spa facilities being renovated for modern use.
In 2012, as the town’s elegant buildings were beginning to fall apart, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili vowed to turn the town into the “best place in Europe” within four years.
Tskaltubo has since been granted millions of dollars in funding from the World Bank for public projects and attracted some investment.
But progress seems to be going painfully slow as only one sanatorium is currently operative – out of 22.
Reopened in 2011, Legends Tskaltubo Spa Resort gives a glimpse into Soviet times before the USSR collapsed.
It holds a dark history as it was originally designed by Georgian architects but built by captured and enslaved Germans from World War II.
The building opens a door to the past as its architecture still remains from its USSR origins.
Tskaltubo sanatoriums were famous for their focus on therapeutic and medical treatments for a variety of ailments.
But their allegedly “healing springs” were the star of the show, attracting the Soviet Union’s most prestigious elite, who would sometimes travel all the way from Moscow.
But it turns out the “power” in the spring water was coming from radon, a radioactive gas which American environmental agencies call a health risk.
It is not known if the town will ever come back to life, as many remain sceptical of President Saakashvili’s plans.
For now, Tskaltubo, Georgia, will remain a haunting door to the Soviet Union’s once glorious times.
Meanwhile, hidden away in the frosty Kazakhstan planes lies nuclear hell on earth – a wasteland pockmarked with craters, abandoned bunkers and even an “atomic lake”.
Kurchatov is the most nuked placed on the planet, where more than 400 nuclear bombs were detonated but kept completely secret as it was erased from maps for decades.
Named after prominent scientist Igor Kurchatov, who was in charge of the Soviet Atomic project, the town is where the Soviets would play Oppenheimer during the arms race with America.
They invented, tested and detonated 456 of their nuclear and hydrogen bombs in the area, equivalent to the US Los Alamos region.
And its unaware locals would have to later bear the consequences for the rest of their lives.
And all the way across the globe, off the coast of Colombia, one will find the most crowded place on the planet.
It has four roads, no cars or police, and 1200 people crammed into an area as big as two football pitches.
The tight-knit community of 45 families – all related to each other – live on the Caribbean islet of Santa Cruz del Islote, a two-hour boat ride off the coast of Colombia.
It sits on the Archipelago of San Bernardo, a protected coral paradise, and was built on a coral platform by the pioneer families.
With an area just surpassing one hectare, hundreds of islanders live in 97 homes with ridged tin roofs crammed next to each other.
There are ten neighbourhoods and four main streets, but no cars or motorcycles can ride along them. As distances between places are so short, people either walk or take boats to get around.
