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Shatili Old Town

Aydin Hassan/Shutterstock

Cluster of medieval slate-stone towers with wooden balconies on a grassy slope beneath steep Caucasus mountainsides

This magnificent agglomeration of koshkebi (defensive watchtowers) and atmospheric slate houses packed tightly together on a steep hillside to create one sprawling fortress is an incredible sight. Most of the houses are abandoned and are slowly collapsing, but you can still clamber around them easily enough, and most of the time you'll be totally alone here.