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The Monastery of Gelati is a monastic complex near Kutaisi, Imereti, western Georgia. It contains the Church of the Virgin founded by the King of Georgia David the Builder in 1106, and the 13th-century churches of St George and St Nicholas. The Gelati Monastery for a long time was one of the main cultural and intellectual centers in Georgia. It had an Academy which employed some of the most celebrated Georgian scientists, theologians and philosophers, many of whom had previously been active at various orthodox monasteries abroad or at the Mangan Academy in Constantinople. Among the scientists were such celebrated scholars as Ioane Petritsi and Arsen Ikaltoeli.

Due to the extensive work carried out by the Gelati Academy, people of the time called it "a new Hellas" and "a second Athos". The Gelati Monastery has preserved a great number of murals and manuscripts dating back to the 12th-17th centuries. The Khakhuli triptych had also been enshrined at Gelati until being stolen in 1859. In Gelati is buried one of the greatest Georgian kings, David the Builder. Near his grave are the gates of Ganja, which were taken as trophies by king Demetrius I in 1139.

In 1994, Gelati Monastery was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The site was included in the 2008 World Monuments Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World Monuments Fund to draw attention to deterioration caused by prolonged neglect.

Yeghipatrush is a town in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. During the Soviet period, the town was renamed in honor of Askanaz Mravyan, Soviet Armenian Cultural Commissar. The town has a 10th to 13th century church of Surb Astvatsatsin. Some 100 meters beyond the church is an early cemetery with one corner of an allegedly 5th century basilica as well as a khachkar shrine.

Benin is a small country in West Africa. It covers 112,622 sq km and has a population of about 9 million people (2011 estimate). Benin is bordered by Togo to the west, Niger and Burkina Faso to the north, and Nigeria to the east. The capital is Porto-Novo while the biggest city is Cotonou. Benin is a multiparty democracy with the president as head of state. The official language here is French, although indigenous languages such as Fon and Yoruba are also commonly spoken. The Roman Catholic faith is the predominant religion in Benin, followed by Islam, Vodun and Protestant. Benin is one hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. Traffic is on the right side of the road. Phone IDD code here is +229. The West African CFA franc (XOF) is the official currency. In 2009, Benin has a nominal GDP of $6.6 billion, equivalent to a per capita nominal GDP of $709. The per capita GDP at purchasing power parity is $1,440.

Benin was originally the Kingdom of Dahomey, a name in used in the colonial period until the country gained independence on 30 November, 1975. The new name was chosen to achive neutrality for the different ethnic groups, as the former Kingdom of Dahomey only covered the southern third of the present country.

Ruins of the Kingdom of Dahomey are today the major tourist attractions in Benin. The country is also the birthplace of Voodoo, known here as Vodun. It remains the official religion of the country.