KBSU staff held a «NOT Geography Lesson» in the Tyzyl Gorge

Faculty from the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after Kh.M. Berbekov took part in the annual educational event «NOT Geography Lesson» organized by the Russian Geographical Society. The event took place in the picturesque Tyzyl Gorge and was attended by members of the Russian Geographical Society, educators, tour guides, and tourism and nature management specialists.

The keynote lecture was given by Elena Anishchenko, Senior Lecturer in the Institute of Management, Tourism, and Hospitality at KBSU, gastrodiplomacy specialist, and full member of the Russian Geographical Society. Her presentation focused on the theme of the 2025 fall season: food and travel traditions reflected in literature and real life.

The lecturer discussed the formation of the image of Caucasian hospitality in the memoirs of travelers from the 16th to 19th centuries, the traditional food systems of the Kabardians and Balkars, and myths associated with the culinary specialties of the North Caucasus. Particular attention was paid to the role of the gastronomic cultural code in the development of tourism in the region.

Also speaking to the project participants were Aslanbi Shkhagapsoev, deputy minister of Resorts and Tourism of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic; Zaur Marzaliev, deputy director of the State Public Institution «Directorate of Specially Protected Natural Areas of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic»; and Leila Baysultanova, head of the Tourism Educational Program at the Institute of Tourism and Geography at Kabardino-Balkarian State University.

Factory Note:
«NOT a Geography Lesson» is an annual project of the Russian Geographical Society aimed at popularizing geographical knowledge and the activities of the RGS. The project creates an informal platform for communication between like-minded individuals interested in Russia’s geographical, cultural, and historical heritage.