+1: Georgia!

My globetrotting catch-up continues. Today we’re in neither Kamchatka, Saudi, nor Brazil, but in… Georgia – in its capital, Tbilisi!

I’d long dreamed of visiting this place, for Georgia and many Georgian things make up a significant part of the essence of my social-cultural-historical backbone in life. There are certain old movies featuring Georgian actors (or directors) that I keep watching over and over, and there are Georgian authors I’ve read and highly respect. Plus, of course, there are the very frequent appearances of Georgian cuisine on the menu chez-moi or in restaurants…

I did manage to visit the Georgian SSR (Batumi) back in 1981 (as part of a school physics‑math contest), but never to independent Georgia – until now…

So, Georgia. As to where it is in the world – on which continent is it located? There are different opinions on this. Where do we draw the border between Europe and Asia? Well, along the Ural Mountains, obviously. But where does it go from there? If you look at different sources, the Caucasus is sometimes entirely or partially assigned to Asia, sometimes to Europe – you just can’t figure it out. So, just in case, I’ll be referring to Georgia in relation to Europe, but we shouldn’t forget about Asia either…

If we consider the Caucasus part of Europe, then in my “haven’t been to” list of European countries there are only five countries left: Slovenia, Montenegro, Albania, Bulgaria, and Moldova. Although, how do you count them accurately? Is Kosovo a European country, or not really? And what about the Sovereign Military Order of Malta? It’s a complicated topic: what is a state, what isn’t one yet – or not quite one? Globally though, Georgia became the 108^th country I’ve visited.

So how come was I in Georgia?

It simply turned out to be the most convenient place to gather our international teams. Our technology and product development is practically 100% Russian, but our cybersecurity experts are scattered all over the world – from Brazil to Australia. And to bring them together once a year, we have to pick a place that’s roughly somewhere in the middle. And since it’s become inconvenient for the Russian team to travel to Schengen‑Europe, we switched to alternatives: sometimes the Middle East, last time the meeting was in Baku, and this time it was in Tbilisi:

It was here that we gathered our GReATest experts (for cyber‑espionage attack analysis), and our equally great cybersecurity services specialists. And since they all give strictly technical talks and use very specialized terminology, I have to admit that after about an hour I tend to lose the thread; which meant… it was time for me to head out for some micro-tourism!…

We had a great tour guide who showed us around glorious Tbilisi for more than four hours (huge thanks!). Let’s go!…

Early doors – underpass. Wow, it was like being back in Moscow in the 90s. Ok, I probably haven’t been in Moscow underpasses for 10–15 years now, but I’m sure (and eyewitnesses confirmed) that since then the underpasses in the capital have become much better. But in Tbilisi it’s still like this – albeit with a modern twist for today’s TikTok generation ) ->

Out of the underpass, and the first thing we see is a monument to a historical national treasure – the poet Shota Rustaveli:

But why are wires stretched right in front of one of the main symbols of Georgia? How come there’s graffiti on the pedestal? And how come they stuck a taxi rank right in front of it? WHY?!

Moving on, we headed over to the cable-car station that goes up the hill by Mount Mtatsminda. And here everything’s set up rather nicely. Here’s the entrance:

Neat walkway winding upward:

Built in Soviet times, it was later renovated and refitted – and it looks and works rather well:

Tbilisi from up above:

That’s it, we’re at the top ->

In the cafe up top our guide told us we just had to try the donuts. Apparently, they say that if you’ve been up here and haven’t tried the donuts, it doesn’t count. We resisted a bit, but in the end we gave in. And we didn’t regret it: the donuts really were super-delicious. Also: woah!… I hadn’t seen a drinks‑dispenser gizmo like this for about 40 years. They’re straight out of the USSR! It was like stepping into a time machine…

And here’s the TV tower. Judging from its external appearance, it’s also a leftover from the days of a bygone empire – this time with no real renovation:

Curiously, there’s the cable-car, and also a funicular for getting up and down:

You guessed it – we went down on the funicular:

On the way, tucked into a gorge – the Church of Saint David:

Down below, of course, all kinds of souvenirs. I was impressed by the number of different magnets:

Even khachapuri magnets! ->

We move on according to the plan of today’s tour. We wound through the city’s lanes, went down to the Kura River via Pushkin street, and then found ourselves at an installation called “The Berikaoba Sculpture Group”:

A very expressive scene. It’s like they’re inviting you to burst into dance with them. And as to what exactly it really is – there are conflicting accounts. Our guide said they depict pagan pre‑Christian traditions, while the internet doesn’t agree: most of the opinions there lean toward it being a spring festival dance. I’m fine with any and all versions – as long as everyone’s happy, having fun, and there are no consequences.

And nearby there are various other sculptures. For example, a lamplighter:

Very picturesque – and wonky: the puppet theatre ->

Various artifacts on the walls. For example, somewhere around here are the smallest wall‑mounted clocks in Georgia…

And on we go through the streets of old Tbilisi…

The Bridge of Peace: a magical structure built in 2010 whose inspiration (in reverse) was the 2008 war:

The Kura River to the left:

The Kura River to the right:

But we’re heading straight on:

And again onto a cable car. There are quite a few of them here, almost like in La Paz, Bolivia…

We were heading toward the Kartlis Deda monument…

And here it is. Sadly, something’s off here too: wires and graffiti. Grrr->

Botanical Garden:

Cacti! Wasn’t expecting that ->

Another underpass, this one much nicer than the last, with the Meidan Bazar shops – a cult place:

What can you buy here? Pretty much anything and everything:

We then head up Bath Street – and end up in the thermal spring district. Sadly, this time our schedule didn’t permit us a dip; we’ll have to save that for next time…

By the way, it’s precisely because of these hot springs that Tbilisi was founded and later became the capital of Georgian kingdoms (if we are to believe our guide and various internet sources).

Now this historical place is basically just a canyon of the local river, but it’s looking great:

Local artists paint all sorts of cheerful pictures:

Samarkand style: the entrance to a thermal springs bathhouse:

And also must‑visit – the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi:

But time was getting on, and we felt we’d had our fill of both business and tourism for one day, so we headed back to the hotel. A photo from the window:

A little later, airport, airplane, and off we pop ->

Till next time, Georgia. Bye‑bye, Tbilisi.

And now for some Tbilisi as viewed by travel companion, NK:

The cable car building – a very designer job, born in 1958. If you believe the internet, it’s Soviet classicism, and certainly an architectural monument:

Those very donuts they firmly insisted we try at the cafe up top. We didn’t resist much, and we liked them:

Photographic proof that the pictures above were mine! ->

On the Bridge of Peace folks pose for photos and take photos, while others sell all sorts of things:

Tbilisi balconies: really something. A distinctive feature of this city:

And I wasn’t just doing tourism there, either:

That’s all about Tbilisi folks. Back soon!…

The best hi-res photos from Georgia are here.