Living in Georgia

Today looking through Georgian news, I found another interesting news about plans of opening Batumi Hilton hotel in this (2015) May.  I lived for a short period of time in Batumi, back in 2012, and I do remember they had a lot of visionary ideas around the city, including the Hilton Batumi hotel.  Update: Hilton hotel has been opened, and see my review here: Hilton Batumi Hotel Review Finally, seems there is some progress, so enough preface, according to GHN (You can read original here): in…

In this article, I have listed a few photos from the visit to the Tbilisi Dezerteer market on December 30, 2014 ( Warning - Some of the images may be inappropriate for some users, on few of them are pictured slaughtered animals. I'm not a vegetarian but I must admit, there are times when walking through this market I have considered becoming one. Georgian version of Christmas trees Well, to explain this version of a Christmas tree I would need to wrap up another blog post, but in short -…

Jūlijs Straume, was a renowned Latvian artist who left a lasting impact on the art world. Despite his passing, his legacy lives on through the active efforts of the Latvian Diaspora in Georgia, who continue to honor his works. Jūlijs Straume (July 2, 1874 - November 1, 1970) was a Latvian textile artist, educator, and ethnographer, and an Honored Art Worker of the Latvian SSR. He studied in Jelgava and St. Petersburg and later refined his skills in Paris (1905-1907). From 1907 to 1923, he…

For the second year in a row, we decided to celebrate Christmas in Bakuriani, a remote mountain resort city in Georgia.  While some may choose Bakuriani as a skiing destination, we opted for a white Christmas location. Originally, we planned to take a minibus, but we were persuaded by a taxi driver to travel with him for 70 GEL (after bargaining down from 100 GEL). Below are some snapshots I took of Bakuriani with my Sony camera. Bakuriani sign - for me it looks like it have kept from…

Currently (2022) there are no tram or trolley lines in Tbilisi, but not so long ago in history, there were plenty of tram and trolleybus lines not only in Tbilisi but also in Batumi, Kutaisi, Gori, Zugdidi, Ozurgeti, Poti, Rustavi, and even Chiatura.  What has happened to once pretty impressive routes of trams and trolleys in Georgia?  I guess the harsh history happened. After the Collapse of the Soviet Union - Georgia got troubled with civil wars, and economic hardships so neither trams nor…

<p>The other day I was contacted by one of the local Georgian English-language newspaper offering me to write some articles for them.</p><p>I don't know did this offer included some payment as well (actually I have no idea how journalists receives salary - either they have some contract salary, maybe they receive per written words or it's all about sponsored stories - if you are a journalist - please leave me a comment regarding this)</p><p>Though this…

<p><span>Checking my internet bank for savings report I found an article informing that ProCredit bank Georgia has bought 10 hybrid Toyota cars and starting now they will be used in Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi.</span></p><p><span>I guess it won't impact much my savings but it's good know, that bank which services I'm using is concerned of&nbsp;sustainable&nbsp;energy. So it's my pleasure to promote them on my blog.</span>…

I recently attended the Winter Charity Fair organized by the International Women's Association Georgia for the third or fourth time. Based on my past experiences, I arrived early at the Sheraton Metekhi Hotel to purchase some goods from the US and participate in the Bottle Bank game at the UK stand. The objective of the Winter Charity Fair organized by the International Women's Association Georgia (IWAG) is to raise funds for projects in Georgia that focus on women, children, the elderly, and…

The Georgian-Latvian Business Forum was held in Tbilisi on November 27, 2014, and provided a unique opportunity for businesses to explore new avenues for growth and expansion. This event was organized by Invest in Georgia agency and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, two organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to fostering innovation and progress in the business world. The Georgian-Latvian Business Forum brought together business leaders and stakeholders from various…

While I don't consider myself a high fashion aficionado, I did have the chance to attend the exquisite Latvian Fashion Show at the Tbilisi History Museum in Georgia. Latvian Fashion Show Hostess of the evening Models at Latvian Fashion Show Models at Latvian Fashion Show Models at Latvian Fashion Show Latvian Fashion Show Latvian Fashion Show Latvian Fashion Show Poster for Latvian Fashion Show About Latvian Fashion If you appreciate originality and…