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Chinese Restaurant Ensemble (Hotels & Preference Hualing Tbilisi)
Chinese Restaurant Ensemble is located in a 5-star hotel "Hotels & Preference Hualing Tbilisi" near the Tbilisi Sea in the so-called - Tbilisi Sea New City. I got a recommendation to visit this restaurant from some other Tbilisi expats. So some Saturday afternoon in a company of the same expats we visited this place and I had a chance to try really authentic Chinese cuisine. Hotels & Preference…
Bird Watching Tower on Sloka Lake
Bird watching tower on Sloka lake actually is a floating platform which is a very popular tourist attraction among the locals and bird watchers. Discovered in the early May 2018, during our "living in Jūrmala" series. Bird watching tower on Sloka Lake The bird watching tower actually is just one point from Sloka lake walking trail: The trail winds through diverse forest settings along the coastline of the lake populated by…
Saint Peter and Paul Monastery Complex of Bolnisi
Saint Peter and Paul Monastery Complex of Bolnisi was built in 2012 and is located on Mount Elia close to the Bolnisi town in Georgia. First discovered and kind of visited in mid-December 2018, during a day trip to Bolnisi region. Originally I thought that at this place is located Bolnisi Sioni, and once we let our Tbilisi apt I just entered Bolnisi church in Google navigation. Huge was my surprise arriving at the real Bolnisi…
Mangaļsala Pier
The Mangalsala Dam or the Eastern Mole has been built between 1850 and 1861 and rumor has the Russian Empire's Tsar actively followed the developments (back in those days there were two tsars ruling the Empire, Nicholas I and Alexander II). Mangalsala is the first part of the Riga city which is crossed by all ships entering the Daugava river. The length of the mole is 2240 meters. The sea part of the eastern mole was formed by pile…
HP ProBook 450 G5 (2RS04EA) Laptop Review
At the end of 2018 I got a new laptop - HP ProBook 450 G5 - in today's gadget review article series I will write down my humble observations. In short - gosh it feels so good owning a ProBook from HP. I bought this laptop at local ALTA OK store in Tbilisi, Georgia, just shortly before Christmas shopping craze in December 2018. Paid about USD 750 for this model. The sales price for Intel Core i5 8GB HP ProBook 450 G5 on Amazon is about…
Mosque in Kvemo Bolnisi
There is not much information available online about Kvemo Bolnisi mosque in Georgia, except that the construction of the Mosque in Kvemo Bolnisi village started in 2005 and ended in 2007. The Mosque started functioning the same year. It was in the mid-December 2018, we were on a day trip to the Bolnisi (and surrounding area), after making stops at Bolnisi Sioni and Tsughrughasheni Church we discovered a…
Borjomi Likani Hotel, SPA and Health Centre
Luxury 5 star Hotel Borjomi Likani is located 177 km away from Tbilisi (the capital of Georgia) in the middle of the coniferous park in Borjomi city, famous of its naturally carbonated mineral water from springs in the Borjomi Gorge of central Georgia. Hotel Borjomi Likani is located on the former territory of once popular Sanatorium of 4th department in Likani. Guests from all over the USSR used to gather here to spend time with family and…
Tsughrughasheni Church
Tsughrughasheni is a Georgian Orthodox church in the Bolnisi District, Georgia. It is situated approximately 2 kilometers from Bolnisi Sioni basilica, on the right bank of the Bolnisistsqali River. The church was built in 1212–1222 supposedly by King George IV Lasha of the Bagrationi Dynasty. Tsughrughasheni church in Georgia I first discovered and visited Tsughrughasheni …
Hotel Baltvilla in Baltezers
Baltvilla is a 4-star hotel located some 15 km from the city center of Riga, on the shore of a lake with a private beach area and on the Via Baltica highway (E67). Baltvilla is located 4 km from Latvian Ethnographic Open-Air Museum. Free WiFi is provided throughout the hotel and wide private parking is available for guests free of charge. We opted for Baltvilla hotel during our latest trip to Latvia at the end of 2018 (pre-New Year…
Bolnisi Sioni Cathedral
Bolnisi Sioni Cathedral is a Georgian Orthodox basilica in the Bolnisi village of Bolnisi District, Georgia. The cathedral was built in 478–493. It is the oldest extant church building in Georgia. Bishop David was the overseeing church leader for the construction of Bolnisi Sioni. It took me more than 7 years of living in Georgia to visit for the first time Bolnisi and Bolnisi Sioni at the…
Zip Line Tbilisi (Georgia)
Zip Line Tbilisi is another cool thing to do while in Georgia. I might be late to the party, as discovered Zip Line Tbilisi just at the end of 2018, but seems it was first opened for a public already back in June 2017. It was during our latest trip to the Tbilisi Botanical garden when I noticed strange cables going from Narikala fortress into the botanical garden. Zip Line Tbilisi Visitors and locals of Georgia's capital Tbilisi can…
The Botanical Garden of the University of Latvia
The Botanical Garden of the University of Latvia is located in Pardaugava (Kandavas 2), just a 10-minute ride from the central part of Riga. The garden was founded in 1922. Over 15ha visitors can explore hothouses and outdoor collections with some 6,000 different plants. It is one of the most well-loved recreational spaces in Riga - you can slowly walk the garden’s compact yet informationally saturated territory, get to know plants…
Puzata Hata, Khreschatyk Street, Kyiv, Ukraine
Puzata Hata is a popular (and probably the largest) chain in Kiev - it serves traditional Ukrainian cuisine for a budget price. Puzata Hata was one of our favorite Kiev restaurant chains we visited during our latest trip to Kiev in August 2017. See: Kiev restaurants The Puzata Khata Restaurant Network opened its doors to the first visitors in 2003. Then it was the first restaurant in Bessarabka, in the center of Kiev.…
Kvareli Public Service Hall
Kvareli Public service hall is located in the center of Kvareli town near Chavchavadze Street. Public Service Hall is an agency of the Georgian government which provides a variety of public services, these include the services of the Civil Registry Agency, the National Agency of Public Registry, the National Archives, the National Bureau of Enforcement and the Notary Chamber of Georgia. Services are made available at public…
Tutarchela Megrelian Restaurant in Tbilisi
Restaurant Tutarchela is located on Archil Mishveladze street 76, Tbilisi, just next to the Vake Park. I was a bit surprised to learn that here is served Megrelian cuisine, and should admit that Megrelian cuisine is as great as Georgian According to the restaurant's FB page, there is served a wide selection of delicious Megrelian dishes, and for the preparation of all dishes, the restaurant uses natural products…
Hotel Kvareli Eden Review
Kvareli Eden Hotel is located in a remote place some 1 or 2 km from the Kvarteli town center, Georgia. Kvareli Eden features an indoor swimming pool and a wine therapy spa center. Free Wi-Fi and free private parking are provided. We booked a stay at Kvareli Eden in the mid of November 2018 during Georgia Discount week (kind of paying half the price). We stayed here for two nights and paid about GEL 500 (EUR 165 / USD 188)…
Roshen Candy Store in Kiev (Khotynska Street)
Roshen Confectionery Corporation is a Ukrainian confectionery manufacturing group. The leading manufacturer of confectionery products in the country, it operates facilities in the Ukrainian cities of Kiev, Vinnytsia and Kremenchuk, as well as in Budapest, Hungary and Klaipėda, Lithuania. The name of the company was derived from the last name of its owner, current president of…
Pet Food Store in Tbilisi - Zoomart on Abashidze street (near Vake park)
Zoomart on Abashidze street 78 (located very conveniently close to the Vake park) has been our favorite pet food store (actually the only one) for several years already. We came here regularly to buy special cats dry food. According to Zoomart website, there are already 11 stores across Tbilisi (2018). At Zoomart you will find brands like Canvit, ferplast, Vitakraft, Brekkies, catzone, elmubas, Versele-Laga, Advance, Kong,…
IWA Christmas Charity Fair Tbilisi 2018
Annual Winter Fair (Christmas charity fair) was held at Tbilisi's Radisson Blue Hotel on December 1, 2018 For many expats in Georgia, it has been already a tradition to visit this fair year. For me, this was already some sixth or seventh fair (as a visitor), maybe I should start selling hot wine in the next years (who knows) Here are a few articles from the past: Christmas Charity Fair Tbilisi 2017, Christmas Charity Winter…
Rainy Day in Tbilisi
Less than a month ago, we changed apartment in Tbilisi and got one with really cool views towards mount Mtatsminda. I've been playing with a tripod a camera here ever since. See: Tbilisi by night (New apartment version) and Tbilisi by day (New Apartment Version) Despite my forecast, that next version probably will be an HDR photography, it turned out to be a Rainy day. Actually, about a year and a half ago, I made a cool time-lapse…
Trinity Monastery of St. Jonas in Kyiv
The Trinity Monastery of St. Jonas is a Ukrainian Orthodox monastery in the Kievan neighborhood of Zverinets, a short distance from the medieval Vydubychi Monastery. We discovered this monastery back in 2017 when visited Hryshko National Botanical Garden Trinity Monastery of St. Jonas It was Jonas, a Vydubychi hegumen, who founded this monastery in 1864. Princess Vasilchikov, the widow…
Hryshko National Botanical Garden in Kiev
Turns out there are at least two botanical gardens in Kiev. In today's article, I will write and provide photographs from Hryshko National Botanical Garden taken back in Summer 2017. Apparently, we got here by a taxi from our hotel (Hotel Ukraine), and as far as I remember we got back to the city center by trolleybus. The M. M. Hryshko National Botanical Garden is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.…
Shio-Mgvime monastery
The Shio-Mgvime monastery is a medieval monastic complex in Georgia, near the town of Mtskheta. It is located in a narrow limestone canyon on the northern bank of the Kura River, some 30 km from Tbilisi, Georgia’s capital. It took me more than seven years since I've been living in Georgia and 60 GEL to get here. Long story short: At the start of November 2018, we booked a 4-star hotel Gino Wellness in…
Hotel Gino Wellness Mtskheta Review
There are at least two Gino Wellness hotels in Georgia (probably more), one is located in the Rabati Fortress in the town of Akhaltsikhe and the other one is located really close to Tbilisi, in Mtskheta. In today's article, I will speak about the one in Mtskheta. Offering free WiFi, a sun terrace with a swimming pool, spa and wellness center and garden, Hotel Gino Wellness Mtskheta is located in Mtskheta. Each accommodation at…