After our sneak peak of Georgian cuisine at a festival in Kyiv, I had no doubt that Tbilisi would fill my belly, but I didn't know how fulfilling it would be as a tourist destination. I am happy to report that I was satiated both culinarily and culturally. Even though it was the middle of the night, the minute we checked into our room at Shakespeare Rooms, near Freedom Square (left), our taxi driver treated us to a toast with his homemade wine. The next morning, the view out our window proved the city was welcoming in location as well as in degustation (right).
After a quick first and second breakfast from two different bakery windows, we headed for the hills. On our way, we wove through Old Town, whose crumbling architecture is being propped up by revitalization efforts (top left). But it's worth it, considering the many fading florid facades (top right) and the wonky wooden balconies (middle left). On our way up to the Mother of Georgia, we passed an even older structure, the 13th-century St. George's Church (middle right). Once at the foot of the matriarchal monument, we could look back on Tbilisi's mix of modern and traditional, with the silver of Rike Park's Theater and Exhibition Hall on one bank and the gold of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, the largest in Georgia, on the other (bottom).
A short walk downhill brought us to Narikala Fortress, a fourth-century bastion whose earthquake-shaken walls also could use some reconstruction (left). With its extensive views of the Kura River valley (right), it's no wonder that the stronghold was used for centuries by various invaders to keep tabs on their newly acquired empire.
Considering its long legacy of being conquered, it's also no surprise that the city decided to commemorate its contemporary calm with a Peace Bridge, completed in 2010 (left). We took a stroll on the span before a snack stop at g.Vino, where we had our first taste of Georgian beer, not wine. TJ had the Black Lion APA, while I sampled the Argo Dark, a craft beer made by macroproducer Brewery Castel that is masquerading as a microbrew (right).
Next, we hopped the Metro to the Deserter's Bazaar, which appeared to be pretty deserted when we entered on the upper level (top left). The streets below, however, were packed with people and lined with trucks that were packed with potatoes (top right). From the locals market, we headed over to Aghmashenebili Avenue, a haven for the high-class consumer. The historic avenue is lined with brand-name stores, and eventually it becomes a pedestrianized thoroughfare known for its nightlife (bottom left). Down an alleyway across from a jazz bar, we came upon Crafted, a watering hole-in-the-wall that makes its own beer and alcohol (bottom right).
With all the walking, we worked up an appetite. Somehow, we managed to snag seats at the trendy, no-reservations spot Lolita (top). The restaurant has atmosphere to spare, as it maintained the ambiance of the courtyard it converted by installing heat lamps next to an old basketball hoop in the outdoor communal seating area (bottom left). The menu wasn't innovative, but the standards -- like Georgian salad and pork ribs -- were deliciously well done (bottom right).
After our unexpected hop into hipness, we decided it was time to return to our station. So first, we stopped at Alibi Room, whose low ceilings and makeshift tables were reminiscent of some of my college haunts (top). Then we rounded the corner to Dive Bar, whose cramped, smoky din also brought back memories (middle left). We chose from a variety of NaturAle options to complement our churchkhela, or nuts covered in grape paste (middle right). Eventually, we needed some fresh air, so we stepped outside (bottom left) and headed back toward our hotel, where we classed it up with one last nightcap at Moulin Electrique (bottom right).
As we wandered our way home, we came across some great sounds and sights. A couple times, we heard groups of teens polyphonic singing -- also known as Georgian chants, and not to be confused with Gregorian chants -- which UNESCO has identified as intangible heritage (top). The city isn't afraid to show off its harmony or electricity. The Peace Bridge has LED shows nightly, and the Old Walls near the bridge (bottom left) and the TV Tower on Mount Mtatsminda (bottom right) also are illuminated.
Once the sun was up again, we set off for another hill climb. But we made a detour through 9 April Park, which is named after the date of Georgia's independence and features a statue of poet Giorgi Leonidze (top), so we could survey the souvenirs on offer at the Dry Bridge Flea Market (bottom left). Most of the goods being bartered seemed like junk to me, but down in Dedeana Park, artists displayed an impressive array of paintings and sculptures (bottom right).
With no frames in hand, we hopped a bus to Vake Park, which features another large stone woman, the Statue of Victory (top left). The route started with steps but soon turned into slippery scree. Somehow, we managed to scale the trails to Turtle Lake, where we walked around the water and out to a promontory that abutted against Mount Mtatsminda (top right). The lake itself wasn't much of an attraction, although it was the site of the Youth Olympic Festival in 2015 (middle). We didn't linger long before we boarded the cable car that took us back to the park (bottom left). Across from the park, we stopped in Hop Head, a microbrewery where we could revel in our achievement with some craft beers (bottom right).
For our evening entertainment, we took the recommendation of a fellow Lolita diner to visit Fabrika, a former textile factory that plays host to a hostel and other shops (top left). One tenant is Dive X, a secondary and less seedy outlet of Dive Bar (top right). TJ kicked my ass on the Capcom arcade console, proving I have lost my skill at Street Fighter (middle left). Sadly, we didn't have time for me to recover my reputation with an analog game (middle right). We left just in time to become one of the last patrons at Shavi Lomi (bottom left), where we finally wined and dined in traditional Georgian style; TJ chose pork chops, and I had katmis satsivi, or chicken in almond sauce (bottom right).
We didn't have time to walk off all the calories before our flight on the last day in Tbilisi. So instead, we tried to sweat them out at the sulphur baths (top). We opted for Gulo's Thermal Spa, where, like at most of the spas, you can rent a private bath by the hour and pay extra for a massage or scrubbing. Our traditional room was small but suitable for our needs, with a skylight (bottom left) providing all the natural light necessary to navigate the two-person tub and shower (bottom right).
Despite our lack of exercise, we couldn't leave without one more hearty Georgian meal. On our second pass, we managed to locate Racha, a basement-level utilitarian eatery (top left). One look at the kitchen convinced us that we should order everything on the menu (top right). But we managed to limit ourselves to some marinated eggplant, pork stew, khinkali, and lobiani (bottom). Still, our eyes were bigger than our stomachs, as we took half the lobiani with us to eat on the plane.
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