ok so georgia. the COUNTRY not the state. took me way too long to figure out where it even was on a map ngl. its like tucked between russia turkey armenia azerbaijan. caucasus mountains. soviet vibes EVERYWHERE. anyway.
TLIBLISI FIRST.
landed at like 2am and this old dude in a soviet-era taxi with a cig hanging out his mouth drove me to my hostel going like 90kmh on cobblestone streets. i genuinely thought i was gonna die ngl. the city tho… HOLY SHIT. its like someone dropped a medieval town into a 70s soviet city and then splashed modern glass buildings on top. chaos. i LOVED it.
the old town is all winding streets and crooked balconies and like grapevines growing over everything. u can get lost for HOURS and its fine bc every turn theres some random church or a guy selling churchkhela from a cart (thats the weird candle-looking thing made of nuts and grape juice. tastes like a fruit rollup got married to a snickers bar idfk). anyway back to the city.
walk across the Bridge of Peace at sunset. its this big modern glass bridge with lights. everyone hates it bc it doesnt fit the old town aesthetic but honestly i thought it was dope. on one side u got the old town, on the other side… wait what was i saying. oh yeah, the other side has the presidential palace and Rike Park and a cable car that takes u up to Narikala Fortress. the view from up there? INSANE. whole city spread out below u with the mountains in the background. instagram bait af but worth it.
ok now the food. OH MY GOD THE FOOD. im not even a foodie person but georgia changed me.
khachapuri. this is a bread boat filled with cheese and butter and a raw egg on top. u eat it by tearing off the bread and dipping it in the molten cheese and egg yolk. its like a heart attack on a plate. cost me like $3 maybe $4 idk. i ate like 14 of them over two weeks. no regrets.
khinkali. these are soup dumplings the size of ur FIST. u eat them with your hands. u bite a hole, slurp the broth, then eat the rest. BUT DONT EAT THE TOP KNOT thats the handle. apparently that part goes back on the plate. i didnt know this and ate the knot like a dumbass. the locals were AMUSED. also the broth is INSANELY hot. i burned the roof of my mouth so bad i couldnt taste anything for two days lmao. worth it.
wine. georgians invented wine. like genuinely theyve been making it for 8000+ years. they ferment it in giant clay pots buried in the ground called qvevri. it tastes… different. not like the fruity shit u get at the store. its more… earthy? funky? idk how to describe it. it hits different. also they do this thing where u toast a LOT. like every meal becomes a drinking game. someone makes a toast, u all down your glass. someone elses turn. down again. u will get drunk. accept it.
prices. SO CHEAP. like stupid cheap. a huge meal with wine was like $10-12. hostels $10-15 a night. marshrutka rides (these are soviet minibuses that drive like maniacs) cost like pocket change. i spent like $400 total for a week and a half ish? maybe $500. honestly i lost track bc i was buying too much wine. sorry.
ok BATUMI.
batumi is the beach city on the black sea. its like georgia’s miami mixed with las vegas mixed with… soviet architecture. theres a giant ferris wheel and a tower shaped like the alphabet and a huge statue of two people constantly moving through each other (Ali and Nino, local romeo and juliet story, VERY dramatic). the boulevard along the beach is nice but the beach itself is ROCKS not sand. like smooth pebbles. it hurts to walk on. bring water shoes or suffer.
honestly batumi was fun but felt a bit… fake? compared to tbilisi. lots of casinos and new buildings going up everywhere. feels like theyre trying so hard to be a tourist destination. but the sunset over the black sea was beautiful and theres this botanical garden thats like 100 years old and full of plants from all over the world. random af but cool.
oh and the weather was WEIRD. one day itd be boiling hot then suddenly itd rain for 10 minutes then stop and be humid af. pack for all seasons. lmao.
Svaneti time.
this is the mountainous region in the northwest. getting there is a mission. took like 9 hours in a marshrutka from tbilisi through winding mountain roads with sheer drops on one side. the driver was on the phone the whole time and passing trucks on blind corners. i closed my eyes a LOT. but then u arrive in Mestia (the main town) and its WORTH IT.
the landscape is unreal. like HUGE snow-capped peaks everywhere. medieval stone towers (Svan towers) scattered across the valleys. these towers are ancient defense structures, families used to live in them during feuds and raids. u can climb some of them. the stairs are STEEP and rickety af. i almost died like 3 times but the views from the top… BRO.
trails everywhere. u can hike for days and barely see another person. i did a day hike to Koruldi Lakes and it was just… silent. like actual silence. no traffic no people no notifications. just wind and the sound of my own wheezing (im not fit ok). genuinely spiritual or whatever.
the people in Svaneti are SO nice. i got lost and this old svan lady who spoke zero english just gestured for me to sit down and fed me freaking khachapuri and tea. didnt ask for anything. i tried to give her money and she looked offended lol. georgians are like that tho. insanely hospitable. they have a saying “a guest is a gift from god” or something. and they MEAN it.
oh also the roads in svaneti are BAD. like not even roads sometimes. just dirt tracks. rent a 4×4 or embrace the marshrutka chaos. i walked most places bc i was too scared of the drivers.
KAZBEGI (stepantsminda).
this is the really famous spot u see on all the postcards. Gergeti Trinity Church on a hill with Mount Kazbeg (one of the highest peaks in the caucasus) behind it. looks like a screensaver. i hiked up to the church at like 5am for sunrise and it was just me and some cows and this INCREDIBLE view of the mountain turning pink in the morning light. nearly cried ngl.
the hike is steep but not too bad. like 2 hours up from town. u can also pay a jeep to take u up but wheres the fun in that. i got lost on the way down somehow and ended up on a completely different trail that took me through a forest and past this random waterfall. honestly the best accidental detour.
kazbegi town itself is tiny. like one main street with cafes and souvenir shops. very touristy in summer. but u go there for the nature not the nightlife lol.
SOVIET VIBES
ok one thing u notice everywhere in georgia is the soviet leftovers. crumbling brutalist apartment blocks with faded paint. old statues and monuments that nobody maintains. these massive concrete things just decaying. its weirdly beautiful in a sad way. tbilisi has a whole “Soviet Modernism” thing going on where u can find abandoned buildings that look like spaceships crashed into a city block. theres a building called the “Wedding Palace” that looks like a giant concrete oyster. another one called the “Chronicles of Georgia” — these giant stone pillars telling the country’s history up on a hill overlooking the city. half finished. barely visited. epic.
the metro in tbilisi is also pure soviet. deep esculators that take like 3 minutes to reach the bottom. old-school trains from the 80s. no AC in summer. smells like… iron and history lmao. but costs like 10 cents a ride. cant complain.
oh wait i forgot to mention the sulfur baths! tbilisi has natural sulfur hot springs and theres a whole district (Abanotubani) with these brick-domed bathhouses. u can rent a private room with a hot pool for like $10-20. smells like rotten eggs but my skin felt AMAZING after. def do it.
random tips:
– learn “madloba” (thank you) and “gamarjoba” (hello). people APPRECIATE it
– georgian script is fucking impossible to read. looks like a mix of arabic and cursive. good luck
– dont expect things to run on time. marshrutkas leave when theyre full not when theyre scheduled lol
– bring cash. lots of places dont take cards especially in the mountains
– the tap water in tbilisi is fine but in svaneti stick to bottled unless u want to spend a day on the toilet
– toasts are serious business. if someone raises a glass u raise yours. dont be that person
– georgian food is VERY cheese and bread heavy. if ur lactose intolerant ur in for a BAD time
things that pissed me off:
– smoking. EVERYONE smokes. indoors outdoors restaurants marshrutkas. u cannot escape it
– stray dogs. theres SO many. theyre friendly mostly but watching them dodge traffic gave me anxiety
– the flight got delayed bc of fog? like 3 times. happens a lot apparently
– wifi is hit or miss. in svaneti i had none for days. liberating but also annoying when i just wanted to update my story
ok lets wrap this up. i’ve had too much wine while writing this sorry for the rambling. basically georgia is like… a country that exists in its own TIMEZONE in every sense. the history is heavy. the food is life-changing. the mountains will humble u. the wine will make u forget ur name. the people will restore ur faith in humanity or whatever.
GO. just go. not for the gram (ok also for the gram). but for the feeling of sitting on a balcony in tbilisi drinking natty wine at 11am watching the city do its chaotic thing. for eating khachapuri straight out of a clay oven while some old man plays accordion. for standing in front of a 1000 year old tower in the middle of NOWHERE and realizing ur just a tiny speck.
fuck i wanna go back so bad rn.
anyway yeah. georgia. do it. u wont regret it.
(literally dying thinking about that next khachapuri. omg.)
Real travel thoughts. No polish.
Disclaimer: This article reflects personal travel experiences and is for informational purposes only. Always check government travel advisories and local guidelines before planning your trip.