top of page

Georgia, you surprised me !

This is my first time traveling to Eastern Europe, and Georgia's rich history piqued my curiosity.



My business trips are always concise. I often visit two cities in a three-day span, walking through them and trying to grasp the big and small details as quickly as possible:

What type of consumers are there? Which shopping bags do I see the most? What are the ages of people with these bags? What brands are popular in this country? Who buys these brands? How much is a coffee? How much is rent? How much do they earn?


These questions flow naturally, and I usually find answers quickly, though never straightforwardly.

 

In Tbilisi, walking down the main street, I found large stores like Baccarat and Christofle, a Max Mara store, and a hidden courtyard I stumbled upon during my only night there while searching for small bites.


This courtyard belonged to a small bookstore with a café, offering a carefully selected range of books in Georgian and English. One book caught my eye, titled Georgian Tales. It was heavy yet beautiful. I wanted it to read to Alma, giving her a window into this world—a country so different yet so similar to ours.



If i should pick one memory and bring home with me, i will certainly tell you that Georgian knows how to cook, wine and dine.

People here love to gather around wine and food. There are numerous wine bars, some small and intimate, others with backyard restaurants featuring tall ceilings and dim lighting, inviting you to sit and sip. There are traditional tavernas with Georgian carpets reminiscent of Turkish carpets in Cappadocia and oriental designs that look almost Chinese but not quite. Then there's the stunning space called Stamba, housing a hotel, workspace, courtyard, bookshop, and more.

These establishments range from large and imposing, sending a message of cool sophistication, to simple and familiar, exuding an air of je ne sais quoi.




The food is exceptionally delicious. I could spend a year eating salads here.

Everything tastes better—sweet tomatoes, fresh greens, and avocados. They excel at mixing vinaigrettes—it's unreal. There's also their obsession with cheese, which they put inside bread similar to focaccia. Their bread even rivals some of the best Italian restaurants I've visited.




The streets are incredibly clean, and the architecture is a perfect blend of old and new,

nestled among green trees and rolling hills. It reminded me of certain districts in Kuala Lumpur, but with a unique flair. The weather is as unpredictable as Paris, shifting from grey to sunny to rainy.

The locals have a distinctive style, with some girls embodying a nonchalant "I couldn't care less" vibe like Berliners, yet dressed like Parisians, while others command attention with their fashion.






While I loved Tbilisi, Batumi was a different story. The contrasts were stark. The old town's stores ranged from high fashion to "Replicas of Luxury Brands in One Place." The rest of the city featured a mix of high-rise apartments next to flashy casinos and big chain hotels. The disparity was unsettling. Even coming from Jakarta, where street food vendors and luxury malls coexist, the wealth gap in Batumi was glaring. They explained that the very rich make up 15-20% of the population, the middle class aspires to wealth and spends accordingly, and the rest earn a maximum of €300 a month, barely covering the cost of a studio apartment.






Thank you, Georgia, for having me. I might return someday.

Comments


Chasing Bohème

bottom of page