My Georgia travelogue officially begins now!
On November 5, 2018, at 9:45 AM, I boarded the Kazakh airline Air Astana bound for Georgia.
I can’t even remember how long it’s been since I last flew on a non-budget airline — there were slippers, movies, and even in-flight meals. I’m not really used to this level of luxury~
The comfort level of the Boeing 767 was okay, at least I slept like the dead~ But whether or not it had anything to do with all the shows lacking Chinese subtitles and me having to listen to everything in English, that’s another story……….
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With a “herrr” sound, seven hours passed, and I transferred at Almaty Airport after arriving from Uralsk.
Originally, I had planned to walk around the city a bit, but as mentioned in the previous post, my flight got rescheduled, and I ended up with only five hours. Was I really going to take a taxi out for an hour and then come back to the airport? ……I had no choice but to suffer through the five hours, walking around and killing time should be manageable~
Um………….unfortunately, I was way too naïve………….
The Almaty International Airport waiting lounge is roughly the size of a Sham Shui Po storage room, and besides a small coffee shop selling bread, I didn’t see anything else.
Want to walk around, have fun, go shopping? Way too much to ask!
Indeed, I shouldn’t expect too much, it’s not like I came here expecting a luxury lounge or anything.
But for a Hong Konger like me who’s used to fast internet worldwide — no wifi!!!!!!!
And for someone like me who’s used to air-conditioned spaces — no air-con!!!!!!!!!
To be fair, there technically is air-con, but when you’re in a sealed glass area under direct 34-degree sunlight, whether keeping it at 25.5 degrees still counts as air-con is another question……
Solutions include:
One) Wait for the duty-free shop to open, not sure how much relief that’ll bring though.
Two) Do what RPG players do and find corners or seats with better airflow.
Three) Carry a portable air conditioner, electronics seem allowed in.
Didn’t prepare for the third option, but I tried the first two. After barely managing to get some airflow in an already stuffy and hot environment for five hours, it was finally 7:30 PM and I could leave!!!!!!
Doesn’t matter where to, I just want to get out of this waiting lounge!!!!!!
(The wine display in that storage room actually looks pretty nice, makes it worth standing there and admiring for half an hour~)
(Take a guess which vent actually has air coming out~)
(Time to hit the road again~)
(Honestly, both in-flight meals were actually pretty tasty~)
(It started pouring rain as soon as I landed, truly the man who brings the rain)
(Arrived at 1:30 AM Hong Kong time)
At 9:40 PM Georgia time, I finally arrived in the capital, “Tbilisi,” and stepped onto the land of the Caucasus!!!
SIM card and getting into the city from the airport were covered in the previous post so I won’t repeat — anyway, I checked into the hostel at midnight.
Strange……why am I T?0ge?..............
Yeah, it’s that time—4 AM in Hong Kong. I’ve been traveling nonstop for 21 hours since I got up!!!! Just sitting is exhausting enough, let alone whatever 18廿二 means!!
But my heart really is still 18廿二…….. As soon as I collapsed onto the bed, this demonic voice kept saying, “Don’t waste time~~~~ go out for a walk~~~~~ you haven’t done anything today~~~~~”
Unable to resist the inner demon, sigh, I went downstairs for a quick stroll, casually checking out what midnight Tbilisi looks like…………
“Wow!!!!!!!!!!! There’s something to see here!!!!!!!”
That was the first thing I said when I saw Tbilisi’s famous Liberty Square above!!
It’s not that the pillar is super tall, huge, thick, strong, or that the lighting makes it look Ob so nice T?虻ィ??的刂止愠〖雀窬制?疲?凳ケ说帽ぁ坝⑿鄢鞘屑湍畋?奔扔白友健!!!!
(Turns out I never posted this photo from my St. Petersburg trip, how rare!)
Then I accidentally walked onto Kote Afkhazi St., the street that runs through the heart of the Old Town. The cobblestone path, the fancy architecture, the yellowish lamp light— the more I walked, the more I felt like I was revisiting a familiar place.
Yup!! I’m back in V?分蘩病!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Crazy~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Georgia is internationally considered part of Eastern Europe, and it’s actively trying to join the EU now!! How is it not Europe?
Argh, I thought since it’s a former Soviet republic and at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it might be different, but it’s almost exactly like the European cities I’m used to!!~~
Sob sob sob……those days wandering through different beautiful ancient cities every day……I really miss them…….
(Sioni Cathedral in Tbilisi, so big and close I couldn’t fit it all in the frame)
Turn a corner and you’re on a little alley, a hub of cute restaurants. Just looking at the exteriors makes you want to rush in for an amazing meal, especially if you want to have one with your loved one V??拄im！
Alright, tomorrow night c?狄话偌肛ジ雠?笥岩黄胫?圆讼叁
Keep going down and the noise gets louder, then you’ll see --------- old Lan ah!!!!!!
A whole village drinking, dancing, and chatting while blocking the street. On both sides, disco music is roaring, and there’s the smell of alcohol brushing past you. If that’s not old Lan, what is it???
Yup!!!! Tbilisi is actually a city that never sleeps!!!!!!
When I crossed the Kura River and looked back at the Old Town, the dazzling lights, the massive mountain city standing in the night, and the faint sounds of singing, dancing, and drinking……am I back in Budapest again!!??????
Then I walked along the riverside to the Peace Bridge, which was built just a few years ago. The twisted metal look is actually quite stylish, and it doesn’t skimp on lights even late at night, looking very modern. But some netizens say it looks exactly like M巾...........
Is it my boring taste that corrupted those netizens, or is it just birds of a feather??
Looked at my watch, 3:30 AM. A casual “stroll” turned into a serious night adventure.
So fun I wanted to puke but also awesome enough to puke over!!
Couldn’t take it anymore and had to go back to the hostel!!
The worst part is that even though I was dead tired, seeing a little flower market downstairs made me unable to resist taking a lap. I couldn’t tell if it was closed or if T?瓜瓤?盗水......
Alright!! Gonna sleep enough tonight, explore Tbilisi some more tomorrow~
(Just the lobby and terrace of this hostel already gave me so many European life memories~)
Honestly, in just these few short hours, Georgia has blown me away!!
I know everyone’s like T??啵?惺茏疃喽贾幌怠凹溉饶轴r d夜景几靓”, but you should know, a city that’s still T???嗳思扰分蕹艛 3 AM is on the same level as Paris, Berlin, and Cph. Just this alone shows how T?笔? Tbilisi is!!
T? But actually, once you're in the city, you'll find there are almost countless good restaurants to try, and you might even discover your new favorite spot!!
I still haven't practiced enough!!
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Related articles:
"Backpacking in Georgia - The Ultimate Pre-Departure Guide"
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