The Renaissance...

Having visited the Old City, we were eager to learn more about life on the other side of the Kura river, which is considered by many to be the cultural hub of Tbilisi.

This area has undergone a bit of a renaissance in recent years, attracting artists and "progressive" types.  Still rugged and full of history, pockets of new development and pedestrian hotspots have quietly integrated.

Naturally, we thought it important to go and check it out.

The Fabrika neighbourhood is grounded by a 400-bed hostel which is where we met our tour.    From there, it was walking distance to all types of churches (German, Catholic and Orthodox), former brothels, soviet era architecture and several museums and pedestrian-only streets.

During the tour we learned a lot about the mentality and culture of Georgians, particularly their relationship with the Russians during Communism.

For example, one of the buildings was covered entirely with mosaic tiles, created by the Russians to temper the concerns and restlessness of the Georgians who were discouraged by the drab architecture going up around the city. To this day, no one knows what the mosaic is actually meant to represent.  Nonetheless, there are mosaics all around the country to make the Georgians feels happier and brighter.

Much of the construction during the Communist-era was focused around compounds and courtyards, giving people an opportunity to connect with their friends and both spend time with and rely on each other.  The staircases would have also kept people in good shape - both from the exertion of climbing all those stairs everyday and the need to stay slim to actually fit into the very narrow curved stairwells!

Georgians are proud of how they managed to build a subway during Communist times, which was based on convincing the Russians that they needed to build deep bombshelters around the city to protect themselves should anything happen. By the time the Russians thought to question why the bombshelters had train tracks running through them, it was too late and Tbilisi had its metro!

Courtship and marriage on the other hand seems less strategic.  To propose, men used to stand outside their lady's window and hold a bowl of burning oil for as long as they possibly could before she gave her answer.  To us, this also gave an indication as to why there may have been so many fires in the city over the years!

Statues of wedding dancers and other poets/artists are all over the city, indicating once again Georgian's passion for the arts and for life.

With quite a different feel than the Old City, the other side of the river is clearly also on the rise.