CHAPTER 5 : Brutalism to Bluebird Days

CHAPTER 5: Brutalism to Bluebird Days

Rustavi's hostel : A Fragment of the Post-Soviet

The first time I saw the Hôtel Rustavi, I was on my way to the supermarket. I’m not exactly sure why, but it left an impression on me. Maybe it was its presence, slightly too imposing, slightly set apart. Since then, I often pass by it on the bus. It has become a kind of landmark.

And then one day, I stopped to photograph it.

There is something strange about this building. As if it were stuck in another era. Massive, almost closed-off, it still carries traces of a past - the Soviet one. Its architecture, somewhere between brutalism and pure functionality, does not try to please.

In fact, this hotel makes me think of Metropolis; of those monumental, slightly overwhelming architectures.

Later, at the Rustavi museum, I came across its model.

It was unsettling to see it like that, reduced, almost fragile. At that scale, everything became clearer, almost softer.
The Hôtel Rustavi feels like a fragment of the post-Soviet era, placed there, carrying memory.

OPERA DAYS

I had the chance to go to the opera twice. The first time, I saw Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo, along with a ballet, Laurencia, based on Fuente Ovejuna by Lope de Vega, with choreography by Vakhtang Chabukiani.

I ended up preferring the ballet.

TEAM VOLUNTEERING

This month, there was a team volunteering project including Georgian and Fresh people, and I was in charge of organising a teambuilding day with another volunteer. Seeing new faces brought a fresh dynamic and helped break the routine.

GUDAURI (AGAIN)

Back in Gudauri to ride some pow. If there is one place I’ve probably been to the most in Georgia, it’s Gudauri and its surroundings.

How do you end a month of March? I never would have imagined there would still be snow at this time of the year. But it was there.

The first day greeted us with perfect weather: bluebird skies and sunshine all around.

Well, it’s been a really busy month. I’ve been quite tied up with Scout School, French lessons, the podcast and also padel with new people... This month has flown by!

Anyway, that’s the end of this chapter; and now I’m off on holiday. New adventures await!

Hasta la vista 😎 🏖️

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