Wasn't sure if I'd make another post any time soon but had some already exported Kodak Vision2 250D cine film stock images and figured I'd make a quick post on it. It wasn't my first time in Tbilisi, and the last time I was there it felt as if I was running away from it due to its chaos. The massive violent protests, the lack of infrastructure, the cold approach from the locals. The whole atmosphere wasn't the best. Though, returning this time, well over a year later, it felt completely different. Like the place I initially wanted it to be.
I think some of this came from a more settled environment. It has grown since. The people seemed a bit nicer, with younger people in the roles of the service industry over the typical aged and grumpy folk that made going anywhere and doing anything just seem like a depressing act. The city felt more lively, which I also think came with the gentrification of it as more Russians fled the troubled economic and uncertainties of Russia with the ongoing war. There were more cafes, more events, more people around. It was quite surprising, actually. I thought I was going to hate being back there, but it ended up being a really pleasant experience that had me wanting to stick around well over the week I ended up spending there.
The weather was still a bit warm, but it had its rainy days. The cooler heat from the mountains and forests nearby. The old architecture of Tbilisi's more historic district. Everything just felt a bit more vibrant and beautiful. More tolerable compared to dusty Yerevan that was still clinging close to its 40 degree Celsius weather that made going anywhere and doing anything recently a nightmare! I enjoyed walking the streets, I enjoyed taking photographs again of a place that felt a bit more new again. It had me wanting to get back into photography after taking quite a break from it due to other circumstances. The whole trip ended up being more of a revival of my energy.
It's interesting how that can happen, how you can previously feel like you need to escape a place only to return to it another time and feel some connection to it. Though it wasn't for nothing, I will admit the city has since massively improved. It's a bit closer to what its potential can truly be. A little bit of a teething problem still, but it's getting there. More parks, more green, a nicer group of people around to build its atmosphere, and just generally more to see and do. I really like how these cine film shots came out in the end. Shot on my Canon AE-1 with the 28mm lens.
