r/tbilisi • u/LongjumpingAmount132 • 18h ago
Every cloud has a silver lining: 16 men in a basement, a free food parcel, and a Kazakh who slipped me 50 lari
I reached out to a group of young Russians I once met at a bar where I performed at an open mic. They added me to a chat. Mostly my peers young guys and girls hustling however they can. Several jobs, side gigs. Some fled mobilization. I wrote a short message saying I was looking for help. And they responded. One offered to buy groceries. One girl gave me an address and said I could hang out there during the day, for free, and use the Wi-Fi. Turned out it was a hostel in Avlabari.
I'd already been kicked out of the hostel I was in. Someone from Reddit helped me pay for one night. For the next night, so I wouldn't have to move again, I asked the owner. He let me stay one more night. I offered to help around the house. He said no need.
So I don't sit still. I search, I walk, I knock on doors. Half of Tbilisi knows me by now. I walk into a hotel, ask if they have work. Turns out the guy is from Kazakhstan too. He probably wanted to check me, so he says: show me your hostel. I go, I bother the admin. Awkward. But my fellow Kazakh says: she can stay, I'll pay. The admin says: I'm expecting a big group, no space. In the end, the guy slips me 50 lari.
Back to searching. Someone sent me money on PayPal. Thanks, dude. But I can't withdraw it no card yet. Opening a card is a quest I don't have the energy for. So if anything, don't send more there.
I order a taxi to Avlabari, to the hostel where supposedly you can hang out and surf the internet for free. And just so you understand: everything I own fits in one sedan. But for some reason, the taxi drivers I called didn't want to take one person and their stuff to the next neighborhood. First one refuses. Second. Third. A Tesla showed up. I ordered comfort, maybe they're more agreeable, especially since the price dropped. In the end, a Tesla drove me. I don't even know how it opens. The driver was decent. But he didn't take me all the way, so I had to carry my bags. Uphill. And I did it.
I arrive at the hostel, walk into the female room, settle in. I meet the owner. He listens to my story and says: let me help you, I'll give you 2–3 free nights here, but downstairs. I move down and see: 16 men. A basement. High humidity. I'm furious. I say: no, I'll pay for this night, but I'm staying upstairs. And the guy who wrote that he'd help with groceries turns out to work there as a part-time admin, and he gives me 25 lari.
So I pay 28 lari. The owner tried to charge 35. I said: on Booking it's 28, I'll pay 28. Later I found out if you come off the street without Booking, he rents it for 25. A real entrepreneur. And now everyone knows me as the broke girl.
I sit down and find a leaflet for an organization that helps with food. Without a second thought, I go through all the circles of hell filling out the form and all the small print. And voila: today I got a decent haul. Mostly grains. No vegetables or fruit. But my body is grateful even for this.
So it wasn't for nothing that I came to that hostel where supposedly you can sit and surf the internet for free. And yes, I left the next day. Moved somewhere cheaper.
Has anyone else here been through something like this in Tbilisi? Hostels, landlords, taxi drivers, the whole circus? Sometimes I feel like I could write a book. If you've got a story drop it in the comments. Would be good to know I'm not the only one.
