Batumi skyline, from the north
Batumi is Georgia’s foremost Black Sea harbour and beach town, and judging from its modern construction obviously booming – although taste is another matter.
Batumi, as far as I can see, has three distinct elements. There is the beach front, for which it is famous, and the associated Batumi Boulevard. There is the old town, a fairly straightforward network of narrow cobbled streets, lined by shops, restaurants and a range of old houses, from Art Nouveau to corrugated iron. Ever diminishing, more and more houses seem to be left to rot, and will ultimately collapse. And there is the modern construction boom, ever increasing, and no stopping it replacing all those old collapsing houses, as well as ever expanding along the Boulevard towards the west.
the gravel beach of Batumi, packed
and here, too, floats for sale for those who cannot swim – or don’t want to swim
the cobbled streets, in the old town
old town houses, corrugated iron and balconies
but also more stylish houses, in the late sun light
the iconic Apollo cinema in the old town
We stay in a lovely hotel in the old town, only downside being that I have to manoeuvre the Monster carefully through the small streets. But once safely left at the hotel parking, we are free to wander the alleys, admire some of the old houses, balconies, and enjoy the many restaurants. Yet, even here it is not easy to find fresh fish, the Black Sea doesn’t seem to provide a rich catch.
hotel parasols
the memorial to Ali & Nino, a novel
the mosque at the edge of the Batumi peninsula
same tower, from within
the Alphabetic Tower, honouring the Georgian alphabeth
the Meridian Hotel, with its own Ferris wheel incorporated
right next to the Ferris wheel
apartment buildings in between the modern architecture
complete with its own balconies
The sea front includes the natural harbour, protected where the old city protrudes somewhat into the Black Sea. There are just a few ships, the coastal strip is dominated by a Ferris wheel and an intricate homage to Ali and Nino, characters in one of the most beautiful love stories I ever read. The two metal wire statues are slowly rotating into each other, and away again. A few more tall buildings dominate the skyline here, like the Alphabetic Tower, the Meridien Hotel – with its own weird little Ferris Wheel incorporated -, and the tiny little mosque. Around the corner, southwest-wards, stretches what is called the Batumi Boulevard or Seaside Park, originally a few hundred meters, designed at the end of the 19th Century, now stretching over 7 km. The first part is quite nice, lots of green in between the city centre and the beach, good facilities as bars and cafes, and those all-important ice cream stands.
the so-called dancing fountains, in between the old town and the boulevard
the new-style highrise strats with the Marriott Hotel
the inverted horse-shoe of the Courtyard Hotel
another flashing new highrise
the ultimate in tastelessness, the Colosseum apartment building
But the further along the beach front we go, the more it turns into that third element of the city, the modern construction boom. All the big hotel chains have their representation, some quite nice, but others pretty ugly, culminating in the shape of a horseshoe, for instance. It is not that there is no effort to produce something attractive, it is just that in most cases this effort has failed – not helped, of course, by the apparent lack of planning. Interspersed with the hotels are the apartment buildings, some obviously from quite some time ago, some newer constructions, and many not even finished yet. The absolute winner in bad taste is the building in the shape of the Colosseum, a monstrous attempt to copy the Roman original. The Grand Gloria Hotel is a close second. Yet, I find it difficult to turn around and head back; every time I need to push a little further, to the next horrible construction. And to the next Soviet-style apartment building remaining in between the modern highrise. And at the end of the afternoon is official: Batumi is indeed the town with the most varied, yet ugliest apartment buildings I have ever seen – and that says quite something! But: photogenic they are, I think. Make sure to scoll down all the way!
Next: the Adjara region.
more modern architectural attempts
rather tasteless highrise along the Batumi Boulevard
another monstrous hotel, the Grand Gloria
next to modern highrise, Soviet-style apartments
but – contrast -they haven’t got rid of the old apartments, yet
another fabulous apartment building
the smallest possible apartments, still with balcony
not a lot of privacy on your balcony, here
the older apartments, and the laundry solution
how a grey building can still be colourful
not all grey buildings are colourful, though
behind existing buildings, more – and higher – new ones are being built
not all of them are modern, though
and this exists, too, in between all the modern highrises
the older type balconies
and some of the ugliest apartments
not all the building has been completed yet
