Exploring Georgia with a local! // The SOVIET city of Rustavi

In this video we will visit the SOVIEEEET city of Rustavi with a local Georgian person! We will learn about city's past, it's unique architecture, and also we will discuss today's Georgian politics and how the locals live here!

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Author of the background photo on the thumbnail: shermazana

In this video:
0:00 introduction
2:10 part 1: brezhnevka houses
4:42 why Stalin rebuilt this city
6:46 Shota Rustaveli monument
7:56 eco problems
8:59 should Soviet heritage be preserved?
11:02 Georgia's accession to EU
13:10 part 2: khruschyovka houses
13:52 inside the yard
16:47 part 3: Old Rustavi
19:24 why Rustavi looks like Paris
20:25 raising kids in Georgia
23:17 gender stereotypes in Georgia and Russia
25:53 Soviet mosaic & abandoned factory
27:29 Georgia-Poland friendship square
29:12 stereotypes about Rustavi
30:55 foreign agent law
32:02 is it safe at night?
34:11 soviet Palace of Culture
35:07 goodbyes!

[elizabethkatcharava]

Hello Friends (tour guide) Elizabeth here

Thank you Natasha so much for giving opportunity to present my city was pleasure to do it with you😊I hope all of you enjoy video 😊and I do not have YouTube channel but after your warm comments I might consider it ♥️

[ZostalesZarazony]

That was a great video! The "local quide" was charismatic and seems really smart and friendly!!
Honestly it was a pleasure listening to her guiding us around :)

[jimmyg]

I think this Georgian girl should start her own channel ❤

[luckystriker]

I'm always happy when you smile, Natasha. I hope you find moments that lead to more smiles.

[sasan]

Thank you for guiding us around Rustavi!

[GioGeorgian]

As a Georgian I am proud that Georgia has such a wonderful generation.

[Eric-dpmm]

The abandoned factory in Rustavi reminded me of when you used to show us similar sites in Spassk. You have a gift for finding beauty in the most improbable places, Natasha! 😊

[OlgasBritishFells]

Cool video, very lovely friend too. Watching it now. Enjoying it!

[allenminer]

Your sense of humor is wonderful. You kept the part of the video where you walked into a plexi-glass hood and almost hit your head on a sign near the bridge. Made me smile. This video was sort of like your earliest videos from Spassk and Khabarovsk, only you had a friend with you.

[kpdvw]

you girls are so refreshing to watch...! Slava Georgia....

[horatiowinterbottom]

Natasha, I watched all of your videos from the very beginning, I like that they get more and more thoughtful. But this video got a new drive by its dialogue form. This made it more vivid, lively. So much the more with a smart partner as Elizabeth. I think you should try this more often!

[lisacrandall]

Very interesting! Thank you Elizabeth and Natasha! 🇬🇪

[LasVegas]

I was cheering for Georgia during the UEFA Euro 2024! I sincerely hope that the young generation of Georgians will choose to join us in the West and come help us build a better Europe. Our systems are far from perfect and we could use your passion and energy to help improve them as well as our relations to other parts of the world. As I have learned more about the Georgian people and their history, I see very strong synergies between Georgia, the EU, and the United States. Thanks, Natasha, for all the valuable insights you are providing. Btw., I lived the first 20 years of my life in Denmark and have spent the past 30 in the USA.

[temochitadze]

Im glad that you have local friend and we need more videos with her

[TheopolisQSmith]

Great video. Elizabeth should have her own channel as well. She is very personable and knowledgeable as well as intelligent. As always the channel never disappoints.

[esgee]

this was a GREAT video. Eli's input about her city and country, particularly with context of having lived outside georgia too, really made the video for me.

[leftdg]

I lived in Rustavi for a year and I must say that it is my favourite place in the entire Georgia.

It is very quiet and comfortable city, my neighbours were some of the best people I've ever met and the relationships that we had (and still have! I'm still in contact with them) were some of the warmest in my life.

And it is very very beautiful in the Old Rustavi district, especially the streets behind the central square (the one where the tax office is). It reminds me of something like Budapest (in the best possible way).

And not gonna lie living in Rustavi is WAY more affordable than in any other city I've lived in my life.

If there are any Rustavi locals here or Georigans, I want to say that I thank you for every moment I've spent in your wonderful country and in this cozy city particularly.
Thank you for your hospitality, thank you for being such awesome people and good luck with the European integration, I hope you win this battle with the GD.

მადლობა! საქართველოს გაუმარჯოს!

[blue-fjky]

Love your videos, Natasha! I've lived in many parts of the world but never in Eastern Europe or Central Asia. I learn so much from your efforts and they are fun to watch, too. Thank you!

[AleksandreMzhavia]

Rustavi is a meme in Georgia, however, I live in a center of Tbilisi and I think that many young people from Rustavi are often much better educated and harder working than people from Tbilisi's Vake or Vera districts (center). Which kinda makes me respect them more.

[rackets]

23:36 We had a type of "labor class" in US schools, it was called "shop" class for woodworking or learning auto mechanics, or "Home-Ec" (short for home economics) for sewing and cooking, which my mom actually got her college degree in. They are all open to all genders. I was required to learn to sew and cook as a young man. Having a mother who was a professional seamstress her adult life helped me know how to run a sewing machine. As a married father, I've made our custom window drapes, fixed clothes, made pillow covers, etc. It's a fun skill to know. I even taught my wife and daughter how to use their sewing machines. Then I go to work on electronic airport systems and come home and work on my car. Haha