"Tbilisi Celebrates its Heritage with Food, Music and a Giant Wine Press."

By Eter Tsotniashvili
Monday, October 22, 2007, #201 (1468)

The annual Tbilisoba, a day to celebrate the capital, is a relatively recent event in a country rich with ancient tradition.

Yet people have embraced the festival since its early days as a promotion of Soviet peasant life, taking to the cobblestone streets of Old Tbilisi to buy handicrafts, view the spoils of the season’s harvest and show off their chokhebi.

The celebration opened with a horde of volunteers helping work a 25-meter wine press to squeeze out the juices from some of this season’s bumper grape harvest.

“Today is the day for all Tbiliselebi,” declared Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava, promising a more colorful and diverse festival than in years past.

Vice-Mayor Mamuka Akhvlediani put his back into the giant wine press, calling the process a symbol of Georgian unity.

The day, however, was not just for Tbiliselebi. People from all over the country ventured to the capital to sell handicrafts and enjoy the cheery autumn atmosphere.

Every year, Gurjaani resident Tsisana Sibashvili comes for Tbilisoba, selling small handmade baskets fetchingly packed with fresh fruit.

“Every year I’m here especially for this day, and I want to wish a happy day to not only the citizens of Tbilisi but all of Georgia, because there are a lot of people from different regions here today,” Sibashvili told the Messenger.

Guliko Shoshiashvili has been making little dolls for years. She began selling them this Tbilisoba at her friends’ urging, and was delighted with the money she was making. The dolls, many crafted in the image of a famous person, go for GEL 50–80 each. “It is the first time I’ve presented my handmade crafts here. I’m very satisfied, because people have given my dolls a very positive reception. It took a lot of energy to make them, and that’s why they’re not cheap,” Shoshiashvili said.

International aid organizations also chipped in to making the day something for the whole country to celebrate.

USAID and CHF Georgia helped 25 farmers from around Georgia make the trip to Tbilisi to sell their goods.

The farmers thanked organizers for the chance to sell their natural produce, ranging from Samagrelo honey, to Shida Kartli apples, to Javakheti cheese.

Deputy Director for CHF Georgia Jelena Krivcevic said this was the first time the organization arranged for regional farmers to participate in Tbilisoba. The farmers sold nearly everything they brought, Krivcevic added.

This year’s Tbilisoba wrapped up with a Freedom Square performance by popular Italian group Ricci E Poveri.

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