Minutes before the total darkness swept over the small city, I managed to throw the drone up by the river just next to the old cable car station. It has gotten colder significantly and the light was depleting by the minute, but I tried to capture a little something. The conditions weren't the best and I had to push up the ISO to 800 and decrease the shutter speed to 1/60. A little bit of the night light in the city helped, but not a whole lot. The wind by the river had picked up and the festivity remained as the Georgian holiday presses on into early January. Initial impressions on Kutaisi were positive. It's like a smaller Yerevan in Armenia. Putting it's own capital of Tbilisi to shame.
I plan to shoot more with the drone over the next few days, getting more footage of the city. I love the history here, lots of Soviet architecture and mosaics to capture, a lot of history that remains untouched with incredibly beautiful old buildings that date back to the 1800s, in such good conditions too. I feel more inspired in such an environment, and maybe some of these pictures showcase the beautiful atmosphere that is felt here. It's that small town aesthetic, but with plenty of cozy cafes and things to see. It's a bit cold now, but I'm in a book cafe drinking a coffee and thinking of how much of a mistake Tbilisi is. How void of identity and soul it is in comparison to smaller, more poor areas. The gradient of the sunset is now gone, and another day comes soon. The realisation of having to return to that place is grim.
Anyway, this is the fun, cold evening in Kutaisi by the river. Mountains in the distance. A cold gradient in the horizon.