I planned to wake up at 7 a.m., but I ended up getting up close to noon.
Today was the day for a shoot with Greg. I used wax on my hair for the first time in a while to style it. I went over to Greg's and said, 'Good morning!' Somehow, maybe I'm just shy — saying 'good morning' and 'bye-bye' feels awkward or embarrassing. I still don't know how I'm supposed to act.
Becoming a model in a hostel room
I thought we might go out to shoot, but it turned out the other manager (Natasha) was out, so we decided to do the shoot inside the hostel. Meanwhile, I did a little bit of coding.
The last gig of the year. There were a lot of requests—like a picky restaurant—'add movement,' 'do it like this.' Lots of commands, but I was like, 'All right, I'll do it!'
Then, suddenly Greg started playing a song on his electric guitar. That's so Moosica Hostel. Because it's next to the Tbilisi Conservatory, it's a hostel where people who love music gather. He thought it would be nice if we could play a song he liked together, so we talked about playing together on the piano. But playing a song you've only just heard once is quite a feat. We changed the subject to 'Do you know Misirlou?' 'Do you know AC/DC?' and played them on the piano.
After that, Greg gave me some Georgian wine for free. It was apparently leftovers, but I was really happy. It was truly delicious.
About an hour later, we finally started the photo session. We looked up various poses on Pinterest and began shooting by the window in the next room. I felt like I was a model.
Greg's camera skills were astonishing—he kept moving the shoot along. He looked cool doing it. I also fixed my hair and posed. It was my first one-on-one photo shoot ever. Realizing that models usually shoot like this made it kind of fun.
This shoot was a hobby for Greg and I also like being photographed, so it was a win-win. It wasn't commercial at all, but I wondered how tough it would be if it were a commercial modeling job.
When the camera was pointed at me, I posed while being very aware of how I appeared in the viewfinder. Having a professional mindset is better — it completely removes feelings like embarrassment.
We closed the curtains to darken the room, wrapped paper around the bed lamp to adjust the light so my head would be in the right place, and adjusted the window overhang to change the lighting. We took lots of photos.
Greg attached something to the camera to adjust the flash and tweaked the lighting, producing very dreamy photos. I really think he's a camera professional. He's truly wonderful. If I ever start a company, I'd want him on my team. I'm glad I met such a great person.
He works at the hostel two days a week, and by chance he was there on my first day. We talked and he was very friendly; we went for coffee and chatted for three hours, then did the photo shoot. It was truly a wonderful connection.
My first photo session in life—I was really excited, and though I thought I'd be nervous at first, it was more fun than I expected. 'What pose next? How about we shoot like this?' We'd put a MacBook next to us, open Pinterest, look for ideas, and shoot together. It was really fun. I'm so happy to have made a friend like that. I was very hungry because I hadn't eaten anything since morning.
Street photos on a cobblestone street
After the session, since tagging and posting on Instagram would get you a postcard, Greg and I took photos for that.
Greg was supposed to be assigned to someone else, but that person fell ill, so he took over. In any case, we went out together to find scenic spots and did street shooting.
We shot on hilly streets with an old-town Tbilisi vibe where cars passed frequently, and near a McDonald's. I approached the shoot with more confidence than usual. Lots of people were walking by, but I didn't care. Maybe that's something you can do in Tbilisi, because it's abroad—a culture where taking photos is normal.
Still, being a model is really fun. It feels a bit like acting. I even think I'd like to walk a runway someday. It reminded me how different an iPhone camera is from a mirrorless camera. I want to own a mirrorless camera someday.
Standing in front of the camera turned my embarrassment into confidence. Thanks to Greg, I discovered a new side of myself.
Last night, walking through Tbilisi
Greg had to return to the hostel, so I went to the bank alone. Holding a Georgia Bank card incurs a monthly fee, so I decided to close the account. Re-contracting that card when I next come to Tbilisi would apparently be expensive, so I chose to cancel. The same guy who registered my card helped me and said, 'If it's such a short period, it's better to cancel.' Since I won't be using the card anymore, I withdrew cash. I was left with 50 lari—about 2,800 yen. Oh well.
I tried to go to the local Georgian restaurant Mapshalia at the end, but it was too crowded so I gave up. I bought a potato bread at a nostalgic bakery—50 yen. Then I bought Megrelian khachapuri at a familiar supermarket. Honestly, I think this supermarket's khachapuri is the tastiest. Why is that? It's so chewy. More than any restaurant, I like this supermarket's khachapuri the best.
I walked to the coworking space, but there were a lot of people and some support presentation was happening. There were many TV crews and it looked like a big event, so I decided not to work there. I went to another café—the elegant one I'd been to before. I ordered the same cappuccino and panna cotta I had last time, wrote in my diary, and worked on the last project of the year.
Since it was the last night, after paying the bill I walked through central Tbilisi to the Old Town, then to Freedom Square. I walked through many places.
On the way back I bought a lemonade and returned to the hostel. My last night in Tbilisi ended quietly. Meeting Greg may have been the greatest gift in Tbilisi. I'm lucky we met on my first day, and I want to cherish this connection going forward.
