2nd September: Baku, Azerbaijan
We had a slow start, trying to get to grips with what we might need for insurance and how we could replace key items.
Eventually, we ventured out around midday and found a very friendly local bakery from which we got 7 potato pirojki (think doughnuts but with potato inside), a sweet roll, and another with apricot jam and topped with a little crumble, and a glass of kvas (fermented cereal-based drink). Kaja says she feels very at home here with the food and a lot of the buildings, although perhaps not the palm trees. We later discovered that two of the primary architects of Baku were Polish, which explains a lot.
Up and through the old city walls, the silk road aesthetics were immediate and took me back to Central Asia. However, the old town seemed a bit too done up and an apparent system error meant we were unable to enter the Palace of the Shivanshahs. One notable thing was the lack of views. What was presumably photochemical smog caused by the presence of so many cars and oil works being acted upon by sunlight, meant that the three flame towers were barely visible. We did, however, have a tiny kitten come to say hello!
It’s very warm today. Definitely 30+C in the shade before midday and we struggled to find many shaded benches, toilets, or open kiosks. Everything seems to be purely for the Formula 1 in 10 days time, with barriers already preventing people from easily accessing large areas. This also explains the number of freshly surfaced boulevards and their lack of markings.
We decided to head to a restaurant we had passed the previous evening and had fantastic veganised versions of lentil soup, apricot-based shah plov, and stuffed peppers. The staff were also very friendly and we spent most of our time chatting with them, including getting food recommendations for other cities on our route.
Bellies full, we braved the Baku rush hour to return to the airport. 6 lanes either way, with just a kerb in the middle. Cars beep horns rather indicate. Our bus stopped on the motorway, with passengers running across lanes to make a connection which our driver repeatedly beeped at to stop on the hard shoulder, whilst we stopped on the slip road. The sun set into the smog 90 minutes before it was supposed to slip below the horizon. We arrived at the airport after 5, as we’d been told to. The help desk were the only point of contact and they rang their colleagues but shakes of the head gave everything away. No bag and no idea where it is. We have a number to call tomorrow but it’s feeling forlorn. We need to buy clothes and lots of other items, but don’t want to buy too much in case it does show up. We’re also due to leave here early on Thursday, which now seems very soon. It seems that we also won’t get chance to see much of Baku and the surroundings. I’m struggling to cope with the carefully laid plans going out of the window, but Kaja is dealing with it remarkably calmly.
