On Sheki ground

 The hotel had breakfast included. It was on the top floor and the restaurant had a great view of the surroundings. So I sat there, and had some delicious bread with local honey. All with some morning tea. 

The order of today was to see all the old buildings, including some "normal ones" in the old part of the city. Sheki is an old "king seat". The Sheki khans lived here, and there is a palace on the hill. They say a walk after a meal is good for you. Well, didn't feel like it, as I was huffin' and a puffin' up the street to the palace. 

The whole place was, of course, surrounded by a thick stone wall. I first walked around the wall to see how beautifully it was made. 

After I completed the circle, I walked up the a small box with a guy inside. It said "Tourist information". When I came up to the box, the guy inside looked up from his phone, nodded his head in the right direction and said "tickets inside". Well, thanks for the info!

I walked up the road to the ticket booth. Passed the "round temple" as it said on the plaque. Sidenote : I have found that when they call something a temple here, they really mean church. This was the "Three Saints Church". A former Russian orthodox church. It used to be a mosque, but was converted into a church in the late 1800s.

The khan's palace was built in the early 1700s. And a beautiful building it was. With lots of decorations. It was surprisingly small for a palace. But I guess they didn't see the need for more space. 

I paid for my ticket to go inside. But much to my disappointment, no photos were allowed inside. There was a guy who followed us around making sure that we didn't. So why no photo? I don't know, but I have found there are usually two reasons. 1) No photo meaning "A monkey can learn how to turn off the flash on a camera in less than a minute. So the fact that you pea-brains spend a lifetime not even mastering such basic level of motor skills, cast serious doubt on Darwin's claim that you have evolved from monkeys. And to protect the art from being flashed constantly, no photo for you!" or 2) "We want to make money off books and postcards, so we do not want to you taking photos and releasing them to the internet. For free. Or even making money off them." 

But let me try to paint a picture of the inside. All the windows were tinted glass. In different colors. All cut into beautiful patterns. It was spectacular. And when the sun's rays peered through the glass, it cast beautiful colors and patterns on the flood and walls inside. And all the walls and the roofs were covered in artwork. Beautiful artwork. I did take one photo from the outside in, so you can get a glimpse of the beautiful light through the windows.

You can make out some of the orange just inside the door

I then "got lost" in the old city. With old houses and buildings and not the least, streets. I walked around until my feet hurt from the irregular cobble stoned streets.

Happy lion

Closeup of the door handle

Old building materials...

... and modern patterns

It felt good to get back on flat streets again. The next place I wanted to see, was the war monument. In commemoration of WWII. It was, of course a walk uphill. In case you haven't understood it yet, this whole town is situated on the slopes of a hill. So you have to walk upwards or downwards. Good cardio for those of you interested in such things.

The war monument had a statue I wasn't expecting. Usually, there are heroic statues of strong, chiseled men with guns charging forward, holding the flag. But here, there was a statue of a weeping mother. And that is probably the most accurate description of a war. Like Denzel Washington's character in "Crimson Tide"; "The enemy in a war, is war itself". Everybody loose in a war. And this statue perfectly depicted just that. Those mourning the loss of loved ones. 

One of the things I had read about, was the sheki halvasi. Halva is a kind of sweets found many places, apparently. But the Sheki kind is special. I did buy some shop variety of halva in Baku. It was like eating a sand castle. But with taste. So, no success. Here in Sheki, I found several places that sold this homemade local delicacy. I chose a small shop, and was met by an older guy smiling with his whole body. "Welcome!" he exclaimed as I entered. I asked about a box that he had for sale. 1 kg of the sweets for surprisingly little money. He pointed to a large tray on the table. I used "sign language" to show I wanted a taste. He smiled and picked up a plate from underneath the table. I picked a small piece. "Awwwwww!" he burst and shoved the plate to my face. Showing he wanted me to take the whole bite. I was hoping it would taste good. Didn't want to spoil his mood. Luckily, it was! Sweet, succulent and really filling. This is not something you eat a lot of. I guess small pieces as a taste after a meal or something. 1 kg is probably more than enough. But then I can let a lot of people taste it! I paid and he smiled even broader. "Thank you! Nice day!" 

The final place I wanted to see was a very long walk away. Uphill. Of course. I checked the map. 6.5 km walk. Uphill. I weighed back and forth, and decided to go. There were several moments where I was contemplating just turning back. Particularly when the street turned to cobblestone. But in the end, I just pressed on and was rewarded by the beautiful Albanian Greek-orthodox church of Kis. Kis being a small town up the hill from Sheki. I only snapped a few photos. 

Now my stomach was warning me that I was dying of hunger, so I walked down to Sheki again and found the shawarma-place I had eaten the day before. And had a full meal.

Hoping for a snack from the owner

I also walked around the more "modern" part of the town, and found a couple of nice images. One that reminds me of old movies. Laundry hanging out to dry, and another of some carved out images on a wall.

It's been a long day. My feet hurt. My head is full of images. It has been a nice few days here in Azerbaijan. As per usual, not nearly enough than to merely touch the surface. It's a shame the Gobustan tour didn't materialize. But maybe another time.

Tomorrow, I take the bus (which hopefully actually runs) back to Baku. And speaking of which; I found out there is an airport bus that runs from the train station at 28 May place. And there is a subway station there also. But here is the fun part : I can use my subway card to pay for the airport bus! And it only cost about $1! Yay public transport!

My flight leaves at 2.30 in the morning! Not so yay! Anyways. Going home! One more country checked off. More than enough countries for a lifetime to go before I leave this place...

Ragnar

Traveller with a sweet tooth.

Busy bussing

Yesterday, I was supposed to go on a guided tour of fire and fury. Visiting mud volcanoes and fire mountains. But the weather forecast was anything but promising. And when stepping out from my hotel, the forecast was spot on. Torrential rain and strong vids. Often gale gusts. I went to the designated meeting spot anyways. Just in case. But 15 minutes before the designated pickup time, I got a message saying the tour was cancelled due to the weather conditions. As expected. So I took the metro back to the station closest to my hotel. And stayed there for a while waiting for a break in the weather. I had come down with a sore throat, so I didn't want to be soaked and cold walking back to my hotel. I also had lunch there while waiting. Finally, the weather cleared, and I was able to walk back. I spent the rest of the afternoon in bed. Curing my sore throat.

Today, I was going up into the mountains. By bus. I already had the ticket. I woke at 5. Not in anticipation. Nor by the alarm on my phone. But rather by the people next door. A bunch of guests assembled in the room next door and held a "conference". Loudly. So I gave up sleeping. Maybe I am too nice?

In the end, I got up, had a shower and packed my bags. I had a super quick breakfast before I left for the subway. I arrived at the bus station half an hour before my bus was supposed to leave. And then I waited. And waited. And waited. No bus. 10 minutes after it was supposed to leave, there still was nothing. I used the translator to ask an official where the bus was. He waved me to com with him. He asked one of the ticket ladies. "The bus doesn't go today. Errr... What? 

Ticket lady : "You want your money back?"

Me : "No I want a new ticket."

Ticket lady : "Ok. No problem! Next bus is 11"

Me: "Ok, I will take than one then"

She walked off and came back with some notes and coins. 

Me: "No, I wanted ticket, not money"

Ticket lady: "Not here, next boot over there!"

She pointed to the next ticket boot. 

I sighed, took the money and walked over. The lady there luckily spoke good English. She made out my ticket for the 11 bus and I handed her the money I had got.

"This is not enough. This is 9 manat. I need 13"

The other ticket lady only refunded me 9 manat out of the 13 I had paid for my original ticket. I was annoyed, but decided not to waste any more time. I was guided to the bus and got a good seat. A short time afterwards, we were heading out. And across the gates the bus left through, was written in large, friendly letters : "Good luck!" Wasn't too sure how I were supposed to interpret that...

Apart from almost hitting a cow, the trip was fairly eventless. And after 4 hours, the landscape shifted into mountainous and green. And in the end, we had arrived in my final destination, Sheki. With some ancient palaces and other places of interest. In addition to the lovely setting, of course.

No bus-ride is complete without a stop at a "choke and puke"

My hotel was a short walk from the station. I waved off a dozen or so taxi drivers. The temperature was nice, and the weather lovely. And after 5 hours of sitting on a bus, I needed/wanted the walk. The hotel was beautiful. I was welcomed by a young receptionist. "I have a reservation" I said and handed her my passport. She found my reservation.

She: "Visa?"

Me: "No, Mastercard".

She looked puzzled.

She: "Visa!"

Me: "Nooo. I only have mastercard".

She: "Your border visa!"

Me: "Oh! THAT visa...."

I pulled out my Azerbaijani visa and handed it to her. Oh well. How was I to know...

After she had showed me to my room, I went out and found a small hole-in-the-wall shawarma-shop a short walk away. And got myself a delicious shawarma. After a short walk before sunset, I retired to my room to rest and write this entry.

Tomorrow is my last day of exploring before heading back to Baku and the airport. 

Ragnar

Buzzy travelling

Back to back in Baku

Full of impressions, and a little bit anticipation, I guess, I didn't fall asleep until long after midnight. Much to my annoyment, the hotel here plays "lobby piano" over the speakers in the restaurant. Loudly so. So I woke from a loud piano. I looked at the clock. 8 am. Sigh. I tried sleeping some more, but gave up. I got up, had a shower and walked down to the breakfast hall. The music was so loud that the patrons had to speak really loud. Too much noise for my taste. I finished my scrambled eggs with sausages, and my two loaves of bread with delicious honey and went back to my room. I checked the map for todays target. The old city and the flame towers. 

The forecast said slight rain and some wind. I chose my hoodie and a my cap. It was slight rain, but LOTS of wind. Especially between some of the buildings. After a while, I regretted not bringing my wool sweater. Oh well. We'll see what happens.

I walked down to the nearest metro station. Bleeped my card and got onto the red line. This would take me directly to a station between the flame towers and the old city. Perfect. A few stations later, I got up to the street and was greeted by a cold wind gusting. Threatening to steal my cap. I had to hold on to it tightly not to see it fly onto the great unknown... I checked the map on my phone and started walking up the hill towards the flame towers. They are situated on a hill overlooking the city. It was a nice walk, if it hadn't been for the cold wind and the rain. But I trotted on. And was awarded by a magnificent view of the towers. They are simply beautiful. Looking like tongues of fire licking towards the sky. One of the towers is a hotel, and the others (?) seems to be apartments. Wow! Imagine having an apartment here! 

Just beside it was something I had to inspect closer. It proved to be a memorial. Honoring those who lost their lives in the 1990 January massacre when Russian troops attacked an anti-Russian demonstration, killing 147 people. This was during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev ordered military law to be implemented to oppress the Azerbaijani independence movement. Leading to clashes that killed an injured hundreds of people. The show of force was supposed to be a warning to other independence movements in the Soviet union. But in the end, the Soviet Union dissolved. 

I walked the "martyr's lane". With names and pictures of all those who died on January 20th 1990. Roses were laid here and there beneath their pictures. At the end of the lane, the Shahidlar monument was erected. With what I presume was supposed to be an "eternal flame". But sadly, it was not burning. All I could hear was the hiss of the gas. But no flame. 

The not so eternal flame

I started walking back down again when I checked the map and realized, they have a funicular here! YAY! I had to try that one, of course. After some back and fort, I finally found the station. I paid my 1 manat (60 cents) and was shown to a heated (bliss...) waiting room with deep, comfortable chairs. After sitting there enjoying the comfort, the guy came and ushered us to the gate. I entered the card he had given me. The machine responded with a happy "bipp!" and I was let through. I walked to the front of the car. Best view. And a couple of minutes later, we were on our merry way down the hill. The incline wasn't the same all the way, and the point where we met the upcoming car, it was much flatter, so the seats were suddenly titled backwards. 2.5 minutes later, we arrived at the bottom. Kewl! Love these little surprises!

Front row view from the funicular

Now for the old city. It is a walled part of the city. With the usual souvenir shops, the guides and all of that. But comfortably free of the hassle. Not the aggressive selling I have experienced in other places. So I was left in relative peace along my merry way. I just enjoyed walking around. Took only a few photos here and there. Mostly just looking.

Old and new in the same view

At one point, I found an old and partly falling apart trebuchet. The ramp up to it was blocked by a small portable fence. But I pretended (?) to be a stupid tourist. So I walked past it and got a closeup shot of it before the guard called on me, and waved me down. "Sorry!" I said in my most innocent voice.

After walking around a while, I wanted to go over to the Crescent Hotel. A hotel built in the shape of a crescent moon. I saw it from the hill of the flaming towers, and assumed it was at the other end of the red metro line. Boy was I wrong. I had already entered the subway when I checked the maps, and found that it was actually just a short walk... So I got off at the next station and walked back down to the sea.

There I was met by a beautiful promenade by the sea. And right beside it, a shopping mall. With...a planetarium!!! YES! This was getting better and better! I walked over and at the very top of the building, I finally found the planetarium. But much to my disappointment, there was no show until the evening. And they were all about stuff I didn't find particularly interesting. The ads running on the screens showed the living sun and something about Mars exploration. But none of that was showing this day. 

Disappointed, I walked down to the food court. Might as well get some lunch. I found a place where they served köfte. I ordered a full plate with something that resembled a pita. The guy behind the counter asked for my name. "Ragnar!" He looked puzzled. "What?" "Rrrr-agna-rr". His face lit up! "You're a viking!" he said. I smiled and nodded. After a short wait, I got my meal. I sniffed the delicious meatballs. It was a hearty filling. And I left with a smile on my face. Despite the disappointing deal with the planetarium.

I walked over to the crescent hotel and took some pictures there before heading back to the metro. I hopped off a couple of stations later, and did some shopping before going back to my hotel. It had been a long day. A long walk. And again, a lot of beautiful things to see.

Tomorrow, I will meet the tour group outside one of the subway stations. And I will go on a tour of some of the sights in and around Baku. Looking forward to that. More impressions. More experiences. More food and more pictures. 2 days down. 4 more to go. Still loving it!

Beefeaters? Ah! Beef-eaters...

Ragnar

Traveller in love with köfte.