The Other Side of the World Part III: Baku

Baku is a fascinating place.  It has changed hands back and forth between Iran, the Ottomans, and Russia until finally becoming it's own state after the dissolution of the Soviet Block.  Like Georgia it was a huge variety of architecture, but unlike Georgia there is a lot of oil money floating around, so there are new Vegas-style towers and high-rises and ultra modern structures mixed in with the ancient stone walls and Soviet apartment buildings.

The people there were so nice, and we always felt very safe.  They were, however MUCH better bargainers and dealers than we were, which we learned over and over again every time we tried to buy something.

Here's Zach immediately after being expertly swindled into a high price for cherries at the market.

Shops like this were all over the old town.

Azerbaijan is famous for its rugs, and I was really hoping to bring one home with us.  This kindly looking man could sense my desire and somehow made us feel like we got a pretty good deal with the one we finally bought.  We learned later that we probably overpaid by about $30.  Oh well.

One of the must-see sights in Baku is the Maiden Tower.  The inside is a museum, and I appreciated that they had the humility to admit that they weren't entirely sure about the origins of the tower- a temple?  Defensive?  An observatory?  All we know is that it is pretty impressive, complete with a well that goes all the way up to the top and a ceramic pipe system.

Azeris have a thing for selfies.  Seriously.  And they are REALLY good at posing.  At the top of the Maiden Tower there is even a Selfie Platform so you can fully take advantage of the amazing view.

Zach and I could probably really up our selfie game.

Speaking of selfies, we got to have dinner with a pro one evening we were there.  What are the odds that we would actually know someone from Baku?  But as luck would have it the Judkins family had an exchange student named Ayten 10 years ago from Baku and we were all in town at the same time.  We just love her!

Please note her skills without comparing them to ours.

We spent a lot of time in the Old Town district, which was absolutely beautiful.  Cool buildings and impressive shopping opportunities were mixed in with ancient castle walls and canons.  We never got tired of exploring it!

In the middle of the Old Town district is the Palace of the Shirvanshahs.  The carvings on the outside were so intricate and beautiful!  The history of the family and the palace itself was really interesting, if somewhat gory.

Baku is the lowest capital in the world (92 ft below sea level) and it sits right on the Caspian Sea.  They have a beautiful boardwalk boulevard, complete with "The Eye of Baku".  We loved walking around it!

We mentioned that Baku was famous for it's carpets, right?  There is even a carpet museum, which was way cooler than it sounds.  It was basically a historical art gallery, but all the paintings were actually rugs.  There were some really beautiful and impressive ones in there!

Of course we had to visit Anthon at his job in the embassy.  Zach and I were both crazy curious to go through a US embassy after all the spy movies we've seen. It was not quite what we expected. Security was high, and you definitely can't go running in claiming asylum as an American.  We were not allowed to take pictures outside, but Anthon looked pretty official in his office!

Apparently Baku is ranked 8th in the top 10 party cities of the world with an excellent night life.  We didn't hit the clubs, but we saw some beautiful sites.  Below is the Martyrs Lane leading to the Eternal Flame Memorial.

Beautiful view!

The Flame Towers put on an LED show every night.  Zach made sure to catch the actual flame display to lay on the love.

Finally, the food. It's really a miracle we saw any sights at all because we were so busy eating ALL THE FOOD.  Baku has a great variety of all different cuisines.  And while we loved the traditional Azeri food, we both agree that this Russian restaurant stole first prize for our dining experience in Baku:

Here we are at a traditional Azeri breakfast- super fresh bread with all the best toppings!

We really can't say enough to thank Anthon and Melissa for planning, directing, and hosting us on this epic adventure.  We can't even put HALF the pictures of all the good times they provided on this blog.  They put so much thought and effort into the trip and thanks to them we had a wonderful time!  We were so sad to leave for London without them.

Dear Anthon and Melissa: you guys are THE BEST.

Next up: London!