After the disappointment of my aborted trip to Morocco, which I had to abandon because I did not have a transit visa for France, I was looking forward to my trip to Azerbaijan. I had already obtained a visa through the iVisa website, and I had a thirty-day entry visa to Baku. Indigo offers round-trip flights to Baku, and I duly booked a return ticket to Azerbaijan.
I arrived very late at Baku airport; it was already 11:30 pm when I reached the capital city. As usual, my hotel had sent a taxi to pick me up, and the first thing I did was exchange my dollars for the local currency, Manat. The exchange rate is one dollar to 1.70 Manat.
The first thing that struck me was the weather; the country is cold, and I could feel the cold gusts of wind on my face as I came out of the airport. The temperature is 9 degrees, and it’s chilly at night. Luckily, I had my leather jacket with me to shield myself from the cold.
Today, I felt refreshed from my deep sleep and ventured out into the city square after having lunch, which was a large beef steak. I managed to meet up with a tour guide who took me around the city, and I did some shopping, buying souvenirs that included a fur cape and a banjo-like playing object.
In the afternoon, I visited a tea shop and had the local tea along with baklava, a favorite treat in this part of the world.
The entire evening was spent walking along the cobbled streets of the town square, taking pictures and getting a firsthand feel of the city of Baku, which reminded me of an ancient European city. There were buskers singing songs and even a merry-go-round where children played in the park. Street cats could be seen in plenty, hopping on steps or just sitting on park benches. People were shopping, and the restaurants were full of chatter with people enjoying coffee.