Day 9 (July 19, 2022): Move over, Paris! Make way for Baku!

As we didn’t arrive at the hotel until 3:30AM, we were late getting started today.  At 10:20AM, we awoke suddenly and realized that breakfast ended in ten minutes.  Somehow, we made it before the hotel concluded its breakfast service.

The scorching heat was a bit daunting, but in spite of it, we set out just before noon to start a walking tour outlined by the Lonely Planet.  We walked 11 kilometers today and, as a result, were able to see many of the city’s key sights.

Baku is a stunning city.  We were not prepared for a city with so much history and amazing infrastructure, including parks and public art.  And it is absolutely spotless as cities go.  

At 6PM, we returned to the hotel for a nap and then set out for dinner around 8PM.

A very full but enriching day that made us fall in love with this jewel of a city. 

Maiden’s Tower, dating back to the 12th century, is Baku’s most iconic building.  The walls are 5 meters thick - yes, 5 meters thick!  Amazing.  The views behind us (taken from the roof of the Maiden’s Tower) are of Baku’s most iconic modern buildings: the Crescent Moon Tower and the Flame Towers.


These ruins in Old Town are believed to be the site where Jesus’ disciple, Saint Bartholomew, was martyred.

 

Juma Mosque in Old Town.

Typical balconies in Old Town.

Highlights from the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, the seat of Azerbaijan’s ruling dynasty during the Middle Ages. Most of the structure is from the 15th century.  Just a note of the two bottom pictures:  the bullet holes are from a 1918 massacre of Azerbaijani citizens by Armenia’s army - 12,000 Azerbaijanis were killed.  And the bottom right hand pic shows a very neat use for oil drums in a city made rich from oil:  painted oil drums are used for decorative purposes around Baku.




There is a very impressive museum of miniature books in Old Town, which holds the Guinness record for the biggest collection of miniature books in the world.  We didn’t even know that miniature books were a thing!

The city walls in Old Town.

Azerbaijani Newlyweds!

Philharmonic Fountain, whihc is next to…

…the Baku State Philharmonic Hall, a stunning building built in 1910.

Baku City Hall.

The wind blew my fedora into this fountain, near the double gates in the city walls, and I had to fish it out!

The exterior of the Nazami Literature Museum has statues to many people who played an important role in Azerbaijan’s literary heritage.


Fountain Square.

Lovin’ it!

Bronze stutue in Fountain Square of a woman with a cell phone and an umbrella.  Oh-so-Baku!

The is the cleanest city we have ever seen.  Seriously, it rivals even Singapore for cleanliness.  When we saw this man using a floor cleaner to wash the walkways in Molokan Gardens, we knew that Baku is — without a doubt — a city that prides itself on being spic ‘n span.

Beautiful fountain in Molokan Gardens.

The White Lillies Fountain, with the Azerbaijan State Puppet Theatre in the background.

While it’s not real gold, the fact that the light poles are all decorated like this, says a lot about Baku!  The building in the background was the Lenin Museum until the collapse of communism.

Shoe shine statue in the park adjacent to the Baku waterfront promenade, known as Bulvar.

This is actually a funny picture, because when we saw the building in the background, we were completely taken with it.  We thought it must be Baku’s cultural equivalent to the Sydney Opera House.  However…

…when we got closer, we realized this monstrosity of a waterfront building is a shopping mall and entertainment complex.

This is the 2012 Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum.  Azerbijan’s carpet weaving has been recognized by UNESCO as a world treasure.  This amazingly designed museum, which looks like a carpet roll, tells the story of the country’s rich carpet weaving tradition.

Carpets in the Carpet Museum date back to the 1800s.

Woman weaving carpet at the National Carpet Museum.

This shows all the sources used for making dyes to dye the wool used in carpets.

The intricate carpet designs and skill were also used in the traditional dress.


This recreation of a wealthy Azerbaijani home, at the National Carpet Museum, shows how carpets were used to decorate residences and for practical use.

Slaying the dragon statue.

Funicular from Old Town to the Flame Towers. 

Shahidar’s Monument and the eternal flame to the war dead. 

Martyr’s Lane, where hundreds of Azerbaijani soldiers are buried, who died in 1990-92, from both the Black January tragedy of 1990 and the war with Armenia in 1992.  Each grave shows the photo of the dead solider and his age — most were under 25 years old.  It is deeply moving to walk the long lanes adjacent to these graves.

We ended the evening by taking a Bolt ride to an authentic Azerbaijani restaurant near Fountain Square.  What a wonderful time we had!  When we finally ate at 9:45pm, it was the first food we had eaten since 10:30am!  Wonderful to try three Azerbaijani dishes:  plov (rice and meat with chestnuts and apricots), bozbash (the national soup), and dolma (stuffed grape leaves).  A nearby table ordered shah plov, which is rice inside bread dough — a flame is involved, so the waiter’s handling of it all was looked upon by everyone around with much interest!  And an excellent performer entertained us all evening.


The Parliament of Azerbaijan.

The three buildings of the Flame Tower complex by day and by night.  These iconic towers say “Baku” more than any other sight.  At night, they are lit up in flames and, also, the colours of the national flag.  Quite a sight to behold.

Here is our hotel - the Courtyard by Marriott - in a restored historical building adjacent to the massive Winter Park.