Baku, Azerbaijan City Tour

The Turkish mosque honouring their dead in Baku.

The memorial for the Azerbaijans that Armenia killed.

The iconic Flame Towers.

The skyline and the Crescent Hotel.

The Deniz Mall reminiscent of the Opera House of Sydney.

The Carpet Museum.

And exhibits.

Carpet horses.

Having some fun.

Beautiful Bolshevik architecture.

Palace of the Shirvanshahs

A couple of street scenes from the old city.

The stunningly beautiful Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center.

And one of the exhibits by a Nigerian artist.

 Saturday, May 10th.

Azerbaijan is situated at the crossroad between Europe and Asia, and the atmosphere one discovers bears witness to a melting pot of influences, from historical Muslim empires to the Soviet Union. Baku is a city brimming with history, and there was no better place to start our exploration than at Martyrs' Cemetery, located on the higher slopes of the city's west end. This is the best place for seeing the amazing view of the city's harbour and incredible architecture of the city all around the Bay of Baku. At the park we saw memorials dedicated to the Turks who were killed here in 1918 helping the Azerbaijanis defeat the Armenians. There is a Turkish style mosque built in their memory and there is also a wall of remembrance for the 139 Azerbaijanis who were killed by the Russians on 20th of January 1990 when squashing a protest. From there we went to a lookout where we had excellent views of the Flame Towers above the city and the city waterfront including the Crescent Hotel and the Deniz Mall that resembles the Sydney Opera House. Then we went to the Old Town 'Iceri Sehir', is a fortress built within the city walls. Baku’s medieval core is a UNESCO-protected site surrounded by 12th-century walls. During our tour we saw the highlights of Iceri Sehir including the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, who were the rulers here from 861 to 1538. The most striking example of the Medieval palace structures in Azerbaijan, dating to the middle of 15th century; and the Maiden's Tower, the ancient, eight storey fortress originally built as a fire beacon. Then we had lunch at the beautiful pedestrian mall. John and I opted for a light lunch from a little market and sat and people watched. Later we visited the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center, (named after the late president), one of the most recognized architectural landmarks of modern Baku. It is truly stunning outside and inside. It is one of the most impressive buildings I have ever seen. It was commissioned in 2007 and opened in 2012. We marvelled at the sweeping and flowing curves and displays of art of internationally renowned artists. The center is named after Heydar Aliyev (1923-2003), the first secretary of Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of Azerbaijan Republic from October 1993 to 2003. One of the wings of the museum is dedicated to the former president, Heydar Aliyev, and is a clear sign of his ego as it traces his life from childhood through to his rise to political power and celebrates all of his accomplishments. The remainder of the center hosts different educational and scientific competitions and projects for the development of science, education, health, sports, culture and economy. It has also hosted solo exhibitions of world famous artists, sculptures and photographers. From there we went by bus back to the hotel for an hour rest before regrouping and heading out for dinner at the Fisincan Restoran where we had a good meal starting with little salads and then a platter of meat. There was a lovely young woman singing Karaoke style as we ate. Then back to the hotel for the night as we were tired and John had a cold.