Difference between revisions of "A weekend in Baku"

Revision as of 08:48, 23 April 2008

This article is an itinerary.

A weekend in Baku is a two and a half day and two night stay in Baku, Azerbaijan

Understand

The city of Baku is located on the hot and dusty Absheron peninsula. The center of Baku is a patch of green in a largely brown area because of the many liters of water that is piped to the city every day. The city has a metro, a well developed bus and mini bus network, and a large area for walking including the Inner Walled City, The Boluvar, and Fountain Square.

Prepare

To prepare for Baku; bring some comfortable shoes, western clothes are acceptable for the city, but pants for men and long dresses for women are recommended if you go to more remote regions such as Gobustan. Also, read the book Ali and Nino for a more comprehensive understanding of Azerbaijan

Get in

The Weekend

Friday

• Check into the lodging
• Eat lunch in Fountain Square at the Lebanese fast food shop
• Walk around the Baku Bolvar
• Go to the old city and spend the afternoon around the old city. Climb the Maiden's tower.
• Eat Turkish at night
• Go to a movie at the movie theater in Fountain Square

Saturday

• Wake up
• Take metro/cab to Sahil metro station. At metro exit, turn right and right around the block to get to Judo Petchka. There's plenty of sweet/savory pastries to choose from (take out only). Walk across the road to the park with the 26 Commissars monument and enjoy the food there.
• Alternatively, at Sahil metro exit, turn left and walk one block to Cafe Aroma for coffee/tea.
• Go to the Ateshgah Fire Temple via electric train (leaves 28 May station at 10:20)
• Return to 28 May station and eat a lunch of Georgian food at Georgian Home
• Go see mud volcanoes and petrogyphs in Gobustan. Gobustan is about a 45 minute one-way taxi drive from Baku.
• Eat dinner at Cafe Rendezvous
• In the evening, go to the opera at the national opera on Nizami street. Otherwise, go to the rooftop bar at Sultan Inn in the Old City for a drink and excellent views of the Maiden Tower, Caspian sea and the TV tower.

Sunday

• Check out of the lodging
• Buy pastries at Judo Petchka by for breakfast and eat them in the nearby park
• Go to 20 January station and catch a mini-bus to the next destination

Stay safe

Get out

There are many options for leaving Baku:

• Lankaran-the gem of the south with unique food, culture, and sights
• Xachmaz-the biggest tourist destination in Azerbaijan
• Sheki-the city of the Sheki Khans and their unique palace notwithstanding the Albanian church in Kish village
• Ganja-this is the second biggest city in Azerbaijan, home of the poet Nizami Ganjavi