دبيّ
(Dubayy - Dubai)
تبريز
(Tabrīz)
Tabriz arguably has the best fruitjuices in Iran. What is more, the selection is varied: orange, pomegranate, banana, dattes and so. A real treat!
Streetscene from behind the stained-glass door of our "mosaferkhuneh" (hostel).
Tabriz is famous for its bazar, a huge and covered maze several kilometers long.
Iran is an interesting cultural mosaic. In fact, 25% of Iranians are ethnically Azerbaijani Turks (compared to 50% Farsis), and Tabriz is their capital.
An Azerbaijani teaseller.
Tabriz's Blue Mosque is a museum of restoration. On this picture, you can see fragments of the old murals that have been incorporated to the newly built brickwall.
Contemporary Iranian mosque architecture.
كندوان
(Kandovān)
Kandovan is nicknamed Iran's Cappadoccia. It's easy to see why!
Troglodyte houses carved in the rock.
Kandovan is an ethnically Azerbaijani village. It sits at the base of 3707m-high Mount Sahandkuh.
Looks like Göreme?
Clothes drying. Peaceful traditional life.
Dodi and a young local boy sitting in our taxi. In general, people in Iran are extremely welcoming and happy to help lost foreigners.
سنندج
(Sanandaj)
Sanandaj is the Iranian Kurdistan's capital. Elevation: 1520m.
Sugarcutter at work.
Friday Mosque. Kurds are traditionally Sunni Muslims.
The Kurds are quite different from the Farsis. Their most distinctive feature is their baggy trousers known as "shalvar". They also speak Kurdish, which belongs to the Indo-Iranian family (just like Farsi).
Kurdestan Museum. Possibly a theology class?
Carpet-making explained.
Traditional Kurd clothing. They do still wear it! The "shalvar" is actually so comfortable that even the Farsis have taken to it ("at home, to relax").
The Kurds are a mountainous people, so it's no suprise Sanadaj has such a setting. The road from Tabriz is especially beautiful.
اصفهان
(Ēṣfahān)
Esfahan is Iran's great cultural capital. Most people living here know English, French and German and are ready to talk History or Arts for hours. Be prepared.
Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque on Imam Square and its crème-coloured dome.
Imam Square, the largest and most impressive collection of buildings in the Islamic world. It's also called "Naghsh-e Jahan", "the pattern of the world".
Fancy a tea? You can't beat the location.
The dome of Imam Mosque and its Kufic inscriptions.
Tileworks adorning Imam Mosque.
Detail of an iwan (gate).
Shadows.
Shadows.
Reflections in a pool next to the Chehel Sotun palace.
Ali Qapu Palace. From the third-floor terrace, the view on Imam Square is just breathtaking.
Esfahan's bazar, about three kilometers long, links Imam Square to the Friday Mosque (see below).
Tilework adorning the Jameh (Friday) Mosque.
Friday Mosque's unbelievable mirhab.
Friday Mosque from the courtyard. This kind of big gate, or portal, is called an iwan.
Can you read Arabic?
Esfahan's old Ateshkadeh (Zoroastrian Fire Temple).
Outskirts of Esfahan. There's a nuclear reactor not far from here. You cannot but see the white smoke when you visit the Ateshkadeh.
Another of Esfahan's delights: the bridges.
Chaykhuneh (teahouse) by Si-o Seh bridge. By the country's standards, Esfahan is a pretty liberal place.
Zayandeh river. You can rent rowboats.
A very sociable way of spending your afternoon.
Si-o Seh Bridge.
The Armenian (they're Christians) district, known as New Jolfa (from Jolfa, an Armenian settlement on the Iranian-Armenian border).
The Armenians have been in Iran roughly as long as there's been Christians. They founded the first Christian nation in the fourth century.
Armenian script. They have an alphabet of their own, but all of them speak Farsi anyway. They run a restaurant in Tehran in which, good news, women don't need to wear their scarf (since it's a Christian establishement).
Their churches look a lot like mosques.
شيراز
(Shīrāz)
Shiraz has its own Pisa.
One of the several palaces which make Shiraz an architect's delight.
If hungry, head to the Orange Garden.
Another palace (this one is the Naranjestan-e Ghavam).
From the inside.
A tree in the Garden of Paradise (Bagh-e Eram).
Traditionnally, bazars in Iran are covered and people sell from stalls.
Regent's Mosque. Women must wear a chador (literally, "tent") to visit.
Anonymous.
Hafez is one of the most famous poets in Iran. This is his mausoleum. Just nearby is a chaykhuneh popular among youngsters who, considering the lack of discos and Western-style entertainment, find it the best place to socialize.
نقش رستم
(Naghsh-e Rostam)
In Naghsh-e Rostam stand the tombs of a handful of Achaemenid kings.
The Achaemenids were Zoroastrians. The weird block on the foreground possibly used to be a Fire Temple.
Elamite carvings.
Sassanian carvings and an Achaemenid tomb.
چرسپوليس
(Persepōlīs)
Impressive ruins in the middle of nowhere.
In case you hadn't heard of cuneiform before.
Those ruins are about 2500 years old.
Persepolis wasn't actually a city. In fact, it was more of a giant open-air palace designed to spend New Year's Eve. The different subject-nations of the Achaemenid Empire would come from all accross the region and bring their presents to the King, after what they'd sing and dance and so on.
The Gate of All Nations, past which the subject-nations had to walk to go and be welcomed by the King and his court.
بندر عباس
(Bandar-e Ābās)
Bandar-e Abbas, or just Bandar, is Iran's largest harbour on the Persian Gulf. It's a very relaxed place to spend a few days, spotting for South-American tankers.
The bazar is heavily influenced by the different cultures that cohabite along the Gulf coast : Arabs, Africans, Hindus and Farsis of course.
A young doctor, who happenned to speak some Russian.
A Bazari (a bazari is a man who runs a stall).
By the pier.
Yes, an Indian temple! It's sadly being converted into a mosque.
Like in any city of any size in Iran, Bandar has its own airport. The funny thing is that planes start their descent just beneath the beach.
هرمز
(Hormoz)
Ruins of a Portuguese castle.
The village of Hormoz, on Hormoz Island. A very laid-back place for sure.
Portuguese canons. The whole fortress dates back from the XVIth century.
In Farsi, church is "Kelisa". A bit like "Eglise". Well, they speak an Indo-European language, despite the Arabic alphabet.
More ruins.
Hormoz village, from the top of the castle's ruins.
A young student taking part in an "artistic camp" (that's how they called it) in Hormoz. Basically they sleep on the beach and have fun.
Geology.
ميناب
(Mīnāb)
Thursday market in Minab.
A big mess in the desert. A colourful place for sure.
لافت
(Lāft)
Unlike the Farsis, who follow Shi'ite Islam, the Arabic communities from the Gulf are traditionnally Sunni Muslims.
Laft fortress. On the other side of the hill, there's mangrove!
These strange towers are called "badgir" (windtower) and keep the house cool during the summer months.
Young Lafti on his bike.
Laft at sunset, and a couple of dhows offshore.
يزد
(Yazd)
Friday Mosque in the background, Bogheh-ye Seyed Roknaddin in the foreground.
Tilework.
This way please.
More blue domes.
Iranians have a different conception of the family. (And they like bicycles).
Yazd's skyline from the roofs.
Down in the streets, some social interaction.
Badgir, people, mosques.
Inside the Hosseinieh (see below).
Yazd is home to the largest Zoroastrian community in Iran. Here is their Fire Temple (nothing to do with the one in Baku).
Inside the temple are excerpts from Zarathustra's writings as well as a painting of him. Believe it or not, this man founded the first monotheist religion.
Typical Tower of Silence.
The Zoroastrians didn't bury their dead. Instead, they left them to the vultures so their bones would be picked clean: this way, the Earth wouldn't be polluted.
Another Tower of Silence.
Tombs in a modern Zoroastrian cemetery. Notice the Zoroastrian symbol: an old man (men should be wise like the elders) holding a ring (fidelity) and raising his free hand (respect), and three layers of feathers to indicate purity of thought, word and action.
Yazd's large Hosseinieh, used during the month of Moharram when Shi'ites commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hossein in Karbala.
A nice Yazdi.
كاشان
(Kāshān)
Grounding spices in Kashan's bazar.
Pride.
View of a karavansaray from the roofs of Kashan.
The bazar's roofs. Would you look through the hole, you'd see men shopping and sipping tea about 10 metres below.
A mosque.
A palace.
The Qajar (they were Azerbaijani) dynasty was famous for building great palaces.
Goldfishes! Hopefully cats are carefully kept off.
تهران
(Tehrān)
Only during holidays does Tehran's traffic seem quite normal.
Streetscene. The grandma on the foreground is about to light a cigarette!
Tehran Bazaar, a city within a city complete with mosques, banks, hostels, churches and firestations.
Once the bastion of liberalism and the avant-garde (under Khatami), the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art now sadly only boasts exhibitions dealing with the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Gandi Street!
A church in central Tehran? Armenian of course.
The Golestan Museum, a jewel of Qajar (XIXth century) Art.
Impressed by what he had seen in Europe, Qajar ruler Nasser al-Din Shah ordered the Palace to be built.
The Qajar dynasty were Azerbaijanis!
Ayatollah Khomeini (the leader of the Islamic Revolution) is buried here. His mausoleum is grotesquely huge, but the atmosphere inside is relatively laidback.
One of the ubiquitous murals glorifying the "martyrs" of the Iran-Iraq War.
One of them.
A monument to the martyrs.
The Azadi ("Freedom") Monument was erected in 1971 to celebrate the 2500th anniversary of the Persian Empire.
From Azadi you have some nice views on the Alborz Range, and the Western bus station is just across.
There's also an uninteresting fortress right-bang in the towncenter.
Bakı
By far Baku's most famous historical landmark (supposing you've ever heard about Baku in the first place), "Gyz Galasy" (Maiden's Tower) overlooks the southeastern corner of "Ichari Shahar" (the Old City), most of which dates back from the 12th century. From the top of the tower there's a good view on the Caspian and, in the summer, on the carpet sellers who run shops at the foot of the building.
This photo was taken from what the Azerbaijanis have left of an Armenian Church's belltower. Probably the church itself was destroyed a few decades ago, and the grounds are being transformed into a terrace restaurant.
The Palace of the Shirvan Kings (Azerbaijan's ruling dynasty throughout the Middle Ages) was built in the 15th century. Unfortunately, it has been so painstakingly restored that the visit can nowadays be slightly disappointing, with old stonewalls now clean and bleached.
Palace of the Shirvan Kings, inner courtyard. The minaret is that of the Royal Mosque.
XIth-century Juma Mosque has the finest façade of all mosques in Baku.
Carpets and a "jum-jum" (copper water jug): Azerbaijan's best-sellers!
The site within the Old City walls is still recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site, despite new structures (mainly oil companies buildings) spoiling the original, oriental atmosphere...
Decrepit and atmospheric, the best place for a scrub ("kisa") is the Old City Hamam.
Hamam rooftops are always a lot of fun to walk upon. This one actually isn't a working hamam anymore, but the Green Pharmacy.
Right next to the Old City heading east is the long Caspian waterfront promenade called "Bulvar". This is the place to stroll, meet fishermen, peoplewatch, spot ferryboats to Turkmenistan and have fun riding ferris wheels and other amusements.
Fishing. A great way to socialize!
Romance on the Caspian. In the summer, there's a ferryboat taking Bakunians offshore and back to the city bustle, describing half-an-hour circles in the Bay for 40 cents. It's a good place to see loving couples in the otherwise rather conservative Azerbaijani capital.
Grandpa is trying his luck, too.
The Azerbaijanis have a so-and-so approach to alcohol, but would sip tea for hours. They would set a table pretty much anywhere, ask someone to bring a teapot and a couple of glasses, and just go on chatting.
The lobby of the Hotel Absheron has fine, misty views on the polluted capital. You can spot Baku's monster, the titanic Dom Soviet, from which the country once used to be ruled (it's the first building on the right).
Looking for Lenin busts and coins? For Russian Matryoshki? For Caucasian folklore daggers? For kitschy paintings or presidential portraits? Venture no further: Artists' Alley is the place to be.
Streetscene on Vurghun Kuchasi ("kuchasi" being the Azerbaijani word for "street").
There's an (undestroyed) Armenian Church rightbang in the city center. Unfortunately, doors and windows have been walled off following the 1988 declaration of independence of the now Armenian-controlled Garabagh region.
"Old-fashioned romantics" graffiti on Station Square.
Heydar "Baba" ("Grandpa") Aliyev, Azerbaijan's former president and "Great Architect", greets the National Bank on Station Square. His son has taken the country's leadership since his death in 2003 in less time you'd need to say "feudal".
Though reminiscent of Central Asian mosques, the Electric Railway Station wasn't built before 1926. It's now a disused building.
The Main Train Station has daily services to Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, the Northern Caucasus and Siberia, though sadly enough foreigners are not allowed to cross the Russian landborder. There's also a service to Tbilisi, the Georgian capital.
Yashyl ("Green") Bazar is one of the best places to shop in town. Most stallholders come from the countryside and all their products are fresh and tasty indeed. They even sell Caspian fish, though considering the oil exploitation you might want to think twice before trying. If you look carefully enough, you might be able to spot the Wahhabi Mosque in the background. It has beige, austere-looking twin-minarets.
People come from all across Azerbaijan to sell their goods, sometimes filling the back of their cars with all kinds of fruit -- or brands of cigarettes.
Old-fashioned Badalbayli Street is one of my favorites, with its crumbling balconies and ageing wall facades. Interestingly enough, it's also close to the synagogues disctrict.
Vaad L'hat Synagogue. There's a newer one just next to it, which was sponsored by the American diaspora. The new one, though, looks like modern, KGB headquarters.
Street art, an emerging thing in Azerbaijan. The man wears a typical Caucasian folk costume, complete with leather boots, a tunic, a dagger, a "papakh" hat and a moustachio. Women wear the chador, which is a very rare female outfit in Baku. Note the Azerbaijani flag: blue for the Turks, red for courage and green (bottom line) for Islam.
More street art (and a Russian Zhiguli car).
"Because there are no attics, and only the elite have washing machines and dryers, people hang their wash out on ropes and wires streched between balconies, between buildings, between streets. One of those miraculous days when there is soap in the stores, the washing and hanging out of clothes and linens takes place everywhere. If the wind is blowing, the wash billows, undulates, and flutters, and the towns [...] resemble fleets of powerful sailing ships, riding upon a turbulent sea toward distant shores." (Kapuscinski, Imperium)
The last floor on the previous picture is where Dodi and I live.
The Cathedral of Holy Myrrh-Bearers ("Svyatykh Zhyen-Mironosits") is Baku's only Russian Orthodox Cathedral (there are two other, smaller churches), and thus the Russian community's big thing. It's been restored recently and is about a hundred-years old.
"The Eyes" sculpture symbolically commemorates the work of Richard Zorge, an ethnic-German Azerbaijani, who worked as a spy for the Soviet Union during WWII.
Detail of a train carriage at the Children's Railway in Zorge Park.
More Zorge Park fun: the bactrian camels in Zoopark. There used to be many more camels in Azerbaijan earlier, but sadly the only ones you're likely to see in Baku now are this mildly sympathetic bunch.
Ave, Camelus Bactrianus!
No transition. Yasamal district is one of oldest in Baku (after the Old City) and has the looks and the feel of a small village of its own. Here people bake pastry and bread at home and sell it from their kitchen windows, kids play football in the streets and marshrutki (minibuses) horn as hard as they can in the jammed, narrow alleys. Yasamal is also home to the Taza Pir Mosque, the organizational center of Islam in the Caucasus, and the Orthodox Church of Archangel Michael, where the small Russian community worships.
Work in progress at Taza Pir Mosque. Hopefully the workers left the stairset clear for the inhabitants of this steep, hilly neighbourhood.
Typical, old colonial-style courtyard.
The Russian community (ie, those who haven't left to Russia -- yet) also worships here, at the Orthodox Church of Archangel Michael. Pop in to light "svyechki" (candles) and get some news of the Patriarch.
An overview of the city from the top of the Yasamal hill.
Despite being the main cemetery for war martyrs, Shahidlar Khyyabany ("Martyrs' Alley") is possibly the most enjoyable place to have tea in Baku. The views of the sprawling city simply are the best you can get.
Ottoman meets Soviet architecture.
Originally, the tombs in Martyrs' Alley belonged to civilians massacred by the Red Army in 1990. This has since been joined by thousands of graves of war fighters killed in the Garabagh conflict.
Don't forget your digital camera!
A bird's eye view - with tea and sweets.
There's always been a Jewish community in Baku. They have their own section in the cemetery, as well as a few synagogues sponsored by the American diaspora.
Most modern cemeteries across the former USSR look like this: realsize portraits of the dead on marble stones, sometimes even depicting the way the poor fellow died.
Surprize: a Greek tomb!
Red Soviet star, in the Russian section of the cemetery.
Russians are Orthodox Christians. Among several minor diffrences (compared to Catholics), their cross bears three layers: the top one stands for the Christ's head, the middle one stands for the Christ's arms and the bottom one stands for the Christ's feet.
From the cemetery, as well as from any part of town from the Caspian shore to the furthest northern suburb, you can spot the gigantic TV tower.
In Bibi Heybat Mosque is enshrined the grave of Bibi Okuma Khanum, the sister of the Seventh Imam. It was destroyed under Stalin but has been under reconstruction since 1998. Being Shi'ite Muslims, Azerbaijanis believe the 12 Imams to be the true successors of the Prophet Mohammed and did not recognize the Arab Caliphate.
Azerbaijanis are a mix of Persian, Turkic and older Caucasian Albanian peoples. They speak a Turkic language related to Ottoman Turkish, which also includes many borrowings from Farsi. They consider themselves to be Turkic.
Maybe you'd think that being an harbour on the Caspian Sea, Baku should perhaps boast some fine beaches. In fact, the closest beach you can reach from the city center is an ugly strip of stinky brown sand, with rusty oil derricks lying offshore. (Fortunately, there are other, more decent beaches on the northern coast of the Absheron Peninsula.)
Still, the ugliness doesn't refrain people from swimming, having dinner nearby or jet-skiing (well that's for the nouveaux riches).
Thank you BP. Or whoever is responsible for that.
Abşeron Yasaqliği
Suraxanı
They say that when Zarathustra visited the Absheron Peninsula, he spent a long time meditating in the desert, looking at the burning gas vents that naturally sprung out of the oil-rich soil. They also say this strongly inspired him in his oncoming writings and in the creation of the world's first monotheist religion, Zoroastrianism. One of the most famous sights in the Peninsula is the Surakhany Ateshgah (or Fire Temple). It was built by a community of Indian merchants in the 18th century and used by Punjabi mystics until the last Hindu priests sold his rights to the Baku Oil Company (at the end of the 19th century).
Sadly, it's been a long time since the natural gas pocket has been exhausted and the fire is now kept going thanks to pipelines.
Ramana
Castle tower in Ramana. Indeed, the Absheron Peninsula always was vulnerable to attack from the sea.
Oil pools and rusting derricks. You can also spot Baku's skyline in the background.
Nardaran
"There's no God but Allah." Nardaran possibly is Azerbaijan's most conservative village, and there are good chances you'll meet a few women in chador while walking the narrow, high-walled alleyways.
Almshouses by the sea.
The Rehime Khanym Mosque, just like Bibi Heybat in Baku, is also a resting place for another sister of the Seventh Imam.
Village life. Not quite as exciting as in the capital.
Şuvələn
Have you ever heard of a man lacking a skeleton? Well, it happened at least once in human history, and the poor fellow was an Azerbaijani called Mir Mövsüm Aghanin ("The Boneless One"). He is a very popular figure in the country thanks to his role as a secret weapon during WWII (no kidding!) and all marshrutka drivers have a picture of him stuck somewhere on the windowpane. His mausoleum is in Shuvalan.
Əmircan
An elegant mosque in Amirjan.
Fatmai
Struggling Fatmai, a semi-abandonned village in the northern part of the Peninsula.
Yanar Dağ
A shepherd passing through this hill back in the 50's accidentally set the hill alight and, unbelievable as it sounds, the hill has been burning since then! It's called Yanar Dagh, "Fire Mountain".
Someone had the brilliant idea to open a chaykhana (teahouse) next to the flames.
Typical scrub desert scenery on the Absheron.
Artyom / Pirallahi
Hm, a peninsula into the Caspian Sea, how beautiful it must be...
... well, wait to see what the oil barons and the Soviets have done.
We call it a "nodding donkey". It nods up and down to extract the oil. Many are still in use, spilling large amounts of oil on the ground nearby and thus polluting the soil to an extent that nobody has yet had the courage to measure.
Oil. In Russian and Azerbaijani they say "neft".
More oil extraction fields scenery near Artyom.
While walking among nodding donkeys and oil pools, Dodi and I met a shepherd and his sheep who invited us to his nearby home for tea and sweets (it was around the end of Ramazan).
Damba lighthouse. Possibly the best picnic spot on the Absheron.
Freedom allegory overlooking the Caspian waters.
Qobustan
If ever you got bored of Baku and the insanely absurd Absheron Peninsula, there's always Gobustan. Gobustan village itself is a rather depressing place, but it's home to 1/ mud volcanoes 2/ Stone Age petroglyphs and 3/ a Roman graffiti left some 2070 years ago by a lost centurion on a reconnaissance mission.
Mud volcanoes are cold. This one is a "lava"-style one, with mud simply spilling out. No fun.
On the opposite, this one is a farting volcano. You wait for a while, and then a big bubble comes out and explodes in a fat "pluurf". Great fun!
Mini farting-style volcanoes. You really need boots to walk around.
Quite a different type of volcano: this large pool is basically fizzing, as if someone had dropped a giant Efferalgan in it.
Neolithic tribes inhabited the area some 12,000 years ago. They left quite a few carvings.
"We go together..."
Sumqayıt
Sumgayyt is famous for two things: the Azerbaijani-Armenian inter-ethnic conflict of 1988-89 and its heavy industry (responsible for the outsized cemetery which sprawls on the outskirts of town). Anyway, it's also the third-biggest city in Azerbaijan and an "interesting" place to drive through if you have a taste for post-apocalyptic Mad Max scenery.
The "beach".
The "pier".
A view from the ferris wheel, a monster of decomposing metal slowly creaking its way up, allowing you to witness industrial horror on the horizon first-hand. (I decided to put this picture of the park instead.)
Mərəzə
Diri Baba ("Living Grandpa") Mausoleum is Azerbaijan's Petra. It is built into a cliff about a kilometre west of Maraza.
All we know about Diri Baba is that he was Sufi mystic who lived in the 14th century.
Across the "pir" (holy place) stands an old, attractive Shirvan cemetery.
...
At the time, Azerbaijani was written in the Arabic script.
Chinggiz (yes, the same as in Chinggiz Khan), the local caretaker, was happy to show me around and to take me to the top of the mausoleum. From up there you can easily spot Narimankand village in the backgorund.
Sheep, Azerbaijan's true raison d'être.
Şamaxı
Shamakhy's Yeddi Gumbaz. Yeddi Gumbaz literally means "seven tombs", but since seven also used to mean "many", it translates as "many tombs", and thus as "cemetery".
The mausoleums here are those of three Shirvan rulers, dating back from the 18th and 19th centuries.
Some of the tombstones are really badly crooked.
No fence. No fee.
Şəki
There's been people in or around Shaki for more than 2,500 years, making it one of the oldest settlements in the South Caucasus.
Nowadays it's a popular destination among expats and makes a good break from the capital's chaotic bustle.
Shashlyk (barbecue) stall. Shaki's bazar is the busiest of the region and a great place for peoplewatching.
An old church in the background. Before becoming a Muslim country, Azerbaijan was known as Albania, an ancient Christian land (they had adopted Christianity from the Armenians in the 4th century).
Another church. They were about to shoot a movie here when Dodi and I visited.
Kiş
Restored Albanian Church. It is said to have been founded in AD78 by a disciple of Jesus's brother (!).
The interior is very simple and attractive.
Lahıc
The story goes that Lahyj was founded by a community of Farsis from Lahijan, a village in Northern Iran, which would explain its preeminence as a coppercraft center.
In early December, while it might still be autumn in Baku, winter is at its best in Lahyj.
Traditional moutain houses.
Tombs covered in snow.
Coppersmith at work. While walking the old cobbled streets you can hear the "ping-ping" of the hammer resonating.
A coppersmith's workshop. Note the man with the the funny hat: most Azerbaijani males over 50 wear the "papakh", a traditionally Caucasian hat made of Astrakhan wool. The younger the sheep, the better the wool.
Beş Barmaq
Besh Barmag ("Five Fingers"). Nowhere in Azerbaijan are Islam and old Turkish animist traditions so obviously mixed up.
Besh Barmag is a natural rock fortress sitting on top of a hill and towering at 500 meters. On the eastern side, there's a magnificient view on the Caspian. On the western side, there's an even more magnificient view on the moutains.
You have to go past a series of beggars who let you through for a few cents on your gradual way to the top. Occasionally there are also shepherds tending to their sheep passing by.
Here is how the rock looks like. After having paid a few beggars and kissed several stones turned smooth from previous pilgrimages, you're allowed to walk up the rough stairs carved into the rock. On weekends there are a few men reading the Quran outloud, while women and grannies sell pieces of cloth for you to make a wish (see below).
Pieces of cloth fluttering to the wind in the best shamanist tradition (each piece of cloth symbolizing a specific wish).
Looking down toward the Caspian.
Quba / Krasnaya Sloboda
Guba is an uninspiring town in Northern Azerbaijan, spread along the south bank of the Gudiyalchay river. But the interests lies in the northern bank of the same river, where the Jewish settlement of Krasnaya Sloboda is located. It almost certainly is the only all-Jewish vilage outside of Israel. Here you don't say "Salam" anymore, but "Shalom".
A view from the main synagogue (there are three of them), looking toward the Azerbaijani side (can you see the mosque?). The little boy is wearing a yarmulka.
A little Hebrew.
Many Azerbaijani Jews have left to Israel since the country gained independence...
... thus giving Krasnaya Sloboda a slightly ghost-town atmosphere...
... and making it all the more difficult for lone grannies to make ends meet.
Xınalıq
Khynalyg. In a sense, this is probably the closest you'll get to Daghestan anytime soon.
Khynalyg is one of the most fascinating facettes of Azerbaijan's rich mix of cultures. People in this remote hamlet of a thousand souls are called Khynalygi and speak their own language, the impossibly difficult Khynalygi.
The new asphalt road from Guba (ordered by President Ilham Aliyev himself) had just been completed when Dodi and I visited.
The mighty High Caucasus range. Right behind it, only a few kilometers away, lies Daghestan (nowadays part of the Russian Federation).
Our 4WD driver. He was a "daghly" (a moutain man) from a nearby village called Jek, where people speak a variant of the Gryz dialect.
Canyon scenery towards Khynalyg.
More canyon scenery.
They say there are still a few semi-nomadic people in Northern Azerbaijan, essentially shepherds putting up yurts in the high pastures during the summer months for the sheep to graze.
Picture-taking session in the Caucasus.
Our man from Jek.
Lənkəran
The Tea Lady "welcomes" visitors in central Lankaran, with a sword in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. Indeed, Lankaran and the Talysh zone are famous for their tea plantations where Azerbaijanis grow famous brands such as Azerchay, for instance.
The Caspian Sea.
The Talysh are a predominantly fishing people. For a long time Lankaran was the capital city of their khanate and it even enjoyed the status of an independent country's capital for a few months back in 1993.
Heydar Aliyev Park. Seemingly, and even if the Turkmeno-Azerbaijani diplomatic relations are rather poor, Dictator Aliyev has found some inspiration in Dictator Niyazov's architectural taste. In effect this small park is very reminiscent of the presidential squares in central Ashgabat. But why spend thousands of manats building such a place when they could have, say, cleaned the beach or bought some dustbins? This is an unsolved mystery and maybe Azerbaijan's strangest paradox.
Lerik
Lerik is a cute hilltop village in the Talysh region, and people-there-tend-to-have-an-funny-acceeeeeeeeeent.
Village life. If for anything, Lerik is known for its record-breaking centenaries. One of them managed (somehow) to reach and die at the age of 168 in the 70s! But the norm is in fact a little lower, at around 110-120.
There are plenty of possibilities for excursions around Lerik, which comes as a real treat after a month of Bakunian sweat and horns.
The perfect picture to put in your toilets.
David (a friend who teaches Spanish at the Languages University) and Dodi playing the ranch-holders.
Lesser Caucasus moutain scenery.
More moutains, more canyons. Azerbaijan can also be this: a beautiful and picturesque country.
Dancing with the... fish, perhaps?
Xanbulan
Khanbulan Lake, about 20 kms southwest of Lankaran, is as peaceful as any lake can be.
Green, green, green. The Talysh region, just like Adjara opposite on the Black Sea coast, has a lush, semi-tropical climate. Driving around really makes you feel like you're in Central America (well, if only you could forget about those Ladas and those Kamaz trucks).
Asif, our good-mood taxi driver.
Metaphysical uncertainty.
Just a few hours before our meeting with... Mark Elliott!
Naxçıvan MR
Naxçıvan (şəhəri)
Nakhchyvan is Azerbaijan's exclave, a barren plateau twice the size of Luxembourg sandwiched between Armenian and Iranian moutain ranges. It has the status of an autonomous Republic (Mukhtar Respublikasy). 6 Tupolev planes a day make the trip from Baku and there are flights from Gyanja as well. On this picture of Nakhchyvan City, a village acting as the Republic's capital, you can spot the Iranian mountains on the right and the crag of Ilan Dagh ("Snake Mountain", see below) on the left side of the road.
Renovated Oriental Hamam and the Tabriz (an Azerbaijani town in South Azerbaijan, ie Northern Iran) Hotel.
Nakhchyvan City is surprizingly clean and orderly to Azerbaijani standards.
The Friday Mosque looks like as if it had been bombed, but according to some of the workers it's just the roof being restored.
Groznyy after the third Russian war? No, just Nakhchivani-style restoration.
A very Soviet Heydar "Aliyevich" Aliyev on Mausoleum Square.
12th-century Momine Khatun Mausoleum, the city's and exclave's icon. There used to be an imposing twin-minarets gate as well as a mosque nearby; unfortunately both have been razed.
There's been a try at countering a Pisa-style leaning, which proved rather unsuccessful.
Stylized Arabic letters.
Have fun: don't miss a stroll in the open-air stone-sheep museum!
Probably the Head of the Nakhchivan Theatre, though I'm not sure I perfectly understood what the man told me. He was playing the Khan (King) during the Novruz festival (see below).
Ajami Abubakiroghlu Nakhchivani, the exclave's "Great Architect". He built the Momine Khatun Mausoleum across the road.
The city's Imamzadeh (a tomb for any of the relatives of any of the 12 Shi'ite Imams) is open only to... women, for a change!
Can you read Kufic? This one is an easy one, it modestly reads "Allah".
There's not much left of the old citadel...
... just an old, crumbling mudbrick wall.
Mausoleum sightseeing is the main touristic activity in Nakhchivan. This one is the pointy-topped Yusuf Ibn Kuseyir.
The Yusuf Ibn Kuseyir Mausoleum is set in a very lovely section of town, somehow reminiscent of Silk Road cities such as Bukhara of Yazd, with its Mausoleum Square, narrow lanes, high walls, traditional houses and courtyards, lone women wearing colourful scarves and a turquoise-dome mosque in the distance.
Nakhchivani arabesques.
Hussein Javid was a poet who died in exile in Siberia following the 1930s Stalinist purges. Heydar Aliyev had his bones repatriated in the 80s and the mausoleum built at the height of the Armenian blockade.
Hidayat, a French teacher from Garabaghlar.
Evening lights on Mausoleum Square, overlooking the Arazlisu Reservoir and the Iranian border beyond.
Being cut off from the rest of mainland Azerbaijan, Nakhchivan has developed strong links with its Iranian and especially Turkish neighbours. Turks don't need a visa to come to Azerbaijan and run many businesses in Nakhchivan -- they also export many goods into the exclave. In Nakhchivan City they have a Consulate, a high school and a mosque.
*** Novruz ***
Novruz ("New Day" in Farsi) celebrations in Nakhchivan. Here is a military brassband with Heydar Aliyev on the lookout.
Soldiers too can have fun!
Traditional "ashyg" musicians (Caucasian minstrels) playing the "zurna" (conical trumpet) and the "arum" (standing drum). Novruz takes place every year on 21 March at the Spring equinox. People grow wheat or barley, prepare special cookies, clean their houses and light bonfires (especially on Novruz's Eve) to celebrate the death of Winter and the coming of Spring. There's a whole week off for families to gather, chat over endless pots of tea and have some good time.
Traditional Caucasian folkdances with kids in medieval costumes.
More musicians.
Qarabağlar
(Yet another) mausoleum complex in Garabaghlar. The tomb tower of Jehan Kudi Khatun is said to date back from the XIVth century.
The majolica tilework has been restored but they left the portal as in its original state.
Babek, an Azerbaijani photographer from Garabaghlar between two job sessions in Antalya (Turkey).
Garabaghlari fellows.
There's something rather UFO about the restoration...
One of the half-destroyed twin-minarets with medieval tilework adorning the portal.
The minarets used to be much taller, but the Russians sort of "shortened" them down.
Vroom! Nothing beats a Lada for endurance.
Plateau scenery next to Garabaghlar.
Local "pir" (natural, holy site). Note the wishtree and the candles: it's a local version of Besh Barmag.
Ordubad
Village views in cul-de-sac Ordubad.
Ordubadis and Nakhchivanis in general are extremely hospitable people. Just walk around and you'll be invited to people's places to share a cuppa or a pakhlava. It was very interesting and charming indeed to visit the region during Novruz.
Ordubad Mosque Square. More celebrations, dances, tea and sweets.
Khosh Gyelmishsiniz: Welcome! Ordubad Mosque Square from a different angle. Very relaxed and a very beautiful setting.
Towards Iran.
Alinca
Ilan Dagh, the Snake Moutain, against which the hull of Noah's Ark crunched a long, long time ago, leaving a dramatic cleft on top of the crag (so the legend says).
The French teacher on the road.
Sheep. An autonomous Republic it may be, Nakhchivan nevertheless IS a part of Azerbaijan.
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