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Published: December 4th 2008
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A Quick Snap
It was just too hot to pose for long! It's been a couple of weeks since the last blog. That doesn't mean we've been idle. When not working we are still getting out and about around the local area.
About 10km north of Baku is the tiny settlement of Yanar Dağ but don't expect any taxi drivers to have any idea how to get there! As far as we can find out, there's no bus either. So what's there you may ask. Well, this is where you go to see a roaring fire coming out of the hillside. You can even sit on the benches for a cup of tea if you wish. We couldn't. Along with our French friend David we were too busy arguing in Russian and Azeri about the price of the taxi. Having negotiated a good fare, he then tried to tell us it was only one-way and we had to pay extra to get back to Baku. Eventually he settled for an extra 5 Manat but we felt cheated. These people have no idea of the damage they do to the image of Azerbaijan and its people. Despite this, it is worth going to Yanar Dağ just for the sheer novelty of seeing massive
flames coming from the side of a hill. The heat was impressive, a little too hot in fact! We couldn't pose for more than a second or two for photos or we risked serious burns! Afterwards we climbed up theh hill where we were accosted by a large group from some University or other who insisted on having their photo taken. They were very friendly but we left feeling very confused about why they wanted a photo taken on OUR camera and not theirs!!
We made it back to Baku despite the best efforts of our driver to be grumpy and drive erratically. At least he knew the way back. On the way there he had to stop several times to ask for help!!!!
Last weekend we decided to climb the hill towering above our apartment block in Bayil. It was quite an easy climb and the local kids got friendlier and more curious the higher you got. So did the dogs, but at least they didn't bark and snarl at us!! The view from the top is great. The whole of Baku Bay opens out at your feet and you can see the dramatic escarpments, the wind-swept
trees, the TV tower, nodding donkey oil wells (close up!) and even the municipal waste dump. In spite of the latter, it was well worth the effort and we will certainly do it again.
The next day we went out to the Gancalik area of the city where the football stadium is. Russ wanted to get some daylight photos and it also gave us a chance to walk through the park (it's not THAT pleasant) and see the children's train. It wasn't actually running when we were there and the 5 minute ride probably isn't worth hanging around for anyway. Still, it was a stretch of our legs and fresh air in our lungs.
Later that day Russ had a go at practicing his Azeri by watching some live TV. It wasn't much good for learning the language but we thought we'd share with you a couple of screen shots of Sunday night entertainment!!
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Matt
non-member comment
good blog!
could u tell me how to get there? i reply ur comment in LP, maybe u did not notice that. thx for ur help last time, i got fire temple.