Kiş (pronounced Kish) is just a few kilometres from Şeki and easily reached on the antiquated number 15 bus! Once you get there it's about 20 minutes up cobbled streets to find the Albanian church which is, thankfully, signposted! The church is thought to be the oldest Christian church in the Caucasus region. It doesn't look like it because it has been completely restored. Now you can see into the crypts through glass screens and explore the church's tiny interior which is now used as a museum. There's lots of interesting information in English about the archaeological project if that's your thing! Just outside the church is a monument to Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl who was responsible for generating the restoration money from his government. He also began the theory which says ... read more

Two International football matches in four days. It was too much to resist! First up was the World Cup Qualifier where neither Azerbaijan nor Wales could qualify, so it was more of a friendly really! We had met some of the Welsh fans in Finnegans bar the night before the match. It turned into quite a late one and the half price Guinness was really good! We made some good friends, especially Lucy from the FAW who couldn't believe Russ was wearing his Bridgend Ravens shirt and wanted photos for her boyfriend to prove it!! Getting to the game proved a bit of a nightmare for us. We jumped on the No 5 bus which takes us to the Icharisahar metro station, only to find that it has changed its route and no longer goes there! ... read more

Lots of photos this time. Please look at page 2 as well! On Friday night we finally made it to Baku's Philharmonia where we listened to an evening of music in a tribute to Leonard Bernstein. It was really nice to finally get inside the building which, apparently, was modelled on the casino at Monte Carlo. Before the music began the US Ambassador gave a speech firstly in Azeri (excellently delivered) and then in English. Then the National Symphony Orchestra began and they were superb. We didn't recognise any of the music though, until they got to the finale which was, as expected, West Side Story! On Saturday we tried to take the Elektrichka train out to Qala but we had just missed the train if it was running. The timetables are still 2006/07 so we ... read more

In most of the former Soviet Union Victory Day is commemorated with a huge military parade which must be amazing to see. What did we get? A long weekend and some good weather!! We set out for a day in Mardakan on the Absheron peninsula. It's easy! Get the metro out to Neftchilar Station then look for a 341 bus heading all the way. Cheap and simple!! And it really was. There are no hiccups or hassles to report this time. We got off the bus outside Dendro Park which is a sort of Botanical Garden cum Zoo. We felt that 4 Manat (US$5) was a bit expensive for foreigners but even our local ID cards couldn't get us the local rate. It was pleasant enough wandering around the gardens but the zoo section was quite ... read more

I know, I know, we’ve only just returned from Dubai and Oman, but three weeks of work had tired us out so it was time to head back to Blighty for a little over a fortnight. Why? Well, one of Trish’s friends, Jane, was getting married and we really wanted to go. There was also the small matter of Brighton’s quest for a great escape from relegation. There will be a separate blog for the football though!! We flew back from Baku in the middle of the night with Air Baltic, a no-frills airline who are based in Riga, Latvia. When we booked we were expecting to have the whole day in Riga but two weeks before we left, we received an email ominously titled “Your flight has been cancelled”. It hadn’t in fact been cancelled, ... read more