I arrived in the afternoon at around 6pm onto Baku. Clearing immigration check took much longer than it should have. The immigration officer kept looking at my passport with his magnifying tool. My passport was in immaculate condition. No questions asked and I received my visa entry stamp and I was through.
It was simple to buy the BakuKart transport pass. I spent AZN10.00 when I only should have topped it up to maximum AZN5.00. It is very cheap to travel on the subway and buses. The bus to the main stop of 28 May was quick and simple. I then walked toy hotel.
The hotel I was supposed to stay for 1 night did the dodgy on me and moved me to one of the worst hotels in Baku! Apparently they had 'plumbing issues' and needed to find an alternative for me, on F1 week. This nearly did me in. Lucky I stayed calm. Will look to get full refund via booking.com or credit card protection. After 30hrs of travelling I wasn't in the mood to be given an ultimatum to accept the scenario.
That night, being sleep deprived, I walked the Baku waterfront. Surprised that there are no beaches. Just concrete to the water's edge. At least the temperature was cool.
The city streets were being prepared for the F1 race. You could only cross the track where there are subway stations.
Always nice to walk at night to check the place out. Baku is one of those places where real activity occurs late at night.
I purchased a Coke and a bottle of water on my way back to the dodgy hotel. Here I received the 'tourist price'. I ended up paying more than double what normal price should have been. When my change was returned, it was incorrect and I had to tell the person to give me the rest of it. This was my first scam. Always count your change properly before you leave!
The next day (Mon) I left the dodgy hotel to go to the new hotel where my tour group will be staying. This new hotel is so much better. Dropped off my backpack for check-in at 3:00pm later that day.
Now for the fun bit. Fitting into the place like a local. I caught the subway and metro bus to visit Highland Park. This was during peak hour (9:00am). It was busy...but people start work late here. I was using the BakuKart pass, the same as what you should use for airport transfers.
Highland Park is an amazing place with close views to Flame Towers andbest views of the city. Great gardens with much needed shade. The maximum temperature for the day would hit 28C.
From Highland Park I walked down to the Old City. The Old City walk was just a quick scan as I would be visiting it on my tour tomorrow.
After this, I walked to the metro subway and made my way to Heydar Mosque. Self transport is very easy in Baku. It was rather warm when I reached the mosque. I asked if I could have a look inside as the placed looked closed. The security officer said only on Fridays was it possible and I would have to use the second door (for men). I did peek through the tiny glass and it appeared to be a massive open space.
I dropped by the local Bravo supermarket store and purchased some drinks and food. Here I also experienced the problem with not being returned my correct change. The purchase was for AZN3.40. I gave a AZN10.50 and the teller returned AZN0.10. I told him to return the difference. The other customer who witnessed this said some words to him on returning my change as he had just been caught out. This was my secand experience of this kind. Make sure to always count your change.
I caught the subway back into the city and chilled in a grassy park under some shade, before going back to the hotel to check-in, shower and rest before meeting the tour group later that evening.
In the evening we all met up and some of us went to a simple dinner. It was a small tour group of six.
It was good to get some good sleep that night.
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