As
you will all know, our own JohnO and ShonaO are at present camping in
the Azerbaijani desert near Baku (a nomadic outpost on the shores of the
Caspian Sea). Life is tough, and the weather much like that at home, by
all accounts.
Without more ado, here is John's missive from the Baku of Beyond.
Dear LBSC
We’re
still in the grip of a windy and cold winter here on the shores of the
mighty Caspian. We await the balmy weather - expected mid March
whereupon most locals will disappear for 2 weeks leaving us foreign
chaps to pick up the slack.
Such is the lot of an ex-pat, so mustn’t grumble.
It’s
a strange life, if you let it. It is a crazy mix of full on city life
with an old and interesting Baku interwoven. There were huge numbers of
oil wells around the edge of the city, and new ones drilled in last 10
years and even new fields planned.
Here is a photo of just over half of John. |
I
attach a photo of me with the earliest commercial well in the world
(1846) which is in the city next to Olympic pool ! Back then Baku pumped
out 1/2 of the worlds oil production. The Nobel brothers (of prize and
dynamite fame) were key players.
Everyone is very friendly and all feels safe.
Food
and drink are of top quality and not expensive with huge range of
eastern cuisine to tempt the palate.
Sadly there is, so far, little in the way of water sports. This is for a
number of reasons; fear of uncontrolled traffic, pollution and old
Russian detritus. There is a local yacht club, but it would take
Donald's commodorial skills to get an invite.
Those with fluent
Azerbaijani will note that the John and Shona's new yacht has been
renamed Twister. Note the LBSC influence in the fendering |
So
far I’ve had a number of knock backs from the gate man. I attach photo
of a more likely craft for my exploits.
It would be great to start a skiff club here. Old photos show huge
numbers of small craft in and around the city. Maybe I’ll bring out a
set of plans !
Back end of March so hope to see all then.
Cheers, and ... Salamat qalin (take care)