Azerbaijan > On the Way to Baku

Today, Nicolette and I are starting our vacation to the three countries of the South Caucasus: Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia. It feels a bit strange to leave on my birthday. Around half past eleven in the morning, we are dropped off at the station. We take the train to Schiphol. Since we’ve already checked in online, we can proceed directly to the baggage drop-off. The first flight to Istanbul is considerably delayed. It looks like we will depart an hour later than scheduled. As long as the delay doesn’t increase further, it’s fine. We have two hours and forty-five minutes for our connecting flight at Istanbul Airport. We walk around the airport and order a drink. When we arrive at gate E22, there is still no plane, which seems like a forewarning of more delay. At half past three—the newly communicated departure time—the aircraft arrives. Passengers are quickly guided outside, and it takes a little longer before we can board. Flight TK 1958 takes off around half past four, with about one hour and forty-five minutes of delay. Whether we run into trouble for our connection depends on the distance between the gates in Istanbul; we will see. Meanwhile, we fly over Germany. Slowly, it gets dark outside. The new international airport in Istanbul is large. We arrive at the F-pier. Immediately in the arrivals hall, someone calls out, “Passengers for Baku?” He tells us that our next flight departs from gate F12A, which is very close by.

Azerbaijan - The sun sets as we approach Istanbul

This saves time, and we arrive on time for the flight. We only have to wait a short while before boarding again. From Istanbul, it is another two and a half hours to Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. We take off exactly on schedule. It is now half past one in the night when the Turkish Airlines plane lands in Baku. Baku is two hours ahead of the Netherlands, which means I am no longer celebrating my birthday here. With my printed visa, I go through customs. The female officer says she does not need the form; our computer system already knows that we have a visa. With a new stamp in my passport, I enter Azerbaijan. The baggage has not yet arrived on the carousel, giving us the opportunity to withdraw Manats. Shortly afterward, the luggage appears. In the arrivals hall, I meet the tour leader, Maaike, and also get introduced to the other travelers. We are traveling with 22 participants. At this late hour, it is difficult to remember all their names. By bus, we drive through dark Azerbaijan to our hotel in Baku. Upon arrival, the keys are quickly handed out. It is three o’clock when I crawl into bed. I am preparing for a short night.