Azerbaijan

In the middle of the night, the ferry arrives in Alat. 70km south of Baku. No accommodations no place to camp. Steve and Gilly impressed me when they invited all the backpackers in the truck and we all spontaneously go to the mud volcanoes. The imminent farewell is disturbing my mood. First, I’ll be separated from Cate, she will wait in Baku for the clutch parts, then from the Snaiths. Alisha has hidden a wristband in my camera bag. When I find it, I am very touched and must forebear tears. I will miss all five very much.

Milos a young Pole at least starts at the same junction as me. He gives me a short crash course in travelling as a hitchhiker and then he is already gone. A little while later I am lucky too. Salyan, Billasuvar are my first stops then ride to Masalli holds a few surprises ready. In the break I am invited to tea and the good mood is abruptly destroyed by a Hitler salute. The little boy next to me in the taxi gives me more pleasure. He is visibly curious about the stranger and with a few pictures on my phone, I can make him happy. Searching for Wifi I entered  a cafe in which I immediately got access to the private network. I’m not allowed to pay for my food and got entertained by the guys with live singing. The curious experience ended soon and I left for Lankaran. My goal is to get rid of the remaining liquor on the beach. In Iran it is not welcome and the post refuses to send it home. With a bottle of cognac and a bottle of vodka, I’m not alone on the beach for long. Ibrahim is the first to who asked for a sip. He and his friends are very nice to me and we have a very nice evening. Fortunately, they manage to get me to the hotel even though I do not remember its name.

The next morning, I realized that I lost my notebook and my cellphone. On the recommendation of the reception I went to the police where Sahbala is willing to help me. We follow the traces of the day before and on the beach Ibrahim is already waiting with my cellphone. I am incredibly relieved and spend some time with him. The following cheek kisses demanded a little overcoming but kept in mind that I’m a guest of another culture. The rest of day is used for recovering. More than a little writing on the diary and attaching Alisha’s wristband is not possible. The next day I continue to Iran.