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Asia Central Asia 2022 Kyrgyzstan

Two days in Bishkek

Exploring Bishkek

Kyrgyzstan – the country whose name I only learned to spell once I visited it – is a mountainous, sparsely populated country nestled just below Kazakhstan and, likewise, was a part of the Soviet Union until 1991 and before that was usually a part of one empire or another (Russian, Mongolian, etc). Kyrgyzstan’s history though goes back a few thousand years, and its people are traditionally nomadic. Even today, it is mostly a rural country, with only about a third of its people living in cities.

I arrived by taxi and foot after crossing the border from Kazakhstan and was deposited at my hostel – the USSR Hostel. As promised, it was walking distance to everything I wanted to see. Not counting the day that I did a countryside private tour, I had two days in Bishkek. That was enough to see and do all that I desired and do so on foot.

Statues & Buildings

I liked Bishkek, more than Almaty. Almaty is the nicer, more European-feeling city, but Bishkek felt more Central Asian. It was just more interesting. The architecture grander and more imposing. The men often wore their traditional hats. There were more statues and monuments. No, not just more; there were a shocking number of statues and monuments. Especially in Oak Park, where they filled the green space like a chess board dotted with pieces. There were brightly colored flower beds everywhere.

The city was just so interesting to walk in. But it also was an easy city to visit. Well organized and signposted and all that. So I could wander with ease.

Over the two days, I walked around and past all the notable buildings, including the UFO shaped circus building, the imposing museum, and an assortment of ornate buildings of indeterminate use.

*beautiful buildings, flowers, and Soviet insignia*

Behind the National Museum is an excellent Lenin statute. Until recent years he stood in the main square but was moved…for obvious reasons. I like the decision to keep the statue (and not destroy it) but to move it to the museum grounds, to place it in historical context, as opposed to holding him up as an icon. (There is also statue of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels deep in the park.)

A Museum & A Gallery

I visited the Museum, which was very good. A beautiful, new building displaying an impressive array of Items from Kyrgyz history.

I wandered to the National Museum of Fine Arts, which I didn’t really enjoy, but was happy to check it out. Interesting art, even if i didn’t like much of it.

Osh Bazaar

I walked to the Osh Bazaar where I was lost in rows and tangles of produce (especially berries), rounds of fresh bread that looked like that I knew from Uzbekistan, slabs of freshly butchered meat, spices, house wears, and hats. It was a very satisfying market. I enjoyed some delicious fried dough and potato treat, like a flat piroshki, and tried some balls of Qurt or Qurut or Kurut. (This being the hard dairy balls that can also be used as projectiles if you find yourself in a violent protest but short on rocks. I wrote about this more in my market post from Almaty.)

Bishkek was a very pleasant city for walking, even if it was blisteringly hot when I was there. It is a city of parks and trees; shade and greenery could almost always be found. Plus, it has a lot of great cafes. Cool cafes with tattooed baristas and pleasant patios for sitting with a coffee and a book or laptop.

Got milk?

Milk type and fermented drinks are inescapable in Bishkek. Like, in Almaty, you can buy a variety of different milks from different animals, fresh and fermented at the markets, but in Bishkek, you can buy the milk (or milk adjacent beverages) on the street. On nearly every corner is a woman sitting under an umbrella with 1-3 plastic barrels in front of her, selling drinks by the glass.

The most prominent is the Шоро or Shoro company, which sells milk beverages. They sell maksym (made from fermented barley, wheat, millet and/or corn), chalap (fermented milk, yogurt, and salt), and jarma (a fermented grain mixed with yogurt drink). You can mix maksym and chalap together, which is called aralash. Other stands will sell kymyz, which is fermented horse milk.

Maksym is the national drink of Kyrgyzstan…it is also the one I liked the least. I also found out after the fact that maksym usually has some form of animal fat in it – maybe butter or maybe other rendered animal fats – so it probably isn’t vegetarian. (oops.)

The other main company that sells their drinks on nearly every corner is the Eneasy company, which sells cold tea and milk/yogurt drinks.

All of these things you can buy in the market made in small batches or at roadside stands, but you just can’t escape the sidewalk sellers in Bishkek – and you wouldn’t want to. The milk and yogurt drinks are delicious and cost maybe 15 cents a glass.

*me, beating the heat with a refreshing glass of chalap*

Impressions

I also noticed that, while it is a Central Asian Muslim country, I saw a surprising number of cool, counterculture-looking young women with visible piercings or tattoos, partially shaved heads, and brightly dyed hair. (Like me as a teen.) I’m not saying I saw a lot of them, but enough that I took note. That’s not something I have noticed in similar places. Between this observation, the green spaces, and the cafes, I had this reoccurring thought: Is Bishkek the Portland, Oregon of Central Asia? That might be a weird comparison, but there is something to it. I liked it anyway.

I’m really squishing together my two days in Bishkek, but that’s mostly what I did. The third day I would take to the country for a bit of rural sightseeing.

Asia Central Asia 2022 Kazakhstan

Glorious Kazakhstan

I had decided to go to Kazakhstan. There wasn’t a particular thing that drew me. I just felt like it was time to go back to Central Asia. I hadn’t been to any of the ‘stans since my 2011 trip to Uzbekistan. (I had been to Pakistan in 2020, but that seems different.) Plus, in all honesty, there was something appealing about being able to color in such a big landmass on my travel map. Most of the pictures I had seen of Kazakhstan were of its natural beauty. Spectacular vistas of snow-capped mountains, bright blue lakes, and thick, evergreen forests. It all looks lovely…but it also looks a lot like Canada, so I decided to just visit Almaty. The former capital and largest city. I was light on expectations but brimming with curiosity. It surprised me but did not disappoint.

Facts

Kazakhstan has spent much of its modern history dominated by Russia. First the empire, then the Soviet Union. Prior to all that it was a country populated by nomadic peoples. Today it is a massive independent country sitting next door to Mongolia and just under Russia. The world’s ninth largest and the largest country with no connection to an ocean. Its capital is named Astana…or Nur-Sultan. It switches back and forth. Kazakhstan is considered one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world with a mixtures of cultures languages from the region. Kazakh and Russian are the national languages. It is a Muslim country but doesn’t feel particularly religious. It is well off (oil) and its cities are modern, but it still has a close connection to its nomadic and rural heritage. They grow tulips and apples, ride and eat horses, produce formidable boxers and mixed martial art fighters, and men who hunt with massive eagles while wearing large fur hats. (The men; not the birds.)

Kazakhstan is an easy place for Canadians to visit. No visa needed. No bureaucratic cash grab. Just show up, change your Dollars to Tenge and you’re set.

Arrival

I knew right away where I wanted to stay. I eschewed my budget accommodation preferences for a room at the Hotel Kazakhstan; an iconic, Soviet era high-rise with an imposing design. It’s even on some of the currency. (Also, while there are cheap hostels, none of them looked like anything special.) I arrived around midnight and when I awoke, I had a view over the city and to the mountains beyond.

Like all visits to a new city, I spent my first day walking. The streets of Almaty were pleasant. Lots of trees and inviting cafes. The architecture of the city has some definite highlights, but for the most part is unremarkable. Much of the old buildings were destroyed in an earthquake, but some Soviet apartment blocks and a few pretty buildings remain.

*Hotel Kazakhstan & and an impressive statue*

Wanderings and Impressions

Almaty surprised me. I guess I was expecting it to be more like Tashkent; a little more ‘exotic’ feeling. Really, it is more European, but with a central Asian twist. People are, for the most part, not dressed in any traditional style and the city operates like an orderly city. I didn’t find it exciting, but it was pleasant and I think it would be a decent place to live for a time.

One of the highlights was The Park of 28 Panfilov Guardsmen (aka Panifilov Park), a short walk from my hotel, it is a green park with the excellent Zenkov Cathedral (aka Ascension Cathedral) in the centre. The Zenkov Cathedral was built in 1904 and survived the earthquake. Candy colored and ornate. The most remarkable thing is that it is built entirely of wood – and without a single nail. Like Legos or a 3D jigsaw puzzle.

Just off to the side of it is the fantastic WWII war memorial. I’ve seen countless war memorials, but this one is one of the most impressive. A huge metal sculpture of soldiers bursting forth, roughly in the shape of the USSR. It has this aggressive power about it. I loved it.

Fun fact about the 28 Panfilov Guardsmen, it was a story about 28 Red Army soldiers who were killed in battle after destroying 18 German tanks and stopping the advance. It was famous. The were declared heroes. This park was named after them. The thing is…it was just a propaganda story. the Germans did advance, six of the soldiers survived; one of them joined up with the Germans maybe and another surrendered. Still, it is a lovely park.

*Soviet insignia are everywhere if you look for them*

*Kazakh Museum of Folk Musical Instruments*

*Another park. Flowers were everywhere.*

I did pay a visit to the Green Market, which was one of my favourite things in Almaty, but I’ll put that in a separate post.

Museums & Galleries

Between my days in Almaty (I’m condensing a bit here) I visited a few museums. The Museum of Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan and The Central State Museum of Kazakhstan.

I really liked the history museum. Lots of artifacts and clothing and weapons from the nomadic tribes that inhabited Kazakhstan.

The art museum was very interesting and worth visiting, though I can’t say that I loved the art. That said, I liked it for the purpose of seeing the culture and people represented. Nomadic peoples with huge furry hats and embroidered coats, eagles, and camels. The 20^th C paintings had a lot of depictions of workers and industry.

Kok Tobe

On my second day I took the cable car to Kók Tóbe Park, a small amusement park perched on a hill with excellent views of the city. It has more games than rides, but it is fun to ride the cable car and look around. There are great views of the city and a Beatles statute, and if you want to you can get your picture taken dressed as a Kazakh nomad with a real and massive eagle on your arm. I was tempted to do the latter, but ultimately did not or you would be seeing that picture now.

The only ride I went on was the Fast Coaster, which was a small cart on a metal track that races down the side of a mountain at up to 45km. I let go of the speed control and zoomed along. It didn’t feel entirely safe, but that’s what made it fun.

Evenings

Because I was staying at a proper hotel and not a hostel, I didn’t really meet anyone. While the local people were friendly, I didn’t have any of those great experiences of meeting and hanging out with anyone. The language barrier was probably also an issue. The national languages are Russian and Kazakh.

I spent my evenings in Almaty walking, smoking shisha at patios, drinking pots of local tea, and eating some excellent food. I am not a foodie, but Almaty had a great selection of restaurants we don’t see a lot of in Vancouver: Georgian, Armenian, Central Asian, Syrian, and Yemeni. I didn’t eat much Kazakh food because there just aren’t a lot of vegetarian options. I spent two full days in Almaty on the front end of my trip and a third on the back end, where I splurged and went to the opera. I’ll write about that later. I was a little sad that I wasn’t seeing more of the country, but I was onward to Kyrgyzstan.

Around the World 2022 Asia Bangladesh

Foiled plans on a Pleasant day in Dhaka

My third day in Dhaka, a Thursday, was originally to be the one where I would travel outside of the city to see Sonargaon. I had planned to go on that day and researched the bus routes, but as it turns out, those sites are closed on Thursdays (not that this information was available anywhere online that I found). So I moved my planned trip to Friday and decided to spend Thursday visiting various museums on foot. The thing is, they were also closed on Thursdays, a fact that was also not communicated online or anywhere outside of the signs on the museum doors. So I didn’t see any museums in Dhaka, but I did enjoy walking to them. Being flexible and easy going manages to keep me pretty content while travelling. (If only I could import more of that easy going nature into my non-travel life.)

The excitement of the city streets that I experienced on my first day was still there, so I was happy to be out and about. I felt free and happy as I walked from my hotel according to the route I had chosen. I bought some sweet lentil ball snacks from a little bakery and tea from a tea stall and had a little snack in the shade under the trees.

I walked first towards the Bangladeshi parliament building, Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, designed by Louis Khan and built between 1961 and 1982. I knew I wouldn’t be able to enter the grounds, but I wanted to get a closer look from the gate. It is this super modern, quasi brutalist structure that seems totally out of keeping with anything one would imagine about Bangladesh. It looks like it should be in a Soviet country.

I walked around it, taking shelter under some thickly leafed trees (along with everyone else) during a short but powerful downpour. I then crossed the street and walked through a park where locals were strolling and relaxing under the trees or diving off the bridge into the small river below.

I walked to the various museums that I would not be able to visit.

Foiled, I walked to the New Market and wandered around there for a while, which was pleasant. I walked across an overpass where I got a terrific view of the exhilarating chaos of the market area outside the market.

I saw some new things, including horses pulling carriages covered in mirrors and jewels. I assumed they were for weddings or something ceremonial, but I found out that they are part of the regular public transportation system. Like you can take a bus, a taxi, a tuk tuk, a rickshaw, or a jeweled carriage. Like Cinderella. I tried to take pictures, but couldn’t get any good ones.

One is rewarded for walking in Dhaka; rewarded with little things that might be missed if on your phone in a rickshaw or whizzing by in a vehicle. I saw a monument that was basically a giant machine gun, endless portraits of, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country’s first prime minister (for less than a year, as he was assassinated in a coup in 1975), a monument to rickshaw pullers, kids playing cricket, cute cafés, and some sort of … Siamese twin dog? I’m still not sure about that last one. I saw a dog – or two dogs – but they were definitely physically connected at the hips and had suffered some serious physically trauma to their back(s). It was really weird and disturbing, but I like weird, and I wouldn’t have seen these things if I wasn’t wandering aimlessly.

All of this walking (and it was a lot, like over 20 km that day), took up most of the day. I walked back to Ambrosia guest house where I was staying and had a cigar in the garden before heading out for dinner in the area at a restaurant that was upstairs. I forget the name, but it had leafy patios going up and up, like a tree house. There evening air was so pleasant after the heat of the day.

I slept soundly with plans for my actual visit to Sonargaon, transpiring in the morning.

Europe Germany Riga Long Weekend

Munich Layover – Part Two

Six hours in Munich. That was my opportunity as I flew home from my long weekend in Latvia. Never one to leave a crumb of vacation on the table, I decided I would again head into the city, just as I had three days prior. This time, though, I was more efficient (and did not get lost looking for the entrance to the S-Bahn).

Getting out of the station at Marionplatz, this time I turned left instead of right and wandered down a big pedestrian street, popping into a café and a church (the Frauenkirche).

The boulevard was busy with leisure seekers, sipping coffee and shopping. Buskers staked out their places – my favourite being a young kid playing an upright piano with the skill of a trained classical composer. I watched him for some time and was dismayed by all the people who video recorded him and did not give him a cent. I over tipped him, which both compensated his talents and made me feel like a superior person in comparison to those who gave nothing. (I’m sure there are plenty of time I don’t give money, but this time I did.) Money well spent.

I popped into a bright yellow church: the Theatin Church of St. Cajetan (built in the late 1600s). I’ll pretty much poke my head into any old church. I generally know they will either be dull or beautiful and occasionally they will be jaw-droppingly opulent, like many of the orthodox churches in Russia. This was something else. While the outside was brightly hued the inside was a monochromatic pale grey. It was extremely decorative in its carved ornamentation, but every bit is it was this pale grey. It looked like someone just turned the color off and left it in monochrome, like an optical trick. I thought it was extraordinary.

*interior of the Theatin Church of St. Cajetan*

Feeling elevated by the street music and the architectural design I set off to see some visual arts at the Haus der Kunst, which was a pleasant walk through a park.

The Haus der Kunst was built by the Nazis to show its collection of dull, rural, Aryan art, but now features art that represents diverse groups and challenges. I hadn’t been there before, but picked it because it is fairly small, so it seemed perfect for my short stopover.

I don’t know what they normally show, but when I was there, they had all installations – light, sound, and fog. Many years ago when I first heard of a light or sound art installation, it thought it was stupid. Some kind of pretentious scam. I later realized they are legitimate and can be amazing. But when I heard of a fog installation, again, my first reaction was scepticism. “That sounds stupid,” I thought, as I entered a large, high-ceilinged room with a long pool of water down the centre and taking up most of the floor space. We all stood around, waiting, then there was an almost imperceptible sound. Was it a rumble or a tone? And then fog started to rise from one end of the pool and it rolled in a controlled way down the pool to the other end, filling the room with haze until the figures around me nearly disappeared. Subtle lighting gave everything a blue-green tint. It was eerie and beautiful and menacing. And then it was over. I was converted. I know it sounds stupid, but it was great. (I should say that the artist is Fujiko Nakaya from Japan and this is what she does.)

There were also excellent installations where record players on pedestals filled a room and randomly turned on when a shaft of light fell on them and each would play its record, each of which was a soundscape of a different city. Calls to prayer, traffic, overlapping conversations.

Another favourite was a room then enveloped the viewed in a swirl of sounds and words.

The experience of all of these things left me feeling full of emotion and conviction that art (be it music, writing, architecture, or even bloody fog) is the most important thing we do and makes the world a better place. I mean, I do feel this way generally, but sometimes i get kind of swept up in it all.

With my heart full and spirit uplifted, I made my way back to the train station and the airport and returned with plenty of time of time. I understand why one might not like to leave the airport with a six-hour layover, and this may seem obvious, but I am amazed at what one can do and experience in such a short time. It was a wonderful end to my already great Latvian long weekend and left me feeling satisfied. I would be happy to see more in Munich, but I can’t believe all I enjoyed in my two layovers.

Europe Latvia Riga Long Weekend

Latvia Long Weekend – Riga day one

I landed in Riga, Latvia very late. Past midnight. I would get just a few hours of sleep before getting up early to see the city. No time for sleeping in or having leisurely breakfasts. I had flown to Riga for a long weekend. From Vancouver. Not the sort of trip with time for relaxation built in.

As I said in my previous post, I didn’t know much about Latvia. Riga just seemed like a nice place to spend two and half days, the architecture looked pretty, and, well, what a great opportunity to learn something about a place I knew little about.

I took a taxi from the airport to the old town centre, to my hostel, the Blue Bird Hostel. I let myself in with a key code and snuggled into my bunk bed, careful not to wake my sleeping roommates.

In the morning, I went outside and began to explore.

Riga’s old city centre is stunning. So are the centres of many European capitals, but this one really stands out. Gracefully curving streets lined with colorful buildings, often adorned with decorative paintings or whimsical flourishes. There is, for example, a building that is yellow with turrets and at the top of each is a black cat, arching its back with hostility (a sort of ‘fuck you’ to a particular guild that had denied entry to the owner of the building.). Another has a statue of a German Shepherd standing guard over the roof.

The place is a delight and a dream to take pictures of. And because it is touristy, you don’t feel weird taking pictures of streets and shops and whatnot, the way I sometimes do when I am the only tourist around and everyone else is just trying to get on with their lives.

There are some museums and galleries here and there, but when I visited, all but one was closed for refurbishment or covid. No matter: the streets were the main attraction.

I stopped for coffees at cute little cafes and went in search of public art, including a statue of a ghost that, inexplicably, made me uneasy even though it was, you know, a statue. There were tourists wandering about doing a lot of the same things that I was, but the town was far from over run.

Getting outside of the historic centre, the city felt less precious, but the architecture was still awesome. Riga is known for having an impressive display of art nouveau buildings. They are not difficult to find. There are a few streets that are lined, end to end, with these gorgeous buildings. Colorful and decorated with white filigree, often depicting ancient legends, or incorporating imagery like dragons, flowers, and sexy naked people. One of my favorite details were large faces staring out, open mouthed in shock or horror.

*Buildings on and around Alberta Street*

I do feel a teensy bit bad for the people who live in the buildings on Alberta Street, where there must just be an endless parade of tourists snapping selfies in front of the striking structures. (But that concern did not stop me from taking dozens of pictures.)

When you get away from these streets and before plunging back into the confection of the old centre, there are more ordinary streets, but charming in their own right. Modest but appealing old two-level wooden buildings, serious coffee roasters, and graffiti.

I had a coffee at the excellent Rocket Bean Roastery and then decided to seek out the Oak Lounge, a cigar lounge, for a break. (I had been walking for hours without rest.) To my delight, the cigar lounge was across the street. Sweet serendipity. I bought a Bolivar from the modest but reasonably priced selection and settled in with a tea and my cigar. It was early and was quiet. I chatted a bit with a local guy until his friend came to join him. Otherwise, is just smoked and planned my next moves.

I spent the rest of that day continuing to walk around. I walked over through a park lining the Daugava river, visited a grand, orthodox cathedral, and then over to the Riga Cental Market.

The market visit was good. They always are, but this had the bonus of being housed in WWI zeppelin hangars. Yeah. It was cool. I spent time wandering amongst the pickled vegetables and dumplings, fruits, and honey, trying to imagine dirigibles filling the spaces, which then led to me thinking about air ships generally and trying to remember the difference between a dirigible, a blimp, and a zeppelin. (This is, incidentally, something I look up regularly and never seem to remember.)

The area around the market was just a little bit seedy and busy, which was a great antidote to the beauty of the old centre.

Riga was beautiful and I loved it, but you really can see the old city in a half to a full a day. I loved the wandering, but it was not a big area. With the museums closed, before I was finished my first day, I was starting to feel like it was out of things to do, in that area anyway. So I planned a walking tour of ‘alternative Riga’ for the next day.

I had a mediocre meal on an excellent patio before wandering over to the Grand Hotel Kempinski, to enjoy their very fancy cigar lounge. The cigar prices were insane, so I smoked a cigar I brought with me (a Quai d’Orsay) and had a fancy tea service. In the lounge I had a most pleasant conversation with a Norwegian accountant in town for a corporate weekend and nursing a hangover from the previous night’s festivities (strip clubs).

After that I went and had a martini under an umbrella on a patio (it was raining) where I had yet another cigar while chatting with vacationing and moderately intoxicated Brits and Russians.

I had hoped maybe to find someone from my hostel to hang out with, but the people I encountered there were fairly dull and seemed to spend the whole day sleeping and watching Netflix. Dull.

It was a perfectly pleasant Riga day. I was completely satisfied with my first day and looking forward to more.

Europe Iraqi Kurdistan/Albania trip 2022 North Macedonia

Wandering North Macedonia

Roadtrip!

I couldn’t resist the Wandering North/North Macedonia mashup for the title of this post, but I really wasn’t wandering North Macedonia; it was a strategic strike. I didn’t see myself doing a proper trip to North Macedonia, but a day trip from Tirana seemed perfect. I looked at options to get from Tirana to Skopje (the capital of North Macedonia) by bus and regular taxis and it is do-able but seemed like doing it in a day might be an unwelcome challenge, so I looked for a guide to take me on the day trip. I am glad I did. I got see everything I wanted to in a single day and got loads of useful information about the area.

The tour I booked was through “Go As Local“. It wasn’t cheap as a solo traveler, but it was good value. I was picked up early in the morning by colleagues and buddies Andi and Skerdi. They were delightful. They gave me lots of good historical and present-day information and answered all my questions. As a bonus, they are really great company and quite funny. They get along and have a good vibe between them that was enjoyable. They were good companions for what was a long day.

Just a bit of History

If you haven’t been keeping up with the Balkans, here’s the deal with North Macedonia (big picture only). In the 20^th century it was ruled by Bulgaria and Serbia, then became part of communist Yugoslavia. After the Soviet Union fell, it became Macedonia. The problem is, according to Greece, ‘Macedonia’ is a region in Greece and they demanded a name change to the new nation. Macedonia relented and in 2018 Macedonia became North Macedonia. In the 21^st century there have been disputes with Albanian insurgents in Macedonia seeking independence, but that seems to be resolved.

Macedonia is mostly Eastern Orthodox, with about a quarter of the population being Muslim. They speak Macedonian, which in written in Cyrillic. They have beautiful currency (the Dener).

It was a nice drive. Rolling green hills, picturesque towns, the hillside dotted with mosques.

It wasn’t a long trip from Tirana to our first stop: Ohrid.

Ohrid, North Macedonia

Ohrid is notable for being beautiful and, at one time, although a small city (or large town) it had 365 churches. One for each day of the year. I guess they just took a day off each leap year. Most of the churches are long gone, but there are some, the most notable of which is an orthodox church sitting above Lake Orhrid. We walked up a hill though streets of houses to a picturesque fort at the top, Macedonia’s super cool flag flying from top.

(I do really like their flag. A yellow circle with bright, thick yellow rays on a bright red background. It is so bold. It looks like what you might see in a comic book when someone gets karate chopped or takes a kick to the head.)

Anyway, we walked up to the fort, then through the trees, down past the church, which looked stunning over the sparkling lake, then down along a boardwalk on the edge of the lake, past wooden boats and charmingly rustic waterfront dwellings.

It is lovely. That said, I really didn’t need to spend more time there. Sure, I could imagine having a meal and a cigar at one of the outdoor, lakeside restaurants, maybe even spending a night, but I wouldn’t necessarily have seen more; only relaxed. So I prefer the way things actually transpired, which is that we sped off to Skopje.

Skopje, North Macedonia

While Ohrid is an easy day trip from Tirana, Skopje is pretty far. This leg of the journey was less picturesque, but still pleasant. I was looking forward to Skopje because, well, it looked weird. And I like weird. As it turned out all of Skopje is not weird. Much of it is normal and nice, but the part that is weird did not disappoint.

So, in 1963 a huge earthquake destroyed much of the city centre. Many years later the government undertook a project called “Skopje 2014” which was designed to give Skopje an identity, celebrate famous Macedonians (like Alexander the Great and Mother Theresa), and attract visitors.

The result is that the centre looks artificial and haphazard and like it is trying too hard to look classic and refined. Some people have compared it to Las Vegas, which is apt. Like Caesar’s Palace or the Venetian, it’s a grand and a bit tacky. It also feels a bit like a person with poor taste won the lottery and bought every ornate and fancy object they could in an effort to show off their wealth and new class.

The centre of Skopje has, on one side of a small river, a row of gleaming white neo classical / baroque buildings, each with rows of famous (?) historic figures in front. (As I understand it, these buildings are very poorly constructed and are already falling into disrepair. But, man, are they white.) There are foot bridges across the small river. Each bridge is crammed with statues of important persons. On either side of the river there are squares with HUGE statues. Like Luxor huge. Genghis Khan huge. And there are all the images you would expect from classical sculpture, but mashed up in jarring way. There are horses, lions, fountains, thrones, groups of men, solitary men, women in flowing robes, etc. And everything is just sort of plunked down, seemingly at random. It is a lot to take in.

If the goal was to connect Macedonia with important historical figures or make its history more important or to have people take it more seriously, I don’t think it was 100% successful. But if the goal was to increase tourism, I think it is a win for the diminutive nation. Instagram has tons of photos from curious travellers who seem to have been in Skopje to gawk at the weird, big statues. And part of the reason I wanted to visit was to seek the spectacle.

But there is more to Skopje than that. I really liked the area around the hammam, the Old Bazaar area, which was a pedestrian area of gently curving streets of one to two story buildings with rows of shops and some attractive neighbourhood cafes. It has a pleasant feel, even if I did get the sense that the majority of the people there were tourists.

Andi, Skerdi, and I enjoyed a coffee (and I had a small cigar) and then the three of us went for dinner in an old house serving traditional Macedonian food.

Dinner was good and it was a nice end to a great day.

Kosovo…sort of

Except it wasn’t quite the end. We still had the long drive back to Tirana, but (bonus!) we drove back through Kosovo! We went through border patrol and my passport was stamped and everything. I was delighted to be in a new country.

Did I see much of Kosovo? No. I still would like to visit Pristina and I am not writing it off as ‘done’, but I am counting it. We stopped, fueled the car, bought drinks and a bite to eat. It’s something. (I’ve been back and forth with myself on this, but I’ve decided I am counting it – and I will return.)

By the time I got back to the hostel, it was late. I think it was a 14 hour day, but well worth it. The Balkans area great in several regards, not the least of which is that the counties are tiny and crammed in together. The fact that you can visit three countries in a day is astounding. If I drove for 14 hours in Canada, I would still be in Canada.

I went to sleep as soon as possible. I had only one full day left in Tirana and I had a lot of ground to cover.

Africa Mauritania Senegal Trip 2021 Senegal

Touching Down in Dakar, Senegal

I arrived in Dakar, Senegal in the middle of the night from Casablanca. Not my favourite thing. Arriving at night is so disorienting and robs me of any ability to get a sense of my surroundings. This uneasiness was compounded by the fact that the new international airport for Dakar is about 50 km from the City through complete darkness. During my taxi ride with the two young men who agreed to drive me for a reasonable price I wondered if I was being abducted until my sleepy brain remembered that I have maps.me on my phone and saw that we were indeed on the right path. They were nice guys who played music videos on a screen mounted on the dash and smoked cigarettes.

I got to my hotel sometime around 1am. I was staying at the Hôtel Ganalé; a small hotel in the absolute centre of the city of Dakar (the area called the Dakar-Plateau). As it turned out, I had been upgraded from my regular room to a suite on the roof, complete with my own rooftop patio. It was great, though I didn’t really appreciate it until the light of day.

Senegal was my 70th country, I believe (country counting being an imprecise endeavor). I picked it because it is close to Mauritania and, after my week there, which was amazing, but a bit rough, I thought it would be nice to hang out in relatively urban and modern Dakar. Senegal is in West Africa, bordered by Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau, with the sliver country of The Gambia entirely within its borders. Senegal is quite frequented by tourists and is known for its music scene, surfing, and, once upon a time, the Paris-Dakar rally. It is a poor country, but in Dakar there is a lot of wealth on display, with the true poverty a bit hidden in certain areas. The official language is French, but most people also (or instead) speak Wolof or one of the other common local languages.

There was no particular sight that I went to see in Dakar, I just picked it more for the vibe and proximity to Mauritania. It proved to be a good choice.

On my first full day, after a filling breakfast at the hotel, I set off walking. I meandered around the streets. The area around my hotel had a lot going on: cafes, shops, mosques, and the Institut Français. I walked a few blocks to the Musée Théodore-Monod d’art Africain IFAN. Dakar has a lot of museums and galleries, but I picked this one for a start as it was manageable in size and had a good selection of West African traditional art and artifacts. It was great and nice to see West African museum pieces on display in West Africa as opposed to in the museums of the once upon a time colonizing countries.

From there I walked the city with less intention, soaking up the lively atmosphere and appealing architecture.

It was hot and humid. I went from a clean and freshly made-up human to a sweaty beast within minutes. Putting on a covid mask whenever I went indoors did not help. But the weather felt good. Healthy.

I walked down to the sprawling market area where arts and crafts, textiles, clothing, and household wares are sold. I didn’t buy anything that day but enjoyed my browsing and dialogues with the vendors.

I spent some time relaxing with a cigar and bissap juice at the Institut Français, which is just an oasis in the city.

The people I met in Dakar were friendly and outgoing. Before I went, most of what I heard from others and read suggested that I would be endlessly hassled while walking around; that I would be bothered by beggars and hounded by touts. It wasn’t quite like that. I don’t recall seeing beggars – or at least none that approached me. I did have men come up to me and speak to me out of curiosity or offering their services as guides, but it wasn’t a hassle. I never felt bothered by it. I certainly never felt unsafe, which was another thing I had been told to expect – that especially at night one should not walk about the city. It seemed fine, with the usual precautions I employ of awareness, confident walking, and sobriety. With all of the restaurants and music venues, what a shame it would be to not go out at night.

That said, my first night, I did spend mostly inside, apart from a dinner out at a Korean restaurant, where my “vegetarian soup” had octopus tentacles lurking in it (particularly disconcerting as I was reading HP Lovecraft at the time).

It was a great first day.

Africa Benin West Africa Trip 2019

Porto Novo

For my final day in Cotonou, having seen what I wanted to see of the city, I decided to visit Porto Novo, the capital city of Benin. By comparison to Cotonou, Porto Novo is a small town. It doesn’t really have any attractions or sights, per se, but it is a lovely place for a wander. And that is pretty much all I did. I walked around and so here are the photos I took while I did so.

There are a couple small museums there but I passed on those. I did, however, take a guided tour of the one time royal palace.

After taking in the markets and the beautiful buildings, I walked down to a hotel on the lake and enjoyed a juice before heading back to Cotonou. No mishaps or odd encounters, just a relaxing day.

The next day I would start my journey home – but first, a long layover in Cote d’Ivoire.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

Back to Baku

While I took the train from Baku to Sheki and loved it, I didn’t want to do the same on the return journey. I could have taken a minibus, but I really wanted to take a private car so I could have a more comfortable drive and also stop and see some things on the way. Fortunately, Misha, one of my Air bnb hosts, was driving back to Baku and agreed to take me. This turned out to be a great option. He was excited to show me some sights of his country and I had no particular agenda and was just happy to go along with whatever he chose.

But first, the family I was staying with made breakfast and wanted a final picture.

The first stop was in Kiş (Kish), which is just next door to Sheki. It is notable for a church, the Albanian Church, built in the 10th century and may also be the site of much older churches. It is very pretty, set in a rose garden, and gives a view of the hills in the background. I said that it looked like an Armenian church, which, as is turns out, was not the right thing to say. I had forgotten that there had been fairly recent war and hostility between the country.

From there we stopped at a waterfall picnic site popular with locals. There were a couple of small lakes filled with yellow fish, a waterfall, restaurant, and shisha smoking area. Oddly, there were also fiberglass creatures placed around the lake like deer and alligators.

We went for a quick and very expensive coffee in a town with an impressive gondola going up the mountains for views and hiking.

We stopped at a roadside stand and bought a freshly made, buttery flatbread rolled up with 7 fresh green herbs inside.

We stopped at another spot – a roadside cluster of camps for refugees from the war with Armenia – and bought delicious, hot bread fresh from the outdoor clay (?) oven.

We stopped at a lake area where locals picnicked, went out on paddle boats, rode horses, and smoked shisha in little tea houses.

Everywhere we drove we went past roadside stands selling fruit, honey, nuts, and jam.

We stopped for a traditional tea in the forest with all the accompaniments: lemon, sugar, rosewater, cherry jam, and candies. The idea, I discovered, was not to stir the jam into the coffee but to take a spoonful of it as you drink your tea.

*The assortment of jams for tea available at a restaurant in Baku*

The ride was great. I learned a bit about history and culture and saw things I would not have sought out in my own, but I enjoyed seeing.

We arrived back in Baku where I snapped pictures of more random Azerbaijan architecture from the car window.

The next day was my final day in Baku and I really didn’t have anything I was excited to do, so I decided to just go for a meandering walk on the way to the bazaar. As it turned out there are a cluster of cafes with book themes or bookstores with cafes just above Fountain Square (on and around Tolstoy and Gogol streets). I decided to visit as many of them as I could find. I think I had about 5 coffees in about two hours. It was great. I liked the neighbourhood and the cafes, which ranged from cute to divey.

I especially liked the Old School Cafe, which is not book themed, but has a delightful and eclectic atmosphere. And of course, you can smoke inside all of these cafes, which made the even better.

I had a great time wandering the streets.

I make my way up to the bazaar, which I enjoyed, but I felt a bit rushed because people could tell I was a tourist as soon as I took out my camera to take pictures of food, at which point everyone tried to sell me caviar. I had heard this was the place to buy inexpensive caviar, but I wasn’t having any.

The rest of the day was pleasant, but a bit aimless. I walked, I smoked shisha, I ate at a Georgian restaurant, but eventually I was just killing time until my very late flight.

A lot of people who had never been to Azerbaijan said my trip sounded too short, and I had wondered that myself ahead of time. As it turned out, it was just right. A few days in Baku, a day and a night in Sheki, an overnight train trip, and a day driving was exactly the right amount of time. I saw everything I wanted to and left satisfied – and ready for a final night in London.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

I fell in love with a building in Baku

I enjoyed my first day in Baku, but my second was better. I was rested and having gotten a sense of how compact things were I was freed from any anxiety about seeing everything in the time allotted.

I went for a leisurely breakfast of cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, cheese, and mountains of bread. (I didn’t eat mountains, but they provided it.) They take bread very seriously here. Perfect baguettes, round and sesame simits, long and salty bread that is both flat and fluffy. Apparently bread can never be allowed to touch the ground, even when discarding it. I had a cigar at a leafy cafe.

I walked many of the streets were the same that I saw the day before but it was less hot and I had more energy, so it was better.

But I did have a sort of a plan. I wanted to go see the Heydar Aliyev Centre but it was a bit far from the city centre, so I took the metro. The metro system in Baku isn’t vast, but it’s decent. I went to the station at the old city, bought a BakiKart (plastic metro card, which costs 2 manat) and loaded a couple of rides, which I think were about 30 qəpik each. It’s a regular metro and was easy to use. They even call out stops in English as well as Russian and Azeri. I took a few pictures before I realized that is not allowed.

I got out at the Nariman Narimanov stop, expecting to see the distinctive building I was looking for, but I didn’t, so of the four directions I had available to me, I picked one on instinct and it was the right one. (I assure you, I am not usually so lucky.)

If you are trying to make the same trip, as you exit the metro station you have two directions to choose from. Take the one on the left. When you get to the street walk so that the park and the unsightly McDonalds are at your back. Keep walking for a couple long blocks and you will eventually see the white Heydar Aliyev Centre one block away on your left.

The Heydar Aliyev Centre is magnificent. I had actually debated visiting it at one point, thinking, “Do I really want to go out of my way to see the exterior of a building?” I am so glad I went. It is huge and gleaming and as you walk around it, it reveals itself in various, beautiful forms. It’s like a frozen wave or a perfect cloud.

Baku is fully of varied architecture, from ancient and Islamic, to Soviet, to modern and beyond. But this is, in my opinion, the best of it.

What made visiting it a bit of a challenge was the wind. It was the strongest wind I think I’ve ever experienced. It blew me off my feet, lifted my heavy shoulder bag, and swiped the sunglasses of a woman I asked to take my picture.

On the grounds of the centre are numerous brightly coloured rabbits and snails. I don’t know why.

From there I walked in the hopes of finding the next closest metro station rather than backtracking. I didn’t find it. Rather, i walked for quite a while through an area predominantly populated by garages, whilst getting pelted by gravel and sticks from the wind. I did stumble upon a market, which was nice, but I was tired and that dampened my enthusiasm for watermelons and figs.

So i hopped on a bus. I didn’t know where it was going ultimately but it was heading in the same direction that I was, so…good enough. Of course the bus quickly started turning until I had no idea where I was. Eventually, seeing a bunch of taxis, I hastily got off while the bus driver stopped for shawarma. And where was I? At a metro station! So I was able get myself back, getting off one station early, which allowed me to walk through a new neighbourhood.

I stopped at a cute baklava bakery (one of many) in the old city for a Turkish coffee and a selection of treats. Baklava so sweet my mouth felt like it was vibrating.

I had a bit of a nap and then went out for some shisha and delicious eggplant rolls stuffed with walnut paste and pomegranate arils. I also had tea. They are very big tea drinkers here, but one thing that is unique is that tea with jam is often on the menu; one selects the type of jam and gets a huge bowl of it, which they stir into their tea and eat by the spoonful. I did not have that. It looks appealing, but I don’t really want to eat a bowl of jam.

I went to bed around midnight and dreamed of rabbits.

Tag: architechture