Azerbaijan: An Under Rated Masterpiece at Caspian Sea

• 

Azerbaijan is situated in the southern part of Caucasus having its borders with Georgia, Russia, Armenia, Iran and Turkey. When we talk about this beautiful land, there are countless reasons because of which human beings are attracted to visit this place at least once and the top most attraction is that this is one of the few places where we can explore East and West at the same time. The Eastern and Western amalgamation multiplies its beauty. From the historical fortresses to modern day buildings, from medieval constructions to Ottoman architecture, everything has its own beauty. Whether it is Azeri cultural tea, traditional carpets or mysterious mud Volcanoes, everything has its own fascination.

GARASU VOLCANO:

• 

Azerbaijan is the only country having most of the mud volcanoes, to be specific 350 of the 700 volcanoes in the world are in Gobustan, 40miles from Baku, Azerbaijan. Among local people, this place is commonly known as “Yanardagh” which means “Burning Mountain”.

• 

When you visit these mountains, you will feel that you are walking on the surface of moon. These mud volcanoes are one of the must visit place in Azerbaijan. 

• 

BAKU:

• 

Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan, also known as “The City of Lights” is one of the most beautiful and historical cities of the world. Baku is the largest city of the country and the largest city near the Caspian Sea. The trio sky scrapers known as “The Flame Towers” represents Azeri’s historical symbol of fire and it can be viewed from ever farthest part of the city. 

• 

Baku is known as a major cultural and educational hub for Azerbaijan. Major educational centers include Baku State University, Khazar University, and Azerbaijan Technical University.

• 

• 

Icheri Sheher is the Old Town in the heart of Baku is a historical masterpiece. There is a saying that this city was present even in 12^th century.

• 

Once, there were two fortress walls to protect Baku along with a wall between the sea and the city. With the passage of time, outer wall have been destroyed. But the remaining of the historical fortress still carries a lot of attraction for the researchers, historians, explorers and tourists.

• 

• 

Many buildings inside Icheri Sheher lasted and people still live there in today’s modern world. The total population of Baku’s Old City is 3000. This is also included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

• 

• 

ACCORDING TO THE AUTHOR LEILA ABREHL FROM AZERBAIJAN:

• 

Azerbaijani food is so delicious because it offers a mixture of Turkish, Iranian and Central Asian flavors and the food habits of Azerbaijan was influenced by the soviet period, this was the reason for not using the rice but potatoes and bread and the new dishes (especially salads) with a Russian flavor.

• 

Here, I will talk about two dishes from my country Azerbaijan, the first one is Baklava and Baklava is a dessert dish that is more popular in Azerbaijan. It consists of several layers of very thin dough stuffed with chopped walnuts with honey. Pakhlava is traditionally served as triangular pieces decorated with almond kernels on top.

• 

• 

For the second dish it’s a sweet dish called Shekerbura and it’s one of the most popular sweets in Azerbaijan. It is a sweet pastry, stuffed with ground almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts or mixed with sugar or honey. Sometimes, Shekerbura is prepared with all kinds of sweetener.

• 

Note: We are thankful to the following for guide in our research.

https://travelinbaku.com/en/blog-detailed/51

https://www.advantour.com/azerbaijan/baku/icheri-sheher.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mud_volcanoes_in_Azerbaijan

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g293934-Baku_Absheron_Region-Vacations.html

https://www.britannica.com/place/Baku