Not the best of friends

 

Today we rode into Azerbaijan from Georgia. It would have been more direct to come here from Armenia but the two don't get on very well. Its not just that they don't get on....

The Azeris tolerate people coming into their country with Armenian stamps in their passports. They don't tolerate Armenians themselves as they have not un-declared their war with them. So we were advised on certain things so as not to irritate the Azeris at the border crossing.

1. Don't put any Armenian stickers on the motorbike.

2. Don't carry any Armenian money with you.

3. Throw away any Armenian paperwork or receipts or hotel information.

4. Don't buy anything in Armenia and take it into Azerbaijan.

5. Don't wear an 'I love Armenia T-shirt'.

At the border we were asked whether we had been to Armenia and we had to say yes, as it was stamped in our passports. We were asked where we had been and whether we had brought any Armenian goods with us; hope the fridge magnet is well hidden.

One of the bikers was being asked serious questions about the bottle of water he had taken from his Armenian hotel - others more sensibly had decanted their Armenian Cognac into an old whiskey bottle.

The crossing was slow, three hours but uneventful and the guys were quite pleasant and loved the tails on the bike - Francoise could not risk photos. We had been told that we would have 72 hours to get our foreign registered vehicle either out of the country or into the customs zone at Baku, which is clearly the plan. However we seem to have been given a lot more than 72 hours which takes some of the pressure off and our visas give us a few more days too.And then 100 miles of uneventful scenery along very bumpy roads that we think we have just about survived and that then brings us to Shiki, Azerbaijan's second city.

Sheki is a cobble stoned village on a hill. Our hotel is at the top of the hill. The hill is vertiginous at this point. The cobble stones are worn smooth. There is a burst water main at the top of the hill. Francoise walks/ climbs the last 50m. We feel for the bike or more particularly the clutch.

 

Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan have been far tougher than we thought. We were waiting for the hard stuff after the Caspian, but we have struggled a bit here. The pot/ bomb holes have left their impression on us. Francoise still has a bad back and the unrelenting bad roads are not helping. We are getting wary now; the ones we hit could have put paid to our trip - but they and the others could not only hurt or damage us and the bike, they could easily lead to something far more serious than that. We don't have much trust in the roads any more - yet we won't get very far at 40km/h and the concentration required is quite tiring.
 

And tomorrow morning, we have to go back down those cobblestones...