Before we left Sheki for Lahij i could not resist taking a pic of the local Bridal Shop. My shot doesn’t do it justice but i hope you can get an idea…..!
Sheki is something of a melange of architectural styes: here are two examples of some modern buildings:
I don’t know what the first one is, but the second is an upper school.
Probably to do with the time of year, but we saw dozens of these dry river valleys. I imagine they are tumultous in the spring as the snow melts!
I rather liked this unusual cloud formation…..
We enjoyed an excellent lunch at this not very well supported restaurant on the way to Lahij…. I must have seen now at least half a dozen streets in various countries that have employed this notion of hanging umbrellas…. I do quite like it!
As we ground our way up the mountain road to Lahij we could not resist having a go at walking the Zərnava ‘Hanging Bridge’ over Girdimanchai river gorge. Not too scary provided heights don’t give you a problem, but not much to see or do when you get to the other side!!!
Here’s a vid of the intrepid Rob walking confidently across….
I am not sure who they thought was their target market, but several blokes were trying to sell spices and herbs close by the bridge….
The mountan road became steadily more dramatic the closer we got to Lahij…..
Here you can see the approach to Lahij, with the bridge crossing the river on the other side of town. I was told it is not possible to cross the mountains down to the Caspian Sea from Lahij – apparently the road curls round further up to go back to the main Sheki to Baku highway.
Here’s a vid for you which perhaps gives you a better idea of just how dramatic was our drive to Lahij! Sorry about the interference on the video….
Having arrived at the entrance to Lahij we got off the bus and walked up the main street: it was just too narrow for the bus!
As i have said before, depending on the device you are using and its operating system, you may be able to get a full screen view of any of these pics that interest you. Just a single click should do it…
Lahij has a long time reputation as a town of craftsmen, with coppersmiths in particular a big deal. Here are some pics of one of the main men at work…
And here is an example of their handiwork: a mural of beaten copper that adorns the main street…
Next, a couple of videos of the coppersmith at work….
Tour Leader Dario had been busy lowering our expectations about the standard of the accomodation in Lahij. Not sure why: i had a two bedroom suite with a kitchen and enormous bathroom. Wifi worked just fine…. I guess the wooden flooring might have put some folks off, but i didn’t hear any complaints from the gang!
That said, these people although very hospitable were more devout moslems than we encountered elsewhere in Azerbaijan: shoes off at the front door, no alcohol with dinner [but you could drink in the privacy of your room].
Another indication of their devotion to the Prophet was this little sticker on the ceiling of each room showing the faithful in which direction they had to pray to Mecca.
We had a another great meal, al fresco in the garden of the guest house…. the absence of alcohol didn’t seem to affect the gang’s enjoyment or merriment!
So, tomorrow is our final journey of the tour: from Lahij to Baku the capital of Azerbaijan…..
Tony's Geriatric Adventures 