In many ways, Baku is the pearl of the Caspian Sea. While the whole city is gorgeous in its own way, in my humble opinion, none of its neighbourhoods can even compete with the Old Town, or Icheri Sheher (Inner City) as the locals call it. This is, as the name suggests, the old city center of the town, and has some of the best history, culture, food, souvenirs, markets, that Baku has to offer. Now, join me in a brisk walk around Baku’s Old Town to see it for yourself!
Old Town is surrounded by these tall walls on all sides, so you always know whether you are in it, or not. There are plenty of gates like this one spread around its perimeter, so finding your way in and out will not be a hassle. This is the one that you will use more often, as it leads directly to the modern center of the town.
These beautiful walls themselves have a few surprises ready for you. While you cannot scale them to my knowledge, you can look at the few artifacts that are put on display on them. There are a few cannons like this one, and I even saw a catapult.
Almost all streets within the Old Town feels like they are out of a fairy tale. While the historicity of the place is already intoxicating in the best way possible, it is the love that the municipality and the people put into the area today that really makes it stand out. You will see lovely creations like these all-around Old Town.
You will also be greeted by a lot of cats as you wander around Baku’s Old Town. While everyone seems to know Istanbul as a “cat city,” many are certainly sleeping on Baku. I have seen an enormous number of them throughout the city, and they seem to be very friendly and well-fed all around.
I suggest making your way around Old Town in a clockwise direction, or the other way around, when you first visit it. This way you can see everything it offers in its outer rim, the part that directly faces its walls. Then, it is best to wander right into its heart and see how people are still living there, slightly away from the tourists’ gaze. While artworks like this one are always good to see and are plentiful around that outer rim, I was more amazed at finding a small dormitory as I was aimlessly walking around the center of the Old Town on another day.
Quite unsurprisingly, Old Town is also home to some truly iconic places, especially for those coming from post-Soviet countries. For example, there is a café that was seen in the 1969 Soviet movie “The Diamond Arm.” There were plenty of Russian and Central Asian tourists flocking here just to take a photo with this car and the café nearby.
Just a few minutes away from that famous café, one can find the finest mosque of Old Town, the beautiful Juma Mosque. It has this ornate entrance but it is rather small on the inside.
What surprised me the most, however, was what I found in it. While the decorations are certainly decent, I was not expecting to find a flag displayed so centrally in a holy site. I am not used to such sights from elsewhere, and it does not seem to be the norm here in Baku as well.
One of the landmarks of Baku is none other than its Maiden Tower. You can go up and see the city from above if you like, but there is a much better place to do that elsewhere, in the observation deck affectionally known as “Baku Panoramic View” on Google Maps. Nevertheless, this tower is a sight to behold, and the area around it was always buzzing with tourist activity.
You can find houses belonging to all sorts of beliefs around this tiny part of Baku, though it does make one wonder whether the city (and I suppose the entire region) lost some of its multicultural charm in the recent decades.
One of the more famous eateries in Old Town is Merci Baku, though I did not dine there myself. I always loved walking around this area, however, as it never ceased to surprise me. Almost each time I passed here, I saw another interesting car or two waiting outside. This truck was just one of the better-looking ones that I did not hesitate to take a photo of.
At times, I was actually surprised that Old Town was free to enter, given how it is much more beautiful and filled to the brim with riches compared to some museums in it. Yes, I am talking specifically about the Palace of the Shirvanshahs… Even some doors you come across as you aimless walk around the Old Town are gorgeous.
The architecture itself is simply amazing. You may even get some shots like this where the modern Baku clashes ever so gracefully with the old Baku.
However, if you are interested in architecture, you may also want to leave the Old Town for a while. Though Old Town is charming, the areas that surround it immediately are also full of architectural gems. Most of these buildings are newer, remnants of the Tsarist or early Soviet period, but they are almost as fascinating as the more historic sites you can find in Old Town.
Besides, you will have to visit Baku’s very own pedestrian street, the Nizami. It is filled to the brim with decent eateries, tourist attractions, and gorgeous buildings, so you cannot really go wrong visiting it at any time of the day. For me, this was always the place I ended up in after a few hours of exploring the Old Town, and as such, I have to say that they just complement one another quite well.
Next week, we will be taking a closer look at Soviet Baku!