It was a bit of a rough morning because we struggled finding the way to the Uzbekistan embassy. Baku is an expensive city to stay in so it was important for us to get our visa applications submitted as soon as possible. Navigating the crazy busy, poorly labeled roads where the traffic lane markings seem to serve as mere decorations on the black pavement was not the most relaxing experience either. At one point we pulled over on a side walk and our obvious frustration attracted a small crowd of onlookers. That was even more annoying so we walked off with our bikes and hid in a small alley. One of those men ended up following us which initially bothered us but his kind eyes and calm words made us feel better. We could not literally understand what he said but the careing manner in which he spoke made the actual words irrelevant. He had a pot of tea brought over from the nearest tea house with enough sugar to sweeten anyone's day. Meanwhile he called some English speaking friends who showed up almost instantly to help with the language barrier. We explained our problem and within a few minutes they had located the address of the Uzbek embassy on their phones. Vüsal, the first man who had followed us, then offered to escort us to the embassy by driving ahead of us. Wow, how nice.
THANK YOU VÜSAL SO VERY MUCH FOR YOUR HELP! YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS WERE SO KIND. WE WILL NEVER FORGET THAT.
As annoying as it had been having people come crowd around us when we were frustrated, it was just amazing to see how readily they went to great lengths to help someone in need.
In Europe and also in North America that kind of helpfulness seems to have become repressed by people's busy lifestyle, fear as well as false diplomacy by politely ignoring someone's weakness. In other words, offering to help someone may seem like you are telling the other person that they are incapable of taking care of themselves.
When we finally arrived at the embassy, we were informed that it was closed today! After making a bit of a fuss, we got an appointment for 4pm this afternoon. Since we had so much time we decided to go to the Kazakhstan embassy and try to get that visa application submitted. When we got there it was closed for lunch but we were told to come back at 3. At 3 nobody answered the door. The Kazakh consul did not show up until 3:20 so we had to just leave to not miss our Uzbek appointment. O well. We will just have to come back tomorrow.
At the Uzbek embassy they were so nice and patiently answered the load of questions we had. We stressed the importance of getting the visa by Friday (today Tuesday) and they promised us to do their best. They even brought us water because we arrived hot and sweaty after the rushed ride up from the Kazakh embassy.
Then came the question of where to sleep that night without paying a fortune for a hotel room. A mycologist (fungus scientist) ended up offering us his laboratory in the botanical gardens. It was a bit crammed and stuffy in there so we got permission to camp just outside the lab as long as we pack up before 7 am next morning before people start showing up for work.
THANK YOU FOR THE FREE CAMPING SPOT IN BAKU!
No comments:
Post a Comment