Toronto to Frankfurt

First leg of our journey takes us to Frankfurt.
Frankfurt to Baku, Azerbaijan

Arrived in Frankfurt around 10:30 am where we have a stopover until 4:10 pm for our flight to Baku. Fortunately, we splurged on Business Class and can hang out in the Lufthansa Lounge.
Hello, Baku (Azerbaijan)

We landed late, around 11:30 p.m., and the city is geared up for the F1. The airport is full of signage and the track barriers and stands are already evident around the city. There are about 2.4Baca lagi
Exploring Baku and meeting our tribe

Brad and I had quite the surprise when we woke up and it was 10:50 a.m! We just shrugged and decided we were tired and needed the sleep and got ourselves out the door in record time. We walked toBaca lagi
Mud volcanoes, petroglyphs and Old Town

While yesterday was considered Day 1 of our group tour, it really got going today. And it was a hot one with temperatures reaching 32°.
The 11 of us boarded our mini bus and drove about an hourBaca lagi
Lahij in the Caucasus Mountains

We said goodbye to Baku this morning and drove about two hours to the Shemakhi Juma Mosque, considered the first mosque to be built in the Caucasus.
Next, we stopped for lunch at a scenic wineryBaca lagi
Nij, Sheki and the Khan Palace

Breakfast at the guesthouse included the yogurt we’d made the night before. It was much thicker than the yogurt we’re used to but delicious. We were on the road again after breakfast and travelledBaca lagi
Activity-packed day in Sheki

We had a leisurely start at 10 a.m. and took a stroll into town to visit the market. Brad and I enjoy visiting markets around the world. As much they’re the same, they’re also different. WhatBaca lagi
Hello, Georgia!

We had an early start today and left our hotel at 8 a.m. to make the two hour drive to the Georgian border. Our leader briefed us well and prepared us for the unusual border crossing. Once we reachedBaca lagi
A market, a castle and a cathedral

We woke up to rain, but that didn’t stop us from checking out the market in Telavi. It was a covered market so it wasn’t an issue. The most interesting thing we saw and tasted is what’sBaca lagi
Mountain hike to Trinity Church

It was a late start today. We had a lovely breakfast at the guesthouse, boarded the bus and went to the start of our hike up a mountain to visit Trinity Church. It’s about a one hour hike up 1,000Baca lagi
Tbilisi and tour ends

We left Georgia’s mountain area this morning for the two-and-a-half hour drive to Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. With a population of 1.5 million, it’s a major city with a wonderful historic oldBaca lagi
Back to Baku 🏎️🏁

We flew out of Tbilisi, Georgia this morning to return to Baku, Azerbaijan for the Formula One race. It’s a short flight of about an hour so easy peasy. We were pleased our room was ready and weBaca lagi
F1 pit lane walk and track ride

Today was the first day of our F1 experience. We had bought the ticket package from a London-based company called F1 Experiences months ago. Because we were travelling before arriving in Baku, weBaca lagi
F2 qualifying and F1 practice

Brad took a look at the schedule and decided that we would go to the F2 qualifying and the second F1 practice meaning we had part of the day at leisure. That served us well. We had a relaxed breakfastBaca lagi
F2 sprint, F1 qualifying + Crystal Hall

We had a relaxing morning and didn’t head to the track until early afternoon to watch the F2 sprint followed by F1 qualifying. The weather had taken a turn and while there was no rain in theBaca lagi
Race day, in more ways than one

It’s race day in Baku and a complicated one for us. It’s also our checkout day as well as our flight to Turkmenistan later today. That meant figuring out our logistics. It was fortunate that checkBaca lagi
Istanbul to Ashgabat

We’ve now completed the Baku to Istanbul leg of our journey and are on to part two, a flight from Istanbul to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Landed early this morning and were met by our Intrepid tour leader. Four other tour members were on the same flight so we met them too: a couple as well as a single woman from England and a singleBaca lagi
Touring Ashgabat

Our group set off at 8:30 this morning in a mini bus – white, of course – for a jam-packed day of sightseeing around the White City. We learned that all the buildings have been built in the lastBaca lagi
Hell ride and yurt night

We had a leisurely morning in Ashgabat and then loaded ourselves into four four-wheel drive vehicles and drove to the “Door to Hell" Crater (Baca lagi
Bumpy road to Uzbekistan

It was a super early day with breakfast at 5 a.m. I’m not a fan of getting up in the dark but you do what you gotta do. We were up at 4:30 fed at five and on the road by 5:30, back to the horrendousBaca lagi
Exploring Khiva, Uzbekistan

We had a wonderful walking tour of the Old Town today and learned about the city’s history and the stories of the beautiful buildings we toured. About 3,000 people still live within the walls of theBaca lagi
Onward to Bukhara, Uzbekistan

We left Khiva this morning for a six-hour drive to Bukhara, a city of about 300,000 and a major centre of the Silk Road. The drive was fine because the roads were good. We checked into our guest houseBaca lagi
Exploring Bukhara

We had a guided tour of Bukhara today to visit some of the key sites that are outside of the old town, but are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Our first stop was at the Ark of Bukhara, a massive fortressBaca lagi
PengembaraLooks comfy 😊