Bye Bye Baku

It's time for my last post before I head home to London. My time here in Baku is nearly up, and as I write this post I have just over 24 hours left in Azerbaijan. That is of course unless the Icelandic volcano starts playing up again. It's been a unique experience, and certainly one I won't forget about in a hurry. So, just what have been the highlights?

The past four weeks have taught me a lot about learning, teaching, culture and myself. I hope too that my students have learnt enough about IELTS to get them through their exam on Saturday. It hasn’t all been smiles, as you can see in my previous post, but I would say that overall I’ve had a lot of fun, met some really interesting people and made some good friends.

A lot of people here have asked me what I will miss about Baku and Azerbaijan, so here is my top five:

1. The people – very friendly, hospitable and inquisitive.
2. The city at night – all the old buildings are illuminated, making Baku one of the most beautiful places you could ever visit in the evenings.
3. Icherisheher – a fascinating glimpse into the past. 
4. The service in restaurants – efficient but unobtrusive.
5. The tea – the Azerbaijani people drink much more tea than us Brits, and the accompanying sweets are delicious.

So, if you ever get the chance to visit Azerbaijan and you would like some advice, let me know and I can give you a few pointers. In the meantime, I look forward to blogging again when I’m back in London. Thanks for reading.

Glossary

• time is up - (phr.v.) to have run out of time 
• to play up - (phr.v.) to cause problems 
• to get through - (phr.v.) to be able to complete something difficult 
• to not be all smiles - (fixed expression) used to describe an experience which was not always positive 
• inquisitive - (adj.) showing curiosity 
• illuminated - (adj.) provided with artificial light 
• glimpse - (n.) an indication of what something is/was like 
• unobtrusive - (adj.) not noticeable, in a positive way 
• pointers - (n.) pieces of advice or tips, informal 
• in the meantime - (adv.) during the intervening time, or the time between two events

Written by Andy, from The London School of English.