From Baku I took the earlies marshrutka (a shared mini bus and quite an experience in itself) to Qusar the "captital" of the Lezgian minority in Azerbaidjan. I was the only tourist in Qusar and waiting for another bus to Kuzun I was easily spotted by the local police who copied my passport & visa and asked all kinds of questions: basically they wanted to know what I was doing in the area, how long would I stay etc... Well, you have to remember that this northern part of Azerbaidjan is very close to the Russian federation republic of Dagestan where islamic terrorists frequently attack Russian infrastructure...
Somehow I managed to get to Laza anyway from where I wanted to walk to Xinaliq, according to my guide book a nice one day walk. That at least was the plan. But things in Laza are a bit more complex: the army has set up a camp directly at the route to Xinaliq and they don't let you pass unless you have a "special permission" which, of cource, you can only obtain from a government authority whose office is around three hours away from Laza - a bit to much for me just to do a one-day-walk. But, hey, this is Azerbaidjan.
The experience was nevertheless very nice as I stayed in Laza at a family homestay, very nice and hospitable people and their son, Ramid, showed me those parts of the valley which are accessible without special permission - look at the pictures!
So earlier than expected I am back in Baku and tomorrow I will get on my bike and cycle back to Tbilis - 560 kilometers of rather unspectacular desert-like landscape - at least that is what the guide book says. I will see and let you know.
Fantastic views!
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