I have invented a slogon for the tourist board of Baku, namely: Even better next time!This is because the city is in the middle of a huge project of regeneration, with building after building and square after square under wraps as the stone's are scrubbed and crumbling bits replaced.
The cause is what the locals are calling the second oil boom. The first was back in the late 19th Century, early 20th when Azerbaijan produced half the world's oil and Baku got very rich in the process. All over town are large mansions in what we would call Victorian era design.
An economist I was talking this morning said he wasn't sure if this was the best way to spend the oil revenue. I think he's wrong and taking a too narrow view on return on investment, as what could be a better legacy for the future than a regenerated city, able to stand its own for decades to come.
But in the mean time visitors such as myself must accept that much will be hidden from view, waiting for next time.
