Caucasian Albanian Temple in Kish

These are pictures of Albanian temple built on the most ancient sanctuary in the territory of former Caucasian Albania in Kish village of Sheki. There are many interesting exhibits in the temple including graves of Albanian people of I-V B.C. There are many ancient Caucasian Albania temples in Azerbaijan. This temple and overall this museum complex was restored with support of Norwegian government. World famous Norwegian ethnographer and adventurer Thor Heyerdahl after his visit to Sheki and Kish said that he believed that ancient Norwegians migrated from Sheki/Kish area...interesting...

Old men of Sheki...

Today I am posting a photo of three men whom I met in the street of Kish village of Sheki. They are playing backgammon, one of the most favorite national table games of Azerbaijanis. I have asked them if I could take their photo and post it on internet and they replied that I was free to do whatever I wanted. Actually I just wanted to share with you this scene that I couldn’t pass by.

Interestingly these old men are sitting close to an old Albanian Temple of Kish village. Well the Temple is of V – VI century B.C. (the oldest Albanian church) so men are younger :) I will start series of posts devoted to the mentioned temple but for now here are typical and real characters of Sheki. I thought it would be interesting for you to see them. Take your time and look attentively to the cloths they wear and wood cuts they sit on.

Summer memories of Sheki...

I must admit beauty of regions is mainly explored during summer in Azerbaijan.

Unfortunately we all get caught in routines and feel too heavy to explore the nature when weather is less welcoming and our cloths are heavier.

I still hope to enjoy beautiful nature of autumn this year...

For now I want to post some photos of Sheki that I took this summer.

Not sure if you experience that feeling but sometimes no matter how many photos one takes there still remains that feeling that beauty was not conveyed. For instance no matter how many photos of balconies I take in Venice each time we are there when I see them again I want to take more and more photos...The same feelings I experience looking at mountains of Sheki or at some streets of the city itself. My brain tells me that I have taken these photos and even posted them and my heart whispers that maybe this new photo will convey better or more...

 

Here are some photos then...

 

View from beautiful village Kish...You can read more about Kish on this blog here...

View from beautiful Khan Palace. You can read more about Sheki Khan Palace on this blog here...

 Another photo of rooftops of Sheki...

 Gorgeous mountains of Sheki...I took one photo...and...

...then I took another one...

View from window of museum in Sheki...

Caucasian Albanian Temple in Kish

There is a belief that inside the Kish temple there is a spot on the wall where one can make a wish and try to "stick" a coin on the wall just by pressing the coin upon the wall...the coin would stay on the wall only if you are making a wish with a pure/clean heart and if your wish would come true...this kind of a belief about the place means that the place is very sacred...

please see the previous post on the temple for reference...

Tribute to Thor Heyerdahl

I wrote once about Caucasian Albanian temple in Kish, village of Sheki in this blog.

Today I am posting a photo of a bronze portrait of Thor Heyerdahl that stands in front of the temple who said the following during his visit to Sheki.

“Scandinavian mythology describes a god called ODIN that came to Nothern Europe from a place called Azer. I have studied these writings and concluded that it is not mythology. It is real history and geography.”

Personally I am fascinated by grand work Thor Heyerdahl was able to do during his life. Thanks to him our Caucasian Albanian temple in Kish got revitalized as well…

Traditions...Backgammon...

Backgammon game is called “nərd” in Azerbaijan. Just in case for those who don’t know dictionary says “backgammon is a game for two people played on a board with pieces moved according to throws of the dice”.

Behind this definition there is a lot of passion, excitement, heat for many men and quite often women in Azerbaijan who love to play backgammon. What happens usually is that after a good meal and a cup of tea many friends would continue tea ceremony playing backgammon...When game heats up often tea is forgotten, pieces are struck harder on the board (with loud sound to stress good chances of the dice) and winner is anticipating how he would be teasing his friend later saying “well, one day I will teach you how to play backgammon”. And then of course the other player wants to even the score and the excitement continues...Depending on temperament of the players game would be accompanied with laughter, teasing, jokes and stories about previous victories of the players (needless to say that every player insists that he is The professional). My father is playing less backgammon nowadays but I remember very well how he and his close friend would play a game or two at our place and we girls would run in to the room now and then and ask “so, who is winning” and of course the answer from both would be “why are you asking? don’t you know?” We didn’t know but would play up to them and choose one or the other to support or tease...these are very warm and kind memories of my childhood that I cherish very much...

It is still very common to see here and there people playing backgammon in the parks or local tea houses in Azerbaijan. I am not personally a backgammon player but I think that it is the game that can distract from routine and troubles as well as give an opportunity to interact and socialize...something that is happening less and less with games turning into virtual and socializing becoming cyber...

Some pictures on backgammon...

My cousin, Qiyasov Shahin, is specializing in creating beautiful pieces of backgammon from different sorts of wood. With different ornaments and shades depending on type of wood and complexity of work all pieces are handcrafted in his studio in Sheki. Shahin's pieces are in many local and foreign private collections. He can be contacted by following emails f_kh_g@hotmail.com; qiyasli@gmail.com or via this blog.

Shahin's backgammon...

I am not sure if you can see on this photo but actually there are backgammon sessions going on there. I took this photo last summer while in Sheki and since then the photo was waiting for its time to be shared with you...:) Couldn't go closer...feeling kind of shy :)) local mentality you see :)

This is one of my favourite pictures that I took in Kish village of Sheki back in year 2007. You can read my post on this photo here but today it fits perfectly to this post too :)

Summer heat...

Summer is not only about holidays but also one of the most active and anxious periods of the year for many families in Azerbaijan. This is when entrance exams to universities take place. If you visit the families that have boys or girls taking this exam very often you might get the feeling that as if it is the whole family that would be taking the exam. Everybody is very nervous and worried. To me this anxiousness of course passes to poor those who need to take the actual exam although everyone is also advising them to be calm and concentrated…All conversations are about the tasks, subjects, tutors and universities. Anticipation and excitement are reaching its peak on the day of the exam and when the results are announced.

What was good about Soviet times was that studying at school was a must. School program was quite thorough and no matter how far in the village anyone lived everyone was attending the classes. As a result everyone was literate. What was bad about Soviet times was that it left behind a tradition of corruption in the process of enrollment to universities. In early 90s Azerbaijan switched to test system what gave equal opportunities to everyone. I know people that had to choose universities according to their financial position and those who were trying persistently their luck knocking on the doors of the universities that had “barricade” with slogan “show me the money…” Children of these people are now able to choose the universities where they think their heart and abilities belong to. All they have to do is to study hard to pass harsh competition since studying and getting higher education continues to be popular around the country. As far as I heard this year two out of seven entrants who got the highest score of 700 are originally from Sheki!! Well done to everyone!!!

Congratulations to everyone who got what they wanted and good luck to everyone!!!

My other post about my distinct teachers can be found here.

I don’t have a relevant photo to this post...

I took below photo in Kish village of Sheki. We asked the girls a question and got a witty answer which I am afraid is untranslatable to English since it involves a phrase in dialect (which is very distinct in Sheki). The answer made us laugh (very natural for Sheki which is famous for its jokes and obviously this character runs in the veins of everyone there:). I asked the girls if I may take their photo. One decided to leave the other decided to pose. The other two didn’t care. Talking about freedom to make own choices and decisions…

P.S. For those who speak Azeri I am mentioning our dialogue with girls. “A qızlar, Kişə nətəri gedək?...”......“Habıra Kişdir, daaa!!”...bu sözlər əla intonasiya və əlləri ilə ayaqlarının altında olan torpağı göstərməklə müşayət olundu :)