Faraway Friends

By Aloha Williams

Azerbaijan, Sakartvelo, Cameroon, United Arab Emirates, and Kuwaitwhat do these countries have in common? Simple. Aloha visited friends in each of these exotic destinations!

A person rich in friendships is truly wealthy! Although Alohas pocketbook is thin from her travels and generous donations, she counts herself among the richest of people with many sidekickssome who happen to live in faraway places.

What did Aloha think when Josephine told her she had two hundred brothers and sisters? Or about the commuter who flies regularly between Angola and Baku? Did the wounded pheasant really emerge cured from the hot springs? Which country built three separate parallel highways only a few miles apart all going to the same place? Where is the worlds largest dhow? Are chicken feet tasty?

With nearly a hundred country stamps in her passport, Aloha continues to circumnavigate the globe, sampling the food, the culture, the sites, and most of all, mingling with the people. Journey with her to little-known regions as she continues to be a student of the world!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jul 12, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524506926

Aloha Williams

Aloha Williams has nearly reached the magical number of 100 countries visited. A native of Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, she’s lived in every region of the United States as well as Central America and Europe. As a professional educator, she loves teaching all ages. She especially loves satisfying her inordinate curiosity about the world and its people. She always knows what day of the week it is. Just don’t ask her the date. She claims she speaks only English, but can shop in Spanish, German, French, and Japanese.

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Copyright © 2016 by Aloha Williams.

ISBN:      Softcover      978-1-5245-0693-3

                eBook          978-1-5245-0692-6

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Because of the dynamic nature of the internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

1. Azerbaijan    2. Republic of Georgia    3. Cameroon    4. United Arab Emirates     5. Kuwait—travel 21st century    6. Aloha Williams

Rev. date: 07/06/2016

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CONTENTS

FARAWAY FRIENDS

AZERBAIJAN

March 2011

SAKARTVELO—REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA

March 2011

CAMEROON

August 2003

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

April 2012

KUWAIT

April 2012

FRIENDSHIPS

TRAVEL LIST

MAPS

Azerbaijan and Georgia

Cameroon

United Arab Emirates and Kuwait

Other book written by Aloha Williams

HELLO, THANK YOU, GOOD-BYE, 2010

Dedicate

d to

My father, Russell Nozomi,

The consummate armchair geographer

FARAWAY FRIENDS

Fortunately my friends haven’t learned yet. Invite me to visit, and I’ll be there, especially the far reaches of the earth.

This compilation is an eclectic assortment of sojourns made to personal acquaintances located in Azerbaijan, and Sakartvelo better known as the Republic of Georgia in the Caucasus, Cameroon West Africa, and the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. The unifying thread is that these were not impersonal tours, but stopovers with confidants.

It amazes me that a little gal from Hawaii should become acquainted with folks residing in such corners of the globe. But the planet is becoming more mobile and such trips will become commonplace.

My sixteen-year-old niece is an excellent example. She wasn’t satisfied to spend her summer only at camp. That camp, by the way, wasn’t soccer or volleyball. It happened to be Chinese language. She also crammed in Korea, Taiwan and an orphanage in Ecuador—all in one summer! I chuckle envisioning my tall, willowy, blonde, blue-eyed niece amid the sea of shorter black-haired people.

Two of my stays were guided by locals of the country, and three were with expatriate Americans. This jaunt to Georgia was my third, and I focused on my personal relationships.

My chronicles to these countries are not only a personal remembrance but to heighten awareness of lesser known regions. It was challenging finding information in English prior to my departure.

My friend, Sharon, gave me a backwards compliment. Why haven’t you written your book on Cambodia? I am going there and need your insights! So I thought I’d at least begin with these dialogues. Cambodia is in the pipeline, Sharon!

Truly, I count myself among the most fortunate having Faraway Friends throughout the world!

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AZERBAIJAN

March 2011

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.

Soren Kierkegaard

Azerbaijan.

A long pause on the other end of the phone— Is that a city or a country? the reservation clerk curiously asked.

A country by the Caspian Sea, I replied, not certain if I had clarified or confused her.

Of the handful of people who asked where I was headed, only two had ever heard of the country alone where it was located. One friend called it the country whose name she couldn’t pronounce.

Last summer Silverio and Debbie’s son married in Texas. After the reception I showed an unusual curiosity about their new home. So an invitation was extended. I warned them that I am one who would accept the offer. I believe you should accept an invitation for two reasons: either they are sincere, or to teach them a lesson. In this case I believe the former.

Silverio had accepted work with an international oil company and moved two years ago with Debbie, his wife, to this distant land. Even though they were expatriates, it was an opportunity for me to see another exotic part of the world. So my travel plans were solidified using the adage that after three days fish and guests stinks. I was going for four days with another stop in Tbilisi, Georgia.

So I found myself sitting in a jet heading for Frankfurt and then Baku. It’s magical roaring down a runway at top speed and suddenly the wheels lifting into the stratosphere. Awe is how I feel as a flying hunk of metal defies gravity. A rush always fills me with every new adventure.

TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT

This voyage nearly didn’t happen, though. An official letter of invitation had to be issued, but only thirty days prior to departure, not sixty or ninety, but only thirty days ahead—one strike for urgency. Mailing it in overnight envelopes with three weeks to spare, I became complacent, somehow trusting the Azerbaijani Year of the Tourist to encourage efficiency.

After two weeks and my passport had not arrived, I began calling day after day to the consulate, which yielded the same meek answer—It will be mailed today. I called in desperation a week before departure.

Hi, are you the lady handling the visas? I was relieved to be talking to a live person and not a recording.

Yes.

I was wondering how my visa was coming along. I will be leaving a week from today.

The sound of envelopes rustling could be heard over the phone.

Here is your packet. You overpaid us by ten dollars. You must send us another money order for the exact amount, the woman was somber.

I followed the website instructions on payment. Since we haven’t much time before I leave, can you just cash it and treat yourself to a Starbucks. It would so much easier, I suggested.

This is an embassy and we are not allowed to do this.

Oh.

And we have to drop off your package at the post office. They will not pick up at our embassy. I am not the usual visa clerk. The other lady left last month. It is very difficult for me to keep up.

In frustration I asked a friend who lived nearby to go to the embassy. She arrived the morning the passport was mailed. She did a face-to-face stand off with the clerk and even then never received a straight answer. We felt the clerk was finally telling us the truth.

Tracking numbers are a blessing as the mail service was able to trace the parcel to arrive the morning of my departure. I quickly upgraded my service to one day. My little blue passport arrived a day before my international departure—much too close for comfort.

The debacle, the upgrade, the extra fee for money orders, and the thank you gift for my friend’s intervention cost me over $100 extra dollars, not to mention the original cost of the visa and courier service. However, I am grateful I was not at home cursing an inefficient clerk for forfeiting my air ticket.

A travel agent warned me that for certain countries you must have someone walk the passports to the embassy, else they will never arrive. I didn’t think Azerbaijan was one of them. Later I heard a horror story of how the Azeri government arbitrarily decided it would immediately stop issuing visas upon arrival at the airport. No warning was given. Passengers in midair flying into Baku were denied entry and had to turn around or go to neighboring countries to obtain a visa. At least I wasn’t caught in mid-air when this happened—so I count my lucky stars. Such are the joys of international travel!

A SERIOUS COMMUTER

My plane routed through Frankfurt and it felt like home since we lived in Germany for three years. I found myself wandering, catching the train shuttle and going to the other terminal. Usually when we have a continuous ticket we don’t need to go through security again. This time I had to reclaim a boarding pass and be frisked again so I was grateful I had ample time.

My tall assigned seatmate was from Italy on his way to Turkmenistan. He kindly helped me lift my heavy pull behind into the overhead bin. The seats across the aisle were empty so I moved over. I was joined by a native Azerbaijani who taught me a few phrases of Azeri—salaam, hello, and sau-o, thank you. Not having slept more than a few hours across the Atlantic, I curled myself onto two and a half seats and quickly fell asleep. I woke up an hour later to the clanking of dinner dishes. I passed on the main course but had a salad, roll, brie cheese, and luscious German cake!

My local Azerbaijani seatmate and I engaged in a lively conversation. I learned that he worked six weeks in Angola and then was home in Baku for six weeks. From Africa to London took over 20 hours, and then he had to continue to Frankfurt and on to Baku. He had been doing this for over four years—that’s serious commuting. The money must have been superb for him to make that kind of sacrifice. He helped walk me through immigration. Again my bags had to go through a scanner just before I could exit. His wife and three children greeted him at the end of the screening!

When I finally emerged from the cocoon of bureaucracy the rush of the milling crowd erupted and I saw Silverio, and Debbie waiting for me. I knew they would be there, but it was nonetheless a comforting sight after the long hours of flying. The airport was modern but nothing to write home about. Re-introductions were made to their driver, Ruslan, whom I had met in Texas the past summer. He was a young man in his late twenties, slightly taller than the average with straight black hair, and dark eyes. I remembered him because I never forget a handsome face! He drove us the 30 minutes to downtown Baku.

THE CAPITAL

My first glimpse of Baku in the night was a four lane highway lined with magnificent retaining walls made of expensive materials like marble, limestone, and cut rocks in varied designs. The road was clean and well lit. As we entered into the city proper Ruslan made a series of U turns since according to Debbie, you can’t drive a straight line in Baku. Our entire route featured beautiful buildings, many new or being built. As we reached the promenade area, high-end shops lined the road. I was told these were all owned by the president’s wife.

The former president, Heydar Aliyev, was the only Azerbaijani to rise through the KBG ranks to hold a position in the ruling Politburo, the controlling body of the Soviet Union. He was the chairman of the Azerbaijan Communist Party and later positioned himself to become the president of the newly independent country. I marveled at his ability to re-invent himself for the times and seasons. Even though he passed away in 2003, his portrait still hangs everywhere.