The reason we drove through the night was in hope we could catch the ferry from Baku to Turkmenbashi that day. As we pulled into the port we were greeted by some other Mongol rally teams who were also waiting for the ferry. Some were waiting for the ferry to Turkmenistan, some for the ferry to Kazakhstan. 

We were told when we arrived there was a ferry leaving that evening. We just had to wait for the lady who runs the ticket office to arrive. The teams who were going to Turkmenistan already had their tickets so we just had to wait. Whilst we were waiting we were given the low down on the port, the cost of the ferry & the ‘fixer’. 

It seems the day the ferry is due to leave for Turkmenistan the port is a hive of activity. The previous night the ferry had arrived & trailers were being unloaded ready for collection. Truck drivers sat around outside the office waiting for boats to arrive so they can load or unload them. 

Whilst we were chatting, the lady who runs the ticket office arrived. She got out of her car & went into the office & shut the door. Guess we weren’t going in just yet. We all carried on chatting & some more people who were not part of the rally turned up in the hope of one of the magic tickets. All we could do was wait. 

Some time later the door to the office opened & there was a race to step inside. There were people asking about the ferry to Kazakhstan, the ferry to Baku, what time the ferry was boarding all at the same time. The lady who manages to office has built a reputation for being a bit fierce. After seeing what she must go through each time a ferry is due in or leaving I’m not surprised. It is the only way to manage the influx of people all asking questions at the same time. 

Anyway, back to trying to buy a golden ticket. 

We were all told to get out of the office & wait outside. Soon, the door opened again & an Italian couple walked in. They had been in Baku for a week trying to get on the ferry. Their difficulty was they had a VW campervan & a caravan. We then heard there was only one car space on the ferry. Before we knew it, a couple who had arrived about an hour after we did were in the office & had secured the final ferry ticket & we were told to come back at 3pm to see if a space was available. 

As there wasn’t much we could do & we were in desperate need of water & supplies, I went into the town whilst John caught up on the sleep lost last night. I eventually found a place where I could exchange some dollars for Azerbaijani Manat & then found a small corner shop to buys the essentials.

Soon 3pm arrived & the ticket office lady told us a place was not available & we would have to wait till tomorrow to see if another boat would arrive. Oh well, it was worth a try. The other Mongol ralliers at the port were shocked we didn’t get the ticket but I guess that is the way it goes sometimes. It probably helped that the couple who secured the last ticket spoke Russian. 

A couple of hours later the port was quiet. The teams for the ferry to Kazakhstan had left for the new port in Baku. The others for Turkmenistan had headed down towards the boat to go through customs. We were now on our own. We cooked ourselves some dinner & set our camping mats up in the garden area wondering if we were going to be on the ferry the following day. 

The next day we waited at the port for the ticket lady to arrive. Unfortunately she didn’t so we sat in their garden area & sorted out the stuff in Minty. After a few weeks on the road all our kit had been scattered all over the place & we no longer knew where most things were. Plus we could use the time to do some much needed washing. 

Soon another day was over. 

During our time waiting at the port we met some lovely people. It’s amazing the conversations you can have where neither party speaks the others language. The port workers made us chai in the afternoons, the truck drivers made us coffee. In return we supplied them with haribo. A fair exchange which certainly paid off.  We were offered showers & clean toilets to use once the staff had left for the day. It was heaven to get in a shower. Well it had been nearly 3 days since our last one & we can guarantee we definitely didn’t smell clean. 

One of the guys we met at the port runs the ports in Azerbaijan. He was the person who arranged for us to have access to the showers. During one of our many afternoon chai’s he asked us how we were getting on with our ticket for the ferry.  We just replied we were waiting for the ticket office to open. He told us us a boat was due in that evening or tomorrow morning but he would update us as he got some news.  By now, we were on our 3rd day at the port. Chances were they were fed up with us now.

Another night passed & there was no news of the ferry.  

The next morning it seemed possible a ferry was on its way. Trucks & trailers had been arriving through the night. It was looking positive. Our friend at the port asked if we had managed to secure our tickets yet. We just said we were still waiting for the ticket office to open. He said leave it with him.  Okay, there wasn’t much we could do so any help was great. Turned out this was the best thing we could have done.

After 4 days at the port of Baku we secured our tickets to Turkmenbashi :). The best part was with our new friends help we managed to get our tickets with a VIP cabin for a lot less than what some teams had been paying. We also managed to get another team on the ferry for the same price.

Thank you Mamed. We are eternally grateful for your hospitality & help.