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Alexey Vlasov: Baku is city prompting desire to come back (PHOTO)

Politics Materials 1 July 2011 10:48 (UTC +04:00)

Azerbaijan, Baku, July 1 /Trend, E.Tariverdiyeva/

Organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the press tour for the Russian journalists is the second project of this kind this year, said a member of the Trend Expert Council Alexey Vlasov.

"The students of the historical faculty of Moscow State University visited Baku on May 9 and spoke before the Azerbaijani veterans of WWII. The current press tour is the continuation of this line, an opportunity to get acquainted with the current realities of Baku, with local residents, the Russian journalists who may have been in Azerbaijan 10-15 years ago or those who have not yet had the opportunity to get acquainted with the current realities of Baku," deputy dean of the historical faculty of the Moscow State University, editor-in-chief of information-analytical agency Vestnik Kavkaza, Vlasov told Trend.
He said the press tour involves about ten Russian journalists who represent both television and print media outlets. It is noticeable that for them this trip is a window to the Azerbaijani world. All are new, everything looks different from looking on the internet or on television, because Baku and Baku residents are a special world, a special space, Vlasov said.

Everything changes with time, but the base, the foundation of "Bakinstva" is preserved and it is very important to imprint this continuity of the traditions in any format, he said.
"So, the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation can only be supported and welcomed," he said.

Vlasov said the window to the world is the airport and the road from it to the city. Beautiful painting of this road sets newcomers to a positive mood, it seems that the moneys received from the hydrocarbons are being spent on infrastructure projects, creating comfortable conditions for those who come to Baku, and of course, it sets a certain mood, he said.

"Of course, the old buildings of Baku are fantasy, especially for those who are familiar with Baku on old films, for example "Diamond Hand"," he said.

According to Vlasov, a walk around town without a guide is the best way to get into the spirit of Baku, to understand some hidden meanings, which the city gives.

"Maybe it sounds pompous, but a man, who first visits Baku, feels exactly so. Then you plunge into the city, but for the first time must feel in love with it," he said.

The main plus of Baku is that you feel here safe, Vlasov.

"The attitude of the local population is very friendly and comfortable. You are always smiling. And this is a general feeling of the city, where almost there are not dirty, dark streets like in some capitals of CIS countries," he said.

He said this bright white city, which by its color and light tunes on the nice positive.

Friendliness of people connected here with respecting the traditions, he said.

"I mean not only buildings, but also the special spirit of Baku. It has firmly associated with the people, including those of the younger generation, said Vlasov. - As for minuses, I am not a supporter of active construction in the historic center, but I understand the reasons the mayor's office, which is trying to solve the housing problem. It needs to receive more visitors, needs to take the Eurovision. But from the point of view of a historian, it is the point of breaking with the authentic monuments, in Moscow we passed through it. "

It is very difficult and serious problem, Vlasov said. The first impression should always be supported by regular communication, he said. Baku, according to Vlasov, is a city that encourages the desire to come back here again and again.

"It is a kind of disease, in a good sense of the word, and probably you can understand it coming all the time. This year I decided to spend a vacation in Baku. This is a tribute to the recognition of that city which accepted me and for me that is not only an object of professional interest but a very comfortable place," said Vlasov.

He said the most vivid impression of Baku today is embankment. Old city is an example of a large open-air museum, he said.

"But when you go out to the boulevard, you understand, probably in the 50s and 60s, in the same way, people were walking with their children on the promenade, breathing this beautiful air and you understand that instantaneous transfer of time is possible for a historian here," Vlasov said.

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