I was in Azerbaijan in 2012 for Eurovision. One thing that was abundantly clear was the enormous gap between the excitement of the locals for foreigners and how

I was in Azerbaijan in 2012 for Eurovision. One thing that was abundantly clear was the enormous gap between the excitement of the locals for foreigners and how few foreigners actually showed up. The Azeris saw it as an opportunity to make their mark on the world stage and spared no expense (or human rights violation, or animal rights violation) to make the event spectacular. Baku is full of me-too projects like the 2nd tallest flagpole in the world (behind Tajikistan and now Saudi Arabia), the flame towers (one of which was broken to the point of uninhabitable) and the mentioned Khazar Islands which build off the concept of Dubai's Palm Islands but nobody seems to want. The sad thing is there is actual amazing culture and interesting architecture in Azerbaijan. But the modern stuff is just atrocious.