Baku 2012

Here is a map of Azerbaijan I found online. Mostly for myself so I could figure out where the heck I was! lol We stayed in the Capital, Baku and it was lovely... for the first few days, then I started feeling like I was in the twilight zone.. Honestly, THE WORST jet lag ever. It was a full 12 hours difference from LA. So every morning I would wake up at 2 or 3am craving lunch.. UGH! 

The FIFA World cup is a competition between the top 16 female soccer (football) teams in the World! And I had the pleasure of performing for one of the three events held in Baku. Jennifer Lopez performed at the Opening Ceremony and Shakira will perform for the Closing next week!

RiRi's poster. These we everywhere!!! :)

View from my hotel room. We were fortunate enough to stay at the JW Marriott (Absheron) and I LOVED it!! It was beautiful and the Spa/Gym was SOOOO nice! I'm pretty sure room service hated me because I was calling every morning at 4am ordering something stupid like a cheeseburger or pasta.. oops. Damn jet lag.

Poppy and I walking around on our day off.. I had to do major research online to see if these shorts would be appropriate to wear.. the only other bottoms I packed were long pants and it was hot as hell there!!! Thank you TripAdvisor ;) Apparently, the Country which is 93% Muslim is pretty secular in culture. So with the exception of some random cat calling, I was fine :)

No idea..

"Old Town"
 I was expecting something much different considering Baku is one of the Worlds oldest cities.. Unfortunately this Old Town was just a series of street vendors selling some pretty elaborate rugs and refrigerator magnets.. boo! 

Flag.
 People kept saying it was the biggest flag in the World. Up close it did look monstrous,  so I did some research and turns out Guinness has recognized this as the Worlds Highest Flag. It is hoisted right next to the venue we performed in so I was able to see it everyday for a week!! 

Caspian Sea.
OMG can someone please tell me if this is where the Little Mermaid is from!? I spent the first 3 days singing the entire soundtrack, but mostly Ursula's song "Unfortunate Souls". Theres a part where she says "...Come winds of the Caspian Sea" So I just figured... ;) I am a nerd and did some online searching and some smart ass said the Little Mermaid is set in a fairy tale place made up by Disney..(Jerk) He's probably right but I'm just gonna go with my theory, it was based under the Caspian Sea, and I was JUST there! So cool :)

Posing 101. Tyra would hate me.

This is a place we went for dinner one night and it was delicious. I had a hard time eating there (Baku) in general because I am a picky eater and the 12 hour time difference was messing me up quite a bit.. but this night was just what I needed. SO YUM. It also turned out to be the lounge we went to for the pre-party, the night before the show. I can honestly say that was one of the funnest nights of my life!! Good spot.

Dinner @ChiNAR

We likey.

My Per Diem. And its last moment in my possession. You were good to me, Manat :)

I had a great time in Baku, but I am happy to be back in LA. The show was so much fun and I can't wait for the next one! Next stop for me is Salt Lake City. I am the only person in my family who hasn't met the most beautiful baby girl, my niece Jayda Faye. It has been KILLING me but I'm finally coming for ya sweetie!! Obnoxious proud Auntie photos to come!

over and out.
xoxo

Nicole