Everyone was quite excited and there was no problem getting piled into taxis and screeming off towards port, in a mix of mercedes benz’s and a couple of local Lada taxis.
We soon cleared customs and immigration and the wait to board the ferry began. After a long delay that should have worned us of things to come everybody was shown to their cabins. We met up on deck to watch the lights of Baku and the lights of the oil rigs dance in the sea around us. I think it can be said, the first night was fairly festive with a birthday boy on board, well, actually no, it had ended at 12am while we were waiting for the ferry, but this was a good excuse to party the night away and for some to see the sunrise the following morning.
A normal Caspian crossing with all associated port entries and departures usually takes about 20 hours with an actual sailing time of about 12 to 16 hours, depending on the weather. The next day by mid afternoon we sighted the port of Turkmenbashi and all thought we would be back on terra firma that evening. It was slightly alarming when we dropped anchor about 3 miles off shore, and so the wait began, 2 and a bit days. But this is a group up for every challenge and in the end I actually think everybody will look back fondly at our cruise, though stationary on the Caspian.
Deck games were the order of the day with the hammocks coming out and the main lounge area turned into a snoozing area. Food soon became an issue, as when you are only expecting a day and then work out you may be there a bit longer, 20 hungry people can go through a lot of food. The trucks emergency stocks came out and made sure everbody ate well. I think we will be remembered fondly by the Caspian crewe who radioed the other ferries that were waiting, to say, cheer up, its not all bad, our passengers are having a blast.
