Geo Quiz

Azerbaijani Border Town

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For today’s Geo Quiz we’re in search of a city at the edge of the Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan.

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But wait!

This city has a twin just across the border in Iran. The two cities are very different. One reporter who’s been there says that’s what prompts many Iranians to cross into Azerbaijan there.

“They’re coming for everything which includes sex, pork and alcohol to the more mundane like stereo equipment, and jeans, and felt pens, and it’s run down, it’s muddy, with roosters running around, and people selling nectarines and figs, it’s just all there, and no one’s going to frown on you for consuming whatever you want to consume.”

That’s all on the Azerbaijan side. In any case, these twin cities in Iran and Azerbaijan share a name — and that’s what we’re looking for.

We’ll hear more about this border area here…

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The city we were looking for in our Geo Quiz today has a split personality. It straddles the border between the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The answer is Astara. And writer Peter Savodnik says its location makes for interesting commerce.

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