Our street is situated in one of the oldest quarters of Baku city. Like Icherisheher, the Maiden Tower, Seaside Boulevard of Baku, our quarter has its own qualities. Most of the inhabitants of our quarter are the grandchildren and the great-grandchildren of those who had once left their villages for the capital in search of happiness. Among them there are different professionals, some are rich and some are poor, but all of them chose this place to settle down.
Since my childhood years I saw smile on the faces of these people. Who knows maybe the reason of their smiling is that they want the spirits of their grandfathers or great-grandfathers who left their homeland for Baku in search of happiness be glad.
Though our quarter is situated in the outer part of the city there is also Millionaire
street, the middle quarter resembling the centre of the city and the outer quarter surrounded with skyscrapers. Our street is in the middle quarter, the back of it is the Millionaire quarter. In fact, nobody knows the inhabitants living in that quarter are really millionaires or not. Simply the estates which are built there are nice and charming, that was why everybody calls that quarter as ‘ Millionaire quarter’.
The children of our quarter distinguish from the others. The children of our quarter make friends with one another not according to their ages, but according to their interests. That is to say, there are bird-fanciers, dog-fanciers, those who keep exotic fishes, horse-fanciers, cat-fanciers, or who keep rabbits, tortoises, sea mice. So, the children group according to their interests for the animals.
It is true, among the groups there are the children who are football fans, music-fans or who love cars or different clothes. The inhabitants of our quarter have special love for the animals.
Still I don’t belong to any of the fan groups of our quarter children. It has only one reason, it is my love for the books.
At times when I borrowed my favorite book from the library, before heading our home I stopped at the children playing in the yard, looked at their dogs, carts or doves. Then I realized that it was impossible to read a book while talking with the animal fans. So, I headed our home, wanted to read the book.
Our neighbor Servaz is my classmate. Both of us study at the class 9 A. Servaz and his brothers are in the group who keep fighting cocks. As they were our next-door neighbors , and the cock-fanciers gathered in front of their yard, I often associated with the members of that group.
Servaz is also my friend. They have a large hencoop. The cocks they keep are aggressive that is why they don’t let them outside of the hencoop. If while the cocks fought there were noises in the yard, or if the cocks attacked the persons whom they didn’t like, our other neighbor nicknamed Chappa Ismikhan, whose main job was to write complaint letters used to inform the field officer . The field officer had warned the cock-fanciers for the last time, that was why they organized cock fights in one of the villages of Baku, and were satisfied by gathering in front of the hencoop of Servaz and talked in whispers.
When I was in the primary class I sat side by side with Nuru at the desk in the corner. Nuru was the fan of the aquarium fishes. During the lessons Nuru always talked about his fishes so eagerly that neither him nor I could listen to the lesson. That was why our class teacher Musa was obliged to seat me side by side with the girl named as Senuber who was sitting at one of the front desks.
Since my first form I like Senuber. To tell the truth , I fell in love with her, maybe all the boys of our school loved her secretly.
Senuber was a very beautiful girl, she used to wear expensive clothes. Since the first form a private driver drove her to school. The bald headed driver who had appearance of sportsman was also her bodyguard.
Though since the first day I saw Senuber, I dreamed about marrying to her, travelling all around the world with her, Senubar paid attention neither to me nor the other boys.
It is true, when teacher Musa let me to sit side by side with her, firstly I was glad, but then my sorrowful days began, because Senuber talked with me little. Except greeting words we never talked. When I saw the photos of film-stars and models on her copybooks I saddened, I went crazy because of jealousy. I could do nothing , didn’t know what do for making Senuber to be friendly with me.
The boy called as Aydin who lived in the back quarter often drove his motorcycle in the street and seeing him the girls of our class gathered at the window. They said that his motorcycle was one of the most expensive motorcycles of Baku. Aydin wore expensive skin waistcoat, and black helmet, and most of the schoolchildren rumored that Aydin wandered at the school in order to see Senuber.
All what I could do was to read books in the wings of my wishes.
In order to join my lovely Senuber I had to study my lessons well, and when I was in the library I had to strangle my longing and jealousy inside of me.
My parents were glad seeing my interest for the books, but from other side it worried them. My father was anxious for my spending much time with the books, and obliged to register my name to the swimming school.
Though I went to swimming unwillingly afterwards I liked it and my love to swimming grew day by day. My muscles became strong and my appearance changed.
Recently I felt that the school girls looked at me with interest except Senuber.
If I became champion in swimming I would buy the most expensive ‘ Harley Davidson’ for me. If till that time the motorcycle driver Aydin didn’t get Senuber from my hands, I shall take her for a drive in all the streets of Baku.
I put my swimwear, rubber cap and a towel into my rucksack and clasped it. Soon there will be Baku championship of the teenagers of Baku city. That was why I had to train every day.
After coming down the stairs and reached the street I saw our neighbor Jafar who lived in some houses’ distance from us. He was in the roof of their house. As soon as he saw me he began to jump up and down, showed me the dove he was holding in his left palm, and with his right hand he beckoned me . Jafar is a bird-fancier, he keeps doves in the wooden box in the roof. Including he loves rap music. In the rap world he is known under the name of Jem. All the young boys and girls of Baku listen to his rap. As Jafar spends most of his time in the roof, alongside with his doves he could see all the sides of our quarter. And that is why he knows more things about the inhabitants of the quarter.
