Blogs from Iran, Middle East - page 10

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Middle East » Iran » North March 5th 2016

Arrivé d’un séjour éprouvant en Inde, j’espérais sincèrement que le dernier pays de mon voyage, l’Iran ne me décevrait pas. Bien avant mon départ, au moment de la planification, j’avais sélectionné de nombreux pays, qui me fascinaient, et que je tenais à inclure dans mon itinéraire. Après une étude un peu plus poussée et réaliste des conditions de ce voyage, j’ai dû enlever environ la moitié pour des raisons de temps et de budget. Toutefois, je n’aurais écarté l’Iran pour rien au monde. Ce pays a exercé sur moi une fascination intime depuis mon plus jeune âge où, entre Sauver Ispahan et Prince of Persia, entre les documentaires sur Persépolis et les romans sur les guerres médiques, entre les pasdarans de Khamenei et les poèmes d’Hafez, il m’a toujours fait fantasmer. Bien conscient des limites d’un ... read more
Mosquée de l'imam Saleh
Vers le palais de Niavaran
Entrée du bazaar

Middle East » Iran » West » Esfahan March 2nd 2016

Day 40 Saturday 27th February 2016 Today is a bus to Esfahan which leaves at 10.30am so slept in a bit and got a taxi to the terminal. No sooner had we jumped out of the taxi and we were being asked where to and do we have a ticket, every step someone different asked us the same question and wanted to see our ticket. Finally sat down and another man asked to see our ticket and confirmed the bus in front of us was ours, then started to walk away with our ticket. Scott called out and he said “computer” sometimes you just have to go with the flow, a few minutes later he reappeared and handed us a computerised version of our ticket. Today’s bus is a standard and it is still ... read more
Pol-e Si-o-Seh Bridge
Masjed-e Shah
Vank Cathedral

Middle East » Iran » South » Shiraz February 29th 2016

Day 36 Tuesday 23rd February 2016 Well our time in Yazd has been great (except for me being half dead) but we now need to move on. The hotel we are staying in has been fabulous but what is weird that there has been hardly anyone else staying here, and on this last morning we were the only ones in the hotel and they made up a special breakfast just for us. The hotel (being an historical home) actually has lots of tours walking through and on this last morning it was no exception. After brekkie we packed our bags, checked out and got a taxi to the bus station. We had to redeem our voucher from yesterday for real tickets and at the bus company counter we encountered perhaps the most apathetic and ... read more
Bishapur
Masjid-e Nasir-al-Molk
Naqsh-e Rostam

Middle East » Iran » East » Yazd February 24th 2016

Day 33 Saturday 20th February 2016 Up with the sparrows and out the door in the dark to the Tehran Railway Station. We walked over to information and before we spoke the man said “Yazd through there”, guess the other trains are not going to any tourist destinations and we obviously look like tourists. As we went to enter the gates we were stopped and told we have to check in with the police who had a counter just off to the side. Walk over to the counter but no one was there so we lingered for a while before I asked at the information who phoned the office next to the counter, next he appears from the room which was like a furnace when we entered. A quick check of our passports and ... read more
Yazd
Yazd
Yazd

Middle East » Iran » North » Tehran February 23rd 2016

Day 30 Wednesday 17th February 2016 Organised ourselves, had breakfast, grabbed our bags and jumped into a taxi for the airport. Got there 3 hours before the flight as Fly Dubai Airlines suggests and then sat and did people watching. The terminal was packed with people some even having picnics on the floor, the flights in this terminal seem to be all the budget airlines flying to India, Pakistan, Sofia (Bulgaria) etc. One of the announcements was a final call for Iraqi Airways to Basra not something we hear in Australia. We had to get a bus out to the plane on the tarmac and were finally in the air for our short flight to Tehran about 2 hours, in a blink we were landing. As we joined the queue to get through passport ... read more
US Embassy Tehran
Tehran
Iran

Middle East » Iran » North » Tehran February 13th 2016

This morning skiing was somehow a challenge...skiing with a serious hangover, the weather was gorgeous, but the snow was slightly packed...and yes, the skiing is done between 2900 meters and 3600 meters altitude! You are going to tell me, something is wrong in that sentence...where are you again? Yes, this is Iran...big time Iran! Maybe we should start from the beginning of the story when it comes to my adventure of skiing in Iran. I have these funny fantasies...I want to dive over 75 countries, did already 54! I could claim I want to play golf in as many countries as possible....but I've stopped enjoying taking my golf bag around just for a round or two, and rental clubs will not do it! So when it comes to skiing. First disclaimer, I'm a pretty average skier. ... read more
Music, hairs...international crowd...no booze directly in site, it's bring your own here!
Yes, what you see  there is pollution, and it's rising in the afternoon!
Amazing Dizin!

Middle East » Iran » North » Tehran February 12th 2016

After 5 hours drive on the VIP bus from Esfahan, we are at the door of Tehran. Esfahan and Shiraz are gorgeous little provincial cities...Tehran is a monster, with anything between 13 to 18 millions inhabitants! The place is overcrowded with old cars, lots of them being french built, resulting in very bad pollution in winter time! That's due to the old cars...not the french side! Cities in Iran are mainly built on the slopes of mountains. This means amazing views from the cities themselves...but also that the pollution in winter cannot escape....resulting in pretty unbearable conditions for the capital of Tehran. So we took 5 hours to reach the outskirts of Tehran, and it took us two more hours just to reach the North bus station. Tehran is built on a slope. At the summit ... read more
Yes, let see if it will still be there in 10 years!
Interesting..when you know that few weeks ago, the Iranian president had few nude sculpture covered on an official visit to Italy!
White Palace, and we are still in Tehran!

Middle East » Iran » West » Esfahan February 10th 2016

Next stop in my little Iran tour, the jewel of Esfahan. I took the 7 hours local bus from Shiraz to Esfahan. The bus was scheduled for 6am, we left at 6.45am. The bus ride was comfortable, less than 4usd for a 7 hours ride. The restroom stop was...by a local mosque, which is a first for me. And one more time, amazing people. Not many tourists do venture independently to Iran today, even less seem to take local long-distance buses....so you end up meeting people, and even when they don't speak English, they are super friendly! Visiting any place on a National day, and you face the issues of closed places such as museums or other sites. I arrived in Esfahan just after lunch time. I knew most mosques do close here by 4pm on ... read more
Beautiful Si-o-Seh bridge
I like when they stopped to ask me what I tought of what was happening!
Beautiful Naqsh-e Jahan Iman Square

Middle East » Iran » South » Shiraz February 10th 2016

Finally, here it is...it's Iran time! Made it easy, I arrived in Shiraz at 3.30am, ready to apply for my visa on arrival at the airport. I read a lot about it. Don't forget, first rule, if you have been to Israel, you will not be allowed into Iran. Well, you know my blogs, I just had to make sure that if they "google" me, nothing too embarrassing would go out of it...and that they would not put me on the next flight! I was greeted in the middle of the night by big smiles, and only welcome words. No questions asked, just smiles....and a 45 minutes wait to get the visa processed after I paid the 50 euros for the visa fee. It was close to 5am, I was ready to take my taxi to ... read more
Necropolis
Amazing bas-reliefs at Persepolis
Shiraz, gorgeous mosques...not easy with the sun!

Middle East » Iran November 16th 2015

Geo: 26.6351, 56.5493The last lazy sea day. Picked up our passports since we will have to carry them with us in Qatar tomorrow. We passed through the Strait of Hormuz during the day seeing the coast of Oman from our balcony. The captain pointed out the coast of Iran and an Iranian military ship which were off the starboard side of the ship during his daily announcement. We went to another level of the ship to see them and watched the coast of Iran go by as we ate lunch in the Colonnade. Tonight was the second of two formal nights. We had dinner with Marilynn and Mike, suite next door neighbors, and a couple from Australia that Marilynn knew. Delightful company and wonderful food! It has been fun seeing the same people over and over ... read more
Iran Coast on the Strait of Hormuz
Ship's Position
Sunset




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