Blogs from Iran, Middle East - page 42

Brief History and city layout First thing I get asked by poeple here is what I think has changed in the past 27 years. First things that comes to mind is is that there are twice the number of poeple in the country, (times 4 in the capital), and twcie the number of cars. I leave the rest up to you to imaginge how things have changed. Modern Tehran has never been a historical town. The original Tehran which was made Capital by the Qajars a century a two ago was confined the central and southern parts of the city which contains the only remaining monuments in the city. The areas is one of the only regions of the city which has retained its historical flavor and architecture, even that is under assault now by the ... read more

Cream and Honey After the 4 hour hike ending around 1030 am, arrive back at the rented lodge, quite hungry. Being the fasting month, all restaurants are closed. Many small convenient stores are open all of which are owned locally. The region is also known for its honey and cream, (asal-o-khameh) a favorite breakfast item in Iran. The cream is taken from 100% pure milk, from non-pasteurized, grass fed cows that receive no growth hormones. The honey is also grown locally, the surrounding mountain meadows which provide a heaven of nectar for pollinating bees. The honey is thick and dark. The lodge next door Before departure I rent a private bath filled with hot local spring water from the guy next door who ends up being my self-appointed driver and guide for the remainder of the ... read more

On the plain ride from Dubai to Tehran sat next to a Pakistani emigrant to Dubai who regularly travels to Iran as a consultant for an IT company. He said the first time he set foot in Tehran he was surprised as he had conjured a completely different image of Iran. Instead of what he thought would be an underdeveloped backward and oppressive city, he found it to be surprisingly clean, with a vibrant commercial activity, and an efficient high-way system and modern infra-structure, set in a spectacular setting the Alborz mountain range. Indeed the proximity of the city to this mountain range with the highest peak of 18000 feet is its most remarkable feature. But much has changed since I left it in my early teen years.... read more

Finally, this is our next blog entry... it took a while and is short wrap up of our last 10 days in beautiful Iran. Esfahan This city is the beauty queen of Iran. We stayed 4 nights but could have stayed a lot more. The biggest attraction is the Imam Khomeini Square. The second biggest square in the world (the biggest is Tiananmen Square in China) is not only huge, but it is surrounded by nice buildings. Among others two of the most wonderful mosques in the whole Islam. We visited both, the Imam Khomeini Mosque and the Sheik Lotfollah Mosque and were deeply impressed. The square is also home to close to hundreds of souvenir shops as part of the bazar and as a tourist you are begged 10 times per day to buy a ... read more

We have included in this entry a map where you can see our journey of the first 19 days in Iran. Just click on the map to the left. Yazd Although we are on one of the different branches of the Silk Road since we reached Central Anatolia in Turkey we have not yet written a lot about it. Not only Silvan and Annamaria traveled to Yazd but also the probably best known Silk Road traveler: Marco Polo. He passed Yazd in the 13th century and described the city as "a very fine and splendid city and a center of commerce". Marco Polo was much more a traveler than a merchant. Only travelers with a sense of adventure (700 years ago, not necessary anymore today) traveled the whole Silk Road from Europe to China and eventually ... read more