End of Trip

The trip home was routine apart from a delay of a few hours in Dubai.
We had a few hours there anyway and took the opportunity to leave the airport and go to a nearby hotel where we first had a much anticipated pint and then a bloody good dinner. I've mentioned that the food in Iran was not very exciting, so it was great to get somewhere where the food was exceptional.
Sadly, it was also expensive but we thought we deserved the treat.

In case you haven't already noticed, I have now added photos at various points to illustrate the previous posts. I have over 1000 in total but I have been very selective in what I uploaded.
You can increase the size of the picture by clicking on it.

Our overall impressions of the country were very favourable - there is a long and varied history with all the art, architecture etc that go along with that, there is spectacular scenery in varying climate zones, and it's very easy to travel about, find accommodation etc.
But what made it very different from anywhere else I've been was the people we met - I've never experienced such a willingness/desire to be welcoming to strangers.
There was a slight downside in that we found we were having the same conversation many times a day - where are you from ?
            England ?
which city ?
            London / near Manchester.
Ah, David Beckham, very good. What is your job ?
           We're retired
What is your opinion of Iran ?
etc. etc. (I'm not exaggerating - these were almost always the 3rd and 4th questions respectively)
Longer conversations usually moved on to enquiries about wives, children etc.

But that was a small price to pay.

Often people who spoke virtually no English would be content with.....
where are you from ?
England.
England ? very good. Welcome to Iran.

Quite early on in our trip I read a web report to the effect that a Canadian/Iranian guy who had been in custody for two years already had been sentenced to 19 years in jail for adverse comments he had made about Iran in his blog. That kind of thing concentrates the mind a little, so I was quite careful about what I wrote - in case that nice and considerate Mr Ahmedinajad happened to stumble across it.
But I can relax a little now........
Most people who did speak a bit of english were desperate to get our thoughts on the country. They seem to be very aware that they get a very bad press in the west, and were keen to let us know that this is because of their government and that the people are very different from the western perception.
That was certainly our experience - apart from the policeman I mentioned previously we only met one person who expressed any sort of support for the government. Just about everyone else indicated that they thought the government was "full of crazy people", who were in no way representative of the population as a whole.
Several articulated a strong envy of the kind of freedoms we have in the west - and in particular the guy we met in the teahouse in Kerman who said he "just wanted to be able to have some fun". Although he was the guy who has been to Bangkok several times, so I suspect he has had more fun than most of his compatriots.

The one supportive person was interesting though - he accepted that Ahmedinajad was a disaster internationally, but said that he was very good domestically. Apparently he arranges for the cabinet (or whatever equivalent they have) to meet in different provinces rather than always in Teheran, and they use these travels to meet local people and to gain an understanding of issues and problems in the various areas at first hand - and then generate appropriate action. Well, that's what he said..........

One thing we noticed in the english language press there and in occasional subtitles on TV - Israel is never referred to by name, it is always spoken of as "the zionist entity".

Most things of interest to travellers were state-administered, rather than by private businesses, and there was very little in the way of  useful background or other information. Also places were generally not presented as well as they could have been.
It's difficult to whinge though because the entry price to most places was less than 50 cents US.
Our feeling was that it might be better to jack the prices to $5 or even more and use the revenue to improve the presentation.

An example of the attitude of people is here..........

This guy was in the ticket booth at a garden we visited - on the way out he asked us where we were from and insisted on having his picture taken with me. No idea why - it was going to be in my camera not his. But here is his 5 minutes of limited fame...................

On a number of occasions we were approached by people we had not yet been talking to to ask if they could take a photo of us with them - often one english speaker would emerge from a group of giggling girls. So we also are featuring in other people's snaps.

Highlights of the trip ?
I think that for Steve it was Persepolis - and it is a magnificent place.
For me I think the Alamut valley, and the caravanserai in the remote desert. And the exquisite tiling designs in the mosques in Isfahan.
Oh, and the mosque in Shiraz where the sunlight comes in through the stained glass windows in the morning - I don't think I've mentioned that before.
Here it is....

As you can see, this was just a lovely space with beautiful pillars, arches and decoration but the coloured light playing on the brickwork and carpets made it very special.
And, as in so many places, we had it to ourselves so we sat and enjoyed it for quite a while.

I hope you've enjoyed reading about our travels, and thanks for the feedback I've received.
I haven't blogged before and I found it was a good way to both clarify my own thoughts on things and also to generate my own record which I can look back on as the memory loss accelerates.

So, all in all, a very good trip and most definitely an excellent adventure.

Bye
David

Heading home

We are leaving Shiraz tomorrow - first a flight to Dubai and then to London from there.

I doubt if I'll be able to add any more until I get home.

Then I will add some photos  - probably not until after the weekend.

Bishapur

As this was to be our last excursion we decided to do it via public transport, so we got up early to catch a bus at 7 am and we were in a place called Kazerun by 09.30.
Our plan was to get a taxi from there the last 20km to Bishapur.
Unfortunately Steve got talking to an elderly man on the bus who had a little english - after enquiring about our reason for the journey he decided to appoint himself as "your leader" for the day. We think he meant "guide".
Anyway, despite our protestations of independence he started making a fuss organising taxis as soon as we got off the bus and pretty soon there was a cast of thousands milling around all trying to assist with the arrangements. I counted thirteen people at one point - excluding us.
I'm afraid I got a bit cross at this point and may have been a litttle rude, but eventually we extricated ourselves and headed off without any hangers on.
The taxi left us at Bishapur, which is the site of an ancient city - around 1800 years old - and was the capital of the persian emperor Shapur I.
He is apparently famous for having beaten the Romans on three occasions, and for taking many of Emperor Valerian's army prisoner.
The site was huge - much of it still to be excavated - but we saw what there was over a couple of hours plodding around the site. By now it was around midday and probably the hottest day we have had - in the mid 90's.
We had left the hotel before breakfast and the fiasco at the bus terminal meant that we had overlooked the need to buy any food - and we only had a couple of small bottles of water.
There was nothing to be had where we were - it was quite an isolated spot - and there were also no taxis around.

The next site was about 4km away so we started walking. The route began opposite Bishapur and led through a narrow gorge between two enormous ridges about 2,000 ft high. The ridges curved so that we were entering an almost circular valley about 5 km in diameter with just one more small exit via a similar gorge an the other side. The floor of the valley was very fertile and cultivated with orchards and vegetable fields - a lovely isolated place.
Our objective was a cave part way up the hillside which contained a 7 metre high statue of Shapur I.
And no - I have no idea why they put it there.

Pretty soon a passing car stopped to offer us a ride - for which we were by now extremely grateful.
The driver didn't speak any english but we managed to convey what we were doing and he dropped us off at the start of the path. There was still nowhere to buy food and water.

When we set out we hadn't realised just how remote this spot was - on the way back our only option was to hitchhike. By now we were feeling the effects of the heat and the lack of food and water so walking back to the main road was not at all an attractive proposition.
I haven't hitchhiked since I was a student, so it was quite nostalgic. It's just too easy in Iran though - once they see you are a foreigner they can't slam the brakes on quickly enough.
The first car that came along stopped to pick us up  - a young couple who invited us to share their picnic lunch. We declined but they thrust a couple of bananas on us anyway as they dropped us at the main road - they were heading away from Kazerun. We wolfed them immediately.

A wait of only a few minutes before we were picked up by a couple of guys who happened to be going all the way back to Shiraz, so they dropped us at our hotel.
As I said, it's just too easy here.

So, all in all, a bit of a wierd day - but one we will remember.

I omitted this bit earlier, but now I think perhaps I should include it...........
The guy who wanted to be "our leader" was a veteran of the Iran/Iraq war and he had been terribly injured during the conflict.
He had no hands and was blind and his hearing was very limited.
Given his circumstances he was remarkably cheerful.
How he intended to guide us we had no idea.
We wouldn't have wanted a guide in any event, but we really didn't know how to cope with him.
Perhaps we should have given it a go and let things take their course.
We felt bad about it at the time and afterwards.

Random observations

There are a lot of feral cats in Iran.

The breakfast served in hotels invariably consists of tomatoes, cucumber, white cheese like a mild feta, flatbread and a fried egg.

There is a huge number of barber shops and all seem to be very well patronised. A high proportion of young men are always very sharply coiffed. Unfortunately, one of the favoured styles is a sort of Bay City Rollers job.

Clothes shops for both men and women use very many dummies to display the clothes - often a long line of them down one side of the shop. These always seem to have european faces. Men's shops often try to localise them by adding a little beard or colouring the hair. The result is usually reminiscent of George Michael.

I've described before the deep water-channel between road and pavement. Today we saw a car which had misjudged its parking angle - an expensive mistake.

There are very few proper restaurants in Iran, but a vast number of fast food establishments. This may be different in Teheran.

I've had enough Iranian traditional music to last me a while.

Shiraz

Another day, another persian poet.
This time it was Sa'adi - also from Shiraz and also a big enough star to warrant his own park to house his tomb.
We decided to have a bit of a lazy day and spend time in the various gardens which Shiraz prides itself on.
One of them was the Sa'adi one.

All very enjoyable but not much of specific interest to write about.
On our way between two gardens we saw a poster advertising an art exhibition not too far from our hotel so we went along there in the evening. We enjoyed it - one floor was traditional art - calligraphy, miniatures etc - and the second floor was modern art. This was a little dated, a lot of it looked like it was from the sixties - but that is true of a lot of things here.
But it was interesting nevertheless.

Martyrs

I think I have mentioned before that the Iran/Iraq war is still a very fresh memory here and that is perpetuated by frequent images on TV etc.
The war was bound up with the Islamic Revolution and many people participated as a religious duty. Many of those who died were deemed to be martyrs and in most towns they celebrate their citizens who were martyred by displaying their faces on boards along the central reservation of major arterial roads. In some towns there are large numbers of these. And many of them are very very young.
Sometimes they show larger images, and it is quite disturbing to see a photo of a smiling teenage boy with a grenade launcher over his shoulder.

Kids

Despite the health and safety stuff I mentioned before, it seems to be a generally safe environment for kids.
With the result that we often see quite young children, usually boys, out and about without parental supervision.
They are usually less successful than older people at controlling their excitement when they see a foreign tourist. When we arrived at Hafez Tomb there were a group of about a dozen boys aged around 11/12 near the entrance. When they saw us they immediately all wanted their chance to say "Hello Meester. Where you from ? What's your name ?". So we walked along with this minor mob behind us making quite a fuss - we felt a bit like the Pied Piper. Eventually they got bored and left us alone.

Later the same day I encountered three boys aged about 9 - they tried to sell me some kind of gadget for threading needles. Three for only a dollar. They were unable to explain to my satisfaction why I might need three, or indeed any.
But they fell in alongside me and walked with me for some time - going through the usual questions above.
After a while I wanted to get rid of them so I offered to give them a polo mint each if they buggered off.
The first one took two with a big grin, and the second and third, seeing this, took three each. Cheeky sods.
And they carried on walking with me - apparently not having understood the deal. And now, to them,  I was not only an unusual foreign tourist - I had become an unusual foreign tourist with sweets.

About now I began to realise my predicament - I had turned myself into an infidel stranger offering sweets to kiddies. And they wouldn't leave me alone. And I didn't speak any Farsi to explain myself. I could see them following me all the way back to the hotel - if some responsible adult didn't intervene in the meantime.

My only way out was to grab the first passing taxi. A lesson learned.

Health and Safety

I think a summation of Iranian health and safety only needs 3 words.
There isn't any.

I've written before about the hazards associated with cars and motorbikes but, as a pedestrian, there are more hazards to be encountered. In many towns there are deep water-channels between the road and the pavement. These are often used to supply water to trees planted alongside the roads - the channels are flooded daily and water is diverted at various points to the trees. The channels are about 2 ft wide and, although there are "bridges" at various points it's routine just to step over them. If you remember they are there.

It's probably a very good reason for there being no alcohol allowed. If these channels existed in British cities A&E depts would be overrun with broken legs every Friday and Saturday night.

In many hotels, restaurants and other public buildings we have seen unbelievable exposed electrical wiring and nobody seems to bother.

There are many other examples of the general lack of concern - perhaps it's the fatalism embodied in Insh'Allah...........

On the plus side, it's great when you get to the kind of ancient monuments we have been visiting because generally, Persepolis excepted, nobody stops you from going anywhere - there are no handrails, no barriers, no gates etc so you can wander about at will. You take responsibility for your own safety - quite refreshing.

Firuzabad

Today we had another excursion.
This time we arranged for a car and driver to take us to Firuzabad - a couple of hours south-ish of Shiraz.

The journey was again spectacular, with the road following winding passes throuogh enormous mountain ranges.

Just before Firuzabad a river, dry in this season, has cut a huge gorge and at one point there is a high crag on the inside of a hairpin bend, on top of which sits a ruined castle built in the 3rd century BC.
It was a very long climb up at the hottest time of the day, but there is a very good recently-built path/stairway so we managed it after several rest stops. The view from the top was outstanding and the castle itself was huge. There has evidently been restoration work going on but we were puzzled by the lack of people and materials. Then we saw a huge expanse of scaffolding which had partially collapsed damaging the rest. It looked as if they had simply abandoned the job rather than sort it out.
Must have been O'Reilly.
There were no other people there at all so we had the place entirely to ourselves.

Next was the ruined city of Gur. No, me neither. Also from the same era and another huge site -  in the middle of a plain this time. All that was standing was  a crumbling tower almost 100 ft high which apparently marked the centre of the city.

Gur was unusual in that it was circular and divided into segments in an early form of town planning.
There was very little else to see although a little archaeological work was going on. But it was clear from the terrain that there is masses there to be unearthed when they finally get around to it.
Again, we had the place to ourselves.
The memorable thing about Gur was that there was a type of plant there which attracted a particular type of butterfly in huge numbers - white with black markings. As we passed they were disturbed and flew up so we were walking amid clouds of butterflies. A lovely experience.

The last big site at Firuzabad was probably the best - a palace from the same era - partially restored, enough to get a clear impression of the scale of the thing. And enough to see how the later dynasties, after Persepolis, had developed different building styles.

On the way back to Shiraz the driver stopped at another of Shah Abbas's caravanserais - you'll remember those if you were paying attention to previous posts. This one was just at the outlet of a mountain gorge where the difficult road would have emerged onto the plain and probably would have been a very welcome to travellers.
It is just a ruin now, no restoration at all, but is still recognisable as fulfilling the function of the one we stayed at near Yazd. Again, very atmospheric in its dramatic setting and with no-one else around.

Hafez

OK - hands up if you know who Hafez is/was.
And extra points if you have actually read any of his stuff.
I freely confess that I had never heard of him until I started getting interested in this trip.

Iranians are very big on poetry and Hafez is major league. There are streets and squares named after several poets in most towns we have been to. And we are told that much of the traditional music we have been hearing is their poetry set to music.

Hafez is apparently the most-loved lyric poet and many of his sayings are in comon usage.

Where is this leading ?

Well, Hafez was from Shiraz and here he has the status of a combination of William Shakespeare, Bob Dylan and Elvis (Presley not Costello).
We visited his tomb yesterday. The site is several acres of beautiful landscaped gardens with pools and fountains and in the middle there is an open pavilion with a tiled dome in which sits a large alabaster sarcophagus. The place was crowded with people, many of whom go up to the sarcophagus and rest a hand on it while they murmur some words - we didn't know whether they were reciting a favourite piece or whether it was something religious. And this included people of all ages.
Traditional music using his words was playing and gave the whole place a lovely atmosphere.

It is believed that his works have the capacity for clairvoyance so people will open a book of his work at random and divine their future from the words they chance upon.
And just in case you arrive having forgotten your copy of his complete works, as we did, at the entrance gate there are several people with handfuls of bits of paper with random verses on. For a small fee they will allow the budgie sitting on their wrist to pick one out for you with its beak. And I'm not making that up.........you couldn't really.......

We enjoyed it there so much we stayed quite a long time - there was a nice cafe in one corner where we could sit for a while.

We even went back again around sunset and had an enormous 4-scoop ice cream while it got dark. They illuminate the whole place in the evening and that created a very different but equally enjoyable atmosphere.
There were still large numbers of people coming and going.

So - is Amazon going to experience an unprecented rush on books of Iranian poetry tomorrow ?
60 million Iranians can't be wrong.

Traffic and Driving

We didn't consider renting a car in Iran for two main reasons:
Firstly, credit cards don't work here because of US banking sanctions which means that there is no developed car-rental business.
Secondly, local transport is incredibly inexpensive - the 8.5 hour bus journey from Kerman to Shiraz cost less than a fiver. And taxis are also quite cheap - the most we have paid is US$5, and that was for a half-hour journey across town.

However, we have found that there is a third reason, and probably the best, which we were totally unaware of.

The driving is the worst I have seen anywhere.
Ever.

Firstly there seems to be no MOT equivalent, so incredibly ancient vehicles are happily cruising around looking as if they will fall apart any minute.
Secondly there seem to be no rules - or at least none that anyone pays any attention to. So, driving at night without lights seems to be acceptable, obeying traffic lights seems to be optional, and ignoring pedestrian crossings seems to be compulsory.

Virtually all Iranians we have had any contact with seem to be friendly and generous, but something seems to change when they get in a car. There is absolutely zero routine courtesy or generosity. The main attitude seems to be to never give an inch and to take whatever you can.
So if there is nothing actually blocking the way a car will turn right at a T-junction without bothering about what might be coming along the road he is turning into - he has the space and it is up to the car not yet in the space to take evasive action. Similarly in traffic - a car will take any space it can get to edge its way forward - regardless of the consequences for other vehicles. They have forcing down to a fine art.
And this applies to women as well as men.
And the attitude is the same towards pedestrians - there is zero consideration given to anyone trying to cross the road - whether on a pedestrian crossing or not. So the only way to cross is to step out and force vehicles to stop because their only alternative is to hit you. If they have an alternative, such as veering to pass just in front of you - they will take it. We are getting used to it now but still do it with care. We have noticed that locals simply step out more or less without looking - trusting that cars will make the effort not to hit them.

This disregard for pedestrians continues on the pavement - motor cyclists consider that it is also their space and will sound their horns to get pedestrians to make way. They also park their bikes on the pavement.
And the only reason cars are also not on the pavement is that there are usually bollards to prevent them. Where there are no bollards, there are cars on the pavement.

Having said all that, this situation seems to be perfectly acceptable to everyone. We have not seen a single instance of people getting irritated or irate - either drivers or pedestrians. So I guess it works for them.

I'd love to see their accident statistics though.

Persepolis

We arranged for a car and driver for the day so that we could visit several other sights as well as the main Persepolis site. It just wouldn't be possible to do it all in one day using public transport.
We were up early so not at our brightest. As we were likely to be out in the sun all day I went to put suncream on before we left and was on my second dollop when I realised that I was using travelwash and not suncream. So, it would have been double jeopardy - a hot sunny day and I would have been burned, or another thunderstorm and I would have been covered in bubbles.

First stop was Pasagardae - a vast site, of a city from over 2,500 years ago and built for the persian emperor Cyrus. There is not terribly much to see - although it looks like there may be much of the site still to be excavated - but Cyrus's impressive tomb is there and the remains of a couple of formal buildings.

Cyrus the Great, and his descendant Darius (also the Great ) are names I've known since I was a kid so it was very special to see these places where they'd lived.

Next we went to a site where 4 huge tombs had been cut out of a cliff-face - same sort of thing as Petra or Mount Rushmore. These were for my man Darius the Great, and also his successors Darius II, Xerxes I and Ataxerxes I - is this too much information ? If it is, sorry - just skip it - but I did find it quite exciting.
Whatever turns you on, right ?
The tombs were cut about 10 feet back into the rock and covered in bas-reliefs celebrating various triumphs etc. - the whole things maybe 100 ft high, with the tomb openings themselves about halfway up.

After that it was Persepolis itself - another enormous site where a large rocky area had been levelled and built up with great stone blocks to form a sort of plinth base to build the city on. So access is via a wide ceremonial double stairway up to a huge entrance portal. The whole purpose was to overawe vistors with the wealth and power of the persian empire. And it must have been hugely effective.

There are many old graffiti on the entrance portal, some of them must have been done very carefully with hammer and chisel because they are actually in fonts. My favourite was one which read " Lt Col Malcolm J Meade, HM Consul General 1898".
And below, almost apologetically, " Mrs Meade".
You couldn't make it up.
I assume his aide de camp or whatever wielded the chisel.

Overall, though, I have mixed feelings about Persepolis. There were some wonderful things to see - marvellous reliefs depicting visitors from various parts of his empire bringing gifts as tribute to Darius (Persepolis was his) and a clear impression of the scale and grandeur of the place.

But much of what has been excavated has been re-covered - encased in mud walls with a mud/straw cap - presumably for protection, and so cannot be seen. Many of the staircases have been overlaid with wooden steps - again for protection, but it means that you can't see the originals. And many of the pedestals and columns looked suspiciously unweathered so it was hard to be sure exactly what one was looking at.

After we had seen most of it we climbed a hill at the rear of the site and had a spectacular view over the whole place.

At the top I got talking to 3 local guys who were just hanging around up there. After the usual pleasantries one asked me what I thought of President Ahmadinejad. We have developed a policy of being non-commital so I said I didn't know much about him. And after a brief silence I asked him what his opinion was. He said he thought the president was very good - the first time we have heard that. And then a couple of minutes later he said " I am policeman".
We will stick to our policy.

Shiraz

I mentioned we were off in search of dinner - we passed a tiny unobtrusive entrance with a guy standing outside who said "restaurant ?" pointing inside - so we went in for a look and found a large subterranean traditional place with high ceilings and a gallery around. We took a table in the gallery and were able to look down on the band - a very good evening.

Next day we visited a variety of places in the city centre. Firstly an old fortress-type building which has been beautifully restored - apart from one huge tower which leans at a remarkable angle.

Later, as we were wandering idly along a side street I saw a workman come out of a huge set of very old doors leaving one open. I couln't resist slipping inside for a quick look and came face to face with an old man who turned out to be some sort of caretaker. He gestured for us to come in and have a look - the place was a former madrasa which was in the process of being renovated. It was a series of rooms on two stories around a large central courtyard with shade provided by orange trees and palms, and a large pool - no water in it though as they were still working on it. The buildings were covered in lovely tiling and when finished it will be a marvellous place.

After we had had a good look around the caretaker came over and, by gesture, indicated that we could go up to the roof. The view over central Shiraz was terrific and we spent quite some time up there. We tipped the guy on the way out - as he no doubt intended.
As an aside - it came to mind because of stairs up to the roof - we have found that many doorways in the old buildings have been quite low, implying that the people were perhaps shorter. No problem there -that's often seen in Europe. But what has surprised us is that almost always the stairs are very deep so that it's quite jarring to descend and quite an effort to ascend. So - shorter people, and presumably shorter legs, and deeper stairs ? We think they may have used pogo sticks but there has been no evidence for that in the paintings we have seen.

After that we visited a major islamic shrine - something to do with the brothers of Imam Reza who is one of the Twelve Imams - google Shi'a theology if you're interested.
This place is a huge deal - the busiest islamic site we have seen. We were not allowed to take bags in and we were frisked on entry. A beautifully tiled entrance led into a large courtyard with pool and fountains. We were not permitted, as non-muslims, into the main shrine - but there was a subsidiary shrine in a far corner of the courtyard which we could enter. Inside it was the size of a very large church, separted into various side rooms etc and every square inch was covered in tiny mirror tiles in a huge variety of  shapes and patterns. Mainly plain but some colour at various points. There were chandeliers and other lights and also the mausoleum itself was lit in a neon green so the reflected effect was overwhelming. The entire floor was covered in persian carpets, so we found ourselves a quiet corner and sat and looked at it all for quite a while.
The complexity of the patterns and designs - some 3D not just flat - was remarkable.
It's very hard to describe really - it's not at all to a european taste - but spectacular to see. Steve summed it up best when he said it was like being at Cinderella's ball.
I thought it was just like being in a parallel universe. But a memorable experience.
After that we visited a museum on the other side of the courtyard - some lovely pieces but not very well curated, a complete mixture of items with no theme. Fairly recent items were alongside items marked as being from the 3rd millenium BC. I particularly liked some ancient Qurans with exquisite miniature illuminations.
Steve found a cabinet full of coins marked as being "from the Qajar period " which was 1795-1925 and was highly entertained to see that the collection contained a twelve-sided threepenny bit, a two-shilling piece, and a current one pound coin.
Which for us cast a little doubt on the provenance of some of the other items.

Overall, a very enjoyable and varied day.

Kerman

Kerman is another town on the route east. Not terribly inspiring, but a base for several trips out to places of interest nearby - which we will do tomorrow.
Last evening in the hotel we got talking to a man in the lobby - he was watching football on the TV (Iran 3 Bahrain 0 since you ask) and when I expressed some interest he started chatting. When he found we were english (it's easier than trying to explain welsh - they just don't understand) he said " Ah - I love Gulliver's Travels". You really couldn't make it up.............
Turns out he grew up in a small village and his english is self-taught - and he has probably the widest vocabulary we have come across - and he worked as a translator/interpreter for various US companies before the revolution. He turned down the offer to relocate to US and later worked teaching english.
He also gave the name and number of a friend of his in Shiraz who could act as a guide for us when we visit Persepolis next week.
The main reason for coming to Kerman is a part of the nearby desert called Kaluts. We arranged for a car and driver for the day and went there via a place called Mahan where there is a huge garden with tiered pools and waterfalls etc - all fed via the qanats I mentioned in a previous post. The garden is surrounded by fruit orchards and the whole is enclosed by a high mud-brick wall probably about a mile in circumference. And beyond that is arid desert. Quite something to see.

Outside..........

.................and inside

The driver was helpful - stopping to show us various other items of interest - mainly water-related - vast cisterns etc.
But the Kaluts was the main event - a huge area of desert containing wierd natural sandstone structures. A bit like Monument Valley only with structures on a smaller scale. We left the driver and went for a long walk across the desert - there was no-one else around and the sense of isolation/solitude was striking.
Spectacular, and well worth the journey to get there.

The driver also stopped at a nearby caravanserai - an unused one that has simply been abandoned, probably a very long time ago. It was a vast place - probably around 200yds x 200 yds enclosed by a high mud-brick wall with watchtowers at each corner - beautifully made with decorative brickwork. There were rooms along one side - I counted 10 groups each of 7 rooms - and a huge space outside for the animals. And down the middle of the whole thing was the qanat water supply - still flowing with clean fresh water. Again, we were the only people there  - which helps in imagining how it must have been in its heyday.

That evening we went for a wander through the bazaar and came upon a teahouse which was located in the premises of a former hammam - a wonderful old place with beautiful domes and tiling. And there was a band playing traditional music which gave a great atmosphere to the place. We only popped in for a cup of tea and stayed about an hour and a half.

We got talking to a man who had been taught english in recent years by his daughter. He was a pistachio farmer - he said looking after the trees and harvesting takes about 6 months of the year and the other 6 months he takes off. Nice. He volunteered that he is only a nominal muslim and never bothers with prayers or mosque - and has brought up his children the same. However, his wife is very devout and does the prayers several times a day. He was most happy to tell us that he goes abroad on holiday most years - his favourite destination is Bangkok - we asked him what he liked about Thailand and he said it was the drinking and the dancing. We asked how his wife enjoyed that - he gleefully replied that she stays at home and prays or goes to Mecca.

Today we moved on to Shiraz - a bus journey of eight and a half hours. The scenery en route was again spectacular - enormous deserts and several high mountain ranges to cross.
Just before writing this I googled to see how big Iran is compared with UK - turns out Iran is nearly 7 times as big, but with a population about the same.

We arrived in Shiraz just as a thunderstorm was threatening - and for the first time we had a bit of difficulty finding a hotel. Our first choice turned out to be a bit unsavoury so we went in search of others. Fortunately there are several very close so we dodged the raindrops and now we are the proud occupiers of a two bedroomed apartment in downtown Shiraz. This seems to be the most like a european city we have visited but we haven't seen much yet - it was getting dark as we arrived and we waited for the storm to pass before venturing out. It turned out to be a brief but violent thunder/lightning affair with heavy rain.
And now we are off in search of dinner.
More of Shiraz next time.

Food

I haven't mentioned much, if anything, about food so far. I've been waiting until I can give a considered overview.
Frankly, it's been a bit of a disppointment.
I had heard before that the best Iranian food is found in the home and that has certainly been our experience. The best meals we have had have been in Garmeh and Zein-od-Din which were much more like domestic situations.
Restaurants, or at least the ones we have visited, seem to have fairly unadventurous and broadly similar menus. Various types of kebab - lamb, beef, chicken and occasionally fish - invariably flat on flat skewers and served with rice and/or flatbread.
Salads have been good and fresh but unexciting - usually lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes and grated carrot with a fairly bland dressing on the side. And there is usually a bowl of yoghurt - good and fresh. One interesting thing is the bowl of herb leaves often served with the kebab. Some we recognise - mint, flatleaf parsley, tarragon - but others are new to us and have some lovely flavours. One - called Rehan - we have enjoyed very much. Steve thinks it might be "russian basil" and plans to find some seeds to grow next year.
Apart from the kebabs there has been little - a sauce made from pomegranate and walnut which is served with chicken or lamb - called Fesenjan. It sounds good and it should/could be - but in the restaurants we have visted it seems to have been made without skill or care.
Soups have been good, one with barley and barberries seems to be common and a spicy vegetable soup with some kind of pasta was also good.
In Garmeh we had wonderful food. One dish in particular stood out - slices of aubergine cooked in something called "kashk" which is apparently made by reducing yogurt. I'll need to google that.
Rice dishes have been interesting, flavoured with various herbs and spices and cooked with nuts and fruits. It's also quite common to have rice sprinkled with dried barberries. These are a red fruit about the size of a grape - we bought some fresh in the bazaar, they have a sharp and juicy taste - a bit like a sour cherry.
Desserts are mainly fruit and dates - the latter are very common and there are many different types. Also pomegrantes and watermelon. We've been snacking on pistachios, walnuts and various other fruits all of which are plentiful.
So. all in all - mixed on the food front.

But the bazaars are full of produce - beautiful looking fruit, nuts, herbs (dried and fresh), spices, vegetables etc so the "home-cooking is best" may well be true.
One slightly different thing we notice is the butchers. They are generally very small stalls or shops and have very little stock. They seem to have one carcass hanging there which they cut from until it is gone. And, so that the punters know what the meat is, they display the head of the unfortunate animal at the front. This may be sheep, goat or even camel.
I suppose this may also be an indication of the freshness - a recently killed animal may still have a surprised look on its face.
Produce is in vast quantities - such that it is often hard to see how they can possibly sell it all. There are mountains of deep red tomatoes, aubergines - round and elongated, onions, vast piles of fresh herbs, huge sacks of nuts, dried herbs, spices, dried fruits, seeds - sunflower, watermelon , and many other things we don't recognise. The quantities are overwhelming.
The condition is not always as you would see in Tesco - there are blemishes and distortions and nothing is pre-packed - but most things looks to be ripe and good quality. It makes us want to buy a load of stuff and get cooking.

Zein-od-Din

In order to stimulate and facilitate trade, Shah Abbas - mentioned previously re Isfahan - arranged for the building of around 1,000 caravanserais along the various trade routes. Each was to be approximately 1 days camel ride from the next, and they provided food and shelter for both people and their animals.
About 70km south-east of Yazd, on the route to Afghanistan and Pakistan, is caravanserai Zein-od-Din standing in isolation in the desert. It is one of only two made in a circular shape - the other is a ruin in Isfahan - and it presents high blank walls unbroken except for a massive wooden door.

It was restored a few years ago - the job took over 2 years to complete - and is now once again providing food and shelter, although now only for people.
Inside is an entrance courtyard with a sort of wide curved corridor leading off it. This has high alcoves on either side which are used as bedrooms, separated from the corridor only by heavy curtains.

Beyond the entrance courtyard is a much bigger main courtyard, open to the sky, with plants and shady alcoves all around the outside with cushions and carpets.

The whole place has been restored with care and style so it was a very special place to spend time. In the evening, the lighting was carefully arranged to give the place a very atmospheric feel as we lounged on our cushions with glasses of tea.

The roof is accessible too and I spent some time up there with a book in the cool of the early morning - the view was 360 degrees across immense desert and distant mountains. That's something I will remember for a long time.

As it is so remote, access is not easy. Two of the staff from the caravanserai drove us to the main road and we simply waited until a bus came along. We flagged it down and the guys explained to the bus crew where we were going and they made room for us.

We wanted to go to Kerman but the bus was going on to Zahedan in Baluchistan near the Afghan/Pakistan border. I got the impression that its home was there because the crew and many of the passengers were dressed quite differently from what we have seen so far. Iranian men generaly wear shirt and trousers but these guys were wearing a sort of shalwar kameez, with incredibly baggy trousers.
And the crew had a slightly more cavalier attitude to things. I have heard before of bus crews changing driver without bothering to stop the bus - now I've seen it happen.
At about 100kph.
In the outside lane.

But, in any event we arrived safely in Kerman, which is the easternmost point of our trip.

Yazd

First of all, thanks Mary for the comment about Leonard Skinner. Funnily enough they did report it on Radio Esfahan - right after the commercials for Spearmint Rhino and Smirnoff.
As I mentioned before, Yazd is a seriously ancient town and in recent years there has been a move to restore many of the wonderful old houses - some have been converted into hotels and some into museums. They all have a similar layout - an open central courtyard, sometimes two, with a central pool and fountain and shady alcoves and rooms around the central area.. Much of the detail of paintwork and decorative features has been restored and trees and plants installed so there is a lovely tranquil atmosphere created.

In one of these was the Yazd Water Museum. This is a very arid area so the provision of water to the city has been a continuous problem over the centuries. They resolve it by a series of underground channels - called Qanats - which are constructed to conduct water by gravity from sources outside the city. The museum showed how these are made - there are still very skilled and experienced qanat-builders working. The channels are tiny - not much more that the minimum needed for a man to move along on his hands and knees. And they feed both reservoirs and individual homes. Many houses have steep steps down to the qanat as it passes beneath - and they generally have dug out quite a large space around it - enough for seating areas as it is many degrees cooler down there. The qanat builders wear an all white costume and hat - apparently because it can symbolise a shroud for them if there is a cave-in while they are working underground........

The surface part of an underground water cistern with its windtowers

Yazd is one of the main remaining centres of Zoroastrianism and there are two principal sites to see in the city. One, which is visted by Zoroastrians from all over the world, is a "sacred eternal flame' which is housed behind a large glass screen in a special building. We were expecting some kind of small symbolic flame, but it turned out to be a large log fire. It is claimed that the fire has been burning continuously since at least the 5th century but we were, I'm afraid, a little sceptical. We decided that probably the most important piece of equipment for the man on night duty is a box of matches............
The other site is a little way out of town. It was the Z's custom, until as recently as the 1960's, not to bury their dead but to expose the bodies in a high, remote place to be disposed of by vultures. They built structures called "Towers of Silence" - these were circular walls within which the bodies were left on raised platforms. Outside Yazd there are two - one for men and one for women - on adjacent rocky hills. It is a desolate, barren spot and it was difficult enough for us to scramble up - carrying a body up there must have been quite a task. The views back over the city from the top though were welll worth the effort.

That evening we visted a Zurkaneh - literally a "House of Strength". This was a seriously alien experience.
The entrance was a small unmarked door in a dark alley not too far from our hotel.Inside was a large room with a huge dome and in the centre was a pit about a metre deep and 5/6 metres across - all tiled.
Around this were set out chairs for spectators and a large pulpit affair in which sat a man with a big hand drum and various bells and a microphone.
In the pit were a motley assortment of participants who went through various synchronised exercise routines while the man in the pulpit set the tempo with complex drumming, punctuated by bell notes, and loud singing - which sounded very traditional - and possibly semi-religious. As I said - very wierd.
There was close co-ordination betwen the drummer and the exercise leader in the pit - and it all seemed to be ritualised, with various call and responses between the leader and the rest of the participants. And the cognoscenti among the spectators also joined in with this.

The exercises began with complicated pressup routines - all sychronised - and went on to individual whirling in the centre with each man whirling for as long as he could. Each one performed some kind of skipping routine around the edge as a kind of build up to his turn. They then went on to a routine involving twirling very heavy clubs and some of them manipulated some kind of heavy metal apparatus with chains and cymbal bells attached.
As I said, very strange - but fascinating to watch.
I read somewhere that there are quite a few of these places in Teheran and, because of their decidedly traditional and conservative nature, they were ideal sources of reliable hard men whenever any unpleasantness was required during the Islamic Revolution.
So - that's Yazd. Very different and very interesting.

Garmeh and Yazd

After a wonderful few days visiting the glories of Isfahan we moved on to Garmeh. The journey by public transport would have been long and awkward and we wouldn't have arrived until late evening so we decided to get a car to take us. It was still long - about 5 hours - and as we went further and further into the desert the driver became more incredulous about us wanting to go there. We got the impression that he was a city boy and had never been out that way before. The scenery on the way was spectacular - huge expanses of stony desert mixed with dramatic mountain ranges.
Garmeh is a small oasis village - about 300 miles from nowhere. The place we stayed is a private house which was renovated by a family from Teheran. The grandparents now run it as a guest house letting out half a dozen rooms.
I have tried uploading images but the internet cafe equipment is not the best and it would take forever.  think I will wait untl I get home and then upload a number at the same time.
The main "public" area was a large open area on different levels with a central table for laying out food and then various sitting areas off that - carpets and cushions only.

Our bedroom was just a large room with carpets and then an alcove contain thin matresses and various bedding.
When we arrived the daughter of the family - probably late 40's - was there on a holiday with her family, staying in another house in the village owned by the family. She took us out for a walk around.  The oasis was about a square mile - mainly date palms, pistachios, pomegranates etc. She told us that about three years ago there had been a snowfall - about 60 cm and the worst for 3 generations, combined with temperatures of - 20 degrees C. It killed an awful lot of trees and it will take another 3 generations to recover. We saw a photo of how it had been before and it was markedly different.

She also took us to their other house for a cold drink - her two daughters were there together with a friend of theirs - all also on holiday from Teheran. All aged about 20. As they were at home they were casually dressed although the two daughters still wore headscarves. The friend didn't and she was the one who spoke most english. A bright and lively girl and very interested in talking to us.
I mention this because later they all showed up at the guest house for dinner - now all three fully covered up and, with their grandfather present, presented a very different demeanour. They barely acknowledged us and sat separately to eat, talking quietly together. I noticed that when their grandfather was speaking they fell silent.
The next evening though they were there again and their grandfather wasn't there. It was chalk and cheese - they sat with us and talked for a long time - although their mother made sure she was always positioned so she could see and hear.
There was music playing and I asked them what they listened to - mainly Iranian, a mixture of classical and pop. I had heard a sort of Iranian rap (yes - really) on one of the buses and so I asked them if they liked that. They did, so I went on to ask if they knew much about western rap and other western music - I was surprised to hear that they didn't, although the friend said she liked Pink Floyd. I was a bit sceptical about that.
Anyway, eager to get my own back on the mullah for trying to convert me I tried to do a bit of proselytising for good old rock 'n roll. I got my ipod and started playing them some selected tracks. Started with Eminem as they said they liked rap - that went down well, so moved swiftly on to some downhome southern boogie with Lynyrd Skynyrd. Toes definitely tapping under the chadors there. Then asked them if they had ever heard american country music - blank looks, so I played them an upbeat Garth Brooks song and they loved it. They got me to write his name for them so they could investigate on youtube or wherever.
Rock 'n roll 3 - Mullah 0.   Allright !!!

Earlier in the day we had had another walk around the oasis and followed the water course back up to the source - just a spring coming out of the rock where a porous layer of rock meets an impervious layer. But it flows continuously and there is a system of channels which are blocked or opened depending on requirements.

The source of the spring

The guesthouse at Garmeh

An unrenovated "castle" next door

Part of the oasis

We also spent a lot of time just lazing about - we had done a lot of walking and rushing about previously so it was good to relax for a couple of days.

The food at Garmeh was the best we've had - more of a home cooking style and seriously good. I haven't written anything about food yet - I've been waiting until we've had a chance to try various things in different places. I'll try to come to that soon.

Some of the readers are probably wondering how Steve and I are managing to be without a drink for so long. Well, to be honest, we are doing just fine. Admittedy there are times of day when our thoughts move in that direction. For example, in the afternoon of another hot day we may think briefly of a cold glass of beer with beads of condensation glistening on the sides and that sharp bite of the first long pull at it, and then in the early evening we may briefly mention a long gin and tonic, ice tinkling in the glass and the sharpness of the lime blending perfectly with the glycerol texture of the gin. And then later, with dinner, we sometimes think how nice it would be to have a taste of a chilled, fresh sauvignon blanc or to savour the full fruity aromatic flavours of a good red.
But no, we don't miss it at all.

After 2 nights at Garmeh we travelled on to Yazd - again by car. Another good journey scenery-wise - the desert is vast.
Yazd has claims to be the oldest continuously inhabited place in the world - it goes back 7,000 years.
It's a remote desert city and the old town is a maze of lanes and alleys. The houses are built in a courtyard style so all that is presented to the outside is a high wall with a door in it. The building material is mud mixed with straw which dries to form a hard shell. Many of the older doors have two different knockers, each with a different sound - one was/is for men and one for women so that the occupants would know and send someone of the same gender to answer the door. There is an absoute maze of the lane and alleys between the houses and they are maintained very well - clean and tidy. The other main feature of many older houses is windtowers - large chimney-type structures designed to capture any breeze and divert it through the house - often passing it over water to cool it. An ancient desert form of air-conditioning and apparently very effective.
My time is up for today - more about Yazd next time.