Tea House Iran: Ishafan
Tea House Iran: Ishafan
Left Minneapolis at 7 PM for Chicago on United Airlines. Chicago is a mess because of thunder storms. I end up leaving a an hour late for Frankfurt a 7 hour 45 min flight on Luftansa.
After a long layover in Frankfurt I leave on the 4 hour 30 min flight to Theran on Luftansa.
2000 Year old Chariot Wheel Tehran
We reach Tehran at 12:30 AM. I have no problems going through immigration. Michael and Hossein our tour guides are here to meet us, and take us to our Hotel. We are staying in Hotel Omid near the Univesity. There are 7 of us in the group along with Michael our tour leader. During the nite the rest of our group have arrived. At 10 AM we are all up and ready to go. We visit the Archaeological Musuem and Glass Musuem have an afternoon break and then we visit Women against Pollution NGO, at one of their homes in Northern Tehran. They are very nice to us and explain there cause. They especially are active educating the young. We return to our hotel for dinner.
Billboard Tehran
This morning we set out through traffic to visit two musuems which are closed. We end up in Northern Tehran again and we visit the Shah's Palace. It is very nice up here getting away from the noise and polution of Tehran. The palaces are immaculate We see what is left of a 60' statue of the saha, just his boots. We have lunch at a place in the mountains as well. In the afternoon we visit a bazzar and then we drive past the former US Embassy. Later we go out for dinner in downtown Iran, The food is wonderfull and we have live Music. For me going to a Iranian Restaurant for lunch or dinner and going to a bazzar are the highlights of this trip.
Abyaneh Village
Marters Shrine
This morning we leave Tehran for Ishafan. It is good to leave the pollution and traffic of Tehran. We pass a traffic accident on the way and we are amassed there are not more. We pass the Holy Shrine of Emam Khomeini which is a short ways south of Tehran. It is a huge complex still under construction. We procede south to Kashan Where we visit Fin garden a pleasant Oasis with beautiful pools and gardens. We take a break there after we had sideswiped a car. We also go into the city for lunch and to visit a traditional home. Kashan is where the 3 wise men started out from in the bible. We proceed though the arid country side and make a side trip to a old small village of Abyaneh a fascinating place in the mountains with a valley for their crops. We visit a small shrine for the Marters of the Iran Iraq war. We continue on to Ishafan and arrived about 9PM and then we have a late dinner
Jamar Mosque Ishafan
We start of the day visiting the Armenian quarter and the Vank Cathedral which is dark inside but richly decorated. We visit the Musuem as well which I found interesting. We then stop at the Hasht Behesht Palace. After a great lunch we start out again and visit the Chehel Sotun Palace with its wonderfull frescoes and gardens. We visit the Naghsh-e-jahan complex other wise know as the Emam Khomeini Square it a grand open square with several Mosques and of course many shops as well as the start of the bazar. The middle you have the Ali Qapu Palace and at the far end you have the Emam Mosque which is rated as one of the most beatiful Mosques in the world. One could return many times and still be amassed, this is surly the highlight of persia. We have a late dinner.
Spice Market Ishafan
Khaju Bridge Ishafan
This morning we start out in the Great Bazar It a wonderfull place and I bought lots of gifts, the vendors are friendly and not pushy. They seem just as fasinated as we are . We are in Emam Khomeini Square again where the Bazar starts. We have Pizza in a pleasant park by the river. I am just amassed being in the desert and having trees and grass in the city. After lunch we visit Khaju Garden and then we visit the Si-o-Seh Bridge and a nice little tea house under the bridge. At dusk we visit the Khaju Bridge which was lovely and lots of local people enjoying the evening. We stop at Caravan Sari. This was a ancient stop for the camel drivers. Over the years it has been turned into a 5 star hotel but it still has a lot of charm. We have dinner again with live music
Today we leave for the long bus ride to Yazd, and our bus is not very comfortable. We find that for rest stops every little town has a Mosque with a bathroom. Our guide is poor at planning and he is way off in timing. As a result 1/2 day bus trip takes until late in the day to get to Yazd. We finish the trip to Yazd and check into a hotel in the old city. It is a traditional hotel about 200 years old. After a short rest we have dinner with some conservative Women teachers with which we have some discussions.
Tower of Silence Yazd
Today we visit a Hospital that our tour operator provide air conditioning for. It is a new building, very clean and functional. We visit the ICU and 2 of us are invited to see an operating room. When they get there they are operating on a Woman's liver! A little ways away on the outskirts of town we visit the Zoroastrian Fire Temple. Zoroastrian pre-date Islam. We visit fabulous Jameh Mosque and the Amir Chakhmaq Complex in the late afternoon. For dinner we go to a restaurant owned by Hossein#1 it features cheese burgers, well they did have quil on the menu.
Amir Chakhmaq Complex Yazd
Today we visit a girls middle school Hossein#1 built. It cost $60,000 and his daughter goes there. We visit some very bright students there. We also visit the teachers who are amazed that Jean would travel with 7 starnge men. And they are shocked that Michael our tour leader lives with a woman. For the afternoon we rest and later go shopping in the ancient Bazar. In the evening we meet with the Mayor of Yazd and we find city goverment the same here. His 3 main concerns are Water, Crime, and Historic Preservation.
Jameh Mosque Yazd
This morning we go out of town and visit the small village of Kharanagh. It is very old, we find only old people and young kids, all the adults are in the big city to earn a living. We walk through the maze of buildings until we reach the Mosque. Later in the day we visit a language institute and try to answer some tough questions from Irainian students. The conservative ones feel free to speak where as moderate ones keep quite. For dinner we visit Hossein#1 father-in-law home, or should I say palace. It is incrediable, just gorgous. Oviously he is very well off. One story we heard was that Hosseins wife was in the kitchen and 2 Afgan robbers came in with knifes. She started screaming and throwing plates at the robbers, Her mother-in-law thought it was him "Hossein you devil" she says, but as they ran she grabbed them by the collar. Hossein was not happy when he heard of this and had 17 Afgans rounded up for punishment.
This morning we leave for the 5 hour trip to Shiraz, we are delayed when the hotel manager has a traffic accident. Then when we leave the city there is a long line to get diesel fuel. Our drives somehow jumps the line and gets fuel. It is a long day on the road and it will take us 10 hours to make the trip. We make a stop to see the 5000 year old cedar tree and later we stop at the ancient site of Pasagade begun by Cyrus the great the king of kings. The Tomb of Cyrus the Great is the main attraction here along with Achaemenis Palaces. As we cross the river we attually see a group of nomads living by the river. We were supose also to stop at Perspolis but there was not enough time.
Persepolis
Persepolis
This morning we set of for the ancient site of Perspolis, it is not far from Shiraz. It is an impressive site aprx 500 BC and destroyed 300 BC by Alexander the Great. We spend the whole morning there and later in the day we visit the shrines to the famous poets of Iran, they are idolised like athlete's in the west.
Caravan Sari
Today we set off to find Nomads, our tour operator has paid a couple of familes to stay behind for us to visit. It is near the town of Firuzabad. On the way we pass an ancient Caravan Sari, a place where travelers would stay overnight. At the Nomad site they have several tents and there are 2 familys and many goats to greet us. We notice the chief has a cell phone when he poses for pictures. We return to the hotel which is quite modern and we can attually get the BBC on the TV.
Gateway to Iran
Today we leave for Tehran, our Bus and driver left the night before for Tehran. We vist Shiraz University Botanical Gardens very nice and pleasent. We take taxi to airport. Our flight of several hundred miles cost $22. On our flight there a Saudi Man with his haram (about 12) they are all covered up and many of them are young, he seems not be be very friendly. After arriving in Tehran our driver and bus are waiting to take us back to hotel Omid, our driver is wore out from driving. We visit with a lady poet from Tehran, she as very corgal to us. Poets are treated as celebraties in Iran.
Mosque: Tehran
Carpet Musuem: Tehran
Today we do some final site seeing and shopping. We visit a Mosque and the Carpet Musuem, some of these carpets are hundeds of years old, and works of art. We visit a bazar in Northern Tehran - well its really a shopping mall. We heve never seen so many shoe stores, the ladys like platform shoes. At 10PM some of us leave for the airport for our flight back to Frankfurt. We have had a great time in Iran, we have been treated very good. Iranians are very proud of their country and its history. And we have had a great time visiting Persia.
Chain Bridge: Budapest
After midnight I catch our flight to Frankfurt, At frankfurt I have a 4 hour layover and I say goodby to my fellow travelers. I continue on to Budapest. I check into Hotel Mendoza not far from the Opera House. After settling down I go for a walk to the Chain Bridge that crosses the Danube River.
Parliment: Budapest
Budapest
Today I go walking all around town, it is cold and damp, good thing I brought a coat. I cross to the Buda side and up the hill to visit the National Musuem. I visit many other sites around town before I take the 3:30 City bus tour and see the same sites again.
This morning I take a Taxi to the Hydofoil dock on the river. It is a pleasant 6 hour trip. We go thouth 2 locks on the way. Arriving in Vienna I take a taxi to the Westhoff train station thinking that I will be able to leave eaisly for Prague. After finding a nice hotel I purchase a ticket at the train station for Prague only to find that the train leaves from the south station! I go out out for dinner but find it hard to fine anything other than burger king, mcdonnalds, I find a pizza parlor.
Vienna Austria
I have signed up for a city tour that leaves the hotel, We pass many sites but we get off the bus and visit the Schoenbrunn Castle a fantastic place with wonderfull Gardens. We are left downtown so I visit the Kunsthistorisches Musuem before I take the subway back to the hotel and grab my luggage and take a taxi to the train station. and the 5 hour trip to Prague. It is still very cold, damp and cloudy. I arrived at the Prague Train station at 10:30 PM. Most everything is closed. It is a dangerous place. At the station I purchase a overnight ticket to Frankfurt. I meet an older gentleman who has a pension I can stay at. We take a taxi there.
15th Century Astronomical Clock
Prague Czech
This morning I am walking to the city center, I get a little lost but I get there. I sign up for a city tour and the highlight is the Prague Castle up on the hill. Returning I vistit the city center again and the Charles bridge. You can see where the floods of the summer have damaged things, they are busy repairing.
City Center Prague Czech
This morning I do the samething as yesterday except I drop my luggage of at the train station. I go to city center, I take the same City tour and visit Charles Bridge again. Prague is full of tourists it is amazing. I return to pension for a rest before I leave for Frankfurt. It is a 9hr overnite train trip to Frankfurt. It is dark so there is nothing to see.
I arrived at Frankfurt Main train station where I take another train to the Airport. I am flying to Chicago from here and then to Minneapolis. I am unhappy about how they did the tickets, I have over a 5 hour layover at every stop, not enough to do anything but sit at the airport. It is understandable to be carefull on the way in but going home lets do tight connections, I want to get home. The problem with Frankfurt Airport is even thou it is smoke free there are smoking lounges every few feet and all of the bars and restaurant allow smoking. I fly Luftansa 777 to Chicage, very nice plane with LCD TV on every seat. After clearing Immigration in Chicago it is another 6 hour wait for the plane to Minneapolis, I could have driven home faster. I seen to spend more time at airports than in the air.
steven_t_engelhardt