September 26, 2019

The drive on a wide, four-lane road towards the Iranian border is a long one. The landscape becomes emptier – our tension increases. We have heard that vehicles with engines of 2.5 liters or more will no longer be allowed into Iran. Others said that this only applied to cars, but not to trucks.

On the Turkish side of the border, the officials are actually wondering whether they should let us leave. Apparently they are also unsure. Eventually the barrier lifts and our departure is processed quickly and in a friendly manner. We drive a few steps through a gate over to the Iranian side of the border – and are in another world!

A four-lane, modern access road leads from the Turkish side of Van to the Iranian border. The entire border courtyard on the Turkish side (blue roofs) is also ultra-modern. On the Iranian side, however, the buildings and barracks are interlocked and the passage is narrow.

Another gate opens and we are allowed to drive into the border yard on the Iranian side. The soldiers guarding the border and the border officials are very friendly and we are “processed” unexpectedly quickly. One of the border officials shouts: “You have a problem, it’s not your visa, but your car”. The pulse increases. Someone else asks for our Carnet de Passage and after examining it he says“You have no problem, you can pass through”. Unfortunately, we cannot buy vehicle insurance at the border. We are offered tea several times, a technician at the border station even wants to invite us for a meal. After the Carnet de Passage has been stamped, there is a brief vehicle inspection – a quick look around the cabin – and the road is clear, even without vehicle insurance.

Trip to Khoy

We manage the 70 km to Khoy, the first town in Iran, well before sunset. The journey takes you through an impressive mountain valley. You are supposed to be allowed to spend the night at the park in Khoy, so we want to go there. We actually find a tiny corner that allows us to park safely at night and park there. Police officers from the police station opposite are watching us. I ask if we can stand in this place and they kindly tell us that it’s okay.

Help, we’re being frisked!

As soon as we arrive, two policemen in green uniforms come running across the road and resolutely demand that I open the driver’s cab – at first I don’t understand what they want. Inside, he wants to look in all the compartments and storage spaces – and is happy with that. He then climbs into the living room and examines every little box, including our linen cupboards, simply everything. In the end, they seem to be satisfied. A civilian – a member of the secret police? – wants to see our passes. These are twisted and turned but given back to us without a word due to a lack of evidence. At least we are allowed to stay overnight under the watchful eyes of the police.

All evening long, men in civilian clothes stand around our vehicle and discuss things. At 9 p.m., it’s long since dark, there’s a loud knock on our door “open immediately” – I shout outside that I’m coming, but I still need to put something on . I open the door. This time a policeman in a blue uniform is standing outside, surrounded by a few civilians. He kindly asks us which country we come from. We say “Switzerland” – which they don’t understand. I try “SWISS” aha, that seems familiar, but SWISS is probably Sweden to them… Well, what the hell, the main thing is that we can finally sleep. That’s right – that was it. He and the bystanders were satisfied with SWISS and closed our door again.

We drive to Tabriz, our first stop in Iran, a little unsure about the experiences of the previous evening. The beautiful landscape is barely visible, the haze is so thick. The road is mostly rutted, so we only make slow progress. And we still have to get used to the Iranians’ way of driving – but things turn out quite differently.

Right through the middle of Tabriz

Unfortunately, I didn’t check the navigation and, as is so often the case, the satnav takes us through the middle of the city of Tabriz instead of around the outside as planned….. However, we find our way through the heavy traffic relatively quickly, as Palermo is even busier. And, as it’s Friday, there are no trucks – oh no: trucks are not allowed to drive here!

El Golie Park

For the next four days, the parking lot in El Golie Park is our home. We can leave our MAN here without any worries and take a cab into town. Every city in Iran has one or more parks, which are used by the population for fitness training, family picnics, camping and recreation – especially in the evening and well into the night.

El Golie Park is a prime example of such a park and, as it is also located in a “better environment”, it is also very safe.

First invitation

As soon as our MAN is parked, a middle-aged couple in modern clothes with a cute four-year-old daughter stands next to our vehicle and asks us “where from and where to”. The two say that they would also like to travel as much as they can. They say goodbye – but soon return with an invitation to tea. We are reluctant, as custom demands, but after insisting for the third time we finally accept.

As a guest gift, we bring a large bar of our beloved Cailler chocolate from the Atelier series. The tea round with local sweets is lively. We understand each other immediately and both speak good English, which makes the conversation much easier. He and she have both studied and have a Master’s degree. Your apartment in a newer apartment building is finished to a high standard and is about twice the size of our apartment in Switzerland. A whole family clan can probably get together in the living room. The floor is covered with beautiful carpets with the pattern of Tabriz. We feel completely at ease.

After the tea invitation, we stay connected electronically and are then invited to dinner. However, we also extend an invitation for dinner in a restaurant of your choice. But that doesn’t work out and we end up back in the apartment. Meanwhile, she conjured up a regional dinner that still makes my mouth water today. Another great evening.

The next evening, he visits us on the mountain bike with his father-in-law. The result: our next invitation to a dinner with the in-laws in the country.

(Out of consideration for the safety of our new friends, we do not publish any pictures or names)

Tabriz

Today we take another cab into the city. We pay between 150,000 and 200,000 riyals for a half-hour cab ride. which corresponds to the equivalent of Euro 1.20 to 1.60. We really can’t complain about that.

We visit two of the city’s main sights: the bazaar and the blue mosque. Tabriz lies at 1300 meters above sea level and has a well-developed transport system. All progress comes from Tabriz. Tabriz is a driving force for progress in Iran. This means that new technologies arrive in Tabriz first and then gain space in the rest of Iran. The Tabrizians are aware of this and proud of it. It is home to the engineering and automotive industries as well as one of Iran’s refineries. The majority of the population is of Turkic origin, who populate the north-east of the country. So now we dive into the 3rd largest city in Iran with 1.5 million inhabitants by cab.

Bazaar

The bazaar in Tabriz is one of the largest and most atmospheric in Iran. We know the word “bazaar” from our childhood – but what we get to see, hear and smell here is so very different from the event in the parish hall back then. Looking back, we can confirm that the Tabriz bazaar must be one of the most beautiful in the country from our point of view. You can tell that the bazaar is not touristy by the fact that you can visit it without being bothered at all.

Blue Mosque

It was completed in 1465 and was world-famous at the time for its perfectly composed tiling in cobalt blue. The Blue Mosque probably collapsed in an earthquake in 1779/1780. The reconstruction from 1973 onwards took 40 years. The missing tiles were not rebuilt, which is why the extent of the destruction at that time is visible on the building today.

Van-Life-er

In El Golie Park we meet Hooman and Nermine – an Iranian artist couple. The two live in a VW van and from their art. Hooman is also a sensational nature photographer. We are invited for tea and conversations ensue. On the day of departure, Hooman wants to take a picture for his Instagram channel…..

Onward journey

From Tabriz, our journey takes us to Lake Orumiyeh (Lake Urmia). On the way, we have a screw in a tire, so we drive to the nearest tire dealer. We receive a very friendly welcome here. Fortunately, the screw is not so long that it could have punctured the tire. The boss personally checks the air pressure in the tires. In the end, everything is free and we drive on to the huge salt lake.

In the Garden of Eden

A special atmosphere hangs over Lake Orumieh.
A thick haze hovers over the salty water – as if the haze were trying to hide the Garden of Eden behind it from us, from which man was excluded in primeval times.

In fact, since the Lake Van region in Turkey, we have been in the area where, according to the British Egyptologist David Rohl, the paradise of the Old Testament must have been located . According to the Old Testament accounts, paradise was surrounded by four rivers. The Euphrates and Tigris rivers rise northwest and southwest of Lake Van in Turkey and are still known by name today. The Gihon and the Pishon flow east of Lake Orumieh in Iran, but are known by other names today. The Araks River was known as the Gaihun (Gihon) in early Islamic times and flows into the Caspian Sea. David Rohl believes that the Qezel Uzun corresponds to the Pischon. It rises to the east of Lake Orumiyeh and flows into the Caspian Sea after just a few kilometers.

The mountains of Ararat, on which Noah’s Ark landed, are also located in this large landscape, as is the cradle of agriculture around Haran, which lies in the south of the former Garden of Eden and in the south-east of Turkey, on the border with Syria. It was from here (Haran) that Abraham finally emigrated to the land of Canaan.

What an area steeped in history we can drive through and visit. Exciting and great.

Lake Orumiyeh – also known as “Urmia” or “Urmai” depending on the language – is 5500 km2, making it around 10 times larger than Lake Constance. On average it is only about 8m deep, at its deepest point 15m. In the winter of 2018/19, heavy rainfall caused the water level to rise by 1.2m. Nevertheless, the lake is at risk of drying out as the water from the tributaries is diverted for water extraction. That wasn’t always the case. Before the Islamic revolution, grapes had been grown around the lake since ancient times and did not need to be irrigated. With the prohibition of alcohol in the country, interest in wine growing waned and many farmers switched to growing fruits whose trees required irrigation.

Takht-e Soleyman

After Miandoab, the road becomes narrower, the traffic calms down considerably and we can enjoy the lovely landscape with its irrigated gardens. From Shahindezh, the path leads up into the “mountains”, which, however, turn out to be more like a hilly plateau at an altitude of 2000 to 2200 meters. Farming is still practiced up here and apple orchards produce their yield. Amazing when we consider what we find at 2000 meters above sea level in Europe.

Palace complexes, a fire temple and other temples around a spring lake form the Takht-e Soleyman, the sanctuary known as the “Throne of Solomon” at an altitude of 2200m, far away from any town. It is not necessarily the remains of these archaeological cities that fascinate, but rather their remoteness and the history associated with them.

A mighty wall surrounds the hilltop shrine. The excavations revealed that Tacht-e Soleyman is identical to the Zoroastrian fire sanctuary Atur Guschnasp. In pre-Islamic times, Zoroastrianism (Zoroaster) was the main religion in Persia. The Persian kings of the Parthian Empire paid their respects to the fire shrine after their coronation or before important campaigns by climbing up to the shrine on foot.

The three kings

The Zoroastrian priests had great influence and power in the Parthian Empire. They could even overthrow kings.
Researchers and historians assume that the “Wise Men from the East”, or more precisely the “Magi from the East”, who followed the star from the East to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, were high Zoroastrian priests from the Parthian Empire.

Police checks in Bijar

We continue along the lonely road to Bijar. We want to spend the night in the park at the entrance to this country town.
As is so often the case, Iranian families sit on a blanket on the lawn of the park and drink tea. We are invited to tea and come into contact with a Kurdish family. However, communication is very difficult and ultimately only possible with a Google translator on the smartphone. This city is not a good place to spend the night, we should come with them. But the day is slowly drawing to a close and the journey would have been far too long with our MAN. So that’s how we stay.

It’s not long before there’s a knock on the door: the “green” police are standing outside with machine guns. They want to know where from and where to, and also want to see our passports – but we only ever give them laminated copies of our passports. After all, everything is fine, welcome to Iran and have a good trip and shake hands.

It’s not very long before there’s another knock at our door. Two civilians are standing outside and turn out to be secret police. First a bit of small talk, then “whether we were married, at which border we entered, what our father and mother’s names were, why we didn’t have an Iranian license plate, our itinerary, etc…” After all, in addition to our passports, they also want to see our visa and think it has expired! I show them the passage where it says:“Valid for 30 days after entry“. Another handshake, welcome to Iran and “have a good trip”.

By now it’s already dark and there’s another knock on the door. This time it’s the police with the blue uniform. I have to get out and stand in front of the vehicle with the policeman. But now my nugget is knocked out and I complain to the policeman that the “greens” and the “secret ones” have already been here and checked us. Where is the coordination – obviously the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing! The policeman listens to this, greets us briefly, gets into his vehicle and disappears again.

The following night was not very restful, not only because of the many young scooter drivers driving wildly around our vehicle, no, the nagging question robbed us of sleep: Are we really driving through Iran with an expired visa?

With one foot in jail

Hamadan

This tidy town lies at an altitude of around 1800m, at the foot of the Almand massif (3500m). Hamadan was founded by the Medes and was then called Hagmatana or Ekbatana in Greek.

Baba Taher

We first visit the tomb of the mystic poet Baba Taher, who is venerated here. Born around the year 1000, he was probably a contemporary of other mystic poets, such as the mystic poet Baba Taher. Celaleddin Rumi in Konya. He was a dervish so strongly turned away from this world that he was nicknamed “Uryan”, “the naked one” . His four-line poems, which are still recited today, have survived.

Ibn Sina
Ingenious doctor – scientist – philosopher – poet

The burial chamber and a small museum are located below the striking burial tower from 1952. The now incomprehensible wealth of his talents is expressed in his honorary title: Sheikh ar-ra’is – doctor of all doctors or the most excellent of the excellent.

Meydan-e Imam Khomeini

We stop for lunch in the central square and treat ourselves to a kebab in the inconspicuous “Shamshiri” restaurant, which tastes excellent but is not cheap at 1 million rials.

Tomb of Queen Esther

Esther means “star” in Farsi. She was of Jewish descent and the wife of the Persian King Xerxes I, under whom the Persian Empire flourished (see also below). Part of your story is recorded in the Book of Esther in the Old Testament. Hamadan was the spring residence of the Persian kings, while the summer residence was in the castle of Susa in the Mesopotamian plain. Queen Esther encouraged the settlement of Jews in Hamadan and it is thanks to them that her tomb is still preserved and can be visited today. In our opinion, it is the most dignified tomb we have visited and the story surrounding Esther came to life for us. There are two sarcophagi in the tomb, Queen Esther’s sarcophagus on the left and that of her foster father Mordechai, who was a high-ranking royal official, on the right.

Gandnjameh

Gandnjameh is located in a mountain valley, not far from Hamadan. Hamadan’s local recreation destination has a waterfall that still has water even now, in the fall. That’s not the only reason we drove up here. No, we are interested in the rock inscriptions of Darius I and his successor to the throne, Xerxes I, who was married to Queen Esther. Well, we don’t really expect much more than just a rock inscription. But since the inscription has been translated, it captivates us.
The inscriptions, on the left that of Darius, on the right that of Xerxes, are provided with a family tree and carved in Babylonian, Old Persian and Elamite. They are well over 2000 years old and excellently preserved. Unbelievable.

Rest and refuel

Darius Relief Bisotun

From Hamadan we drive along the old royal road that led from Babylon to Ekbatana via Bisotun to Kermanshah. This ancient royal road led past the foot of a mighty rock face in Bisotun, which was called the “Mountain of the Gods” in ancient times. On this rock face there is a large relief of King Darius I. Darius had this relief erected after he had defeated Cambyses of Gaumata and other kings in 19 battles. The battle against the Mede king is said to have taken place in Bisotun.

The relief is about 5.5m wide and 3m high. The events from Darius’ point of view are carved into the rock in three languages, namely Babylonian, Elamite and Old Persian. Friedrich Georg Grotefend, a German schoolteacher, succeeded in deciphering parts of the ancient Persian inscription in 1802. This preliminary work then allowed the British consul, Sir Henry Rawlinson, to decipher the Babylonian cuneiform script, which was a breakthrough in the study of cuneiform.

Darius I was the king who enabled the Jews to complete the Second Temple after their exile in Babylonia and also supported them financially. During his reign, the second temple in Jerusalem was consecrated.

Kermanshah

We are already in Hamadan, we are currently traveling in the territory of the Iranian Kurds.
In Kermanshah, we are standing in the parking lot of Shahed Park. The secretary of the institute next door comes up to me at a brisk pace and kindly asks me to drive our MAN a little further ahead so that nobody can climb over our vehicle and their fence. I sense a strong, self-confident personality, despite the dark, Islamic clothing and headscarf. That makes me happy. Later, she gives us a book about the province and a box of addictive pastries: floury but incredibly tasty. We return the favor with a chocolate bar from Switzerland.

Even more reliefs

Further reliefs can be seen in the “Taq-e Bostan” park. As in Bisotun, these are located on a rock face with a spring pond. The spring water rises directly at the foot of the rock face.
The relief furthest to the right shows the inauguration of the Sasanian King Ardeshir II (379-383), about whom there is actually nothing significant to report.
In the grotto next to it is the relief of Kings Shahpur II and Shahpur III.
The most important grotto on the far left shows the investiture of Khosrov II, the last important Sasanian ruler of the Persian Empire. Well, we admire the ancient rock carvings, but for us there are enough kings at the moment and we turn our attention to other things.

And another invitation

The Kurdish family we met in Bijar Park urges us to visit them via WhatsApp. Although we are actually tired, we say yes. We meet at a crossroads. First we are invited to take a walk in the municipal park. Afterwards we go to their home for dinner. What is striking: Kurds do not need a large dowry. Only the living room is large. People mainly live and sleep on the floor. Now we understand why knotted carpets are so important.
Before dinner, the men “sign out” and stand in a corner of the living room to pray, completely relaxed. Dinner is served on the floor. We are allocated a small salon table. The food is again very tasty. We enjoy it. So that we could talk, an English speaker was also invited to dinner without further ado. He explains everything to us. After dinner, more and more family members turn up. Now the sons-in-law are also coming to visit. We are the object of desire. They want to see us. The next morning we also have to have breakfast. Only one man, a son-in-law, is present, together with the women who are preparing it. We are still supposed to stay and go on trips with the family. Good-hearted people, these Kurds and all Iranians (except for a few). Only in road traffic, where there is no or rarely any hospitality – but more about that below.

Mesopotamia

A foothill of the Mesopotamian lowlands belongs to the territory of Iran. Thanks to sufficient water from the neighboring Zagros Mountains and an irrigation system, the plain is very fertile.

But first we have to drive many kilometers through the Zagros Mountains to get there. We have finally left the unbearable traffic behind us. There were almost unimaginable columns of cars on the east-west route to the tomb of Imam Hussein in Karbala, Iraq. Unfortunately, we were on the road for the 40-day mourning ceremonies for Imam Hussein, which caused us many kilometers of nervous, dense passenger car traffic and many a restless night.

Now we have more time to relax and enjoy the ride through the mountains. Once again we find a quiet place to spend the night in the countryside – how good that feels. The old caravanserai and the old bridge of Mahi Dasht are also on the way, as well as lonely mountain valleys in sometimes bizarre mountain scenery.

Shush

We reach our destination in good time before sunset: Shush, the place with two legendary sights, the palace of SUSA and the tomb of the prophet Daniel.

As we can’t spend the night at Susa Castle, one of the Susa guards guides us through the narrow town center to a guarded parking lot right next to Daniel’s grave. All around us, small stores and us behind a wire fence. We are always amazed at where we can get through with our MAN, even if it often seems impossible. Here we experience one of the hottest nights of our trip, as the surrounding houses have stored the heat and barely let a cooling breeze through to us.

Daniel’s grave

Whether the prophet Daniel is really buried right here seems unimportant to us, but the grave is at least an indication that he was a historical figure. We have him to thank for the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament, which, by the way, is fascinating to read. Daniel was of Jewish descent and was one of the Jews who were exiled to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. He therefore lived around 2500 to 2600 years ago. His wisdom and loyalty earned him renown, first with the Babylonian kings and then with Cyrus I, the Persian king so revered by the Iranians.

Muslims also venerate the Prophet Daniel. When they make the pilgrimage to Karbala to the grave of Imam Hussein, Daniel’s grave is also one of their stops.

The dome above the tomb is mirrored, hence the unreal lighting atmosphere.

Susa Castle

Susa Castle is about 500m away from Daniel’s grave. Daniel lived partly in Susa Castle. Queen Esther, who has already been mentioned in Hamadan, also resided here with her husband Xerxes. The kings moved to a different castle depending on the season. Susa, for example, was the winter residence.

In the huge excavation area, mostly only the basic structures of the complex remain. So it takes a lot of imagination to turn it into a “castle”. However, it must have been monumental in size, as the palace of Darius with its 100 columns proves. The ornate decorations also never cease to amaze. It is oppressively hot and humid. One of the guards follows us. We would actually like to explore the resort on our own. But unfortunately nothing comes of it.

Tower of Babel

Of course, we are not in Babel. But in Chogha Zanbil stands the best-preserved ziggurat, a stepped temple, like the “Tower of Babel”. It was built (and the city around it) by the Elamite king Untash-Napirisha around 1250 BC. Its original height was probably around 50m – today it is still around 25m. Its base is a good 100x100m.

Shushtar

On the way to Shushtar, we drive for many kilometers through the plantations of the local sugar cane plantation. The people here, in this region, are more intrusive than in the rest of Iran, so we conclude that they must be a slightly different breed of people. This is also the case in Shushtar, where we feel under siege. Nevertheless, we want to see the old watermills. The water is taken from the Karun River and drained underground. The enormous water power was used to operate the lower-lying water mills. Even today you can still see the force with which the water shoots out into a large basin at the end. Although part of the complex is closed due to the risk of collapse, we have to pay the full entrance fee.

Old bridges are also part of Shushtar’s cultural heritage, such as the Band-e Kaisar, the Keiser Bridge. It was a mixture of dam and bridge. It was used to raise the water level of the Karun and drain it into the irrigation channels. As early as 600 A.D. Irrigated sugar fields.

Through the Zagros Mountains

The two-day journey from the Mesopotamian lowlands through the Zagros Mountains is challenging. It goes up high and down low, only to climb again soon afterwards.

Fall has arrived!

Persepolis

One of the greatest historical sites in Iran are the ruins of Persepolis, about 60 km northeast of Shiraz. Persepolis (Greek) or Parsa (Persian) was the residential city of the ancient Persian Empire. Darius the Great, father-in-law of the biblical Queen Esther, had this palace complex built after 515 BC. build. This is the same King Darius that we have already heard about in Hamadan and Bisotun. The Darius who ensured that the Israeli temple in Jerusalem could finally be completed and consecrated. We are fascinated by these historical connections, they give dead ruins a certain life.

Many Iranians are proud of their historical legacy, they are proud of the kings of their ancient Persian empire and often know an astonishing amount about their history. That is why many also express regret that Islamic circles are trying to erase all pre-Islamic history. However, pre-Islamic history is an important reason for the Iranians’ ethnic self-image.

Persepolis is great. The fine and frequent decorations on columns, gates and staircases are particularly noteworthy.

Naqsh-e Rostam

Let us follow “our” King Darius one last time, namely to his tomb. In the necropolis of Naqsh-e Rostam. Only the tomb of Darius I the Great can be identified, as it is inscribed with his name and family tree.

The remaining tombs are attributed to the son of Darius, Xerxes, the husband of Queen Esther and Artaxerxes II. The rock reliefs on the same rock face date from a much later period and are estimated to be from around 600 AD. dated.

Shiraz

The name Shiraz is known to many wine lovers. This grape variety bears the name of this city and was also grown intensively here around Shiraz before the Islamic Revolution.

Although we are getting tired of all the “sights” – we are actually more nature lovers – we still want to “take Shiraz with us”. However, we soon realize that this city is much more touristy than the cities we visited before, as the price level for parking, cabs, entrance fees etc. is much higher. In other cities we might have had to pay 150,000 riyals for several days’ parking in a park, but here it’s 700,000 riyals for just one night. That’s only 5.5 euros, but compared to the general price level, it’s a lot of money. It gets even better in the backyard of the tourist hotel ITTC, where you pay 2 million rial = 16 euros per night.

Citadel

We start our sightseeing tour at the citadel, where we also find the bust of the conqueror Karim Khan Zand. The city has him to thank for many beautiful buildings, even though his dynasty only lasted from 1750 to 1794.

Pars Museum

The Parsmuseum is an octagonal garden palace built by Karim Khan Zand, in which he was buried at the time, but was moved out again by a later ruler. Not only the garden is worth seeing, but also the tiles with garden motifs and of course the interior design.

Shiraz is also known as the “garden city”, which is quite apt. However, our visit to Shiraz coincides with the end of the flowering season, which is a bit of a shame and would be a reason to visit again.

Vakil Mosque

It was built in 1772 and resembles an Arab court mosque, which is not the usual mosque in Iran. The inner courtyard is huge and opposite the entrance to the prayer room with its massive columns is an inner dome known as the “Ivan”.

Vakil Bazar

Next to the Vakil Mosque is the main alley of the Vakil Bazaar, which leads us to the Koran school, also built by Karim Kahn Zand, and on to the garden palace Baq-e Narestenjan.

Baq-e Narenjestan

Behind an inconspicuous brick wall lies the fascinating garden palace of the Qavam ol-Molk family. Only the “Buruni”, the part of the palace that was once used to receive guests, can be visited. Today it belongs to the university’s art department. Both the garden and the palace are very beautiful. The palace with its mirrored ceiling is fascinating. But we are increasingly besieged by a horde of schoolgirls. Nothing of female restraint; they are eager for us to film and photograph them in ever-changing combinations. “Woe betide them if they let go….” at the end, we are glad when the teachers ask the girls to leave.

Masdjed-e Nasir ol Molk

The ol-Molk Mosque, donated by the Qavam ol-Molk family, is also known as the “Pink Mosque” because of its pink tile ornaments. We visit it in the early morning, when the light falls beautifully into the prayer hall with its colored glass panes. But we didn’t count on the tourist buses ….

Baq-e Eram

We still want to see one of the famous gardens, the botanical garden. The entrance fee of 500,000 Rial is very high and does not seem justified to us personally, as we have seen many botanical gardens that are more worth seeing. To put it bluntly, we didn’t have to come here because of the few trees. We are probably just annoyed because the price is completely unjustified. The cafeteria, with its unfriendly service and minimal offerings, also turns out to be a flop. The water garden is dry and most of the roses have already faded. We try to get the maximum out of our photography, but still leave disappointed.

Camps in Shiraz

First we spend a few days in the narrow parking lot of Azadi Park. The parking garage has to be pushed aside so that we can drive in. The parking lot is right next to a children’s amusement park and at some point we get tired of having to listen to the same Disney-style children’s songs, so we move to the quiet and safe backyard of the Hotel ITTIC and use the (expensive) peace and quiet there to finally wash all our clothes again before we set off on the next stage.

Trip to the Lut desert

After all the tiring sightseeing, we long to finally be out in nature again. We manage the 700 km via Sirjan, where we are allowed to spend the night at the hospital, via Kerman to Shahdad in two days. Never before in Iran have we had roads in such good condition as on this route. The road climbs several times to altitudes of around 2600m, sometimes without you noticing – only the navigation device provides information.

Kaluts

The Kaluts are weathered formations of pressed clay. They are located about 50 km after Shahdad on the western edge of the Lut Desert. At first we want to take a lonely route through the Kaluts, but have to turn around again as we come across a salt pan that is not completely dry. About fifty to 60 kilometers further to the northeast we find an entrance to the Kaluts. Officially, you are only allowed to drive a maximum of 2 km into the area, as it is under UNESCO protection. But the lanes lead much deeper in, which is naturally attractive. We spend several nights in the Kaluts. During the day it is extremely quiet and lonely, but to our chagrin the Iranians love to spoil the mood at night by constantly driving around with full headlights.

We also came here to finally record a star time lapse again. Unfortunately, the Milky Way is not showing its best side and there is still a lot of dust in the air. Nevertheless, two time lapses succeed.

We enjoy the days in the Kaluts to the full. How good it feels – at least during the day – to be alone again in the middle of this vast natural space. We would like to stay here longer and explore other Kalut valleys, but we intend to leave Iran before mid-November, as our actual destination is in Africa.

On the streets of Iran

Police control in Kerman

In Kerman we are at Bahonar Forest Park. One of the nicer and quieter city locations in Iran. Somehow it is too idyllic to stand here undisturbed. At 8 p.m. in the evening, it is already dark, there is a knock on the door. The police are outside and want to see the ID cards. They ask us to drive a little further ahead, to where a lamp provides light throughout the night. It is safer there. We follow the request and park a little further ahead, assuming that we can sleep peacefully here.

At 1 o’clock in the morning, deep in the night and in the middle of a deep sleep, there is a heavy knock on the door. I had resolved to open the door in my pyjamas in future in case this happened. The policeman immediately jumps to the side and tells me to come out. I tell him that I need to put something on first, which doesn’t take long. As I get dressed, open the door and get downstairs, he drives away. All right, what was that again?

On the way to Bandar Abbas

Tomb of Nureddin Nematollah

Nureddin Nematollah was a Sufi master who is worshipped in Mahab, 40 km outside of Kerman. Even today, he unites most of Iran’s Sufi followers in his order. Sufis are mystical Muslims who have dedicated themselves to simplicity. We visit his grave on behalf of the countless Islamic holy shrines in Iran that we have not visited. The entire burial site is very well maintained and architecturally appealing. Nevertheless, we are drawn onwards.

Pictures on the wall

Many villages honor their martyrs / heroes with large pictures, like here at the cemetery in Rayen. We do not know what they did to achieve this honor. But we assume that their families would rather have them alive in their ranks than painted on the wall.

The journey continues

From Rayen, the road gradually climbs to over 2900m. People still live at 2900m, albeit in great simplicity, not to say poverty. After all, the earth is still fertile at this altitude. But the winters have to be hard. Autumn has arrived and, according to the weather forecast, we have caught the last warm days. The first snow has already fallen at an altitude of over 3000m. This encourages us to relocate to warmer regions.

Bandar Abbas

We have a few days before the shipment. We are soon joined by Alex and Sabine from Bavaria and also the Trail Punkz duo – alias Janina and Peter, who are traveling together with the American-Hungarian Stephen.

Here we get more change to pay for the ferry, do one last bit of shopping and fill up our water tanks at private homes as we have no other option. Once again we experience the help and friendliness of the Iranians that we have come to appreciate so much.

Sculptures on the beach

Did the Iranians consciously or unconsciously place these rope-pulling sculptures on the edge of the Persian Gulf? We do not know. We do not know the intention. To us, however, the sculptures seem symbolic of the tug-of-war with other nations that has been going on for many years. We would be delighted if this tug-of-war within the international community could come to an end and peace could return. We would love to come again, maybe even longer next time. So please take care of yourselves, dear Iranians.

Shipping to Sharjah

Sorouh Beach Park, where we have been standing for the last few days, is only about one kilometer away from the state shipping company Valfajr Shipping. We are served immediately and receive our tickets for Saturday, November 9, 2019 within about half an hour. Just a hack: we can’t pay here, only at the port. They can’t tell us the price for shipping either. Only Mr. X at the port would know that.

On Saturday, we arrive at the port on time with Stephen. Our “fixer” – the person who fixes everything for us – is waiting for us there. In fact, we can sit and wait completely relaxed and in the end the whole process is completely relaxed for the three of us. We even have time to eat in the beautiful canteen on the upper floor of the port building. The lunch is actually very good.

Although all our papers are now available, we still cannot pay for the shipment because the authorized person is not yet present. We are only told the price shortly before leaving the country and can pay partly in Iranian rials and partly in US dollars. When “leaving” Iran and before boarding the ship, there are again long and seemingly pointless waiting times. Then everyone has to get on the boat and we have dinner. A strange feeling, because the vehicles are still on land.

They have now delayed the loading of the vehicles until we can finally reverse onto the ship in the worst thunderstorm imaginable, of course with severely restricted visibility! They have no idea about ferries and loading vehicles, if we think about the ferries to Morocco and Greece, where everything has to go in a jiffy…. For the ferry from Ancona to Igoumenitsa, we paid a good 700 euros for a 10-hour trip, including a spacious outside cabin. The Bandar Abbas – Sharjah ferry costs over 1000 euros for a journey of around 10 to 12 hours.

A pro pos ship: For us, the ferry to Bandar Abbas is not a ship, but rather a small boat. Ridiculous. As a result, of course, there are no services on board. The best thing is that we have to spend the whole night in these dingy armchairs. It smells unpleasant and musty. Cockroaches cavort in the upholstery…. At an opportune moment – everyone is busy casting off the boat – we sneak down to our MAN and sleep wonderfully in our own beds despite the rocking. Stephen has also sneaked into his vehicle. We are only discovered the next morning, when only two of the four drivers are present. Never mind, we’re over there.