Post #173 27 May 2018

Gentlefolk,

This post describes our visit to Kerman, Central Iran, 15 - 17 April 2018.

On the way from Yazd to Kerman we spent a night in the caravanserai at Zeinodin, and that stop-over is included at the beginning of this post.

Between Zeinodin and Kerman we stopped at the Maymand Stone Village.

On our first morning in Kerman we visited the Lut Desert; later back in Kerman we had lunch at the old market; in the afternoon we visited Rayen Citadel (about 100km south).

Enroute from Yazd to Zeinodin

On the road from Yazd to Kerman - we are still on a high plateau, about 1,500 m above sea level; semi-arid, very little vegetation, flat, but always high rocky mountains in the distance.

We stopped for lunch at a small hotel & restaurant in a village; here Zahra is chatting with the owner and his daughter, Fatima.

Chicken for lunch, done in a huge clay oven.  Delicious - one of the tastiest meals we had on the whole tour.

The group waiting patiently for lunch to be served.

After lunch the owner showed us a working qanat on the outskirts of the village.

There was a steady stream of local people who were getting water at the qanat. 

Zeinodin caravanserai

The caravanserai dates to the 16th century (but refurbished recently) and is situated on the ancient Silk Road. It is one of 999 such inns that were built around Iran during the reign of Shah Abbas I (1587 - 1629) and Shah Abbas 11 (1642 - 1666) to provide accommodation for merchants and travelers; they were about 30 kms apart, the distance a fully loaded camel could cover in one day. These caravanserai must have been a very welcome sight for tired, dirty and hungry traders. 

The caravanserai at Zeinodin.  It has circular towers on the corners which was unusual.  It can accommodate up to 80 guests; shared bathrooms (the Mens toilet featured urinals - a rare sight in Iran); and a communal eating area.  We met some German and Ukrainian guests also staying the night (hence the camper vans), and also a French tour group in a big bus like ours.

Vera at the main door of the caravanserai.

A sign advising that people who want to visit for a meal or to use the bathrooms must pay an entry charge equivalent to US$2.

The 16-sided inner courtyard.  The shared bathrooms faced the inner courtyard, which also provided access to the kitchen and dining room.  After dinner that night Patrick and Amelia split the group into 4 teams and organised a quiz - I was together with Frank, Rawee and Bethany and we won the contest! Good fun.

The interior of the caravanserai; each small room had two mattresses on the floor.

The view from the top of the caravanserai - surrounding area was dry and flat, with big rocky mountains in the distance.

Maymand Troglodyt (cave-dweller) Stone Village

Some archaeologists believe the first humans occupied caves here 12,000 years ago (Stone Age), others say 6,000 years; whatever, suffice it to say that this is a very, very old area.

This village was listed as a UNESCO Historical Site in 2015.

A stark, desolate landscape, very hot summers, very cold winters; the only green were some cultivated trees in the Village itself.

More than 300  hand-dug caves make up this village. 

A closer look at two of the cave entrances.

Another entrance to a 'residence'.  

Inside one of the homes with its smoke-blackened ceiling; hard to believe that people could survive in these conditions, and some still live like this today!

Kerman

From the Stone Village we drove to the city of Kerman. Checked into the hotel.  This evening we were invited to a private home; a family of five: father (Walid, a body-builder), mother, two teenage daughters (12 & 15) and a little 10-month old baby; we watched the father as he prepared dinner for us.

It was nice to see the inside of an Iranian home, and to have a home-cooked meal.

It started raining as we were walking back to the bus - just a 10 minute shower - amazingly (because it is normally so dry in Central Iran), we have had rain in every city we have visited so far!

The following morning we drove into the Lut Desert, reputed to have the hottest recorded temperature on earth (70.4C). We left the hotel in Kerman at 7am, and two hours later we were surrounded by sand, sand and more sand.  We were there for a couple of hours, having breakfast (provided by the hotel) and exploring the area. It was hot - probably close to 40C - a dry heat and quite bearable for a while.

After that we drove back to Kerman and visited the huge old market, where we had lunch.  Later we visited the ancient adobe Rayen Citadel.

An attentive audience watched Walid preparing the kebab (mince chicken and mince lamb) in his kitchen; he then used a charcoal barbeque in the back yard.  Vera is carrying the little baby.

Eating dinner in Walid's living room; as we were in a private home several of our women took off their hijabs.

Driving from Kerman to the Lut Desert.  Much of the drive was through high, rugged mountains.  Really, Iran is a geologist's dream - the mountains are everywhere and most impressive.

Some of the vegetation around Kerman.

Bushes created firmer ground, which then became mounds as the surrounding sand was blown away.  This strange landscape lasted for perhaps 20 km and then we entered the real desert.

The desolate landscape of the Lut Desert.  Barren, brown, yet oddly fascinating. 

Desert landscape.

Some amazing shapes in the desert.

Scenes of Kerman City

After the Lut Desert we drove back to Kerman and visited the market  - there seemed to be two parallel alleys, each about  500 or 600 meters in length, just seemed to go on and on; lots of people everywhere buying and selling, always interesting.

Market scene

A handicrafts store.

Market scene.

Patrick photographing a local.

Lots of vegetables on offer - and very inexpensive.

Ross and Vera bought dates at this stall, which they shared with the rest of the group - delicious.

A range of local cookies available at this stall.

Vendors laying out their wares.

A group of ladies checking out clothes for sale.

A box of live baby chicks, but multi-colored???

We came across a group of art students from the local university, sketching in the market.

There was a tea / coffee house in the center of the market - two musicians entertained - we had lunch in the adjacent restaurant.

We had lunch in the restaurant in the center of the market; great atmosphere.

Bethany and Vera enjoying lunch in the restaurant in the Kerman market.

Rayen Citadel

In the afternoon we drove 100 km south to visit Rayen Citadel / Castle.

A poster of Rayen Castle.  It is located on the foothills of the Haraz Mountains (highest peak 4,450 meters) - you could see the snow-capped mountains in the distance, very pretty.  

Rayen Castle is a large adobe (straw - mud - brick) structure; said to be possibly around 2,000 years old; renovations started 20 years ago and are on-going.  There was an even larger adobe castle at Bam, but it was destroyed by an earthquake in 2003.  The castle is square and covers an area of 20,000 sq meters; the outside walls are 10 meters high.  Zahra said that  Arab invaders back in the 7th Century had great difficulty taking this formidable fortress.

Inside Rayen Castle.

A renovated section of the roof of Rayen Castle.

Nice views of the Haraz Mountains from the top of Rayen Castle.

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And so ended a very long, but good, day in and around Kerman.

The following day we drove to Shiraz, our final destination in Iran, and the subject of my next post.

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Best wishes, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Alex Olah & Vera Olah
Canberra, Australia
Sunday, 27 May 2018

Post #172 25 May 2018

Gentlefolk,

This post describes our visit to Yazd, a city in Central Iran, 12 - 14 April 2018.

Yazd - sounds exotic - what is the origin of that name?  The name seems very different to the other cities we visited such as Kashan and Isfahan and Shiraz.  Is it Arabic? and if so, why aren't more of the names in Central Iran similar?

Yazd, located between two great deserts, is a real 'desert city' - everything was shades of brown: the straw-mud-brick houses; walls; alleys.

The bus went from Isfahan to Yazd via the town of Meybod (about 50 km from Yazd) where we stopped to look at two traditional structures: the Pigeon Tower and the Ice House.  We had lunch in the old caravanserai/market and then drove on to Yazd.

Meybod

The Pigeon Tower of Meybod; believed to be about 200 years old, but renovated in recent years.  Pigeon poo (guano) was a valuable fertiliser for agriculture in the old days, before the advent of chemical-based fertilisers took over. The Persians built Pigeon Towers which could house thousands of birds, and collected their droppings - this Tower could house 4,000 birds. Pigeon Towers had smooth walls to prevent snakes, and also stone floors to deter rats, from entering. 

Inside the Pigeon Tower. From left: Amelia, Millie, Richard, David and Ruth listening to Zahra's explanation of this strange structure.

I found this image on the internet of pigeons inside a Pigeon Tower (we didn't see any pigeons inside the Meybod Pigeon Tower while we were there).

Another photo I found on the internet, showing the condition of the Meybod Pigeon Tower in its original state before it was renovated.

We had lunch in the old Meybod caravanserai; the "old foggies" chose to sit at normal tables, but the "young-uns" squatted in traditional style on the raised platform behind us.

One of the market stalls in the Meybod caravanserei selling local handicrafts.

The Meybod Ice House or Yakhchāl (Persian: یخچال‎ "ice pit"; yakh meaning "ice" and chāl meaning "pit") was an ancient method of making and storing ice. The structure had a domed shape above ground, with a subterranean storage pit inside. The thick heat-resistant mud-brick material insulated the interior year round. The Meybod Ice House is believed to be more than 400 years old. 

Inside the Meybod Ice House.  It was an engineering marvel, with thick walls at the base, tapering to thin at the apex of the dome.

Looking up at the small hole at the top of the dome.  Warm air would rise and escape through the hole at the top, which could then be closed to trap in cooler air.

A view of the ice pit, below ground level.   There were two icing ponds outside, where water would freeze during cold nights.  The ice was then transferred to this huge pit where it would be stored and used during the hot summer months.

Yazd

From Meybod we drove the 50 kms to Yazd, and checked into the Rah & Ma Hotel (means 'Pathway to the Moon' in Farsi). We finally got big plates and forks and spoons for breakfast (but still small knives - weird).

We visited the very interesting Yazd Water Museum which is housed in an old mansion (with a working qanat underneath). The semi-arid landscape raised many questions relating to water, but Zahra always said "be patient, I will discuss in detail in Yazd", so here we were and all would be revealed.

Zahra explaining the importance of water in Iran, and the ancient system of qanats (sometimes spelt 'canat').  These were underground aqueducts or tunnels - the longest qanat measured 150 km - incredible!  First they had to locate an aquifer (usually at the base of a nearby mountain which caught clouds / rain); then work out the optimal incline and route of the qanat; and finally dig the tunnel. But water was essential for irrigation and household use, so getting it right was a matter of survival. An amazing feat of human ingenuity and endeavor.

Some of the exhibits in the Yazd Water Museum.  There were many local visitors and the Museum was crowded (it was Friday, a holiday in Iran, so many people around), but it was really fascinating.

The beautiful Jameh Mosque (Masjed-e Jameh) which dominates the Old City part of Yazd. The entrance portal is one of the highest in Iran, topped by two impressive minarets.

Vera and me in the square in front of the Jameh Mosque.

People worshiping inside the main hall of the Jameh Mosque (Zahra said it is also known as the Community Mosque because of its friendly atmosphere); there were men and women sitting around the walls reading newspapers and chatting - it all seemed pretty relaxed - tourists taking photos, no one seemed to mind.

Zahra took this opportunity to tell the group about Islam; she sat cross-legged while we sat or stood in a semi-circle around her; in a small area adjacent to the main prayer hall. Basic tenents: One God and Mohammad is His prophet; pray 5 times a day and do the pilgrimage to Mecca; give to the poor; fast during Ramadan; await Judgement Day.  We must have been there about 30 or 40 minutes while she patiently answered our questions. She made it all sound plausible, but I doubt that reality is as benign; in the end, it all comes down to 'interpretation' of the Koran (just like different interpretations of the Bible!) and faith.  

After the Jameh Mosque we went to this cafe for drinks, up on the roof-top balcony.

We had a drink on the roof-top balcony of a nearby cafe (the fresh pomegranate juice was delicious!).  

View of surrounding roof-tops of the Old City - no tall buildings, and everything was shades of brown.

A typical alleyway in the Old City of Yazd.  The alleys were too narrow for cars, so people used motor bikes - but they made a helluva noise with their exhausts echoing off the walls.

In the afternoon we visited Bagh-e Dolat Abad, the former residence of Karim Khan Zand who in 1750  built a marvellous house/pavilion and a lovely garden. The pavilion includes a 34 meter high wind tower ('badgir' in Farsi), the tallest in Iran.

The lovely stained glass windows in the house / pavilion. 

The interior of the Pavilion featured intricate latticework and ceiling.

The extensive Persian-style garden.

That night we had dinner at a popular local restaurant called La Visan.  The menu was more varied than other restaurants we have patronised and we all enjoyed different dishes (I had trout, while Vera had a very tasty lamb's shank - shown on the menu as 'muscle of lamb' - nice change from the usual chicken kebab).  By 9pm the restaurant was pretty full and a two-man band started playing Iranian pop songs.  We were surprised how quickly the crowd responded and the atmosphere became quite animated - especially the women - good to see Iranians enjoying themselves.

We visited the Zoroastrian Fire Temple in Yazd.  The religion know as Zoroastrianism was founded by Zoroaster (some say in the tenth century BC), and by the time of the Achaemenid Empire under Darius 1st it had become the State religion of Iran, and would remain the dominant religion until the Arab conquest of about 650AD when Islam took over.  

The Fravahar is one of the primary symbols of Zoroastrianism, and is believed to be the depiction of a Fravashi or Guardian Spirit. The principal beliefs are: One God; heaven & hell; free will; good thoughts / good words / good deeds.  There are very few believers left in Iran (although the Fire Temple was very busy with lots of visitors when we ere there); the Parsees in India are perhaps the largest group of followers.

On the outskirts of Yazd is the Temple of Silence, where Zoroastrians were taken when they died.  The naked bodies were placed on the platform at the top of the Hill, to be "cleansed" by vultures. The bones were then deposited in a hole in the center of the platform.

Climbing up the Tower of Silence.

The view of Yazd from the mid-station to the top of the Tower of Silence.  The corpses were prepared in the buildings at the base of the hill; some modern apartment buildings in the distance.

Women of Yazd

Better to include a photo of a man, lest I be accused of favoring the fairer sex.

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And so ended a very interesting couple of days in Yazd, "desert town".

Our next stop on the tour was Kerman, the subject of the subsequent post.

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Best wishes, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Alex Olah & Vera Olah
Canberra, Australia
Friday, 25 May 2018