Hajihasani Esfahan

... zeleniny a &#353;li jsme na kut&#283;. Málem bych zapomn&#283;l - koupili jsme skv&#283;lou v&#283;c - r&#367;&#382;ovou vodu (r&#367;&#382;ovou není my&#353;lena barva), ale záhy po koupi znejist&#283;li, jestli se to má pít (na první ochutnání to chutnalo jako saponát). Vzájemným sebeuji&#353;&#357;ováním jsme se vyhecovali k pití, i kdy&#382; máme dote&#271; pocit, &#382;e se to pou&#382;ívá spí&#353; na pe&#269;ení sladkostí. Ale dech po tom voní líp ne&#382; po tic-tacu.<br><br>

... over any cash, he shook on the price and said we'd be back. With a carpet deal almost sealed we headed upstairs to a gorgeous little tea shop that opened to the expansive view of Imam square. The sun was just setting and the light was perfect as we sat and drank tea out of an bottomless teapot, completely enamored by the beauty Esfahan! <br><br>That evening we ate at Sofreh Khaneh Sonnati, a very ornately designed restaurant near the square above a pretty courtyard of little shops. We ...

... usually contain a pond or pool in the centre courtyard as water is the Iranian symbol of purity<br> <br><br>The afternoon was spent pleasantly supping tea and eating cakes on the terrace of a teahouse overlooking the Emam Khomeini Square.<br><br>Our return from dinner out that evening was delayed by chaotic traffic, as the city geared up for the election on the 12th. The taxi ...

... desert, especially with lemon sugar water) when a kid came up to us to introduce his family and then another family brought a whole meal to us. I think it was fried aubergiene, loads of herbs and goats cheese with herby rice. It was lovely but we were so full already so we ate a bit, then they brought us more then we were given tea. When we took the crockery back they invited us to sit down and started peeling us fruit and quizzing us about oursleves and our lives whilst ...

... about politics. It is reassuring to think that, with 75% of the population being under 25, the nation will be inherited by the younger generation in the not-so-distant future. I will be sad to leave next week. Wearing the head scarf and body covering has been difficult, but mainly just because of the heat. It is stiflingly hot sometimes and the scarf can get very uncomfortable around your neck, but otherwise it has been no problem. I have really, really ...

... that what they're called) and let rip with the menu. Wonderful food. Relaxed good company and a roaring fire. Sweet. Oh. And you'll never guess who turned up well after we'd arrived. Yes the Separates. Not a word of 'Can we join you'. Oh no, they sat well away from us, although they did acknowledge our presence. Maybe we wouldn't have been up to the level of discussion. Who knows. David and Steven were the only two to come over and ...

... modeste qu'impressionnante visuellement, vouée surtout à un ancien pelerinage (en l'occurence celui des femmes du harem du Shah Abbas, début XVIIè ; c'est du propre) ; le Palais Ali Qapu, surplombant de sa terrasse la place et ancienne demeure royale (Shah Abbas premier ...

... from the station and I had to get back to Tehran. Reza picked me up at the station at 4.00 in the morning. Pretty amazing, eh? He took me back home and I slept until about 10.00, and Mina, him, and myself had breakfast and discussed our couple of weeks apart for the better part of two hours. They were keen to hear what I had to say about everything I experienced and everything I learned. Ok, my italian family JUST got back from London and I haven't visited ...

... I didn't like option 2 as I didn't want to spend another day in Esfahan even though I liked it. It also meant getting to Masulleh later than I wanted to. I decided option 3 was the best. I would leave at midnight tonight even though I didn't know what the Tehran-Rashdt bus schedule was like. After I bought my bus ticket, I had to (reluctantly) meet the old man I met yesterday at Imam Square. I thought about ditching him but I didn't want him to think Canadians were jerks ...

... His life as an Afghani foreign student in Esfahan is a lonely one. Iranians generally dislike and look down on Afghanis. On top of that, there is a form of racism amongst the Iranians against Central Asians with Mongloid features. In Afghanistan, people with Mongloid features are called "Hazaras" and are considered second-class citizens by the Pashtuns and other ethnic groups. I'm not clear where this comes from. Maybe it has to do with all that rape and pillage and ...