Homa Shiraz

... of Persepolis was started. The result of Darius' urge to go his own way, which was added to by his descendants for another 150 years, was a huge city of palaces, meetings rooms, a treasury, harem (of course), grand staircases and amazing stone reliefs. In its day it must have been one of the most impressive cities in the world. This makes the fact that the city was really only used for ceremonial purposes even more incredible (the day to day running of the empire was ...

... he fell asleep on a bridge and when he woke up he had a guy come on to him, then had someone else ask him what he thought of 'the gays' and then told him that this bridge was where all the gays come to congregate. Sam was then approached by a group of men all complimenting him on his 'beautiful face.' That all sounds rather exciting. I'm afraid I don't know how much longer he plans to spend in Shiraz but it can't be too long, I don't think he has much time left on his ...

... by more pre-election chaos and excitement on the streets as we wandered back to our hotel. The Iranians absolutely love the election process. Western Media simply does not do justice to the passion Iranians have for this process. We could learn from them. <br> <br>11 June 2009<br><br>We wandered down to the 13th century Karim Khan Citadel with David and Nicola from Scotland, while the rest of the group spent the morning arranging ...

... Needless to say it gets a little tiring after a while, but luckily we built in a lot of free time to our schedule so we can wander around on our own. Yesterday we had a great day at the bazaar since Kate has a friend back home whose brother owns a carpet store that has been in their family for 70 years. Yes, you know where this is going :) He showed us all around the bazaar, and then we must have spent a few hours at his ...

... moin du raffinement iranien. La cité a une histoire assez particulière : on attendit la conquête arabe pour en faire un repli persan, le ...

... cost of the optional tour was R100,000 (US$10). Not much you might think, but considering the entrance fee was only R15,000 it was hard to see how the other R85,000 came in. The foursome's interest generated a tetchy cancellation of the optional tour by Mohsen. Lunch? How many? A much better showing of 12 persons should restore the balance I thought. Oh how wrong could I be. Nope. The lunch was abruptly cancelled as well. We were ...

... and travel, as is something I will learn later on. After only a few minutes, before the train even left the station of Kashan, there were men coming from other cabins to see the Canadian, perched on the top bunk with a big backpack. They all shook my hand and welcomed me to Iran and prayed for my journey to be safe. It was. I got into Yazd at around 4.00 in the morning, and my couch-surfing friend, Mansour, was there to meet me. We took a taxi to his friend's house, as his ...

... workshops fill the tiny niches and store fronts of the building's two storeys. A few steps away, the bazaar turns and winds its way under the vaulted ceiling, the human traffic thin and spare, with entire sections devoid of people except a few forlorn shopkeepers and old ladies bundled in black chador. A smiling young lady approached me, introduced herself and her mother, and we began a friendly chat. But even before she introduced herself, I knew that she was one ...

... tract. I wanted to learn the Farsi phrase for "not too sweet", but never got around to it. It kind of made me wonder where they get all their sugar from, because the desert plateau cannot support sugar cane or sugar beets. <br><br>The restaurant offered a much needed oasis of shade, food and seating for our overheated heads, empty stomachs and sore feet. Being younger, Peter and Matthias did not heed my advice for head covering and sunscreen, an act of blind ...

... of nomadic pastoral people who roam the country with their sheep and goats. They are well-known for their hand-made rugs called "gabbeh." For seven hours, the bus made its way to Shiraz through this vast landscape while I read my novel and dozed off under the protective shade of the red curtains. The heat of the day and the unfiltered sunlight was at its peak when I stepped off the bus in Shiraz. Iranians have a tradition of geographical stereotypes. Even before I came on this ...