Monthly Archives: May 2016

Day 282 – Choqa Zanbil and the reappearance of weather

Porridge with mutton for breakfast ... hmmm .. going local

Porridge with mutton for breakfast … hmmm .. going local

Breakfast after a very comfy night was the Persian standard with a European twist. We got the usual bread, cheese and tea with the addition of hard boiled eggs but then coffee, orange juice, milk and jam were also available. Carrot jam really isn’t my thing, while sour cherries jam is a good match to the flat bread. I, then, felt obliged to also try the rose jam which was weird but tasty. Enough food talk now.

We left Shushtar to ride to Choqa Zanbil, maybe 30 more kilometres away. Choqa Zanbil is a Unesco heritage site, protecting the 3300 year old ziggurat. From the pictures on the internet, we weren’t really impressed. Being on the site though, our view changed. We’re unsure if it’s the scale of the ziggurat or if it was a combination of the loneliness of the place (we arrived before the tour buses did) with the dramatic, lead-coloured sky announcing a storm. Whatever it was, it was impressive. The whole structure is built of mud-bricks, some of them burnt. It has five levels going up and is being restored at the moment (or rather, for a long time).

3300 years ... wow

3300 years … wow

The first person I ran into, while Flo took the longer way through the outlying buildings, was a restaurateur. His English wasn’t quite that good but he managed to give us some information, guided us for a bit and allowed Flo to get up on the first level of the ziggurat. All that while lightning could be seen in the distance behind the structure (and I didn’t get it in a single picture) and then the thunder boomed overhead.

The information available in English is much better here than in Persepolis, probably because it got some Unesco funding from 1998 onwards. When the first drops started to fall, we tried to hurry back to the bike…unsuccessfully. A German guided tour had just arrived so we talked to them for a bit and shortly entered the ziggurat again with them. At the bike, we answered more questions of locals, took a couple more pictures with them…and rode off into the storm. The wind was incredible. The rain still hadn’t reached its full potential so we decided to play it safe instead of being soaked through to the bone. At the next intersection/check point with a bit of cover, we put on our entire rain gear, this time including pants.

We took the toll road for 38 km - not sure if we were allowed to, but it was fast

We took the toll road for 38 km – not sure if we were allowed to, but it was fast

Choqa Zanbil was the last point in the low lands of Iran for us so we headed towards the mountains again for which I was grateful. Yes, it was stormy today but yesterday it had been just too hot for me to cope well. So we looked towards Kermanshah as a next destination which we wouldn’t reach today. Lunch was had at a real (real) truck stop where I had rice with yogurt and a salad because all they sold was kebab. It was a slightly weird experience to stop at a real truck stop, I must say.

Parts of the afternoon went by in cruise mode before we stopped to pick up ingredients for dinner. To mix up our usual bread-heavy camping grub, Flo wanted to boil potatoes which could be mixed with the remaining eggplant-tomato-dish from a can. The roadside vendor where we stopped refused to take any money for a handful of potatoes and tomatoes and instead insisted on giving us a watermelon for free as well. No amount of shaking our heads could dissuade him (where should we put a WATERMELON on the bike?) so in the end, we went for the smallest one he had. It got stored in the bag that usually holds our waterproof gear which we were wearing now.

Loaded to the brim like this, we headed into the mountains proper. Already tired, we let one or two promising spots slip before stopping on a meadow with trees that seems to be a popular picnic/camping spot. There was no one else around though so we put up our tent and had a quiet but delicious dinner. By the time we were ready for bed, the now familiar rumbling of thunder was back. The night’s rest was interrupted when the lightning storm started as the strikes could be seen very well even from inside our tent. Luckily, it didn’t cross right over us so we went back to sleep not long after. Earplugs are your best friend in such cases.

Day 281 – All roads lead to … Romans

The rain was good for this for sure

The rain was good for this for sure

We made it alive and well through the storm and rain last night. This morning, the tent was still fine (thanks Salewa, great product) and the sky clear.

There is very little to write about the road today, other than that it was amazing. I was not quite sure about this whole idea of ours of doing a big detour through the Zagros Mountains instead of the direct route to Hamadan before. The stunning landscapes along the road really did change that, though. The constantly changing landscape following down the Karun from 2400m down to almost sea level was truly worth it.

Rocinante and Flo posing with the great landscape

Rocinante and Flo posing with the great landscape

We had memorable little moments in between, nonetheless. The first one that comes to mind is at a police check point in Loristan. Iran is the first country we actually get stopped by the police at times. This time, they invited us into the main building for tea and to check our papers. Sadly, the shared language skills were not enough for any deeper conversation.

We stopped to buy some ingredients for lunch, when we were once again surrounded by a bunch of kids and very friendly villagers. After a brief chat, we hopped back on the bike to find a lovely picnic spot in the shade of a tree.

Suddenly, the tarmac stopped despite being marked as sealed on both the GPS and the paper map

Suddenly, the tarmac stopped despite being marked as sealed on both the GPS and the paper map

The green around us faded as gradually as it came yesterday. This time though, a bright aquamarine was added to the palette by the Karun River and its many hydro power reservoirs along the way. At the same time though the level of complaint by both Nina and Rocinante rose as the heat did on the way down. When we reached the altitude of our destination (100m above sea level) the thermometer hit 40°C again, even at 5 pm.

Reaching Shushtar was a bit of a stretch, but we still made it by 5.30 pm and quickly found a hotel. While looking in vain for the recommended one, we were waved into the newly renovated traditional hotel in town. They made us a good offer and even had a ramp ready to get Rocinante into the inner courtyard. We bottomed out for a second, but no damage done. Tomorrow without luggage then …

Looking down on the historic parts

Looking down on the historic parts

The town was one of those pleasant surprises you get. Never heard of it, but full of great historic stuff. The waterworks here had been built 1800 years ago and were crucial in the irrigation of the whole region. Oh, and they were built by forced labour from Roman Legionaries. The force was captured by the Persians, including their Emperor Valerian. The only Roman Emperor ever to have been captured in battle. He likely died in captivity in the resident Salosel Castle.

Tomorrow, we will go for even older stuff … 3300 year old Elamite Ziggurat of Choqa Zanbil!

Day 280 – The mountainous side of Iran

The mosque from the outside

The mosque from the outside

Three nights in Esfahan seemed enough. But as Flo wrote, we kept missing the mosque that made it to the cover of the Lonely Planet. After breakfast, after packing everything, this was our last stop: Masjed-e Sheikh Lotfollah.

This mosque considerably smaller than the other two that we visited. It was thus a nice stop before leaving the city. Through the blue entrance, you come to a small tunnel which leads into the domed chamber of the mosque. The tunnel is necessary to ensure the orientation towards Mecca but it very subtly done. You mostly realize it because the guide book tells you that’s what’s happening. 🙂

Part of the whole thing

Part of the whole thing

The chamber itself is beautiful with tiles in the lower wall section and then real mosaic for the inscription. Unfortunately, by now we are mosque-d out and didn’t stay long even though we enjoyed it. It is also possible to see the vaults underneath so we went. All the walls are clinically white and a single stall sells tiny wooden versions of the mosque…

For a good bye wave, we crossed two of the bridges that cross the river in Esfahan and rode off towards Zagros Mountains. The Lonely Planet describes the stretch between Chelgerd and Yasuj as “spectacular but without tourist infrastructure”. Doesn’t that sound exactly like our cup of tea? Since we only left Esfahan around noon, we wouldn’t make it all the way today anyway. Instead, we had a picnic lunch under trees and prepared for the height and coldness of the mountains. Well, Flo did. He put on the water- and windproof layer at lunch time. I was still feeling fine mostly because Flo acts as my wind blocker.

Snow-covered mountain view framed by trees...how very picturesque!

Snow-covered mountain view framed by trees…how very picturesque!

The Mountains. We reached a cruising height of about 2200 meters. The ranges in the distance were still higher and completely snow-capped. Snow…a sight we haven’t had in a while. With a cloud cover, wind and the height, it was now c.o.l.d. I didn’t want us to stop just so I could put on a jacket…so we had a tea break instead. 🙂 Hot drinks were amazing on such a day and got us into the right spirit to delve deeper into the world of mountains. We bought everything for dinner and headed out with the intention of camping somewhere along the way.

Sharing the road...

Sharing the road…

Which is exactly what we did. Enjoying the ride with little traffic, sharing the road mostly with shepherds and sheep, we continued. Evidence of nomadic life can be seen everywhere here. Tents, shelters built of branches and the occasional brick house can be seen on the slopes of the mountains while small herds of sheep are being moved constantly. Most shepherds have dogs to help them keep the sheep in line while some also ride donkeys. While the donkeys are universally cute and fluffy (not to speak of the loads they carry), shepherd’s dogs are a bit more worrying. Most of them seem to really dislike the sound Rocinante makes and their sense of protection kicks in. Once or twice a dog chased after us.

All set up with a gorgeous backdrop

All set up with a gorgeous backdrop

When we had enough for the day, we followed a dirt track up into the hills. It turned out to be a service and access road to an irrigation channel. Making sure we didn’t block anything and didn’t end up pitching our tent in a field, we found a spot that was perfect. Out of the way, level and mostly private. Once we had set up camp, a lone fellow visited us on a motorbike. He seemed to belong to the house/farm further down but we couldn’t really communicate. I think he invited us to stay at the house but I’m not sure. Also, with the tent now up that would have been just more trouble than it’s worth. He came back twice in the evening; once to warn us that the sprinklers would now be turned on (which didn’t affect us) and the last time…we’re not sure but he left wishing us a good night. That is one phrase that I know even if I cannot say it; Azemeh and the girls tried really hard to teach me.

 

Day 279 – The princess is in another mosque

Happy Mothers Day, Connie and Sabine!

This was the spontaneous bonus day we added to our stay in Esfahan. For one, Nina can do with some more recovery time. Plus, with today, we have at least caught up with the blog till yesterday. I had called my mum last night, Nina had planned it for today. And so the day went by, until well into the afternoon.

The fountain is modeled after the qibla in mecca and pilgrims would come here to practice ...

The fountain is modeled after the qibla in mecca and pilgrims would come here to practice …

Nina had one more sightseeing goal for Esfahan, to see the mosque from the cover of the lonely planet. Yesterday, we went to the Shah’s Mosque, which was not it. So we forced ourselves out of bed and back to the city one more time. It was a decent walk to today’s destination, Masjid-e Jameh. Our mood was low, but we pushed it.

Well, it turned out that this was not the one either. Apart from the hefty 400.000 rial admission fee, it was still pretty cool. It is the largest mosque in Iran and very different from the ones on Naqsh-e Jahan. Here, there were almost no mosaics, but instead the decorations were fashioned in brickwork instead. It is also much older than Masjid-e Shah, at least in parts. Nina was a bit bummed that we still did not find the “cover mosque”, but this was a great consolation price.

Another round of walking (and getting lost) in the bazaar

Another round of walking (and getting lost) in the bazaar

We left the mosque at about 4 pm and made our way to the final stop: a recommended ice cream shop at the other end of the bazaar. The idea was to find food along the way. Unfortunately, we failed a bit at reading the map and made it almost all the way to the sweet treats before realising that the restaurant we were looking for was … somewhere else. Sweets before lunch / dinner it was, then.

Because we had skipped lunch and have not had a “treat” meal in a while, we decided to go to one of the fancy and a bit touristy restaurants afterwards. This one was really pretty, located in one corner of the massive Jahan square (which allegedly is the second largest square in the world after Tianamen). The food was good but not overwhelming. At least a lot better than our usual fast food joint roadside snacks. I had a lovely piece of mutton and Nina got an aubergine stew.

Time for a "Fancy Feast". Flo had lamb...spot the bone

Time for a “Fancy Feast”. Flo had lamb…spot the bone

During dinner, we finally found the image description on the Lonely Planet to find out that the mosque on the cover was of course the last of the big three – the one we had snubbed yesterday. It would be closed for the day once we were done with our dinner, so it got put on the “maybe tomorrow morning” list in the end.

Happy and full, we slouched back to our hostel. It could have been nice to finish off the day at the riverfront, but we could not muster the energy for the 45 minute walk anymore.

 

 

 

Day 278 – Seeing Esfahan on foot

Our blog needed some love and attention; it’s not that we are tired of writing but a combination of bad internet connections, long and full days and thus not enough time to write the appropriately long entries had led to the biggest backlog we had so far. Thus, the whole morning was spent on posting blog entries to catch up. Even if we have pre-written the entries, uploading photos and then commenting every single one takes time.

We left the hostel for lunch, mostly because Flo was hangry. As always, vegetarian choices were severely limited so I was stuck with soup, salad and dessert. The dessert Khoresht mast was a new thing I tried and it did not convince me. Looking it up on the net also revealed that while it is a dessert, it is not vegetarian…

Two mosques, one enormous gate bazaar entrance. This square has it all.

Two mosques, one enormous gate bazaar entrance. This square has it all.

Afterwards, we strolled down one of the bigger streets until we found Naqsh-e Jahan Imam Square which is the center of Esfahan, really. The name means “pattern of the world”. The square is a rectangle and it is enclosed by the low buildings that house part of the bazaar with the main entrance of the bazaar to one (short) side and the entrance to the Masjed-e Shah (Royal Mosque) on the exact opposite. A second mosque, Masjed-e Sheikh Lotfollah, has its entrance at the middle of one of the long sides. From its dimensions, the square is impressive but unfortunately, there is a construction site right on the square and the dome of Masjed-e Shah is also clad in a scaffold; this takes away from the impression quite a bit. Continue reading →

Day 277 – Guardian angels

Of course, we don’t believe in supernatural beings, faith or such like. But sometimes these ideas are a good shorthand to deal with the weirdness that occurs when a single observer gazes at an overwhelmingly complex and often random world. Why did we stop right there for food? How come Mohammad had to drop of two of his guest at that exact same moment? As much as these moments can neither be influenced actively nor explained with some sort of directed external force, there is a part of ourselves in them nonetheless. By opening up to the world, traveling as we are, and being open to be swept up by what may come, I believe that we “spike the deck” ever so slightly in our favour.

Saying good-bye to Mohammad

Saying good-bye to Mohammad

Whatever it may be, we consider ourselves supremely lucky to have ended up here. The Tak-Taku Homestay is an amazing place to the point of being surreally so. We spend the rest of the morning lounging and catching up on the blog a bit more (a reoccurring theme at the moment, it seems). When it was time to tackle the last 100km to Esfahan, we packed our gear once more and got ready. All that was left was to give a huge thank you to Mohammad, his family and the lovely other guests we had the pleasure to meet.

The GPS was set, we had just wiggled our hindquarters into position and turned back onto the main highway, when I noticed something ahead. The road was freshly sealed here, without markings yet. I saw a dust cloud 500m ahead and closed my visor, thinking maybe a digger or some other machine was at work next to the road. When we got there, I was first confused, then realisation dawned. There was a wrecked car, on its roof and facing the wrong way maybe 10m off the road in the dust. Terrible, blood freezing confirmation came when we stopped and saw a little girl, maybe 6 years old, crawling out of the wreck, screaming.

Nina was terrified, especially when we both saw the foot sticking out of the former driver’s side window at an odd angle, unmoving. I was sure someone must have died or at least sustained horrible injuries. I handed Nina the phone and the number of Mohammad and grabbed the first aid kit. By the time I got to the car, miraculously, all four members of the family had crawled out of the wreck on their own. Maybe 1 minute has passed since the crash. More people stopped and came over and I had a look at the four. No obvious broken bones, no bleeding, heck almost no abrasions either! They were all walking, obviously in shock and covered in dust, but pretty much unharmed.

For a minute or two, I could not quite believe their luck – and ours for that matter. They were certainly not buckled up and the Iranian cars are usually at the safety levels of 1985. For all of them to walk within a minute, no one showing signs of injury, is like winning the lottery. Or as a short hand, their guardian angels were doing overtime today.

There were plenty of people here now to help, no one needed first aid and we don’t speak Farsi. To avoid any misunderstandings, especially once the authorities show up, we decided to move on. A moment later we stopped again briefly to call Mohammad anyway and asked him to double check with the ambulance service just in case.

A great setting for a tea house

A great setting for a tea house

Shaken but relieved we rode the 100km in relative silence, all the way to our next hostel in Esfahan. Mohammad had suggested a place with a great price and even called ahead for us to make a reservation. All worked out smoothly. The room is just what we need, maybe even a bit more, and the bathrooms are clean. Best of all, there is proper safe parking for the motorcycle.

We lay low for a couple of hours. Nina was enjoying the chance to recuperate a bit more and I was just chilling. When sunset drew closer, we thought we might still want to go out to see at least one thing or two.

The Lonely Planet suggests the Tea House of the Abbasi Hotel. Part of a luxury hotel set up in a magnificent old caravansary, this place serves snacks good enough for a dinner for us. The courtyard has been transformed into a beautiful garden, with the seating lightly sprinkled around. It is hugely popular, especially around that time, and it took a moment for us to find a spot. The ash was creamy and filling, the tea excellent. We thoroughly enjoyed the “date night” feel of it.

Day 276 – An unexpected pick-up

Gosh, what a lovely spot. I do look tired though

Gosh, what a lovely spot. I do look tired though

Check out time for our lovely hotel was 12 (noon) and we intended to use every second of that time to relax, enjoy the garden and update the blog while we have wifi. Breakfast was served late from 9 am onwards and we just kept our spot to lounge on one of the platform. After blogging for an hour we had an extra tea or coffee (which was still available from breakfast) and dug into the box with sweets once more.

But even the most chilled out morning in a while comes to an end so we packed and waved good-bye to Yazd which we really enjoyed despite it being rather hard on our budget. It is 316km from Yazd to Esfahan, something that is easily do-able in an afternoon ride. However, we had decided to wild camp tonight to save money so there was absolutely no time pressure on us. Unfortunately, the road led straight through a desert where the sun burnt down. It wasn’t inviting to dally.

I was exhausted already: In the heat and on the bike is not a good place to be ill

I was exhausted already: In the heat and on the bike is not a good place to be ill

Around 2 pm, we stopped at an old roadside caravansary which had some spots in the shade and was probably used as a stop for truckers. A quick snack lunch and an extended break later, we were back on the road. I still didn’t feel well and was really happy with the break. I guess I’m coming down with a bad case of cold or something; my head feels kind of funny from all the slime that is building up inside of it. You are welcome for this description. =P

Once we hit the mountain range behind which Esfahan lies, it got cooler and more comfortable on the bike. Soon, we were starting to look out for a camp spot. Spare time can always be used for the blog and a bit of a lie down cannot be bad for a sick me either. We passed the first “maybe” spot when I suddenly realized that we hadn’t bought anything for dinner yet…and no extra water as well. So the looking for a camping spot stopped and instead, we looked for a shop now to replenish our tank bags.

Such a lovely, welcoming place

Such a lovely, welcoming place

The first place we found was an actual village or small town called Toudeshk. So we turned off the highway and stopped at the first shop we saw…it was closed. Just when we got going again, a taxi pulled up to us, the driver looked out and asked if we were looking for a guest house. Since we weren’t, he pointed out the next open shop to us but then continued to ask if we would come to his guest house…maybe just for a tea. We had the time so why not? Buying bread, cheese and vegetables was done quickly and then we followed Mohammad to his guest house. Turns out that it is Tak-Taku Homestay which is recommended in the Lonely Planet and is a lovely, lovely place. Like a little oasis.

Completely vegetarian: Ash and an eggplant dish

Completely vegetarian: Ash and an eggplant dish

We sat down with Mohammad and parts of his family to eat water melon and drink tea, joined by other guests after a while. It was lovely. Unfortunately, we really really didn’t want to spend money on a guest house but Mohammad insisted on showing us an option. So we had a look. Understanding that we are on a tight budget, he offered us to sleep in the fire room which only has three of the platforms in it and no beds. This would allow us to stay for very cheap. We said yes as all we really need to sleep is a roof and no bugs. Thus, we had a lovely late afternoon at the guest house, an amazing chat with the fellow guests and a great home-cooked vegetarian dinner.

Meeting Leon from the Netherlands, Tilman from Germany and Jose and Jorge from Portugal meant we had very well-travelled company who were also interested in politics, much to Flo’s pleasure. With dinner after dark, I was getting tired rapidly so I opted for an earlier night than Flo.

Day 275 – Jazzed by Yazd

What a great place to wake up to

What a great place to wake up to

The night was cold, but just at the edge of uncomfortable. If I would have worn just a little bit more, it would have been fine. On the other hand, it was not nearly as cold as back in New Zealand, so it seems at some point we will have to buy at least another blanket for the upper regions of Kurdistan and Turkey.

Our camp spot was still beautiful. We took all the time we needed (and not to over-work still ill Nina) to pack up our camp and got back on the road. This road lead us in a bend eastward, down the current mountain range onto the same high altitude plain that Shahr-e Babak lies on. The last 100 km are another vast mountain range and the steep drop down to the edge of the desert. The last pass was impressive; with 2600m it was probably the highest pass Rocinante has ever gone over. At the same time, it was probably the least spectacular – just a simple mountain road.

into the heart of the old town

into the heart of the old town

The heat of the desert really hit us when we reached the foot of the mountains on the Yazd side. We had come down 1500m of altitude on our 25km ride, plus hitting the edge of the desert. The outskirts of Yazd do little to impress, with their sprawling concrete facades. As soon as we turned a corner into the old town though, we were impressed. The big blue tiled entrance of a mosque beckoned us and we turned once more into the maze of mud-brick walls.

First stop was the Silk Road Hotel – their rooms were clearly out of our price range, but the Lonely Planet said that their restaurant would serve the rarity of vegetarian Indian food. Right there on the parking lot was something else that caught our eye: A proper camper van with German licence plate (Hannover to be specific). A brief look around once we were inside and we spotted the potential overlanders and eventually joined them for our lunch.

Overlanders! Such a lovely couple

Overlanders! Such a lovely couple

Helga and Uli are a charming couple who have just reached retirement age. They have driven their van all the way down from Germany for a three month trip. We had lunch and then coffee together and all in all had a great time. It surprises me time and again what a huge unifier traveling is. Time and time we meet people with whom on the surface, we have little in common, just to kick it off like we have known each other for ages.

With a little bit of heavy heart, we pulled ourselves away from the good company to find a hotel and use the time for a bit of sightseeing in town. The cheapest hotel in the old town was still a good bit above our usual budget. Dorm beds would have fitted the bill, but Nina was still sick and we did not want to spread it too much to innocent travellers. After all, the hotel was amazing. An old merchant’s villa, it had beautiful courtyards with fish ponds and greenery. We gave in to the indulgence, promising ourselves a night of camping tomorrow to make up for it.

The most beautiful mosquito breeding ground ever!

The most beautiful mosquito breeding ground ever!

The hotel was really stunning – we were looking forward to letting the day fade out on the platforms by the pond at the inner courtyard. For now though, we had some sightseeing to do. The hotel was right on the route of a suggested walk from the guidebook. Locals still gave us the odd look for wandering around in the afternoon heat (at 3 pm), but with all the shade from the narrow and sometimes vaulted alleys of the old town, it was really not too bad.

Completely covered alleyway

Completely covered alleyway

Disappointment struck soon though, when we found out that the prices for the sights along the route were “a bit” outdated. To be more precise, across the board the admittance for foreigners went up 10x to 20x from 2012. We hesitated, but could not in good conscience spend $10 to $20 NZD for every sight of half an hour. Luckily, we enjoyed then narrow and maze-like old town just fine on its own. It would have been cool though to get a look at one or two more of the old merchant houses. Generally, all houses are unremarkable from the outside here. Plain mud brick walls, that’s it. But like modern shopping malls, once inside, whole worlds unfold.

We continued, also skipping an inside view of the mosque for $4 a person to find what Nina surely defined as the highlight of her tour: Haj Khalifeh Ali Rahbar, a 100 year old sweets shop at the corner of the two main roads. After some guessing on how this shop works, we manage to liberate a mixed box to go with our afternoon tea (or two) for less than a single ticket at the sights. Nina definitively prefers this.

In earlier times, the water from the qanat would have filled the pool, creating a living room underground with cool and fresh air

In earlier times, the water from the qanat would have filled the pool, creating a living room underground with cool and fresh air

We made one exception from our now frugal ways at the Water Museum across the street. Engineering history plus 300 year old merchant house was too tempting for me to forgo. It was pretty cool in the end. The house had two floors up and three down, to a depth of 10m below ground. This was to tap into two Qanats – ancient irrigation channels – below the house. The deepest room had water flowing through it once and would have been used by the inhabitants to escape the up to 50°C summer heat outside.

On our way back, we ran into Uli and Helga once more. They spontaneously joined us and we gave them a super quick tour of the sights in the old town before heading back to our hotel to catch the sunset from the rooftop.

Chilling in the cool night’s breeze with tea and sweets on one of the platforms in the courtyard was an amazing way to let the day fade out …

Day 274 – Pasargadae

Looking along the nave with the stained glass windows

Looking along the nave with the stained glass windows

Time for us to move on. Shiraz has been very nice to us but we only have 30 days in Iran so we need to see more. However, we didn’t quite manage the early start that we had wanted. First, we slept in a bit and then met other travelers just outside the hotel. They saw us packing the bike and started a conversation…which was pleasant and thus lasted more than 30 minutes.

Second, there was one more sight in Shiraz we wanted to see. The mosque of Nasir-al-Molk is famous for its stained glass windows which colour the whole interior in the mornings. By now it was 10.30 am so “morning” had to be stretched a bit but we still managed to see some of the glory that guide books and postcards promise. It was an amazing sight.

Pasargadae! Success!

Pasargadae! Success!

From Shiraz we rode the 110 km to Pasargadae which is another archaeological site. Because it was so late, we had a roadside lunch before arriving at our next destination. It was another case of “we don’t have vegetarian food” and then serving up bread, yogurt with herbs and, especially for me, grilled tomatoes while Flo got his kebab.

In Pasargadae, the tomb of Cyrus the Great is the prominent sight. I liked it and Flo, as a history geek, was quite excited. We took many pictures of the tomb before moving on to the other things on display. I now seriously didn’t feel well so I sat down in the shade while Flo hopped from sight to sight and from sign to sign like a puppy. I’m glad he still had fun even if I was more of a spoilsport.

...and yes, you can! Just need to go off-road for a bit

…and yes, you can! Just need to go off-road for a bit

There was no way we would make it to Yazd tonight but we hadn’t really counted on it. Buying a cheap bread-cheese-veggies dinner in a shop was easy so we were all set for another night of camping. We kept riding until we found a spot that looked promising then went off-road for a bit and around a hill to be well and truly out of sight. Pitching our tent is routine work so in almost no time, we were set for the night; with enough time to spare for a nice, hot cup of tea to make my throat feel a little better.

 

Day 273 – King of Kings

“My name is Darius, King of Kings, King of the Universe”

Persepolis. I have known this name for more years than not. Capital of the Achaemenid Persian Empire under Darius and Xerxes. The way we travel, we usually only learn about what there is to see a week or so in advance. There are a handful of places though that stand above this. Places like Uluru, Borobudur, Angkor Wat … and Persepolis. Today we went just there.

Teamed up with Jan for this day trip which is a good opportunity for riding pictures

Teamed up with Jan for this day trip which is a good opportunity for riding pictures

We joined up with Jan, who we had met on the ferry, for this day trip, as he is also in town and keen to do the trip. The site is an easy 60 km from the center of Shiraz along the road to Esfahan. We arrived there by 10 am and parked the bikes right at the entrance car park to get changed (small mistake, more later). The admission price for foreign tourists is steep, at $10 NZ per person, given the average meal costs us about $5 for two.

The site itself consists of several structures in varying states of conservation or reconstruction. All this is set on a massive level platform, half cut out of the hillside, half build up with massive stone blocks. When Alexander the Great burned the city to the ground and looted the treasury, there was still room to spare for a palace or two. As a bonus, behind the platform up the hillside are two huge tombs cut straight into the rock face.

This represents about the level of care taken at this site ...

This represents about the level of care taken at this site …

Overall, we both were a bit underwhelmed by the site and the presentation. It is always amazing to stand in the presence of such an historic place, but we felt clearly lacking in information. The sparse signs, some of them missing, had barely more information than half the guidebook entry on the site. By the looks of it, most archaeological work had stopped in 1979 and not much has changed since.

Maybe the Persepolis Museum housed in the badly restored “harem” of Xerxes (think AC’s visibly sticking to the outside) held some more solid info, but another $10 each were too steep for us to be tempted to try. So we left, with all the great photos of this epic place we could wish for, in search for food.

The remainder of the second gate

The remainder of the second gate

We did, literally, pay the price for not negotiating the price for parking before we went in. At first, they asked for a ludicrous amount – 10x of what was on the sign (in Farsi) for cars. In the end, both Jan and we paid more than we should have and were a bit frustrated with ourselves.

Jan was keen to visit Naqsh-e Rustam, a necropolis cut into the rock about 12 km from Persepolis. We failed to find food on the way, but did find a minor site with some bas relief carvings instead. At Naqsh-e Rustam, we turned back once more at the entrance due to the steep entrance fee. $20 to see the tomb of Darius the Great? Maybe 3 months ago, but now … we can’t get ourselves to pay that. Funny how we are developing the same kind of attitude that we frowned upon in other travellers a year ago …

We made our way back home alone then, leaving the tombs to Jan to explore. Food is still hard to come by for Nina. After two tries, we gave up and bought supplies for a picnic. There were some nice spots overlooking Shiraz on the way. When we got back there though, it had started raining once again. We went, with picnic supplies and all, back to our room and collapsed for a while.

Nina was not feeling so well, so we stayed in for the rest of the day and did some overdue homework instead, updating the blog and checking our emails.