May 29 - 30 Tehran

Our driver picked us up early this morning to drive us to Tehran - roughly 5 hours north. It was an nteresting trip across the foothills of the Zagros Mountain Range, over dry plains and past fascinating multi-coloured hills whose strata formed strange and interesting patterns. The roads were excellent roads with little traffic but lots of toll stops, large roadhouses dotted the highway and come midday we stopped for fuel and food. The first ‘western fast food’ in 4 weeks - hot dog and chips!  On the counter with the usual salt and pepper there were tiny sachets of powdered thyme to sprinkle on the hot chips - quite delicious. 

Fascinating terrain which would have been marvellous to explore a li

It would have been marvellous to take the 'country roads' rather than the tollway

Blue Trucks came in many sizes but most carried large loads

As we drove, we passed many of these blue trucks. They are in fact called 'Blue Trucks'. Often pretty clapped out but they carry huge loads. Eventually we reached the outskirts of Tehran but our poor driver got lost getting into the metropolis of Tehran - twice! We had our fingers crossed that he wasn’t going to take us to the airport an hour away from the city the next morning when time would be of the essence.  By this time I was feeling pretty rotten so curled up on the bed until dinnertime. 

The next day I was still feeling unwell so Lindsay went out on his own with our guide to see some of the sights - I was pretty disappointed but there was nothing much I could do about it. 

The following is Lindsay's account of his day of sightseeing. Unfortunately for me and you there were no photos.

Extracts from Lindsay's blog https://www.tumblr.com/lindoig1
"Tehran – Somewhat by Myself   

Heather is really miserable with her cold so decided to stay in bed to rest while I went out to brave the terrors of Tehran alone - actually with my guide Hengameh. Sad about Heather not being able to do all the tours, but hopefully, things will slow down a bit after tomorrow’s 3am start. We have 12 days to enjoy in Istanbul, a train trip across Europe, 6 days to hang out in Paris and then it is the cruise and campervanning, all of which should be considerably less taxing. But one way or another, if you catch a cold, you just have to weather the storm.

"First stop with my guide, Hengameh, was a taxi to a pharmacy to buy more cold and flu tablets for Heather, then to the Golestan Palace. This elaborate complex was built by Tahmasb I almost 500 years ago and his dynasty and a few others called it home for about 400 years, during which time, it underwent several expansions and renovations. The recent Shahs didn’t live there but still used it for coronations and special meetings and seeing it is believing. It certainly explains why they continued to use it for special occasions when they wanted to impress people. One example quoted was that one small room was used after WWII for meetings that made many important decisions about how German reparations were to be addressed, along with other issues needing the Allies attention at the time.

"I only went into the grounds and the main hall (that is actually about 6 halls). I was delighted to note that the entire complex was and always has been completely secular. Not a Mosque or Madrassa in sight! There are nine other halls and museums in the complex, but only so many hours in the day so I only paid for the entry and Main Hall. (It used to be much bigger, but the Pahlavi dynasty apparently hated their predecessors and demolished many of the original buildings.). The grounds are shady with a big water feature in the centre surrounded by extensive gardens. Not much to see in the gardens because a team of gardeners are in the process of replanting most of it for the new season. Quite a bit of restoration work is happening, but there is still a lot of original stuff, all of which was interesting. Nasser-ol-Din Shah who reigned in the late 19th century was apparently something of a tyrant and was eventually assassinated by his son, but he achieved a lot of ‘firsts’ for Persia. (People here are anxious to be known as Persians and are offended when we assume they are of Arab descent.) One first is that he was the first Iranian dignitary to visit Europe (3 times) and he fell in love with European architecture, art and culture so there are many unusual features in both the architecture and the artwork. For example, the entire walls of all except one building are covered in beautifully painted traditional Iranian tiles - many with central panels depicting famous European buildings, including the Leaning Tower of Pisa upside down!  Not only Europe either. I saw the Taj Mahal in one panel.

"Inside is dazzling! Every inch of the walls and ceiling in most rooms are covered with what must be millions of tiny mirrors, every one of which reflects the light from the giant chandeliers as well as the reflections from every other mirror in the room. Must be seen to be believed and either magnificent or hideous depending on your views about blingalingalingaling! There are rooms full of priceless gifts given to the nation by other countries over the centuries. Mind boggling!

"Hengameh had picked up another guide and close friend in the Palace and she joined us for a few hours - 2 for the price of 1? We then walked to the Grand Bazaar with one on either side of me to ensure the old guy didn’t get bowled over by their mad drivers - they have the highest per capita rate of road fatalities in the world. I was also regaled with multiple warnings about keeping my bag, backpack, camera and person safe in the crush of the bazaar. Maybe all Asian bazaars are as crazily crowded with many thousands of stalls selling every conceivable item (under maybe 100 kilos) to tens of thousands of eager shoppers. It was a labyrinth of lanes and byways lined on both sides with the most higgledy-piggledy mixture of wares. An electronics stall selling spices and ladies lingerie sat beside a copper pan shop selling glass ornaments and jigsaw puzzles - and so it goes and goes and goes. We only tackled a tiny corner and escaped down some side alleys to head off for lunch. It was at least 2 clicks away, but we arrived to a warm welcome in a wonderfully cool travellers’ hotel just in time before I died of thirst and/or exhaustion. We ate quite a nice meal and then it was into another taxi to go to the Tabiat Nature Bridge. We dropped our other guide off along the way and drove what seemed a long and somewhat convoluted way to the pedestrian bridge. It is only about 6 or 7 years old and was designed by a 26 year old Iranian WOMAN who won an international competition for the design. It spans a very busy multi-lane expressway with a wide garden area between the divided road and is 300 metres long and very high above the roadway. I felt quite vertiginous at one stage, but persevered and enjoyed the view. It has several levels and a few places where ramps connect the layers with convenient lookouts for photos. It has a couple of bends in it and gardens too, so you seem constantly to be looking at new things from slightly different angles. A fascinating and highly creative structure, particularly considering its design history.

"At the other end of the bridge, there are many walks through lightly forested hilltop areas. We didn’t walk far into this area, but it was pleasant in the shade and I even spied a new bird, yet to be conclusively identified. If only I could use the internet, I am sure I could find a few of my unidentified species! We returned across the bridge and walked along the other side: a more ordered area of lawns, trees and gardens with a couple of (closed for Ramadan, of course) restaurants and a tea house all with a nautical theme - three boats, a replica of a galleon, various anchors, buoys and related maritime accoutrements. At the far end was a large flying saucerlike planetarium (also closed) that my guide said is used for looking at the stars, but I think she misunderstood.

"Back to where we started from and a taxi back to the hotel where Heather was still resting but seemed at least a little better having dosed herself with the last of our cold and flu tablets - good job I got some more.

"What else could go wrong in this crazy place? We had lots of thunder last night and wild winds and a rain storm soon after I got back to the room today. Then dinner was a lark. We went down to the restaurant a little after 7:30 as we did last night, only to be told that it wouldn’t open until 8:30 tonight. We sat around while hordes of other people arrived and went in again at 8:30 only to be told that it was a private function and we were sent to our room and instructed to order from room service who didn’t appear to understand any of our language. We crossed our fingers and placed an order and were told that it would be 15 minutes. 45 minutes later, I returned to the front desk to check on progress and after a 10 minute discussion, they said it had just been delivered. Back to the room and sure enough, there it was. It was quite nice too, but eating close to 10pm when we have to be up by 3am is not our preferred way to do things. Aaah! Iran. But it will be behind us tomorrow."

And tomorrow dawned but a long time after we were up! We had to leave the hotel at 3:00 am to be at the airport 3 hours before our scheduled flight. We thought that it sounded a bit extreme, but not when we got there a bit after 4am. Wall to wall people, queues winding back and back on themselves. Took us at least an hour and half to get checked in and then it was on through the rest of the formalities. Man oh man!

I don't recall if we ate breakfast or not but it was wonderful to see the sun

We had a long wait but finally the sun came up and eventually we boarded. One blessed relief was that once in the departure lounge I could take off my head scarf! And then we were winging our way to Istsanbul - the end stop on our Silk Road journey.

When we got to Istanbul passport control we realised that our Visas were in our luggage on the other side of passport control - sacre bleu !! After some small panic - of course we could have paid US$80 each for new ones - we remembered that we had copies on the PC in our hand luggage - phew! Finally we burst out onto Turkish soil. What a relief!  And here we are....

May 28 Isfahan - a whirlwind visit

In Isfahan there were fewer black-enveloped women and more glamour on the streets, but still the veil and/or headscarf seemed mandatory.  Inspite of that 'restriction', many of the women's clothes were quite stunning. Due to a changed train schedule, we only had an afternoon and evening in Isfahan and we took that at a gallop. Not surprisingly after our long overnight train trip and whirlwind tour, by late afternoon I was done in. I'm not sure that people in their 20s, AKA our guide, understand that people in their 70s don’t move quite as fast as they do - but I suspect she had a script she wanted to stick to.  We covered over 6km in a few hours included a break for a large very late lunch - we would have settled for a light snack but being Ramadam food options I suspect were a bit limited (and she wanted to show off her city).

Down a narrow walkway led us to a quite lavish restaurant with bubbling water and gleaming tiles

Before lunch we visited Hasht Behesht Palace which was small, but quite exquisite. After lunch we were taken to another very lavish palace and garden which are now a museum 

Hasht Behesht Palace

The frescos were exquisite (the lower ones were protected by glass)

Chehelsotoon Palace now a museum

The Chehelsotoon water gardens 

The frescoes and mosaics in Chehelsotoon Museum were magnificent

Heritage listed C17 Naqsh-e-eJahan City Square 

The market flanking Naqsh-e Jahan, the city square

From lavish palaces to the heritage listed C17 city square - Naqsh-e Jahan. It was vast and almost deserted when we arrived but when we left the large market which flanked it, crowds were gathering to celebrate the end of fasting for that day.  The contrast was staggering. While near the markets we got roped into a ‘buying-opportunity’ which was obviously pre-arranged.  We weren’t interested in buying but our protestations fell on deaf ears and we were too polite to make a bigger fuss. We’re learning very slowly to be a bit more hard nosed (talking of noses by this time a slight sniffle and cough had matured!) but onward to the capital she cries ........ 

May 27 Twenty hours on the train from Mashhad to Isfahan.

Such an interesting trip! Our wonderful guide in Mashhad had made sure we got on the train on time and spoke to the steward about our sole use of the cabin (we had paid for 4 berths). There was a group of 9 other Aussies on a similar trip to us so we all compared notes - once we had sorted out who belonged in which cabin (a couple had tried to set up in ours - and ate and drank the treats the steward have put out for us!). The seats were a bit hard to sleep on but apart from that the train was quite adequate - and we could charge our devices. 

Our 4 berth cabin complete with charging station!

The countryside was an ever changing vista. Through wheat fields, grazing goats and sheep, barren stretches, and ‘jump ups’ in the flat plains much like central Australia. Much of this was seen through a soft orange filter caused by rain clouds and dust. The effect was extraordinary! 

A fascinating village with lush gardens and curious looking mounds behind

We flew past lots of cultivated land standing in stark contrast to the dryness of the surrounding land and mountains. At one point we passed a fascinating village with lush gardens and curious looking mounds behind. We never did discover what they were but they could have been unground dwellings with mullock hill or mining tailings behind.

Beautiful colous as the light began to fade

As the light faded the sky became the colour of the underside of young mushrooms with smudges of fading blue clouds. As the sky darkened to purple, the gibbous moon became a soft butter pink.

We slept poorly and were woken by an early dawn as we crept ever closer to the ancient town of Isfahan the capital of Persia from late C16 to C18. 

A massive sports complex on the edge of the city

We were met at the station by our driver who was to take us to our hotel - he got comprehensively lost on the way but we finally made it.  An interesting introduction to Isfahan. Quite the modern metropolis. On the highway into the city we passed the first of the 'Little Blue Trucks' which zip around Iran carrying all manner of cargo lashed to their backs.

Entering Isfahan

Seen from our hotel Sheikh Bahaei - a room with a view!

May 26 Sacred places full of glitter and colour

Acres of tiled courtyards which could hold a couple of million people

The Holy Shrine of Imam Reza is a city within a city and covers a huge area; non-Muslims are allowed in the outside areas and some buildings. And of course women must wear a chador and didn’t I look fetching in my mauve-print number. Underneath I’m wearing all my clothes including long sleeved shirt and head scarf. It was excessively warm!  The women who helped we struggle into my garb were lovely and we all giggled a lot at my clumsiness. I have a chuckle when I see poking out below many of those modest usually black cloaks of invisibility, flashy shoes, maybe green patent leather platform soles with studs, and a glimpse of eyelash extensions fringing head scarves. Hmmmm!  I stood out in my chinz curtain.

Lindsay, our guide and the Shrine guide waiting for me to 'cover up'.

.Charming! In case you’re wondering I didn’t buy one.

Some people were praying outside while others remove their shoes before entering to pray

We weren’t allowed into the holy places except for one which we were allowed to walk through. It was underground and was dazzling with gold and mirrored walls, columns and ceiling, We had arrived at one of the appointed prayer times and it was a moving and rather humbling experience watching and listening to what seemed like a sea of people murmuring en mass. The women were at the back a blanket of black - it was quite touching. I felt a certain connection with the women; it came through their looks and smile as I passed them - ah, the sisterhood! They have it rather tough here.  

The entrance to the underground mosque

Within the complex of the Haram (which comprises a series of sacred precincts), we wondered through quite dazzling courtyards many still being built and covered in brilliantly coloured ceramic tiles. We also visited a couple of the museums housed within the complex - the multi level carpet museum was glorious with rich carpets dated back to antiquity. We were also taken to a gallery which housed a collection of precious gifts mainly from other countries. Overwhelmingly opulent!

The tree of life - one of my favourites

An ancient spinning machine

A doorway carpet 

Light bounced off every surface - quite dazzling

It had been an almost overwhelming so, knowing that we were also interested in the countryside, our gentle guide took on relaxing drive out into the countryside through hill villages ending up with a panoramic view over the valley that cradles Mashhad.  What an amazing place! The next day we were to board a train for Isfahan for more eye-opening experiences.  

May 26 Mashhad - first stop the bathhouse museum!

The streets of Mashhad

We ducked hrough a small street bazaar to end up in the bathhouse

What an amazing place!  Mahdi Quli Beq, a Turkish Amir (leader) of Khorasan in C11th bequeathed this bathhouse and other properties to the Holy Shrine of Imam Reza, where we’re heading next. 

The bathhouse is now a museum and is beautifully restored with well labeled exhibits including samovars, clothing, washing implements and cosmetics. It also houses a rather special photographic exhibition of traditional crafts and artisans at work. 

Frescos like this adorned walls and ceilings

Each dome had a skylight which gave the whole place a light airy feel.

The walls and ceilings are painted with images depicting contemporary stories of those times. These are many layers thick as the humidity impacted the stucco and colours. 

The building comprised many rooms with different uses including an open area containing a huge blue pool for the young women to play in when the men weren’t around - there were separate access times for the men and women. 

The large entertainment pool

This stockehold heater the bathhouse. Furnace is on the right, chimneys and drafts on the back wall.

Under the floor at one end of the house was brick lined room called a Stockehold, basically the furnace room, which provided heating for the walls and various pools and baths via copper trays (Tians) throughout the building. A brilliant design. 

Clothing and footware

A fascinating array of cosmetics used for all manner of things 

Dotted around the interior walls were museum dispalays including the clothing and footwear that would have been worn in the bathhouse.  One display that caught my eye was cosmetics. A couple of the cosmetics used. No 15 - 'Venetian Ceruse' also known as Spirit of Saturn a C16th cosmetic used as a skin whitener. No 14 - gum and sap called ‘milk vetch’ used to strengthen and condition the hair. Intriguing.

After a quick lunch we headed to the Holy Shrine.  The restaurant was an interesting affair. Being Ramadam eating houses were restricted to visiters and travellers and the menu was rather limited but it satisfied our needs. While we ate, our guide went to pray and met up with us afterwards.

May 25. Mountains, vales and veils!

All too soon it was time to leave Turkmenistan and head for Iran, but I would happily return - there is so much more to see from the shores of the Caspian in the west to Afghanistan in the east, from Uzbekistan in the north to Iran in the south. Ruins, deserts, mountains and millennia of history. But to the present  ....

Kopet-Dag Mountain Range

The border region between Turkmenistan and Iran is mountainous and beautiful, made all the more so by recent rain which has created a green fuzz across the ranges softening rocky outcrops here and there. Apparently there are wolves, hyenas and jackals, goats, antelope and other small animals living in the Kopet-Dag Mountain Range. At one point a couple of antelope peered down from a high cliff watching as we passed  by. Sadly we were not allowed to photograph here, but it is imprinted on our minds. Multiple checkpoints didn’t spoil our enjoyment of the relatively short, 40-odd km drive to the Turkmenistan-Iran border control.

The border crossing went as border crossing go! Nobody likes them - endless waits, seemingly pointless searches, etc, so I won’t say another word on the subject except to say that I had to don a headscarf and cover myself.  I put on a long-sleeved shirt packed for the occasion. It was a bit hot - phew! but what can you do? All the officials were very curteous. Here we were met by the first of a number of guides who were to look after us as we travelled through Iran. 

Soon we were through the official business and on our way driving further into these spectacular mountains with multicoloured, twisted strata, and monstrous shards of rock projected into the sky, softened in many places by a fine green velvet fuzz. Magnificent and awe-inspiring!  The strata and colours in the rocks were fascinating. I could have spent hours taking photos and pondering the forces that had created such wonderful patterns.  Incidentally, most of these photos were taken through the dirty back-seat window of our chaff-cutter car hammering along the road. 

Stunning multicoloured, twisted strata,

Through the mountains and out into the valleys on the Iranian plateau

And then we were descending into a broad string of valleys with a brief stop on the way at an isolated village ‘hole in the wall’ for a glass of sheep's milk doogh, a traditional Persian yogurt drink - a slightly salty taste.

Here and there vivid red poppies and forget-me-nots nodded in greeting as we passed - so beautiful in their simplicity. In the distance I thought I could see a tinge of red in the valley spreading into the foothills. That tinge turned into a veritable blanket of red!  The recent rain had stirred a miriad of poppies to bloom. Heavenly!  I kept thinking of the poem ‘In Flanders fields the poppies blow, between the crosses ....... ‘. Of course we stopped and took a mass of photos. And just like at home when the canola crops flower creating dense blankets of yellow, this splendid display brought quite a few people out to take selfies in the blood-red fields. So beautiful! The poppies were lined up in rows as if they had been planted, but no. These gorgeous things seem to pop up unbidden in tilled or disturbed soil - along the furrows. That together with the rain and they exploded into glorious bloom. 

I was intrigued by the variety of blooms at my feet when we stopped - poppies of course, but euphorbia, forget-me-nots, lupin, ‘Salvation Jane’ and more. The colours were just lovely. It was a delightful drive.

Top L: euphorbia, R: something like ‘Salvation Jane’. Bottom L: poppy R: lupin,

We were heading for Mashhad in Khorasan, an historic province in the northeast region in the Iranian Plateau and our first short stop on the way was a small town. Here I had my first experience of country Iranian toilets. I learnt to forever after, look for the disabled cubicles. Otherwise I might have ended up 'disabled' - if you get my drift! Risky business! 

Our first town in northeast Iran

And then we arrived in Mashhad and checked into our hotel, the Saman Hotel where the staff were very helpful and friendly. Remember that we had arrived during Ramadam which had a number of implications including dining - we had room service!  That afternoon our very obliging guide took us out to buy a SIM for my phone so we could access the internet. 

Samen Hotel

On the streets, in the hotels, everywhere there are scurrying, billowing black figures. Some of the younger women wear shorter, coloured and patterned veils, but it is predominantly full-length black - at least here in Mashhad where the temperature was in the mid-30s. Of course the men were sensibly wearing short sleeved, open neck shirts! Hmm ... but as they say ‘when in Rome ‘. Heat exhaustion is just not a consideration .... for the women. Poor things. How many days are we here? Oh dear ..... 

May 24 Darvaza and the Door to Hell

Almost 300km north of Ashgabat through the Karakum Desert - which incidentally makes up 70% of Turkmenistan - past camels wandering haughtily along the road in pairs, alone or in small family groups completely oblivious to traffic; past small flocks of multicoloured goats and long haired sheep; past villages built on sand; and through sand dunes reminiscent of Australia. Past expanses of water which was such a surprise in this arid place. This water is part of the drainage system from further south where they collect the run off from irrigated fields and pipe north to the desert against a future need.

This village is very slowly being buried in sand

The water is slightly salty but in a bad year would be very welcome

Almost 300km along a bone-shaking road through the vast Karakum Desert only to then go off-road along an even bumpier 8 km drive through sand dunes. But then we came upon it, our destination, a huge burning crater! Known as the Door to Hell or Gates of Hell, but officially it is called the Shining of Karakum. This is natural gas perhaps oil territory!

Before we got there we stopped at two small craters - one a flooded mine with gas still fizzing to the surface and the other a crater of plopping mud and fire. The wonders of this part of the world - just amazing!! 

L: gas fizzed up through the water. R: plopping mud pushed up by gas leaks and burning gassy earth

The Shining of Karakum or Door to Hell - it is awesome

It is a very big crater - with no safety barriers!

Whatever the reason for this phenomenon, it is mighty impressive. This is a natural gas site that went wrong the end result being a crater of continuously burning gas, flames licking and leaping out of rocks, rubble, earth and sand, blackening and scorching the sides of the crater. Hundreds of small natural gas fires illuminate the floor and rim of the crater. Some local geologists have claimed that the collapse of a crater happened in the 1960s and was set on fire only in the 1980s to prevent the emission of poisonous gases into the air. Others assert that the site was drilled by Soviet engineers in 1971 as an oil field but it collapsed within days, forming the crater, with the engineers choosing to flare the crater to prevent the emission of poisonous gases but they underestimated the volume of the gas. Whatever the explanation it is truly awesome in the extreme! Billowing heat rising skyward in a wall of shimmering heat-haze searing, scorching from metres away.  A great gaping hole of fire and searing heat in the middle of nowhere. I got as close as I dared but when the wind changed direction slightly it was enough to singe your eyebrows.

Lindsay dared go very close trying to get the ulyimate photo of Hell!

A desolate place but rather magical in the particular way that vastness and isolation can create. Silence but for the sound of wind rushing past your ears or the roar of fire close to the crater where jagged edges draw you hypnotically closer to peer into the fires of Hell. It generates that shuddering feeling of fear and riveting fascination simultaneously - mesmorising. And do you know they found life down there in the hellish centre! Have a look on YouTube National Geographic channel, search for Crater of Hell or Darvaza or Turkmenistan (I don’t have access at the moment). 

A simple BBQ but with million dollar views over the desert .....

A great place for a BBQ - simple but with million dollar views over the desert!  And of course we did just that or should I say our guide and driver prepared one for us while we wandered in the desert. We ate later in a cozy yurt. There is a camp near the crater with 6 yurts and there are even toilets and showers.  While our meal was being prepared Lindsay followed pippets fluttering and bobbing along the ground while I fossicked around looking at desert vegetation - small tufts of feathered grass, a desert herb with pretty creamy-green flowers, desert ‘dog’ or rat burrows and other stuff which caught my eye. We had plenty of time because we were staying late so we could see the crater as the sunset and the sky became dark.  

Absolutely breathtaking and terrifying - magnificent!

As the sky darkened the glow intensified. Absolutely awe-inspiring and terrifying - magnificent! Of course staying late meant that we didn't get back to town until after midnight rather shattered because of the hour but also because of the bone-jarring roads (which we are accustomed to of course but .......). What a day it had been! Our heads were abuzz so sleeping proved difficult as images kept flashing before our eyes. 

Central Asia and the Caspian region represents the most concentrated mass of untapped wealth in the world. It is worth a visit! As a matter of interest we have managed to do this trip thanks to our wonderful travel agent, Bev Edwards, working with Sundowners Overland and the local agent in Turkmenistan, Ayan Travel - if you come you should ask for Atu as your guide. He is a walking encyclopaedia and a delightful attentive ambassador. 

Next stop over the border to Mashhad, Iran .......