Kashan
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Tours 1
Several carpet shops offer trips into the Zagros Mountains to visit nomads. In our experience, however, none is worth recommending specifically. Be very specific about what you want to see and what you're paying for, and don't pay more than half upfront. The following are probably better options Azade Kazemi 0913 327 9626 azadekazemi hotmail.com Highly knowledgeable Spanish- and English-speaking guide. Esfahan Tourist Guides Association Map p238 221 3840,221 6831 Imam Sq Based at the tourist...
SHOPPING Avc
Iran has plenty of products that make good souvenirs, with the widest selection sold in Esfahan and Shiraz. Prices are low and quality ranges from cheap rubbish, such as plaster of Paris griffins at Persepolis, aimed at domestic tourists, to high-quality carpets. If you are prepared to search through old stuff in smaller bazaars you should come away with a great souvenir and a good story as to how you found it. If you'd prefer to do it all at once and aren't too worried about price, the bazaars...
Language
Conversation amp Essentials 425 Farsi also often referred to as Persian is the official language of Iran. Travelling in the country without at least a basic grasp of Farsi will prove difficult, as English speakers are few and far between. Farsi is an Indo-Iranian language and a member of the Indo-European language family. While it is written in Arabic script, which runs from right to left, the language itself isn't related to Arabic at all. There are a number of mutually intelligible dialects...
Bus Minibus Savari 1
As with Qom, most buses that pass through Kashan are going to or from Tehran. They are supposed to stop at the bus terminal Molla Sadra Blvd north of the city but often will leave from Montazeri Sq, where an office on the south corner sells tickets. There are regular Volvo services to Esfahan IR21,000, four hours and Tehran IR25,000,3 4 hours via Qom IR10,000, one hour , and mahmooly normal, usually old Mercedes buses leave less frequently for about half the price. Minibuses to Qom IR7000, two...
Sights Hut
With its badgirs poking out of a baked-brown labyrinth of lanes, the old city of Yazd emerges like a phoenix from the desert - a very old phoenix. Yazd's old city is one of the oldest towns on earth, according to Unesco, and is the perfect place to get a feel for the region's rich history. Just about everything in the old city is made from sun-dried mud bricks, and the resulting brown skyline is dominated by tall badgirs on almost every rooftop see the boxed text The Badgirs of Yazd, p257 . The...
Baghe Tarikhiye Fin Fin Garden
Designed for Shah Abbas I, Bagh-e Tarikhi-ye Fin Fin Garden Amir Kabir Rd admission IR5000 S Sam-sunset is a classical Persian vision of paradise and is renowned as one of the finest gardens in Iran. It's famous for its spring water, which flows into the garden via the Lasega h, an octagonal pool behind the garden. From here the water, which has unusually high levels of mercury, is channelled through several pools and fountains, watering the garden's orchards and tall trees, before continuing...
Teahouses Cafs
There are some cracking teahouses in Shiraz, and a few decent caf s too. Unfortunately, the historic and popular Hammam-e Vakil has closed as a teahouse. Aroosh Khorshid Dehnadi St meals IR25,000-45,000 S 8am-10pm Sat-Thu Convenient to the cheap accommodation, the Aroosh has plenty of old paraphernalia hanging about and the big space can have a decent atmosphere when it's busy. The food is decent if unadventurous check the bill carefully. oSeray-e Mehr Teahouse 222 9572 Seray-e Mehr, Bazar-e...
Budget
Amir Kabir Hostel Map p234 222 7273 mrziaee hotmail.com Chahar Bagh Abbasi St dm s tw tr IR35,000 75,000 120,000 150,000 B For years the Amir Kabir has been Esfahan's backpacker base and, for lack of competition, it still is. The managers, Ziaee brothers, might not like spending money, but they're helpful enough with advice on timetables, booking onward tickets and some reasonably priced tours. Rooms and the dorm are basic, and cleanliness is not as consistent as it could be. Breakfast is...
BUDGET Wxp
The cheapest places are mainly concentrated in neighbouring Dehnadi and Pirouzi Sts a couple of better budget options are on Anvari St. Mehmunsara Fadagh 222 5135 Kuche Mohan-dase dm tw IR20,000 60,000 Deep in the old city, this mehmunsara in a 200-year-old building is the cheapest, most interesting hotel in town note we didn't say atmospheric. It's owned by the Sepah militia and mainly used by male pilgrims not great for solo women , who like the enormous dorm. But the small, clean twins are...
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The tiny oasis village of Garmeh is everything you'd imagine an oasis village to be. More than 25 varieties of date palm spread out from a small spring, and where the palms finish the 1600-year-old mud-brick village begins. In the midst of this village is Ateshoni 443 2156, 0913 223 0874 www.ateshooni .com per person IR220,000 , where Tehrani artist Maziar Ale Davoud and his family have renovated their 265-year-old home into an oasis of the soul in this oasis in the desert. Rates include all...
Voices Of Iran Majid Piroozmand
Occupation Architect, consultant to Miras Feranghi Cultural Heritage Organisation 'I like Shiraz more than anywhere in the world. My childhood was here in these kuches lanes and the city has a very rich history. Until now it still doesn't have the terrible traffic you have in other cities, people are especially friendly and the weather is perfect - not too hot and not too cold. I work with Miras Ferhangi and we want to preserve the cultural heritage. Now Shiraz is ready to grow and advance, but...
Midrange
All the rooms in this range have bathrooms, air-con, fridge and TV, though there's no guarantee on English-language channels. Bekhradi Historical Residence Map p234 448 2072 Sonbolestan Alley, off Ebn-e Sina St r IR250,000-900,000 E This quiet, modest-sized khan-e sonnati traditional house is the real Safavid-style deal five wonderfully restored rooms, some with bathrooms, some not - like the old days. Set around two garden courtyards, there is also a restaurant. It's beside the Masjed-e...
BAVANATIji
In a quiet valley 230km northeast of Shiraz, the Bavanat region is a 20km-long walnut forest in a lush valley between the Zagros Mountains in the south and deserts to the north. The main town is Suryan, aka Bavanat, but the real destination here is the village of Shah Hamzeh Bazm or just Bazm 18km further east. The mountains near Bazm are home to Khamseh nomads, a confederation of five groups of Arabic, Turkish and Farsi-speaking people. From about April until October they pitch their tents in...
Jameh Mosque
The Jameh Mosque Masjed-e Jameh Map p234 Al-lameh Majlesi St admission IR5000 S 8-11am amp 1-5pm is a veritable museum of Islamic architecture and still a working mosque. Within a couple of hours you can see and compare 800 years of Islamic design, with each example near to the pinnacle of its age. The range is quite stunning from the geometric elegance of the Seljuks, through to the Mongol period and on to the refinements of the more baroque Safavid style. At more than 20,000 sq metres, it is...
Bus Companies
Most bus companies are cooperatives and until recently they were referred to simply as Cooperative Bus Company No X Sher-kat-e Ta avoni Shomare X , or whatever number it is. In recent years most have taken on more varied names, but in the terminal they ll still direct you to, for example, ta avoni hasht cooperative number 8 . The best ta avonis, with the most extensive network of services, are TBT Taavoni 15 and Iran Peyma often with the word Ta avoni or Bus No One written on it . For a bit...
Hammame Ali Gholi Agha
In the historic district of Bid Abad, the recently restored Hammam-e Ali Gholi Agha Ali Gholi Agha Bathhouse Map p234 Ali Gholi Agha Alley, off Masjed-e Sayyed St admission IR10,000 S 8.30am-5pm Sat-Thu, 9am-3pm Fri is now a well-maintained but poorly signed museum to bathhouses. Fortunately there is information at the entrance, explaining the Qajar-era history and uses of the hammam. English-speaking guides are also available. It s worth a look, especially if you didn t see Hammam-e Sultan Mir...