A night in Egypt
Location: Mr Mohammads House, Mesr, Iran
Date: 29th April, 2008
After briefly stopping to admire the Khaju Bridge in Esfahan, we made our way to Na’in.
First stop was the millennium old Jameh Mosque. Complete with cool underground tunnels (much appreciated now we’re in the desert), the mosque was in use as we arrived ahead of 2 coach-loads of German tourists.
Next stop in Na’in was a place a bit off the beaten track. Hard to find without a guide, there are some old workshops carved into the hillside in the old center of Na’in. Cool and dry and also about a thousand years old, one was occupied by two gents well into their eighties. Weaving rugs on old-fashioned looms from sheep and camel wool, we couldn’t resist buying one to support them.
Nearby, we scrambled up the hill to the Mohammadiyeh castle, perched in an ideal defensive position with a 360 degree vista. Unfortunately, the castle’s door was bricked up, so we couldn’t get inside.
Driving into the deep Lut Desert, we continued onto the town of Jandaq where we were invited into another house, drank a very sweet cherry juice and ate more wonderfully succulent Iranian fruit (what do we do to it back home)?
After a short while, we headed up the dusty dirt track to the town to Mesr, a town named by Joseph (not sure which one), as it reminded him of Egypt. Mesr is Farsi for Egypt.
Hasham and his sons, Hussein and Ali, made sure we were looked after. After some welcoming drinks served in the alcove in the north side of the courtyard of this traditionally shaped desert house, we heard much low rumbling from outside – a flock of camels, including some very cute babies. Pick of the bunch was the crazy camel that was raised by a cow, man, I’ve never seen a camel jump so much!
And tomorrow we ride them…
Half the World…
Location: Ali Qapu Hotel, Esfahan
Date: 28th April, 2008
Esfahan is a truly beautiful city. Tree-lined streets, fountains and flowers and wonderful architecture make it an incredible place to hand out for a few days. At it was our designated stop for souvenir shopping…
After an experience that started last night, our wallets came away much lighter, and our bags became much heavier, laden with the finest silk carpets Esfahan has to offer! We came away poorer, but with some wonderful pieces of art that we’re extremely happy with. We also picked up some miniature artwork on camel bone, that Esfahan is also famous for (Shah Abbas was a big fan apparently) and a tablecloth. We got on with the sightseeing…
After Amir knocked over a cyclist (he was ok!), we managed to park – it seems we found the only downside of Esfahan, getting parked is difficult, but it’s nowhere near as bad as London or New York.
We had a quick look at the Shahs Summer Pavilion or Chehel Sotun place – the place of Forty Columns. There are 20 columns here, the other 20 are the reflections in the lake. It’s a lovely place, decorated inside with hunting and battle scenes. Cut off his head!
We centered the day around Imam Khomeini Square, formerly known as The Maidan, where the Shah would watch Polo matches, executions and other things that amused him from a beautiful grandstand at the Ali Qapu Palace at the west side of the square. Today it provides the rather more peaceful view of people enjoying the gardens and fountains and shopping around the edges.
The Royal Mosque, whoops I mean the Imam Khomeini Mosque, is a building so big you really don’t process it. Shah Abbas the first knew how to impress, but apparently he had corners cut when it had been under construction for a couple of decades and he began to worry he wouldn’t see it completed. Not much sign of that today, it looks like the Department of Cultural Heritage are doing a great job in keeping it maintained. Just a shame that they’re also keeping the scaffolding there…
