Damascus Syria

     We had several emails from family and friends telling us that the State Department was warning  Americans to leave Syria immediately.  We had booked a tour with Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) for a pre-trip to Syria before our trip to Turkey, and they had not cancelled the trip so off we went to Syria. We arrived in Syria several days before our tour was to begin and had arranged, via email, with the Syrian OAT tour guide to have him show us around Damascus before the others in the group arrived.   

     Our guide took us to a Shia mosque because he would be taking us, on the regular tour, to a famous Sunni mosque. Syria is mostly Sunni & Iran is Shia.  I went in the men’s entrance and Mary the women’s entrance. Mary was given a chador (black cloak) to cover herself. We met in the courtyard. I went to the men’s section of the mosque where the men pray which is very large with lots of space and Mary went into the women’s section which is small, crowded and a sea of black dressed women.  She found it difficult to move through the space, no one giving space to another. There was, to a westerner’s eye, a feeling of rudeness, some pushing shoving and unwillingness to let any one pass or move in the room. Many were trying to get close to the burial vault of one of Mohammed’s descendants where they would pray. Mary said she felt it would be easy to offend them and was not sure she would be safe if she did. (She was the only white, foreigner in the room) While attempting to leave the crowded room, a woman at the doorway, who seemed to have some power, chastised her because her black cloak was not covering her neck. Mary said there was no warmth or kindness in the woman’s censure and she could not get out of there soon enough. She did not have the same experience in Iran.

     We had a good tour of old town Damascus with a fantastic lunch in a local restaurant. The next day we thought we would just rest for a day before our Syria tour started. We spent the day lounging around the hotel which was one of the best hotel we have experienced. I sat in the courtyard with the computer and in 4 hours time they had brought me tea 3 times, once with cookies and cake! But at 6 PM we learned the Syrian tour was cancel due to the unrest in Syria and we would be getting up at 2 AM to catch a 5 AM flight out of Syria.

At dinner the tour representatives were making plans on how to fill our time vacated by the Syrian trip. Since we were going to Turkey on our regular tour they were trying to contact the Turkey tour guide to set up a trip to southeastern Turkey. Within hours they had set up a tour guide, a hotel in Istanbul, a flight from Istanbul to southeastern Turkey, and hotels in southeastern Turkey to fill our time.

Women leaving a Sunni Mosque

Mary at the Shia Mosque  

Burial vault of one of Mohammed’s descendants 

Ceiling of the Shia mosque

Court yard of the Shia Mosque

Our most memorable flight.....Tehran to Damascus

As we were sitting at the airport in Tehran I was thinking I wish I had the courage to take pictures of all these people. There was such a variety of ‘costumes’ not the usual that we saw in Iran. In Iran men wear western style clothing and the women conform to a stricter code of dress wearing a manteau ( I call it a trench coat or lab jacket that must hide a woman’s shape) with a scarf or they wear a black chador which covers all but their face and makes them look like a nun. At the Tehran airport the look was much different as the men wore non-western clothing while the women continued to observe the strict dress code. Some of the men looked like they were from Saudi Arabia with the long white garment and a headdress of black and white check or red and white check. Other men were wearing, as best as I can describe it, an old fashion men night gown, white, light gray or light brown and some with a turk cap. Many of these men were well feed. One man, the one I wanted a picture of, was in his fifties and wore a long light colored gown. This man caught my attention because he had dyed his hair and his mustache bright red.  A large group of these people were there with a tour group from Pakistan.

When it was time to board the plane the fun began. We had to pass through another security check point, women must go on one side and men on another side. Airport security was only letting 5 or 6 people at a time pass thought the door way to the security check point. As I was standing in the men’s line to go in the room for the security check there was a man standing so close to me, almost to my side, I thought he might push me over. I thought this guy is really anxious to get ahead of me and then the guy bolted ahead of me in the line. Well, as an American, this was shocking to me.

I placed my carry on bag, belt and watch on the conveyor belt and noticed on the other side of the metal detector they were detaining a little old man about 85 wearing one of those night gowns. They kept running the metal detecting wand over him and frisking him. Men kept running through the metal detector wanting to get on the plane and the security person kept sending them back so he could frisk the little old man in his night gown. They kept running through the detector the guard kept sending them back.   Finally the guard finds a small pair of scissors in the old man’s night gown. As I’m standing behind the red line waiting for my turn to pass through the detector they let 5 or 6 more people in the area, and they run in, throw their things on the conveyor belt, run in front of me through the metal detector setting it off. Then another person runs through & the guard is trying to push them back because the alarm is going off. I’m standing there waiting for my turn and I finally get my chance, and decide it’s my turn and I hold another guy back and run through the detector setting it off and the guy I pushed aside has run through setting it off. They find a coin in my pocket and I’m cleared to go. The guy behind me has already run through three times and is still beeping the detector.

After I finally get through I meet up with Mary who says she had the same experience in the women’s section with the women pushing her aside so they can get through the metal detector before her. Despite the fact they were all pushing to get through we all made on the plane before it took off. 

Finally, the door to the plane was closed, we all got settled, the airline stewards  checked our seat belt and the plane started moving from the airport terminal. Much to my amazement several dozen people undid their seat belts and jumped up to put all their belongings in the overhead bins.

We are thinking wow what an experience this has been when the airplane lifts off the ground and what seems like the entire plane voices some strange Arabic chant which must have been thanks be to Alla for a safe take off. 

We had an uneventful flight until we landed when the airplane wheels hit the ground and the plane slowed down they broke out in a chant again. This time they do it  four or five times.  Finally when we get off the runway and are taxiing toward the air terminal a dozen people jump up and start opening the overhead bins to get their things and the airline stewart has to get up and tell them to remain in their seat until we get to the terminal and he closes the bins. Everyone sat down except one man who stood up the whole time we are taxiing and was waiting at the airplane door when we pulled up to the terminal. 

These people looked like devout Muslim’s but they sure weren’t courteous. I know it’s probably not true, but it felt like these were uneducated people who had never been on an airplane and were extremely anxious about it. I was glad to be on the plane with them it made for a most memorable flight.

Mary in Tehran

We started our last day in Tehran with a woman guide. I really missed connecting with the women. This guide was willing to talk to me and to answer my questions about life in Iran. 

We went to the Tehran Bazaar but the best part was talking to her as a woman about how they live. During our tour she was stopped by a woman who berated her because Bob was taking pictures on the street. The woman said, ‘is he authorized to take pictures?’ ‘You must be careful of what you allow foreigners to do, as they may take pictures of a young girl who may not have her hijab on correctly’ ‘or an old woman begging or........’  and ‘they could do things with the photo’s that would put them in a bad light.’  As I looked back I realized that we had similar experiences with people talking to our guide. We may have had others say the same thing but our other guide was not willing to include us in the conversation. Later, on the subway. the security guard told Bob not to take pictures of the subway.

The Iranian women live two lives, one outside and one inside. I asked about how they dress in their homes and she said they might be wearing shorts or short sleeved blouses, it is only outside that they cover. She lived away from her family. She was a very pretty woman, 27 years old. We talked some about the government and she said most of them would like to change it. She was somewhat defiant about her scarf letting  it slip & not caring that she was not covered.

 We traveled 15 days in Iran and at some point I came around to the thought that there were some attributes of the dreaded scarf.

1. You can hold the scarf over your nose when the gas from the traffic is over bearing or when the toilets are too much to bear/that is if you have a hand to use while doing the squat toilet thing.
2. You can dry your hands on it when there are no paper towels. (which is always)
3. You can use as a sun screen for your neck and ears, though your nose will need sunscreen as it has no protection.  (I believe my nose has grown since I have been here)
4. You can block out the sun while driving in a car by using it as a curtain.
5. On the cold days it will keep you warm, though on hot days you just want to rip it off.
6. At the end of the trip I will use it to blow my nose.

Mary and our Tehran guide

The streets of Tehran

Shopping for Material at theBazaar

Abyanch and Kashan

Abyanch is an adobe city

We left Isfahan in a van with a couple of New Zealanders and another guide to the small village of Abyanch where the  women still wear their traditional dress and colorful white  scarves with flowers on them. We were told not to take pictures of women with their scarfs. Many women believe that it takes away their ‘soul’ when their picture is taken. The village is up in the mountains where there are many types of fruit trees and they sell dried fruit to the tourists. We were told not to buy any because they dry the fruit outdoors and there are many flies. We walked around to some of their beautiful garden plots and orchards. The gardens were small plots with mud walls around them with rickety gates. All the young people have left so only the old still survive here.

A woman of Abyanch

 A woman riding a donkey in 

Abyanch

 

We went on to Kashan and visited 16th century houses that wealthy merchants built in the Qajar era. We also visited the baths of Sasanian times and the Fin complex which has a beautiful garden with flowing water and fountains which comes from the Soleimaneh spring. In Kashan breakfast is hard boiled eggs some dried flat bread and tea.

16th century Palace of a wealthy merchant 



Isfahan

We arrived in Isfahan on friday the day many good Muslims go to the Mosque for prayer. In Iran it is their day off so most places of business are closed.  We walked across the bridges and along the river bank park where many Iranians were out picnicking with their families. This area of Iran was exceptionally green with grass & trees and it was cool, a nice place to be in the heat when your wearing a scarf, and a coat jacket to cover your curves.  Families were out laying on blankets, drinking tea and setting up their grills and ‘camping’ equipment to settle down for an afternoon of food and family and friends. The people along the way were especially friendly and one lady invited us for tea at her blanket but our guide urged us on. To bad because we came to meet the people. We felt this was sorely missing from our experience and when we told our guide he had no comment and did not try to rectify it. 

Friday along the river

We visited Imam Square, the 2nd largest square in the world after Tiananmen square in China. It was very very large with a green space surrounded by buildings that contain a bazaar all around, a large mosque, a king's palace and the private mosque of the king. The kings palace had a large balcony so he could watch polo games on the green lawn below. There are many old pictures of polo games being played in Iran during the kings time. The private mosque was across the square from the kings palace with a private underground passage for the king and his harem. 

It’s said when the main mosque in the Imam square, the Shah Mosque, was built the architect did not get the directions to Mecca correct so they had to build another ‘altar’ inside the mosque facing Mecca. Inside the mosque carpets were all rolled up and stacked on the side and used for friday services. Once again there was this sea of black Chadors flowing in and out of this space with many young girls wanting to have their picture taken with the FOREIGNER, Mary.

Imam Square

A room in the king's palace

Women posing with Mary

Carpets for the Friday prayer

Gathering at the Shah Mosque

Mary is hot in the taxi

A restaurant in  Isfahan

One fun thing about the ‘Iran Life’ tour was taking taxies. In Isfahan we would walk 3 blocks to catch a taxi, ride for awhile stop because the taxi only went certain areas, get in another taxi ride for awhile get out and walk another 3 blocks. Sometimes there were other passengers in the taxis. Once the other passenger was a young boy around 10 years old. 

We experienced ‘carpet buying’ several times in Isfahan. (Isfahan is the place in Iran to buy Persian carpets). Here is how it worked, you go to the carpet shop, sit down, have tea and look at hundreds of gorgeous carpets, wishing you could buy as many as you wanted.  We did finally make a small selection for a runner in our house. It was a fun experience.

  

We had a more modern hotel in Isfahan and enjoyed our first soft bed and an air conditoner that worked, though now very well. The toilet didn't work properly so you had to reach inside the tank to flush it. We gave thanks when we were told by another tour group that they did not have air conditioning and that the electrical in their room was not finished and wires hung dangling on the walls.  Breakfast is hard boiled eggs some dried flat bread and tea.

Yazd

We took a 6 hour bus ride from Shiraz to Yazd. The bus ride was comfortable as we  traveled through mountains and then the desert to arrive in Yazd. In Yazd we could see the very high, dry and steep and beautiful mountains in the distance. The highest is the 13,000 foot Mt. Shirkooh. Yazd is the oldest adobe city in the world.

A covered street in Yazd

In Yazd they have wind catchers or chimneys which capture the breeze and channel it down to flow over a pool of water to cool down the inside of a building. It was the ‘air conditioning’ to keep buildings cool in this desert land. They also had an ancient underground cistern which brought water to the city with wells throughout Yazd. One of the wells at the mosque could supply 4,000 people per day. 

Wind catchers

We went to visit the Dakhmeh where Zoroastrians used to leave their dead. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy that was formerly among the world’s largest religion and was probably founded some time before the 6th century BC in Persia (Iran). The religion is still around today but has very few followers. Dakhmeh is on the top of two hills. They built what is called the ‘towers of silence’ each with 10 foot high walls, 100 foot in diameter on the hill top. One hill was for men and one for women. They would bring the dead bodies to these towers. The walls were to keep the animals out except the vultures. A priest would sit with the dead. If the vultures plucked the right eye out first it was believed that was a good person. I’ll bet there were a few surprises when it became known which eye was eaten first. They no longer do this practice.

The Zoroastrians bury their dead at the top of this hill

Traditionally there were two door knockers on every entry door in Iran, one for the men to use and one for the women to use. The sound is different with each knock, this way the women of the house know hot to present themselves in appropriate  dress.

Women knocker on the right men on the left 

The  hotel we stayed at in Yazd was in the old adobe city and had the traditional hard bed and a “camper” bathroom. The call to prayer at 5 am was not only loud but went on for 15 minutes. The British Iranian woman who had a room next to us said her mother cursed the call to prayer. So did I! Breakfast is hard boiled eggs some dried flat bread.

A bakery at Yazd

IRAN

First let me say we booked our Iran trip through a travel agent in Shiraz, Iran and we booked the “Iran life” style tour. Traveling like an Iranian would, staying in what they called 2 and 3 star hotels, taking public transportation, public buses between cities and hoping to come in contact with ordinary Iranians. Breakfast is included at all our hotels.

Tehran

Mary put on her required scarf and the men’s long sleeve shirt while waiting for the flight to Iran. As we waited we noticed that most of the women did not have on scarves, but as soon as we started boarding our flight they all put on their scarf. We were glad that the flight from Istanbul to Iran was  an uneventful one.

When we arrived we were taken aside, as we were Americans, and first finger printed then moved to a place to sit for 20 min. or so while they ran a check on us. We along with  two other people were investigated and then sent on our way. They were not happy that  we did not have the name of the hotel we were staying in but I gave them our tour phone number and they let us go.

We found the driver who was to pick us up at the airport and take us to our hotel. He spoke no English. During that ride which was 45 minute, I was shocked. We first saw desert and brown, grey sky which looked like it might be dust in the air or bad smog, then shabby buildings, then lots of litter off the highway. (We had just been in very clean Croatia so it was a big change) As we got closer to downtown I thought we would see interesting buildings but as of today we have not seen anything that I would consider architecturally interesting.

Our hotel was two blocks from the Russian embassy on what I call an alley and it was like a hotel in the Soviet Union. Dirty floor, toilet took 15 minutes to fill, towel bar was pulled out from the wall. I wondered what they mean by 2 & 3 stars as this was a NO star accommodation. Breakfast is hard boiled eggs some dried flat bread and tea in Tehran and the waiter asked for some small tip.

Traffic in Tehran is as bad as expected. Lots of pollution, the air was not good. Drivers make their own lanes. Our taxi driver drove as calm as could be, never used a turn signal and when changing lanes I don’t think he even looked in the next lane for cars and came within inches of other cars. Motor bikes drive between cars and don’t observe any traffic law and run red lights dodging the cars coming at them. We learned from our guide how to walk INTO traffic to cross the street. No waiting for stop lights here, most times there are none. The traffic in Bali was very busy but it was like driving in choreograph chaos, in Tehran it’s a complete chaos. When we left Tehran the trunk in the taxi was so small they tied our luggage to the roof of the car. 

We went shopping to buy Mary some woman’s clothing so she could get a cooler scarf and a light weight manteu coat dress to wear. It was interesting to see that all the shops were mens shops on the main streets, no woman’s wear. We found an alleyway with women’s clothes.  It was quite an interesting experience as the windows were full of fancy long evening gowns and modern dresses, then there were the shops that you see the clothes woman are wearing on the street. I think most of the parties are in their homes where they can express themselves and I have been told that the Iranians live two lives, one inside and one outside.

We very much enjoyed seeing the Crown Jewels, the Architectural Museum and the last  Shau of Iran’s residence north of the city and just below the range of mountains. It was cool, clean and green, so different from the center city.

Shopping for clothes not worn in public 

Shiraz

In Shiraz we visited the great Iranian poets mausoleum of Hafez & the mausoleum of Sa’adi. Then we went to the entrance gate of Shiraz where a very old Koran was placed in an archway high above the road so people left Shiraz they would pass under the holy words of the Koran and have a safe passage on their journey.

While at the gate a group of teenagers just surrounded us and tried to speak to us then wanted to stand by Mary and have their picture taken with her. Finally we had to stop and I took a picture of her and once they noticed that was going to happen they surrounded on her like fish coming to feed in a frenzy. It was fun and our first real contact with really friendly Iranians.

We went to Persepolis just outside Shiraz this is a gem of ancient Persia ruins which dates to 500 BC. It was interesting to see how much ancient Persia ruled at that time.

We also visited the Necropolis with three tombs cut in the side of a rock hill.   

We visited Shah Cheragh in Shiraz. There are two entrances at the main gate one for men and one for women. We had to check our bags and cameras as no photos were allowed and I was frisked at the main gate. After the the main gate we again had two entrances for men and women into the mosque. Mary went to the women’s section of the mosque and I went to the men’s section. When I  walked in the main mosque I was so stunned I said out loud a most inappropriate thing ‘holy shit’. The walls of this tall and large mosque were covered with mirrors cut into 1/2” pieces and glued into intricate patterns. It was truly amazing to walk around and admire the beauty of this place, with all the men praying in different areas of the mosque. I could hear a woman wailing in the women’s section. I didn’t think it was Mary we had only been separated a few minutes. When I walked out, I thought this was worth the trip to Iran just to see this astounding place.

The hotel  in Shiraz had a very hard bed and a pillow that felt like it was stuffed with compacted sand. The shower was ‘camper’ style, toilet, sink and shower one room, so when you showered you were also showering the toilet and sink. Breakfast is hard boiled eggs some dried flat bread and tea. This is the “Iranian Life” tour.

The gate to Shiraz

Everyone wants their picture with Mary

The Nomads

There are an estimated one million nomads living in Iran, with many tribes and clans.

Nomads moving their camp

We left Shiraz for a 4 1/2 hour drive to the nomad camp in a very small car with 5 of us in the car. The driver, our guide, a nomad guide, and Mary and I. We met many nomad caravans along the way that were on the move to another camp. When we arrived at the nomad camp, our new home for the next couple of nights, we were greeted by our host and his family, his son was our nomad guide and lives in the city. At all of our usual accommodations we go to the front desk to check in with the clerk but with the nomads there is no front desk, here we must first sit down and have tea. No chairs so we sit on the handmade carpets they had made and placed on the ground in the shade of their tent. After tea came the water pipe for everyone to share, Mary passed but I tried it as least long enough to have a picture taken. The mother sat down with us and as she sat she would be spinning wool for rugs. She had something that looked like a top that she would spin and twist the wool into yarn. She did this whenever she was not working and even when she was walking tending the goats and sheep.

Our nomad camp

Their tent home was covered on three sides and roof with a fabric they had woven out of goat hair that looked something like burlap and was open on one side. This is where they ate, entertained, and slept. They had another tent made of canvas that was used as a kitchen with a propane burner, but most of the cooking was done on an open fire.

When you arrive at the nomad camp you are offered tea and a water pipe

Our nomad hosts

The nomads wear different clothing than what is seen in the city. Colorful dresses and scarfs. Mary was happy to find out she didn’t have to wear a scarf or her manteau, though who knows what they really thought.

Our hosts daughter and a neighbor

A neighbor

We had chicken for dinner. First kill the chicken, pluck it, clean it, cut it up and cook it. They had made it into a stew and was served with rice and a flat bread. At meal time a plastic table cloth was put on the ground and plates and silverware were given to everyone. The food was good and we enjoyed it. The mother and daughter did not eat with us, later I found out they ate in the canvas kitchen after serving us. After dinner we sat around and they sang songs for us. The father would sing a song then the daughter, then the son. Once the son and daughter sang a duet each singing a verse. They also did a short dance for us and used their cell phone to play the music to dance to. It was an enjoyable evening.

Our tour guide brought a tent and sleeping bag for us. They put a couple of rugs on the bottom of the tent so we wouldn’t have to sleep on the hard ground but it was still hard ground and we are getting to old for this type of camping. Breakfast is fried eggs some very thin flat bread the mother had made and tea with the Nomads.

Mary and l went down to the river where there was a small pool to cool off and to take a bath and washed our hair. Here we are in our late 60’s skinny dipping in a river in the middle of Iran, what a site!

The next day  was to be a big day because there was going to be an engagement party. A young man had asked to marry the daughter. The engagement is quite a process taking up to a year and starting with a young man asking for permission to marry. Tonight we were going to find out if the father had approved of the young man.

The young suitor came with his father, mother, sister and her two children. When they arrived it was the usual, we all sat around and had tea, and then came the water pipe.  Dinner was lamb they had slaughtered  earlier. The daughter served us tea and brought the water pipe and served us the dinner but never talked to the suitor or sat down with us. Her and her mother ate out back in the canvas kitchen. The meal was served so late Mary and I went to bed. The next morning we found out the father had turned down the suitors offer of marriage. We don’t know why but the young man was not a nomad.

The women eating in a separate tent

The government of Iran brings the nomads fresh water which they store in large plastic tanks and while we were there the water truck arrived with fresh water. When the truck arrived the first order of business was to have tea. After tea all the paper work was signed and the driver unloaded the water. 

The nomad’s son took us on a very difficult, high, steep and treacherous hike up goat trails to the top of one of the mountain ranges. Mary said her feet were bigger than the goat feet and we were barely able to stay on the trail. It was straight up, it was very hot and there was very little shade The view was incredible and we got to see that back inside the mountains it is green and land available for the nomads to take their goats and sheep. They take them out twice a day, first light in the AM then bring them back and take them out around 4 PM in the evening until right before dark.

 The top of our climb

 The nomad winter home

The nomads we visited were considered Turkmen and speak a Turkish dialect but they also speak Farsi the official language of Iran. Several men came to visit the father because he was considered a wise man and could tell fortunes by flipping through the pages of the Koran for inspiration and he would write down their future for which he got paid.

Getting paid for predicting the future

This morning we were to leave the nomads and go back to Shiraz and when we woke up we found our guide very sick. Mary and I felt lucky that is was not us. They made a home made goat cheese that they laid out in the sun with nothing covering it. The flies all did their thing on it and our guide invited us to eat it but we said no thank you. They served it on the table with the lunches and dinners and we felt lucky that we saw, ahead of time, how they processed it. On the drive back we had to stop at a clinic because he was getting dehydrated and he had to have a transfusion.

The neighbors generator (think cell phone)

Making bread and Mary waiting for breakfast

The bread is a very thin flat bread

Greece

Good news, we got to the Acropolis in the spring before all the summer crowds got there

MONTENEGRO

Montenegro was a great place to visit. The town of Kotor was very scenic surrounded by high mountains. This is a photo of our hike up one of the mountians.