Shiraz
An ok breakfast in our Homa hotel, and off to see Shiraz for the first time today. Our first step was the Citadel of Karimkhan, from 260 years ago. Shiraz had had a turbulent history rising from the central capital of Iran suffering economic failure and contraction after all of the centuries. Kharimkhan Zand established the capital here based on kindness, non-militarism and cultural values. In Shiraz we visited the twin cylindrical three story brick fortress surrounded a lovely garden and water pool
Grand east to west to center all stainless glass windows were red, yellow and blue sealed together by wooden geometric design framing opening up to same space indoors. Each room had stone fireplace. The walls and ceilings were ornately carved and beautifully tiled.
A small exquisite handcraft store was a perfect surprise featuring a circle of young women producing miniature in association of the master of this art; they produced trays, boxes, frames, clock settings, desk materials using thin brass rods. The miniaturists sat around the table each drawing from a master illustration copies and original paintings using the finest brushes. They put a rod onto black pigment smeared on a finger nail, a micro palette to paint on inlaid boxes. The other perfect works belonged to a guy named Etminan, a 65 year old master inlay artist. Lisa bought a frame of a camel and I, a gold painting of three dervishes of the royal background and the women’s group leader signed it for me.
We were exited and we strolled a few blocks to enter the Vakil Bazar and visit the Vakil mosque. The walls of the mosque inclosing a large square with the most colorful and happy tile work we could see so far. Floral design blazing in red, yellow and blue and white imagery was standing within the edifice. Prayer area was set with cream color. Master space for the Imam filled with 54 huge spiral marble columns that decorated and supported the spectacular multi dome space. It was Saturday and no prayers or locals nor rug covering existed adjacent.
We drifted into the major city center bazar alleyways filled with thousands of rugs whose merchants stood or sat watching the crowd flow to offer them incredibly ornate and beautifully hand-woven rugs. Stalls features, jewelry, toys, kitchen goods, organza, wedding and tribal clothes, everything imaginable, touchable, buyable, Iranian and touristic. Lisa discovered a perfect 8 foot Glim that was 120$ and continued buy souvenirs she gathered to distribute when we returned. I was in an oriental rug heaven.
At mid-day we went to a traditional restaurant for lunch where Sohrab ordered a table full of specialties that we devoured. At the next table three mature Iranian women opened the conversation with us. One of whose daughters and another son had just wed did everything they could to get us to their home to have the evening with them but we gently declined the invitation with Sohrab’s kind diplomacy. We talked and shared iPhone photos for half an hour and a wonderful bound established.
we returned to the bazar buying a couple of original glass plates from and decided to wrap the day with visiting the seven century national poet Hafez shrine where his grave was covered with his writings and a single red rose someone had left. We touched the marble in tradition of saying a prayer to wish the spirit of poet well forever. The truly pristine flower decorated Central Square with its seven colonnaded room and seven levels of step elevations emanated serenity and meticulous sweetness. Lisa was exhausted and possibly sick so we returned to the hotel to recoup at 5 PM. We ate pizza for dinner in the hotel
On the Way from Shiraz to Isfahan
Our last day in Shiraz, we pulled our every growing packing together. Much of our treasures squeezed in the corner of our Limo truck; I took breakfast alone to allow Lisa to continue the rest. Sohrab joined me and at 10 AM, we left our hotel to begin the 6 hour trip to Isfahan with a plan to stop 50 km away at Pasargadae, the site of Cyrus the great tomb and remanence of his palace complex.
The site was at a key military victory place where the Persians consolidated the expanding empire. The unadorned monolithic stone house was built to show Cyrus superhuman being. By the time alexander reached Pasargadae with his army only the remains of Cyrus where found with his burial treasure already loaded. Each site in Persepolis was described through a good exploratory text. Historical alterations of the actual identity of the burial site identified it as a possession of Salomon to prevent anti Persian armies from destroying it in those days. One had to muse deeply to reconstruct the dynamic reality of what must have been existed and the echo of the ancient civilization.
We drove north again stopping for lunch at the popular roadside restaurant where we had eaten on our way to Shiraz. The place was jammed with three busloads of tourists but we managed to have the most important talk with 18 year old Arezoo. The outcome was my pledge to buy her a mobile phone within three months and the decision to invest 50 $ a month sustainer for three years to support her vocational education. Sohrab was to be the interlocutor to provide the mentoring guidance and act as financial medium to get the best outcome with this lively and intense young woman. For Lisa and I, it was an investment in nurturing a tender root in Iran in another land with Sohrab and another bound with sohrab. He and I talked intensely for the duration of the ride about a predicted an ideal future for him in the tourism industry. Building a visionary narrative in the tourism association, exploring creative projects to anticipate and openness took good hours talking.
The traffic upon our arrival at 5:30 in Isfahan was very dense and we drove to reach our Abbasi caravanserai hotel an enclosed extraordinary garden. The hotel is the most ornate in contemporary terms thus far and the over acre sized square garden was left for tomorrow to enjoy. Stores in the hotel were presenting sublime jewelry, arts and goods, rugs and embroidery, clothing and books. Lisa bought a lovely long embroidery top. We had a light dinner in a mirror mosaic decorated room with its massive glittering chandeliers and returned to our glorious space of dusty rose pastel room to unpack and tuning for the day