© Lonely Planet Publications 92 lonelyplanet.com •• History 93

HISTORY ence far greater than most people realise. TEHRAN Archaeologists believe people have lived in The capital has fomented and hosted two this area since Neolithic times, but apart revolutions, two coups d’etat and much from 11th-century AD records suggesting intrigue. As the setting for the CIA’s first ﺗﻬﺮﺍﻥ TEHRAN Tehran the village produced high-quality pome- coup in 1953 (p37 ), it had a profound im- granates, little was written about Teh ran pact on post-WWII world politics; and as until the 13th century. In his book Mo’jamol pronouncements from Tehran have been Boldan, writer Yaqoot Hamavi described the driving force behind the growth of With its relatively short history, ugly masks of concrete and smog, and manic streets Tehran as a village of Rey, then the major radical since 1979, that influence has flowing hot with machines, many travellers and no small number of Tehranis will tell you urban centre in the region, where ‘rebellious not waned. there’s no reason to hang around in the capital. But to take their advice is to miss out. inhabitants’ lived in underground dwell- Today it is fascinating to walk in the For while Esfahan or could mount a convincing case for being the soul of , ings. He went on: ‘They not only disregard footsteps of that modern history: you can their governors, but are in constant clashes see the White Palace at Sa’d Abad (p109 ), Tehran is indisputably its big, loud, chaotic, dynamic and ugly beating heart. among themselves, to the extent that the where the last hosted the CIA’s Kermit inhabitants of its 12 quarters cannot visit Roosevelt as they plotted the overthrow of This tightly packed of about 15 million is where change happens first. Politically and each other’. Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh; socially it’s Iran’s cutting edge, and from the relatively bold fashion statements of its youth In 1220 the Mongols sacked Rey as they visit the former US embassy now called the to the range of restaurants, cafés and art galleries, as a visitor you can’t help but notice. swept across Persia (see p32 ), executing US Den of Espionage (p107 ); gaze up at thousands in the process. Most of those who the (p114 ), where hundreds However, Tehran is also a city of contrasts that play out on geographic lines. It is modern escaped wound up in Tehran and the fu- of thousands of people gathered to mark and traditional, secular and religious, rich and poor – north and south. Most of the spark ture capital’s first ever population explosion the 1979 revolution; or visit the haunting comes from the affluent north, but wander through southern Tehran and you’ll see a con- turned the village into a small, moderately Behesht-e Zahra cemetery (p131 ), where prosperous trading centre. the faces of soldiers who died in the Iran– trastingly conservative, religious and poor city with little of the north’s brashness. In the mid-16th century Tehran’s natural Iraq War stare out from endless fields of At a practical level, Tehran has a decent choice of hotels and the best range of res- setting, many trees, clear rivers and good glass boxes. hunting brought it to the attention of the taurants in Iran. There are enough museums to keep you interested, and compared with early Safavid king, Tahmasb I. Under his ORIENTATION residents of many capitals, Tehranis are surprisingly welcoming. Certainly, some travellers patronage, gardens were laid out, brick Tehran is so vast and so congested that get- will find Tehran’s traffic, smog and uncontrolled urban sprawl overwhelming. But persist – houses and built and a wall ting lost here is inevitable. Thankfully, most or better, make short repeat visits – and you’ll find it opening up to you in ever more- with 114 towers erected to protect the town of the streets you’re likely to visit have signs rewarding ways. and its merchants. As it continued to grow in English, though there are still some areas under later Safavid kings, European visitors without signs in any language. wrote of Tehran’s many enchanting vine- As you move through the city the huge yards and gardens. social and economic gaps between northern Threatened by the encroaching Qajars, and southern Tehran are plain to see. The HIGHLIGHTS regent Karim Khan Zand moved his army south is older, cheaper, more congested and to Tehran in 1758. At the same time he generally less appealing. However, it has al- Take in the over-the-top opulence of the refortified the city and began constructing most all the budget hotels, especially around ( p101 ), a monument to a royal residence. Perhaps he had intended Imam Khomeini Sq, which also hosts the Qajar excess to move his capital here, but when Qajar main station on the growing Tehran Metro Gaze in wonder at the 51,366-gem Globe of chieftain Mohammed Hasan Khan was and has a local bus terminal nearby. The Jewels in the National Jewels Museum (p105 ) killed and his young son Agha Mohammed north is more inviting, more expensive, has Khan taken hostage, Karim Khan decided cleaner air and a range of better hotels and the slopes of ( p133 ) and the threat was over and abandoned the un- more exotic restaurants. ( p133 ) for a fraction of what you’d pay at home Dizin finished palace to return to . The main street and top shopping strip Relax Tehran-style by taking a mountain walk Shemshak But things didn’t work out quite as Karim is Valiasr Ave, which runs from Rah-Ahan from Darband ( p113 ) to Park-e Jamshidiyeh Khan would have liked. By 1795 he was Sq and the train station in poorer southern (p113 ), enjoying the views, food and company Tehran long dead and his one-time prisoner, Agha Tehran all the way to Sq in the foot- en route Mohammed Khan, declared this dusty town hills of the Mountains in the north – a Gird your loins and climb aboard a motorcycle of around 15,000 souls his capital. distance of more than 20km. It’s a great street taxi (p99 ) for a trip across peak-hour Tehran – As the centre of Qajar Persia, Tehran to find when you’re lost. One of the main a white-knuckle ride you’re unlikely to forget steadily expanded. By 1900 it had grown east–west thoroughfares is Azadi Ave, which to 250,000 people, and in the 20th century starts at the Azadi Tower, near the Mehrabad TELEPHONE CODE: 021 POPULATION: ABOUT 15 MILLION into one of the most-populous on International Airport, and becomes Enqelab earth. With this growth has come an influ- Ave east of Enqelab Sq. 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(4.4km) d To East A v e 7 6 5 increasingly, Metro. rest of Tehran and, shuttletaxi bybus,taxi, fewer destinations.Allare connected tothe andserve ern terminal have fewer services terminal inthecitycentre andtheeast- are thelargest. Thecentral(Arzhantin) southern terminal, nearthetrainstation, ern terminal, adjacenttoAzadiSq,andthe one of fourbusterminals ( p124 ). Thewest- touse coming orgoingbybus,you’llneed Airport 35kmsouthof thecity.Ifyou’re Internationalthe newImamKhomeini western edge of thecitynearAzadiSq;and ( p123 ): theolder Mehrabad airportonthe transport options. Around( Getting as youcan;see p126 ) for and locationsof themainsquares assoon any transport–ithelpstolearnthenames hill thatusuallymeansyou’re goingnorth. ifyou’re mountains, walkingup- from these the north.Andaswholecityslopesdown ofStar Tehran forareason –yes,they’re in areMountains knownlocallyastheNorth lonelyplanet.com Tehran hastwointernational airports publictransport–or If youplantouse It’s handytoremember thattheAlborz Iranian personalities, seewww.iranchamber.com/personalities. means ‘IslamicRepublic’; andEnqelab,whichmeans‘revolution’. Formore ontheseandother whichtranslates to‘freedom’; Azadi, one dayreturn -ye Eslami,which as the messiah; Valiasr, whichmeans‘Prince of thisTime’ the12thimam, whowill andisanicknameforMahdi, Streets are alsonamedafter buzzwordsoftherevolution Islamicphrases. and key These include Council after therevolution, butwasassassinated byarivalIslamicgroupinMay1979. communism andtheeffect itwould have onIslam.Hebecamepresident oftheConstitutional MortezaAyatollah Motahhari three weekslater secrethis apartment –apparently police. oftheshah’s avictim tion tomanywomen.Barred fromteaching, hewent toEnglandin1977,butwasfounddead He combinedradicalpoliticalthoughtwith sociallyconscioustraditionalismandbecameaninspira- Dr AliShariati inFinwho wasputtodeathatthecommandofNasseral-DinShah GardensnearKashan. HeledthefirstFridayprayersafter therevolutionlast shah. butdiedsoonafterwards. TaleqaniAyatollah Organisation Khalq (MKO). bytheMojahedin headquarters gotiations over a year later byabombplanted theUSembassyhostagesbutwaskilled inIRP Beheshti Ayatollah almost alwaysaman)name. Sowhoare thesedeadmen? a hugemuralorerected ofthepersonbesidestreet amosaic likeness thatbearshis(it’s figures andrevolutionary buzzwords. Inmanyplacesthegovernment hasconveniently painted Across Iranyou’llfindstreets namedafter oftherevolution, thesamefew historical martyrs A REVOLUTION NAMES INSTREET This was the nickname of Mirza Taghi This wasthe nicknameofMirza areformist Khan, primeminister (1848–1851) ReturnedtoIranfromFrancein1964withadoctorate insociology fromtheSorbonne. Amuch-admired cleric whowasrepeatedly exiledandlater bythe tortured Founded the Islamic Republic Party (IRP) in 1979. He took part inthene- FoundedtheIslamicRepublicParty (IRP)in1979.Hetookpart Was a close confidant of Ayatollah Khomeini whorailedagainst Khomeini WasacloseconfidantofAyatollah buzzer tobeletin. sive, andisupdated mostyears –pushthe 8am-1pm Thu). EslamiAve;roads, Enqelab-e St,Valiasr St,Razi Cross- shenasi.com; 15OstadShahrivar (mainly pictorials)aboutIran,asdothe Farsi books stock.Mosttop-endhotels sell a few English titlesamongtheirmainly est stretches of bookshopsonearth–have posite Tehran University –oneof thelong- dozens of bookshopsonEnqelab Ave op- chain isyourbestoption.Elsewhere, the For English-language books,theBookCity Bookshops INFORMATION Gita Shenasi best betistoget thelatest Tehran mapfrom trollable yearningfordanger –drive. Your remote suburbs,or–ifyouhave anuncon- a more mapifyouwanttovisit detailed graphs –shouldbeadequate. You’llneed in thischapter –redrawn fromaerialphoto- themajor themaps sights, days andseeing If you’re onlystoppinginTehran forafew Maps Itwillbebigandcomprehen- Mp pp102-3 ; (Map TEHRAN ••Information h x 8am-6pm Sat-Wed& 6670 9335;www.gita

95 TEHRAN TEHRAN fun policehaveclosedtheattachedcafé. more thisstore thantheHafez even store,like thoughthe Crossing)Somepeople St,nearKamranieh Bahonar Shahid Some rare worksonIran.MrAfshar isstimulatingconversation. andItalian. by chance)OldbooksinEnglish,French, German St,offValiasr8844; Khoddami Ave; arcade with red-painted trim. arcade withred-painted trim. Vogue Enqelab Ave) rangingfromthe Magazines here, ataremarkable open andclose rate Internet cafés,or Access Internet Police Fire Brigade Ambulance one of numbers: these with translation.Ifthatisimpossible, call andperhaps help orpolicestation hospital youtothemostappropriate able tosend embassy oryourhotel’s frontdeskshouldbe If your emergency isnotlife threatening, your Emergency Institute Jahanelm Di RouzEmAncienLivres Book CityNiyavaranStore Book CityHafezStore Complex. Museum ofNational Museum IranandSa’dAbad 96 3rd floor), and plenty of pictorials on Iran (1st floor). onIran(1stfloor). 3rd floor),andplentyofpictorials inEnglish(mostlyonthe andnonfiction decent rangeoffiction Hafez St)Thebiggeststore ofthebestchainbookshops. A TEHRAN••Information of Islam in action, thenwalkupto of Islaminaction, out withsomealternative Tehran. cuisineinnorthern Gandhi Ave inan perhaps take intherelaxedtake ( p121 ), headdownforthe2pmviewingof before hiking from before hiking tocheckoutthe plan,thenheadnorth Follow thetwo-day Four Days two, checkoutthe Azari TraditionalTeahouse the Sofre KhaneSonnatiSangalag Stopin country’s biggestmarket. earlyin Start the Two Days TEHRAN IN… . It’s on the floor below ground level inalarge . It’sonthefloorbelowgroundlevel ( x National Museum ofIran 110) ( x ( x 115) ( p121). 125) Mp pp102-3; (Map coffeenets Mp p110; (Map Tehran Bazar GolestanPalace Darband Tehran Museum ofContemporary Art art gallery art Mp p94; (Map h Mp p110; (Map x by appointment or by appointmentor as they’re called ( p113 ) acrossto x ( p120 ) for some well-earned well-earned some for ( p120) 8880 5735; 743 Nth 8880 5735;743Nth Economist ( p104 AhanSqandthe ashuttletaxidowntoRah ), thentake x ( p122 ) tomeetyoungTehranis andchilloutinthecafésof 6695 0324; ( p121 attheancientwondersof). Spendtheafternoon looking ( p100 ) watchingthehustling,bustlingandhagglingof x Imam KhomeiniMosque 2228 5969; Park-e Shahr Park-e ( p101 ), thenafter acoffee withthepaperat 8888 8888 to Park-e Jamshidiyeh National Jewels Museum ( p104 ) forsomeheadspaceandlunchatthe Sat-Thu) NeartheIranianTraditionalRestaurant. Blvd;perhrIR10,000; fl, 40Keshavarz IR1500 aminute. they sellphonecardsandoffer cheapinternationalcallsat embassy,theseguyshaverelatively fastmachines; British St; perhrIR9000; Ferdowsi Coffeenet upstairs, where therent ischeaper. feenets ing facilitiesandheadphones.Forother time youarrive. Theyhave webcams,burn- have disappeared intocyberspace bythe around foryears andhopefullywillnot the followingplaceshaveHowever, been ernment steps inwithregular crackdowns. in Tehran before –andthat’seven thegov- Payvand toTehran.devoted There are few English-language websites Resources Internet Coffeenet Valiasr CommercialCentre Cafenet Rahyabnet Pars Internet some good restaurant reviews. coffeenets hr IR10,000; andplentyofsoftware. connections fruit selleronthesoutheasterncornerofsquare; good Ave; perhrIR10,000; southeast cornerofVanak Sq. Sq; perhrIR15,000; lookaroundmajor squares, usually chay onthegroundfloor. Sa’d AbadMuseum Complex (www.payvand.com) Hardtonavigate, buthas h ( p100 ) atprayertimeforataste 18) and ( p108) (tea) andaspecialmeal.Onday Mp pp102-3; (Map 9am-9pm) Several small,fastandbusy 9am-9pm) Several h h Mp p110; (Map h ( p113 ). Useyourlastdayto 9am-9.30pm Sat-Thu) Oppositethe (Map (Map pp102-3 ; Ferdosi Sq,Enqelab Mp pp102-3; (Map 9am-midnight) Onthe1stfloor, 9am-9.30pm) Upstairspastthe 15) Rud h day the Round ( p105). Park-e Laleh (Map (Map p110 ; Valiasr Sq;per x x 3392 4173;369Ferdosi 8878 5192;Vanak h lonelyplanet.com x Cafe Naderi 8.30am-8pm 8880 1316;4th ( p107 ), ( p109) cof-

Ramin Drug Store DrugStore Ramin places reviewed. places reviewed. noaddress forthe though,there isoften Unfortnuately, reviews. café, restaurant, film,music,theatre andart photographs ofTehran. Tehran Avenue Tehran 24 lonelyplanet.com cnr Ferdosi Sq) ( hotel reception tophonethe cheap. Fora24-hour pharmacyaskyour and medications(often generic brands)are Tehran iswellstocked withpharmacies, PHARMACIES Tehran Clinic Ave) St, offMotahhari Hospital Mehrad & Tavanir St) Day Hospital reputable: arelowing hospitals accessible,cleanand Alternatively,a doctororhospital. thefol- or German). finding onewhospeaksEnglish (orFrench training, anditshouldn’tbetoodifficult ards. Many of the doctors have Western is reasonably byinternational stand- high country, andthequalityof medicalcare tion of doctors in allof andhospitals the Tehran hasbyfarthelargest concentra- HOSPITALS standards. Times Dentists regularly advertise inthe DENTISTS Services Medical a day). tional Airports(about IR15,000toIR20,000 Mehrabad Interna- andImamKhomeini reasonably at offices pricedleft-luggage usually atnocost.Alternatively, there are Most hotels are happytoholdluggage, Luggage Left should beabletoarrange somethingforyou. yourhotel although dry-cleaning services, The cityisnotoverrun withlaundriesand Laundry Tehran Metro underground; includes connecting busroutesandnumbers. underground; includesconnecting x Your embassywillusuallyrecommend 191) and are very inexpensive byWestern tofindthenearest one, or headfor (www.tehran24.com) Regularly updated (www.tehran24.com) Regularly . Mp p110; (Map Mp p110; (Map (www.tehranmetro.com)Everything (www.tehranavenue.com) Well-written (www.tehranavenue.com) Well-written Mp p110; (Map (Map pp102-3 ; (Map x x 8879 7111;cnrValiasr Ave 8871 2931;Farahani St) x x 8874 7401; Miremad 8874 7401;Miremad 6670 5301; southeast 6670 5301;southeast pharmacy line Tehran Tehran

most officialoftheexchangeshops. (CentralBranch),the Ferdosi Markazi St)BesideBankMelli Ferdosi Newsstand Enqelab Newsstand of books. ageing secondhand following twoalso stockarandomselection some, thefourEnglish-language dailies. The down) and,in story awayfrombeingclosed Farsi newspapers (they’re onlyonecritical Tehran, anever-changing selling of selection Pavement canbefoundallover newsstands Newsstands IranExchange Melli Bank Tejarat Branch Central Bank Melli Bank Melli travellers cheques ifyou’re desperate. Hotel isone, andthey places have attached bankbranches; Homa will beyourlastresort, sometop-end though dious (don’tforget yourpassport). don’t change before 9am;theprocessiste- openfrom7.30amto1.30pmbutBanks sign inthewindowof anyotherbranch. branches willhelp,orlookforan‘exchange’ their mathematicalskillsare dodgy. your moneycarefully –boththeirrates and avoided unlessyouknowtherates andcount ient. Butifnot,thestreet changers are best shop. Ifyou’re desperate, thisisconven- the street before reach youever anofficial andit’salldoneinabout30seconds. off smile, butneither(usually)willtheyripyou on Ferdosi Stsouthof there. Theywon’t moneychanging shoparoundFerdosi Sqor way of changing moneyisinanofficial travellers alsoBanks, cheques (see p388 ). money andnonedealwithcredit cardsor fortunately, few of canchange these your Ave there are more than20branches! Un- a1.5kmstretchalong orjustoff of Enqelab tion of bankbranches of anycityonearth; Tehran hasperhapsthegreatest concentra- Money for details. these peopleaboutgettingatransfer fromhome;see p389 pp102-3 ; Ferdosi St)Ifyou’verunoutofcash,speakto north of Manucheri St. ofManucheri north the farnorth. Iran Airandthetravelagencies. As usual,hotels andtheirdiabolicalrates abank,thefollowingIf youmustuse Chances are you’llbeasked to‘change’ on Instead, theeasiestandmostcommon (Map (Map p110 Ifyou’re in St,Elahiyeh) ; Shariati (Map (Map pp102-3 St)Handyto ; Nejatollahi TEHRAN ••Information (Map (Map pp102-3 ; Ferdosi St)Just Mp p123; nea Ave) Enqelab pp102-3; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map might (Bank Melli Markazi; Map Map Markazi; (Bank Melli beabletochange x 6670 0924;

97 TEHRAN TEHRAN gmail.com) Specialises in advice on ecotourism around Iran. aroundIran. gmail.com) Specialisesin adviceonecotourism extensive media experience. extensive .co.uk) andinteresting guideand fixer with Experienced packages. packages. St;comehere topost About 100msouthofAmirKabir Sat-Thu) St; internationalcallsperminIR1500; Leily Lankarani Leily Lankarani Houman Najafi mended: vate operators, thefollowingare recom- For personalised tours oradvicefrompri- Tours Ask yourhotel instead. 2020 –hasnotouristinformation office. that wantstoattract20milliontouristsby Incredibly, the ofcapital Iran–acountry Information Tourist thispage’. canuse paper; theunwise travellerwise carriesanemergency of stash ber thatoldmaximof Iranian travel: ‘The pend uponthelocalcaretaker. Andremem- the stateof willde- cleanlinessorotherwise the nearest mosqueorintoapark,where In anemergency, duckintothegroundsof lets, asdoallbutthesmallestrestaurants. buildings opentothepublichave cleantoi- palacesandotherAlmost allmuseums, Toilets Telephone office Pars Internet on telephones. hard tofindinTehran. See p391 formore are these surprisingly though ephone office, internet café (manyhave Skype)oratel- an It’s quieter, andusuallyeasier,touse main streets isloudest. where noise traffic plentiful andconveniently dotted alongthe international calls.Publictelephones are ascansomecardsfor at mostnewsstands, Telephone cardsforlocalcallscanbebought Telephone Post office postoffice Main DHL Post 98 Valiasr Sq;forordinarymail. down analley. Sat-Thu) Convenienttothecheapaccommodation.It’s10m Sq;perminIR1700; off ImamKhomeini h TEHRAN••Dangers&Annoyances 5.30am-9pm Sat-Thu &9am-2pmFri) Mp p110; (Map (Map (Map p110 cornerof ; Valiasr Sq)Northwest Mp pp102-3; (Map x ( x ( x (Map (Map pp102-3 ; Sa’diSt; (Map (Map pp102-3 ; BanHamayoonSt, 8871 5906-9;353DrBeheshtiAve; 0912 2023017;houman.najafi@ 0912 1508519;llankarani@yahoo

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Almost anythinggoes inTehranchaotic traffic islikely tocomeas Even forthe experienced Asia hand,the Traffic DANGERS &ANNOYANCES extending, see p395 . the passport.Yes, annoying.Formore on proved days to collect wehadto wait seven afterbut even the30-dayextension wasap- the wholeprocessonlytookafew minutes, is onthe1stfloor. Whenweextended here extension office for theuniforms).Thevisa about150malong(look ing onyourright, (downhill) andenter thegreen-glass build- Sq,turnright posit slip.ContinuetoSepah de- minutes handyoutheall-important He’ll dothepaperworkandinacoupleof andhandoverteller ‘visa’ yourIR100,000. someone keen to practise theirEnglish. someone keen topractise for afew minutes andyou’llbe‘adopted’ by front gate (theentranceisonEnqelabAve) If you’re worried,justhangaroundthe entering butitsenforcementishaphazard. abanonforeignis, however, nonstudents fascinating placetowanderaround.There 1.30pm Sat-Wed,7.45am-noonThu) to thebudgetaccommodation. Sq,handy sideofBaharestan Sq)Onthenorth Mp p123; ea Sq) Sepah pp102-3; (Map (Map (Map pp102-3 Sq; St,offSepah ; Sepah Mp p123; nea Ave) Enqelab pp102-3; (Map (Map (Map pp102-3 ; Mp pp102-3; (Map ontheway,tell the is walkingdis- lonelyplanet.com Foreign Aliens Foreign x x h 3397 1525; 8889 7.45am- isa Bank lonelyplanet.com a driver appears tobe,hewilldo everything all istoremember thatnomatter how‘crazy’ dangerous street-crossing challenge. harmless one-waystreets intoafarmore contra-flow buslanes,which turnrelatively aware ofstep boldlyoutintotheflow.Be you andthetraffic, and, withthembetween to appear one ortwootherroad-crossers in numbers –waitfor istheusualtactic streets istodowhatthelocalsdo. Safety to ensure asafe negotiationof Tehran’s text, above ). As apedestrian,thebestway theboxedwithout actuallykillingyou(see ers are adept atgetting youneartodeath of asinglecabride,butinreality driv- three near-death experiencesinthecourse feel asifyou’vecidents. Youmight had are often there surprised are notmore ac- or onfoot. of anaccident,whetheryou’re inavehicle itishardtooverestimateIndeed, therisk this gamethere are fewer emptychambers. like agameofseem Russianroulette, onlyin whelming andmakes crossing thestreet fastest don’t alwayssurvive. of chicken where, thebiggest however, and towards each otherinaDarwiniangame and allmannerof hurtling cars andbuses an expressway toreach exit; thatmissed gridlock; Paykans reversing along atspeed on thefootpathinanattempt toescapethe motorcycles weaving pedestrians between But perhapsthemost reassuring thingof afterHowever, theinitialshock,visitors canbeover- volumeofThe sheer traffic land you’d pay good money for this kind of white-knuckle ride;inTehran ofwhite-knuckle land you’dpaygoodmoneyforthiskind oflife. it’sjustpart taxiforatripacrosstown.Tellengage amotorbike himyou’re inahurry,andholdon.At Disney- involved inanaccident.That’s right,don’tfightit,youknowtheseguysare actually U-turnsinthemiddleofmajorroads–allwithoutraisinghisheartbeat. and hehappilymakes across hischestonlywhendrivingontoanexpressway, where hecanbefined;rarely indicates; guys are actually torealise thesethe countlessstickysituationsfromwhichheextricates himself,andyoustart your Tehran experienceallthemore memorable. attitudinal adjustmentswillnotonlyfree youofsomethetraffic-inducedanxiety,butmake mental: howtodealwiththismanicmassofmetal.After muchtesting, webelieve thefollowing The physicaldanger notwithstanding, themainproblemyoufaceasavisitoronTehran’s streets is BAD DRIVING?IT’SALLINYOURHEAD Finally, embracethechaos!HeadtocornerofJomhuri-yeEslamiAve andFerdosi Stand Then thinkofhowwellyou’dhave todrive togetthroughthisnightmarishtrafficwithoutbeing Watch yourdriver closely:healmostnever useshismirrors(ifhehasany);drapesseatbelt Instead, lookatallthetinygapsyourtaxidriver isnegotiatingwithoutrecourse tothebrakes, Try nottothinkofTehrani drivers as‘hopeless’,‘crazy’ or‘stupid’;itwilljustmake youmore scared. good drivers. foreigners (especially violentcrime) israre. the world thanTehran, where crime against There are manymore dangerous placesin Scams Park-e Jamshidiyeh. the hillsandrelative purityof Darbandor your throat,oryouhave asthma,headfor Ifthepollutionreallyway off. tohurt starts remainssions. Cleanair,however, along tioning hasreduced vehicle (slightly) emis- Paykan numbers were falling, andpetrolra- a 10-yearplantotryandcurbpollution. nel. By2008Tehran washalfwaythrough fromtheendof tun- through thisfoggy of theatrociousairquality. yearasaresultmost 10,000peopledieevery indoors. al- and unwelltostay Reportssay schools are andradiowarnstheold closed reach crisispoint–often duringwinter – boxed text, p414 ). Whenpollutionlevels Paykans more the culpable thanmost(see motorbikes, withtheultra-inefficient of thecity’s3millioncars, trucksand outofcomes straight the exhaust pipes covers Tehran forabout 200daysayear ment, more than70%of thesmogthat on earth.Andaccordingtothegovern- Tehran isoneof themostpolluted cities Pollution more see onIran’straffic, p380 . doingsoisjusttoomuch hassle. because For he cantoavoid runningyouover simply However, thereHowever, filtering is somelight TEHRAN ••Dangers&Annoyances very good!

99 TEHRAN TEHRAN noon Thu) main entrance, 15 Khordad Ave;main entrance,15Khordad that fill them make The maze of bustlingalleysandthe BAZAR TEHRAN &SouthernTehranCentral and headingnorthfromthere. attheTehranstarting inthesouth Bazar on theTeh ran map( p94 ). Placesare twoareas listeddon’t fallinthese canbefound North Teh ran map( p110 ); whileplacesthat north of Valiasr SqontheValiasr Ave & the area eithersideof Valiasr Ave heading southern Tehran ononemap( pp102–3 ); Palaces intheprocess. shah’s opulentSa’d-Abad andNiyavaran of engulfing thelast theAlborzMountains, ment buildingsallthewaytofoothills but frenetic expansionhasspread apart- area untilabout 35years wassemirural ago, Valiasr SqasnorthernTehran. Much of this Contemporary Art. of andtheMuseum Museum to theCarpet the edge of which isPark-e –home Laleh referredloosely toascentralTehran, on ran Bazar. Alittlenorthof here isthearea Palacethe Golestan complexandtheTeh- tering NationalJewels aswell Museum, ofthe NationalMuseum Iranandtheglit- many of Tehran’s including bestmuseums, est andpoorest partof townandishometo south of Jomhuri-yeEslamiAve is the old- was thecentre of thecity.Today, area It’s notthat long agothatsouthern Tehran SIGHTS bogus policescam–see p378 fordetails. pick-pocketing the andscam,mostnotably There theoddbagsnatch, is, however, 100 jewel. The less than200years old;it’snoarchitectural years, todayis butmostof whatyousee their wares onthissite fornearlyathousand place toexplore. Traders have hawking been be farmore theboxed(see text, opposite ) andthere will within a city and includes several , within a city andincludes several The warren of people andgoodsis a city entrance, inasquare Melli. opposite Bank entrances, butit’s worthusingthemain 10km of covered stores andhasseveral In thisguidewehave includedcentraland Most localsrefer toanywhere northof The encompasses moreThe bazaarencompasses than TEHRAN••Sights afascinating,ifsomewhatdaunting, bazaris are a conservative bunch are aconservative

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moving haulage equipmentare high. being moweddownbysomepieceof fast- times,thechances7pm. Duringthese of about5pmand at lunchtime andbetween ness isbriskbutnotyetfrantic,asitbecomes better,even butno-one isforcingyou. tobuyacarpet, best inIran.Ifyoudochoose quite fun,andpriceshere are probably the and viewafew isoften rugs–which initself you tovisittheircarpetshop, drinksometea you there. Whenyou’re done,they willexpect bazaar, themosqueetc),andtheywilltake (thegoldbazaar,spices zaar you’dlike tosee entrance. Tell of themwhatsections theba- worry, theywillfindyounearthefront friended byoneof –don’t thecarpetsalesmen helpful Iranians. be foundanddirected byanynumberof get most certainly lostbutwillsoonenough fancy andjustgoingwiththeflow.You’llal- whichever directionand alleys,taking you is tosimplywanderthelabyrinthof streets to have never fullyconquered.seem One visit thebazaar,aplacethatcartographers fake designerlabels alsocatches theeye. photogenic, butthelaneof stores selling nut andspicebazaars bethemost might knife-makers andcarpenters. Thecarpet, haberdashers,sellers, saddlers, tinsmiths, tailors, bookbinders, broadclothsellers, flag , amongothers. commodity: copper,paper,gold,spicesand inaparticular Mostlanesspecialise station. banks,achurchguesthouses, afire andeven well worthvisitingisthe mosques andmausoleumsbutonethat’s Tehran hassurprisinglyfew interesting IMAM KHOMEINIMOSQUE photography islesswelcome. ing their ablutions and praying, though andwatchto stand thefaithfulperform- so it’susuallypossible fornon-Muslims and hundreds of here, peoplepassthrough partsof fromseveral thebazaar accessed Islaminaction.The courtyardis is tosee century butthereal reason youcomehere dates fromtheearly18th The buildingitself and oneof thelargest andbusiestinTehran. bazaar. Thisisvery much aworkingmosque Try andvisitinthemorning,whenbusi- tobebe- The otheristoallowyourself In ourexperiencethere are twowaysto You’ll alsofindtobacconists, shoemakers,

(; Map Mosque;Map (Shah pp102-3 ) , right insidethe , right ﺧﻤﻴﻨﯽ lonelyplanet.com Imam Khomeini Imam Khomeini

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ﻣﺴﺠﺪ yellow alabaster frommines inYazd. It was figures andconstructed from 65piecesof throne. Thethroneissupported by human audience halldominated by amagnificent the around thecourtyard. directionmar, thencontinueinaclockwise yourvisitattheIvan-e Takht-estart Mar- pulled downunderthePahlavis. ters, surroundingbuildings were butseveral ministriesandprivateoffices, livingquar- toencompass with innerandouter sections Originally itwouldhave much bigger, been today. built itintothefinecomplexyousee of European palaces,who what he’dseen al-Din Shah (r1848–96),impressed by on thissite, itwastheQajar rulerNasser formative printed guide. alsogiveIf youask,theymight youanin- for each building, andallatthefrontgate. ticketnoyingly, youmustbuyaseparate garden. Admission isn’texpensive but,an- aroundacarefullybuildings set manicured lonelyplanet.com admission IR3000) Sat &Mon-Wed) tickets; .ir; ArkSq;admissinoseveral plex Sq,the Imam Khomeini the Qajar rulers. Ashortwalksouthfrom ofmonument tothegloriesandexcesses In whatwasoncetheheartof Tehran isthis PALACE GOLESTAN Walk straight aheadfrom theentranceto Walk straight The followingdescriptionassumes you thereAlthough wasaSafavid-era citadel The In Iranabazaarismuchmore thanjustaplacetostockuponfew essentialshoppingitems. THE BAZARIS power ofitsmerchants. to reach andwithitthe thebazaarhasslowlybledmoneyawayfromthistraditionalmarket, bazaris other merchantscansupplyloansalmostasreadily asthebanks. However, thepowerof sector. Priceshere setthestandardforpricesacrosscountry,andcarpetdealers that ousted MohammadMossadeghin1953(fordetails,see PrimeMinister p37 ). the economy.They were equallyinfluentialinthe1906ConstitutionalRevolutionandcoup bazaris set upstate purchasingbodiestohandlesugar,meatandwheat.Notsurprisingly,theTehran ofthebazaar,gave subsidisedcreditnew roadsthroughparts and tocompetingsupermarkets bulldozedtory ofstandingagainstauthority.Inanattempt theirpowerthelastshah toweaken enormous politicalpower. They are religious usuallyconservative, peoplewhohave alonghis-

Ivan-e Takht-e Marmar Takht-e Ivan-e (Map pp102-3; (Map It hasbeenestimated thatTehran BazaarcontrolsathirdofIran’sentire retail andtrade bazaris, iswaning. formostTehranis andthetimeittakes Competitionfromnewsupermarkets hitbackduringtheIslamicRevolutionwhenclosure ofthebazaarwroughthavocon ismadeupof grand several the menwhorunstallsinbazaar,are frequently very wealthyandwield , amirrored, open-fronted x 3311 3335-8;www.golestanpalace

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(Pool Room;admission IR3000) specially interesting are the por- wearing the jewelsand TEHRAN ••Sights , which displays a amal ol-Molkand Shahnamah , namedfor Negar Khane Howze Howze 101 –

TEHRAN TEHRAN 102 CENTRAL &SOUTHERNTEHRAN 18 TEHRAN••Central&SouthernTehran

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Tousi St Tousi Artists' Forum...... N am jo o St Hossein Imam Soleimaniyeh Hossein Square Iman 52 51 50 49 48 47 46 45 44 43 42 62 61 60 59 58 57 56 55 54 68 67 66 65 64 63 53 73 72 71 70 69 80 79 78 77 76 75 74 86 85 84 83 82 81

E5 E3 D3 F4 F4 E4 F4 E4 E2 D2 F4 E2 E2 D5 D6 C1 D1 E3 F4 D3 E4 E1 D3 E3 E1 D3 D3 F5 F5 E2 E2 E3 E3 D2 D2 E5 D2 D2 F3 E2 A4 E2 E3 E3 C3 103 TEHRAN TEHRAN and enjoy tea orqalyan(water pipe) year- take aboattripon thetinylake (insummer) can goiceskating (whenit’scoldenough), and dwarfs’. ing statesof decay,andtheshotof ‘freaks astrian towerof silence,with bodiesinvary- for thepicture showingtheinsideof aZoro- court life are fascinating;lookparticularly complex. Thephotographs depictingQajar IR3000) for abreak headstraight need from thetraffic, If you’re insouthernTehran staying and SHAHR PARK-E Shams-Al Emarat monarchs. Qajar counterparts European bythesame royalty–European paintings and 104 be openin2009, toldusitshould three years sofar,butstaff slowest renovation haslasted more than seum swans, you’llcometothe dens, avoiding thesometimesfractious whenwevisited. was closed room inthepalace. underneath Theteahouse and atiledfloor. It’snotthemostriveting French ceramics–inaroomwithred walls arts –especially18th-and19th-century cently restored the boxed text, p257 ), risingabove there- irs monarchs, especiallytheFrench. givenand vases totheshahs byEuropean tion of photographs, together withfurniture mirrored andtiledroomsdisplayacollec- of 1865and1867.Asequence built between by master architect Moayeral-Mamalek and panoramic viewof thecity,itwasdesigned desire tohave hima apalacethatafforded traditions. Bornof al-DinShah’s Nasser blend EuropeanandPersian architectural palaceofthe tallest itsday anddesignedto the tobeopen.Inthebasement longer seems upstairs no is worthaquicklook,though mirrorworkand has typicallyostentatious in thereign of Fath AliShah. Theinterior admission IR3000) (traditionalair-conditioning units;see Next up,thetiny At theendof thegardenisimposing After thegar- wandering backthrough Next door you’ll see foursoaring Next dooryou’llsee TEHRAN••Sights Park-e Shahr Shahr Park-e Aks Khaneh nearthemainentrance. Theworld’s is one of the highlights of isoneof theGolestan thehighlights displays arange of decorative

(Historic Photograph Gallery; admission PhotographGallery; (Historic (Edifice oftheSun;admissionIR4000) sculptures of 19th-century Emarat-e Badgir Emarat-e (Map pp102–3 ) where you insh generously given totheir -e Almas Talar-e ’ Allah Ethnographical Mu- (if God wills it). (if Godwillsit). , first erected

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containing twofloorscontaining of exhibits x from Zanjan. He’s fromZanjan. to thought , a14th-centurylustre-painted 6670 2061;SiTir St; admission IR5000; , perhapsParthian, whose (see theboxed (see text, p207 ), coffee shop h ﺍﺳﻼﻣﯽ ﺍﻳﺮﺍﻥ tours starting 10am tours starting

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TEHRAN TEHRAN 182 carats and said tobethelargest182 caratsandsaid uncut Nur lish. Make sure youdon’tmissthe ing for,asthere are nodescriptionsinEng- included intheticket price,andworth wait- French, orTurkish–it’s German, regular andprofessional tours inEnglish, at theshopasyouenter, ortake oneof the of Londonsince. lockedBritish andhasbeen upintheTower way intothestickyfingers of thecolonial jewels. TheKuh-eNurdiamondfoundits plundered thetreasury the anddispersed Nader Shah’s murderin1747,AhmedBeg here) andother assortedsee treasures. After Peacock nottheoneyou’ll Throne(though Darya-ye NurandKuh-ediamonds,a Shah of India wasforcedtohandover the To get thesoldiers hisback,Mohammed off anarmytoprovesent thathewasserious. persuasion proved he unequaltothetask, return of thejewels.Whentheirpowers of Afshar despatched courtiers toaskforthe ascending thethronein1736,NaderShah treasury itscontents toIndia. and sent On invaded Iranin1722,heplundered the whenMahmudEsfahan. However, Afghan with which todecorate thethencapital, lands of theOttomanEmpire for booty the shahs scoured Europe,Indiaandthe collection dates backtoSafavid times,when over fought been jewels.Mostof these the to gawpatthereal things. monarchs adornedthemselves. Comehere jewellery withwhich theSafavid andQajar 106 You canpickupaguidebookforIR6000 itornot,atleastonewarhas Believe Throne originally camefrom India. Thrones have becomemuddled,soyoumight stillhearpeoplesay(erroneously) thatthisPeacock up tospread thewealthamong themselves. yearsthestories ofthePeacock Intheintervening haul backtoPersia, thispieceofbootyfell intothehandsofrebellious it soldiers,whohacked During theexpeditionhealsobagged theMoghuls’famousPeacock Throne. Butduringthe things too. thatheinvadedIndiainordertorecover Somuch,infact, Nurdiamond. theKuh-e Throne inherhonour. nicknamed Tavous orLadyPeacock, Khanoum andthethrone becameknownasthePeacock stones, sothethronebecameknownas theSunThrone. Later Fath AlimarriedTavous Tajodoleh, more abedwith26,733gems. sun,studdedwithprecious like Setintoitstopwasacarved madequite ajobofit,encrustingthevastthronethatlooks artists new thronetobebuilt.His entrance totheNationalJewelsMuseum.The real storyisthis:In1798Fath ordered a AliShah There haslong beenconfusionabouttheorigins ofthe Peacock Throne thatnowsitsatthe THE PEACOCK THRONE (Sea of Light), a pink diamond weighing of apinkdiamondweighing Light), (Sea TEHRAN••Sights Fath hadataste thefiner liked forgems,butoneofhispredecessors, Alicertainly NaderShah, Darya-ye careful nottotouch forced toleave thisbookoutsidetoo. Be it underyour be leftatreception and,unlessyoucanhide in diamonds). rubies (withIran,EnglandandFranceset are madefrom emeraldsandthelandfrom 1869 using51,366precious stones–theseas designed inIran.Ithashundreds of exhibits, decorations. there andother are manydelicate carvings and ceilingsare and particularlydelightful, the classicalstucco and styles. Thegracefulwoodenstaircase ing features of andWestern bothEastern purely Persian traditions,successfullyblend- converted in1976. intoamuseum the Egyptianlater housed embassyandwas dence foraprominentPersian family,it Qajar-era building.Builtasaprivate resi- off ear-piercing alarms. impressive North of of theNationalMuseum Iranisthe GLASS &CERAMICS MUSEUM the incredible 34kg by thelastshahandhiswife, Farah; and Fath AliShah in1797;thecrownsworn text, below ); thetall Throne diamond intheworld; Tue-Sun, to6pmsummer) x Not surprisingly,camerasandbagsmust The museum itself isprobably thebest- itself The museum The buildingmarksamove awayfrom 6670 8153;SiTir St;admissionIR5000; outside the vault door (see theboxed outsidethevaultdoor(see Glass & Ceramics Museum Museum Glass &Ceramics manteau , housed inabeautiful , housed mouldings onthewalls Globe ofJewels anything Kiani Crown Kiani ﺳﺮﺍﻣﻴﮏ (overcoat), you’llbe lonelyplanet.com Peacock (Naderi) Peacock (Naderi)

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Map Map pp102-3 ; cnrTaleqani Ave &ForsatSt; pp102-3 ; Keshavarz Blvd) Keshavarz pp102-3; people-watching. icecreams. It’s a greatsoft-serve placefor ranis refining theirflirting techniques over rary Art,you’llnotice plentyof youngTeh- orTehranMuseum of Museum Contempo- haps onyourwaytotheadjoining Carpet a real oasis.As per- youwanderthrough, makescation amidsomuch thepark traffic it isawell-designedgreen space, but itslo- is more thanthesumof itsparts.Certainly, Near thecentre of Tehran, PARK-E LALEH onage isthe all andwere justdumbtourists. that wehadn’t,infact,taken anyphotosat captorsfore persuading ourhalf-hearted were briefly apprehended andledawaybe- without trouble,butonthelastvisitwe times We’ve photographedthewallseveral others have toldnottotake photos. been travellers askingandbeingallowed,while but trytobediscreet. We’ve hadreports of tures photogenic of highly murals these There’s youcan’ttake pic- no signsaying ofthe Statue Libertyisrendered asaskull. Israel, includingoneinwhich thefaceof ofthe evil the‘Great (theUSA)and Satan’ come foralook.Themuralspronounce the Taleqani Ave wallmeanmosttravellers history andmore colourfulmuralsalong usually onlyfrom1to10February. fortunately, it’srarely opentothepublic– being shredded amongtheexhibits.Un- piecedtogetherments thathadbeen after withincriminatingdocu- as amuseum, The interior of thechancery ispreserved group dedicated todefending therevolution. militia,ahardline bytheSepah and isused the region –ishistory. the of throughout the rise fundamentalism rest –thebirthof theIslamicRepublicand lomats hostage for444days(see p39 ). The coup stormedtheembassy andheld52dip- students whofeared arepeat of the1953 ing. Whentheshah War orthe1979revolution. of photographs, usuallyfrom theIran–Iraq 3.30pm Sat-Thu) Diagonally opposite theUSDenof Espi- Despite this,theembassy’scolourful Today, theformerembassyisknownas US DenofEspionage , which hasrolling exhibitions Shohada Museum is oneof placesthat those was finallypushedout, TEHRAN ••Sights

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TEHRAN TEHRAN Flash photography isnot allowed. cards and booksandthere’s café. apleasant tions are post- welcome. Inside,ashopsells on aloomthe groundfloorandques- walls. Youwilloften weavers see working main buildingbycastingshadows onits threads onaloom,which cooldown the function –theexterior ismeanttoresemble and mixes ’70s stylewithcarpet-inspired Farah wasdesignedbyQueen itself Diba carpets are mostlyupstairs. Themuseum 17th centurytothepresent day;theolder pieces fromallover Iran,datingfromthe in the café (which serves real coffee!). in thecafé(which serves artyTehranis,good placetomeet especially fromwhich totake itallin.It’sa comfy seats ing andcirclingpattern, withplentyof after gallery appearinginanever-descend- distinctively moderndesign,withgallery visiting. Part of charm themuseum’s isits ian artondisplayandit’sstillwellworth putalotmore itdoes Iran- is disappointing, Whilethis favour amongtherulingclasses. Western liberalismthatisdecidedlyoutof tobesymbolicof vaults,deemed a museum lockedthis collectionhasbeen awayinthe lock, MonetandWarhol, amongothers. Matisse, Van Pol- Miró,Dali,Bacon, Gogh, US$5 billion.ItincludesworksbyPicasso, art inAsia US$2billion and –worthbetween arguably thegreatest collectionof Western sive Farah Queen holds Diba,themuseum ’70s underthedirection of theprogres- of duringthe thelastcentury.Established nian artistsandsomeof thebiggest names modern andrarely cont Iran, here’s acollectionof art(notalways the 1970s.Contrarytopreconceptions of shah’s rushtobuildmodernlandmarksin modernist buildingconstructed duringthe Art, the two floors of the Just northof of theMuseum Contemporary MUSEUMOFIRAN CARPET the On thewestern sideof Park-e Laleh, TEHRAN MUSEUMOFCONTEMPORARY ART 108 Sun, to6pmsummer) Ave Ave; &Kargar admissionIR5000; pp102-3; Fri, to7pmsummer) Fri, Ave; admissionIR4000; pp102-3; During theAhmadinejadyears, however, TEHRAN••Sights Tehran Art ofContemporary Museum x x 8896 7707;http://carpetmuseum.ir;cnrFatemi 8896 5411;www.tehranmoca.com; Kargar house more house thanahundred isinastrikingconcrete ﺗﻬﺮﺍﻥ h 9am-6pm Sat-Thu &2-6pm

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Map Map p110 ; Valiasr Ave) oly onIranianlife, visit youassumethatIslamhasamonop- In case CATHEDRAL SARKIS up toTajrish. theshorthopacrosstoVanaktaxi Sqor Metro andashuttle toMirdamad station the considertaking mad Blvd,however, ing somewhere neartoornorthof Mirda- Ifyou’rejump inandoutasyouneed. head- Valiasr Sqsoit’sprobably simplesttojust fancy restaurants andembassies. modern Tehran, hometohipcoffee shops, aren’t Instead, manyactual‘sights’. thisis builtinthelast50years,has been sothere the surroundingpartsof northern Tehran alongValiasrAlmost everything Ave and Tehran &North Valiasr Ave Palaces; thepopular walkingtrails atDar- tinuously fortheSa’dAbad and Niyavaran from where leave shuttletaxis almostcon- in thefarnorth, headfirst toTajrish Sq, appear onourlarger scalemaps.Forsights coversThis section placesthatdon’t those TehranGreater Many Tehranis say MELLAT PARK-E Sts; p110; same districtastheSarkisCathedral. same in Tehran, mostbehind large wallsinthe dox Christians,allof whomhave churches Protestants, Assyrians, andOrtho- Catholics are Armenians, there’s alsoasprinklingof the centre of astill-thrivingcommunity. diately tothesouthisArmenianquarter, ligious buildinginTehran. Thearea imme- non-Islamicre-most visibleandimportant where isbyfarthe itis.SarkisCathedral offor itsbeautybutbecause whatitisand 1964 and1970,it’sinteresting notsomuch windows. flirt andswapphonenumbers car through asthey theirnewnoses car, showingoff ing upanddownValiasr Ave, toa several you’ll findjustasmanyyoungpeoplecruis- around asmalllake. Onweekend nights plenty of peopleenjoyingtheshaded areas any springorsummerafternoon you’llfind getaway, andifyou’re here aroundduskon To get here, headnorthfrom shuttletaxis Although mostofAlthough theChristiansinIran h x 8am-noon &1-5pmMon-Sat). 8889 7980; cnr Nejatollahi & Karim Khan-e Zand Khan-e &Karim 8889 7980;cnrNejatollahi is theirfavourite in-town Park-e Mellat Park-e Sarkis Cathedral Cathedral Sarkis lonelyplanet.com Built between Built between ﺳﺮﮐﻴﺲ

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ﭘﺎﺭک (Map (Map the middle and a sign to Bahoner Library. the middle andasignto Bahoner ideal placeforpost-film contemplation. (IR40,000), andthe chic café ( p120 ) isthe hard-to-findsells IranianfilmsonDVD lonelyplanet.com x (assuming languages are available); call on subtitlesinthelanguage of yourchoice IR15,000 andifyouasknicelythey willturn are at 3pm,5pm,7pmand9pmdaily. Seats and classicIranianfilmsare screened here ema withmouldedplaster ceilings.New building isfascinating. are notwell-versed inIranianfilm,andthe movie industry.It’sinteresting, ifyou even photos andposters fromIran’scentury-old has well-displayedexhibitsof equipment, Film Museum Shah Nasirod-Dinfor hisdaughter, the ina Housed Qajar-era mansionbuiltby FILM MUSEUMOFIRAN at Velenjak; andPark-e Jamshidiyeh. band andDarakeh; thecablecartoTochal IR10,000; Ferdows,museum.ir; Bagh-e offValiasr Ave; admission Look for thestreet witha garden down The highlight is a sublime 121-seat cin- isasublime121-seat The highlight like they’velike itjustalittletoofar… hadthejobdone. Whichmightbetaking symbol thatsomepeoplehave towearingplasters taken ontheirnosesjustsotheycanlook remodelled InTehran, withoutanyoneknowing,isstark. thenosejobhasbecomesuchastatus thebumpoutoftheirproboscis.big ontaking jump.Agrowingnumberofmenare foracutesyare alsospending ski notjustwomenlooking remodelled inIranevery year. Tehran alonehasabout3000plasticsurgeons, andtheirclients the plasticsurgery capitaloftheuniverse. Surgeons thatmore report than90,000nosesare are inTehran, andthey costaboutUS$4000.’ surgeon wouldcostmore, thaninTehran. buttheywere cheaperinEsfahan ‘Butthebestsurgeons less thanUS$1000,shesaid,butthatwasabitriskybecauseitmightturnoutbadly.Adecent hoping togetitdoneagain. explaining thatwhileImightnever have known,shedidn’treally hernewnose. like Shewas has hadthenosejobconversation athousandtimesbefore. abeat,shebegan Barely skipping recover with:‘Inever tohercredit, wouldhave someonewho dealtwithitlike known.’Mahnaz, pointing acrossthetabletohissister. hadanosejob. myfriendBehzadwhetherheknewanyonewhohadactually asked how manypeopleI’dseeninTehran wearingatell-tale plaster acrossthebridgeoftheirnose,I whentheconversation turnedto I wasatdinnerinEsfahan nose jobs. After prattlingonabout NATION OFNOSEJOBS 2272 3535 to see what’son. A shop also 2272 3535tosee The contrastwiththeWest,where peopledisappearon‘holidays’forweekssotheycanbe Despite Iranbeingacountrywhere theaverage yearlywageisfarlessthanthat,Tehran is But Ihadtoknow:‘Howmuchdoesitcost?’Well,thecheapestnosejobscouldbefor ‘It’s notabigdeal,’sheexplained.Plentyofpeoplehave nosejobsinIran. saidI,embarrassed thatIhadn’tnoticedthechange,before‘Oh. Right,’ desperately tryingto Ihad,well,twonoses,shouldhave atmelike When helooked known.‘Shehas,’hesaid, h 10am-5pm Tue-Thu, Sat&Sun, 2-5pm Fri) Mp p94; (Map x 2271 9001;www.film Andrew Burke ﺍﻳﺮﺍﻥ

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from different periods. Palace; admissionIR5000) more classical-looking beautiful inlaidfurniture. The dating backtothe18thcenturyandsome somecharminghouses Persian oilpaintings and the few waxworksandethnologicalartefacts; Bihzad Museum with worksbyMahmoud Farshchian; the Abkar; the displaying miniatures bytheartistClara IR3000) one of themore impressive buildingsand the inthecomplex,includingist museums around thebacktotake inthe view. ror Hall, sure togo andthebedroom.Be mirrors intheappropriately namedMir- is over-the-top opulent,withwall-to-wall (downstairs) forspecialguests.Thedesign vate reception hall(upstairs) andresidence a littletoosoft. asapri- Itwaslater used ontheceiling, if notthemirrorstalactites only ayearandapparently foundthebed, by thePahlavis. Shah Rezalived here for the Qajar eraandextensively remodelled of Ethnological Research of Ethnological paintings bytheartistBihzad; The At theuphillendof thecomplex, There are othersmall,special- several Abkar Miniature Museum Museum Miniature Abkar , with samples of, withsamples Iraniancalligraphy 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 Museum of Fine Arts ofFine Arts Museum Mir Emad Calligraphy Museum Museum EmadCalligraphy Mir A3 A1 A5 A3 D2 A5 A5 B2 A3 B6 A6 C4 A1 D1 Farshchian Museum Turkish Airlines...... Qatar Airways...... (see 46) KLM...... (see 46) Arzhantin)...... Azerbaijan Airlines...... Ariana AfghanAirlines...... Air India...... Dusto-e...... Seyhoun ArtGallery...... TRANSPORT SHOPPING ENTERTAINMENT TEAHOUSES &CAFÉS Airlines...... Lufthansa &Austrian Emirates...... British Airways...... Air France...... (see46) Jaam-e JamShoppingCentre..(see36) Sanaee CoffeeShop...... Gandi 35...... Gandhi ShoppingCentre...... Central BusTerminal(Terminal-e

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TEHRAN TEHRAN straight through to through straight werecommendvarious museums, going at themaingate. –tickets individually seums mustbebought mu- scaped gardensandhasfourseparate infiveroyal rule. It’sset hectares of land- his familyspentmostof thelast10years of where Shah Mohammad RezaPahlavi and complex isthe About 6kmeastof theSa’dAbad Museum NIYAVARAN PALACE MUSEUM (IR6000 or take ataxi complex,eitherwalk To get tothemuseum Getting There &Away The Palaces are recommended. themosthighly Shahram; justlookforthehelicopter. palace thatbelonged totheshah’snephew (admission IR3000) 112 wedding), stare outfrom thepastnearby. hower (who wasaguest at theshah’slast Nixon, Kemal Eisen- andDwight Ataturk ElizabethII,Richard while Hitler,Queen Mao share Zedong spacewithPope Paul VI, dor’s WaitingRoom;themixed bunch sees and forphotosdisplayedintheAmbassa- golden phoneandgold-coloured pistols, beams. Keep aneyeoutfortheshah’s and abardecorated withShirazi painted private surgery teahouse, dental basement the very attractive roomsincludeaprivate life thatmakes itmostfascinating. Someof Shiraz andnowadorntheceilings. Qajar-era worksthatFarah rescued from colourfulfurnishings, includingseveral very finecollectionof paintings andother a ashisoffice. Itcontains Diba, andused remodelled by thelastshah’swife, Farah the endof theQajar periodbutextensively h required; Sq;individualtickets Ave, Bahonar offShahid p94; cial Office; admissionIR5000) cial Office; Iran. oriented andEnglish-language booksabout entrance boastsagoodrange of tourist- right (ask anyone for ‘Musee Sa’dAbad’). (askanyonefor‘Musee right beginning onJa’fari Standturningleft door) the1.5kmnorthwestfromTajrish Sq, After entering andbuyingtickets tothe If pushedfortime,theWhite andGreen But it is the insight intotheshah’sdaily But itistheinsight 8am-4pm winter,9am-5pmsummer) TEHRAN••Sights x bookshop 2228 2050;www.niavaranpalace.ir; Niyavaran

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walk- ﭘﺎﺭک ﺩﺭﮐﻪ 6am- 1pm, coming back 2-3.30pm Wed-Fri, closedSat-Tue)1pm, comingback2-3.30pmWed-Fri, Velenjak Ave; fulljourneyIR90,000; stations will help to ease yourrecovery. willhelptoease stations cals like todoonFridays.Teahouses atthe at anytime,aslo- and climbthemountain hours, totorture youcanchoose yourthighs per weekday/weekend, sold at Station 1. soldatStation per weekday/weekend, are Skipasses IR60,000/80,000weekdays. it’s IR5000ormore cheaper each wayon 7.Priceshereat Station are forweekends; there snow.Skiscanberented isenough 5,assuming 7toStation down fromStation summit.It’spossibletoski to themountain the shortrunsandaDoppelMayr liftgoes to Hotel. Fromthere, aT-bar works minutes), from where aPoma links at freezing where there isaneasyskirun,anditfinishes Telecabin; Map p130 ; telecabin ticket office. (10 minutes) orcatch abus(IR1000) tothe ecabin. Fromtheentranceyou canwalk (IR2000) to Tochalfor ashuttle Tel- taxi From thenorthern sideof Tajrish Sq,ask Getting There &Away Tehran’s popular TOCHAL TELECABIN pollution-free hike. relativelyto Darband,makingapleasant, the sideof forabout 5km themountain (beyond theTurkomenrestaurant) along leads fromthenorthwestcornerof thepark givefood might youindigestion. slowly cometolife thepricesof –though tea andwatching of thelights thishuge city pily whileawayanentire afternoon sipping smog. It’sthesortof placeyou couldhap- in which toenjoytheviewsandescape offers acleanandrelatively quietatmosphere then 2 youwant.Thefirststation stopis buy one-way/return tickets towhichever be virtuallyemptyotherdays.Youcan on earth). skifield it’sthefourth-highest to itsheight, months sixandeight ayear(due between easily accessibleski-field thathassnowfor ping twicealongtheway.It’sapopularand runs 7.5kmupMtTochal (3957m),stop- (IR15,000/30,000,12minutes oneway), While thetelecabin runsfairlylimited If you’re feeling energetic, trail asteep The telecabin isbusyonFridaybutcan Station 5 Station 7 (IR30,000/45,000,25minutes), x Tochal 2240 4001-5;www.tochal.org; TEHRAN ••Sights (IR55,000/80,000,25

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TEHRAN TEHRAN to Shariati Ave. Expressway downtheResalat shuttle taxi take Metro andthena Line1toMosalla better Alternatively, going byprivate taxi. be tinue asfarnorththissoyoumight and EnqelabAves, butnotallof themcon- fromthejunctionofshuttle taxi Shariati h or Freedom Tower;Map p94 Sq;admissionIR6000; ; Azadi Shariati Ave;Shariati admissionIR5000; nian influences,such asthe modern architecture withtraditionalIra- structureArt, the50m-high isamix of ’60s and Tehran of Museum Contemporary platform finallyreopened in2006. cinemaand,bestofseum, all,the viewing years theunderground gallery,Quranmu- sian Empire for in1971.After beingclosed orate the 2500thanniversary of thePer- much protest during the1979 revolution Itwas thesceneofmaelstrom of traffic. tive oasis compared withthesurrounding park surrounding themonumentisarela- inconcrete.structural engineering The architect Amanat’scomplex Hossein see than 8000cutstones,whileinside youcan the arch. Theexterior iscladwithmore the inverted Y-shaped Way outwestattheendof Azadi Ave is AZADI TOWER(BORJ-EAZADI) Safavid period,the Named after oneof thegreat artistsof the REZA ABBASIMUSEUM 114 p110; Ferdosi’s trated manuscripts,particularlycopiesof calligraphy fromancientQuransandillus- Painting of Galleryshows samples fine and brassware, whiletheground-floor Islamic Galleryexhibitsceramics,fabrics theboxed(see text, p207 ). The you’ll findfineexamplesof of bullsandrams.Here,quisite carvings too, armlets anddecorative pieces,often withex- find top-floor Pre-Islamic Gallery, chronologically withthe starting ganised isor- inthecountry.Themuseum seums the bestandmostprofessionally runmu- Ifyoulikehimself. Iranianart,it’soneof and theSafavid-era paintingsof Abbasi Iranianartfromancienttimes showcases To reach youcantake a themuseum Like theCityTheatre, Museum Carpet 8am-noon &2-6pmSun-Fri) TEHRAN••Sleeping Achaemenid gold x 8851 3002;www.rezaabbasimuseum.ir; Shahnamah bowls, drinking vessels, bowls,drinkingvessels, Reza AbbasiMuseum Reza andSa’di’s Azadi Tower Azadi , builttocommem- h 9am-4.45pm Tue-Sat) ﻋﺒﺎﺳﯽ Lorestan bronzes Lorestan iwan where you’ll middle-f

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will openisunknown. 500-room Yadman whenit Hotel, though ofa vastexpanse groundthatincludesthe ternational TradeandConvention Centre, controlfunctions. traffic radioand a ‘skydome’andvariousTV, deck,arevolving restaurant, an observation was duetoopenin2008andwillbehome toapodwith12floors. Thepod the base concretethe octagonal from shafttapering resemblance toToronto’sCNTower,with 120m of antenna, thetowerbears astriking including 435mhigh, world. Standing freestanding structure12th-tallest inthe towerand(inearly2008)fourth tallest Milad; expensive. ordered byprice, fromcheapest to most the nextplaceon yourlist.Listingshere are and ifyou’resatisfied, not,willtake youto willusuallywaituntilyou’reout. Yourtaxi tocheckbargaining, ataxi it thentaking hoteling yourchosen whenyouarrive and butthey’restandards, goodvalue. north of thecity.Theyare notexactlyRitz Tehran’s mainnorth–southartery, inthe are onValiasr boutique-sizedaffairs Ave, isn’tgreat.else Thebesttop-endplaces andeverything swimming pools.Service outdoordisco-era décorandornamental hotels arestar’ mostinteresting forthe hotels. Tehran’s pre-Revolution era‘five- business three-star standard find several Ave andKeshavarz Blvd,where you’llalso generally thanelsewhere inIran. higher syndromemeansroomratestal-city are get more expensive asyougonorth.Capi- are inthe poorer south,andtheoptions city’s socialbreakdown, sobudget places Tehran’s accommodation largely followsthe SLEEPING Ten years inthemaking, MILAD TOWER(BORJ-EMILAD) Azadi andwalkfromthere. ‘Azadi’ ortake Metro line2(darkblue)to take westandaskfor abusorshuttle taxi will probablybeaccompanied.Toget here, ment) demonstrationstoday. and remains afocalpointfor(progovern- The towerformspartof theTehran In- If youdon’thave abooking,try telephon- Enqelab The businessdistrictisbetween You canreach thetopbystairs orlift,and

Map p94 ; www.miladtowertehran.com) www.miladtowertehran.com) p94; Map Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels your stay Book Milad Tower Milad ﻣﻴﻼﺩ is the (Borj-e (Borj-e

ﺑﺮﺝ Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels your stay Book a St;s/tw/trIR60,000/80,000/120,000; Alley, offAmirKabir x Kabir St;s/twwithbreakfast IR110,000/160,000; Kabir 3508; www.firouzehhotel.com;DowlatAbadAlley,offAmir near theformerUSembassy. Mashhad withthemidrange Mashad Hotel, are horrendously this noisy.Don’tconfuse andfrontrooms only oneshower,however, budgets. onthetightest There’sfor those management have longmadeitthechoice bathrooms are tiny,butthemainlyhelpful Mashhad Budget pp102-3; best budget option. shower andbasin; toiletsare shared. The fridge andbathroomswith with cableTV, Thesmallish roomscome worth thestay. able littlehotel incheap southernTehran guest bookmake unremark- anotherwise day tripstotheskifields)andwonderful information, helpwithbookings(including andhisenthusiasm, useful sian hospitality, Mousavi isthevery personification of Per- revolved around oneman,thisisit.Mr thereIf ever atmosphere wasahotel whose IR40,000/60,000/80,000; are shared. There’s notmuch English. Bathrooms frontroomsarethough stillvery noisy. more spacious thanthehotel’s neighbours, here have abasininsideand are marginally There’sSt, ontheright. noEnglishsign. rooms. It’sabout150msouthof AmirKabir are simple,butclean,asare theshared bath- a very local price, friendlymanagers andlocationabove place isoneof thebestdealsinarea forits ofthe noise AmirKabir St,this22-room Kabir St;s/twIR70,000/100,000) Kabir St;s/twIR65,000/80,000) Ohadi Alley,offAmirKabir Kabir andMellat Sts. as youheadeastof theintersection of Amir laneontheleft English. It’sinthesecond and goodvalue. Themanager speakssome aroundacourtyardiswelcoming,quiet set a walktothebathroom,thisno-frills place you don’tmindabitof paintand peeling hadhotel.homestead.com; 416Amir Kabir St; hadhotel.homestead.com; 416AmirKabir o Mosaferkhaneh Mazandaran AmolMazandaran Mosaferkhaneh Iran Central GuestHouse Iran Central Hotel Khazar Sea Khazar Hotel Hotel TehranHotel Gol ) 3394 1630;www.amolmazandaran.com;AminDarbar Firouzeh Hotel Hotel Firouzeh Set around a small courtyard away from aroundasmallcourtyardawayfrom Set x

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x ai dm/s/tw 3311 If ) Long-discussed renovation can’tcomesoonenough. roomsandsquattoilets. butworn,overpriced ing service US$22/37/46; St;s/tw/tr 3NavidyAlley,Amir Kabir .hotelkhayyam.com; fair value. bathroom. It’sconveniently located and andhavequiet, clean fridge, fanandpokey Melli,Bank themodernroomshere are Asia Hotel Asia noisy. frightfully thefrontroomsare207 to212),because rear room(roomnumbers 107to112or besuregood. Ifyoudostay, toaskfora especially forsingletravellers, andlocation Still, wequite like it,andthepriceisfair, ismainlyunsmiling. Davoud, theservice andnotoiletpaper.quitoes Andapartfrom beds, leakyplumbing,grubbyfloors, mos- ceilings are somewhattempered by broken attractions of thebigroomswiththeirhigh itcouldbe!);it’sjustold.Sothe (though this isnotarenovated faux-historichotel uniqueinTehran.and maybeeven But read unusual on.Thehistoryiscertainly Naderi(MapCafe pp102–3 ) downstairs, decades-old furnishings andthebohemian bakelite telephones, amanualswitchboard, stop reading now.Butifyoufancy’50s-era fastidious cleanlinessare toyou, important there willbearestaurant. shouldspeak Englishand Reception staff and air-con, andbathrooms withthrones. double room.All roomshave afridge, TV this range ataboutUS$30foratwinor start cent restaurants, parks andcafés.Pricesin to de- inthesouth,butwillbecloser seums tomostoffurther ortake ataxi themu- and northernTehran. You’llhave towalk Most of themidrange hotels are incentral Midrange Khayyam Hotel Mellat. fromMetro Metres s/tw withbreakfast &bathroomIR150,000/200,000; have bathrooms. Toilets are squatsandsomeroomsdon’t clean andthewelcomeisfriendlyenough. The small,recently renovated roomsare s/tw IR100,000/160,000,withbathroomIR180,000/225,000) Eslami Ave; s/d/trUS$15/30/45; breakfast US$20/27; BankAlley, [email protected]; St;s/dwith Hotel Naderi Naderi Hotel If theothers are full: Hafez Hotel Mp pp102–3; (Map pa

(Map (Map pp102-3 ; Mp pp102-3; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map a ) Quietplacewithhelpful,engag- TEHRAN ••Sleeping ) Inalanebesidethebig x x 3311 8320; Mellat St; 3311 8320;Mellat a x x 6670 1872; Jomhuri-ye 6670 1872;Jomhuri-ye ) 3311 3757;www If service and If service 6670 9063;hafez a 115

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TEHRAN TEHRAN Eslami Ave; s/dwithbreakfast US$25/39; MohammadBuykAlley,offJomhuri-ye [email protected]; tively furnished, and those on the 4th floor tively onthe 4th floor furnished, andthose range option. Roomsare smallishbut attrac- Mashad intoagood-value, well-located mid- can be disinterested. but service with breakfast. Therestaurant isgoodvalue intheNaderiandcome cleaner thanthose aren’t quite asvastthelobby,butthey’re a’70schild. Therooms place iscertainly Naderi ( p115 ) isaproductof the’50s,this about thehecticlocation. to keep Goodvalue;shame outthenoise. well-equipped roomswithdouble-glazing fers and clean,compactbutcomfortable US$38/58; Gohar ShadAlley;s/dUS$35/55; EslamiAve, Jomhuri-ye [email protected]; 53 a Mofat teh St,nearTaleqani Ave; s/dwithbreakfast US$55/65; breakfast US$39/60; hotelsafir.com; 10ArdalanSt,offMofattehAve; s/twwith rant isreasonably good.Recommended. oasis. TheIndian-Pakistani-Iranian restau- spaceandfacilitiesmakes itareal service, courtyard andthecombinationof decent excellent value. Someoverlook acolourful ing (outthebackawayfromstreet) are and quietroomsintheAtlas’smainbuild- well-maintained the spacious,comfortable, reasonably pricedrestaurant. lower-midrange choice. There isalsoa welcoming,makingitareliable and staff as itgets buttheroomsare spotlesslyclean Style? Ahm,no. TheParasto isasno-frills 116 well-disposed. Solid. well-disposed. isreliablyare reliably cleanandtheservice sums uptheIranshahr,where therooms -hotel.com; 206Taleqani won’t disappoint and nor will the service. andnorwilltheservice. won’t disappoint rooms inthislong-runninglittlehotel restaurant. Butthethree-star standard better known foritssubterranean Indian US embassygrounds,theSafirisprobably with breakfast US$35/52; .shiraz-hotel.com; cnrJaberZadehAlley&Sa’diSt;s/d US$47/72; Ave;.hotel-iranshahr.com; Iranshahr s/dwithbreakfast Atlas Hotel Atlas Parasto Hotel Parasto Hotel New Naderi Hotel Hotel New Naderi Safir Hotel Shiraz Hotel Mashad Hotel Hotel Mashad Iranshahr Hotel Iranshahr ) TEHRAN••Sleeping A recent facelifthastransformed the ai pa

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) Located behind theold Ave, nearQaraniCrossroads;s/d Mp pp102-3; (Map ai x x pa x 8830 0873;www.indian ) x TheShiraz of- 8890 6058;www.atlas x x 6672 0839;hotel_par 3392 5342;www 8883 4976;www ) 8883 5120;190 x If the‘old’ pai 6670 9530; ) US$170; .simorghhotel.com; 1069Valiasr Ave; r withbreakfast from fast US$83/93; hotel.ir; Taleqani Ave, Ave: nearIranshahr d/stewithbreak- rant andcoffee shoparen’t bad,either. spacious roomsare fairlypriced.Therestau- andfacilities,thequiet, sional service has recently renovated, been there’s profes- choice inthispartof Tehran. Thewholeplace and bazaar,theFerdossi isthebestmidrange Palaceeasy walkof Golestan themuseums, Top End Bolour Hotel hotel.net; SomayyehSt;rUS$48)Roomsatthebackare best. issoso. Embassy compound.Service and above have someviewsintotheoldUS d withbreakfast fromUS$140; x central andreasonable value. ofis aselection placesthatare comparatively comfort more familiarelsewhere. Following and tique-sized hotels offer thesortof service is, thestars have burst), butacoupleof bou- have experiencedasupernova ortwo(that renamed after places therevolution. Those them builtinthe’70sbybigchains and Tehran hasafew ‘five-star’ hotels, mostof centre of lunchtime deal-making. restaurantthe classyBistango downstairs a fessional, thelocation ideal forbusinessand andpro- isefficient commercial strip.Service which of keeps outthenoise Tehran’s main internet, DVDplayers anddouble-glazing, verywise well-equipped.There’s free wi-fi 50spaciousrooms are other-Raamtin’s notbeyourthing,but the couches might but littleatmosphere; askforaroomawayfromtheroad. with breakfast US$52; off Ferdosi St;s/dUS$65/85; x Azadi Hotel Azadi about themscreams ‘make meover, now’. pre-revolution heritage andeverything real coffee! In-roominternet isplanned. shopserves prompt, andthefoyercoffee satellite TV. isprofessional and Service boasting wood-panelling,soft bedsand hotel with70reasonably sized,cleanrooms ness district,theAmirisamodernbusiness o o Amir Hotel Amir Hotel Simorgh Hotel Simorgh These hotels incentralTehranThese share a 6671 9991-3;www.ferdossigrandhotel.com; 24SabtSt, 8872 2786;www.raamtinhotel.com;1081Valiasr Ave; Ferdossi GrandHotel Raamtin Residence Hotel Residence Raamtin ais Mp pp102-3; (Map Mp p110; (Map ai Mp pp102-3; (Map

Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels your stay Book ) a Virtually nextdoortothe Mp p110; (Map ) In themidstof thebusi- ) Largerooms,largerbathrooms x x ais ai 8882 3080;191QaraniSt;r x 8884 2479;info@azadi

x 8830 4066;www.amir ) White leather Mp pp102-3; (Map 8871 9911;www

) Withinan Mp p110; (Map lonelyplanet.com and pool. to gowithfacilitiesincludinggym,Jacuzzi andwell-trainedstaff internet throughout) for itsstylish,well-fitted rooms(free wi-fi hotel isalso popularwithbusinessvisitors thismodern-looking69-room Raamtin, and prices reflect gloriespast ratherthan canbeabit publicservice, are it.Service the followingthree orphansof the’70s management of aninternational chain, them onthewebsite. different ifslightly instyle;see standard apartment hotels inTehran, allof asimilar ADSL internet. Melal Grouphasthree other and twoclassyrestaurants. Allroomshave mer only),gym,café(yes,withreal coffee) terrace swimmingpool(menonly,sum- Achaemenid soldiers. Facilities includea such as copper fireplaces adornedwith rooms, alldecorated withPersian motifs, you get large spaceswithtwoorthree bed- bundles of cash (justimaginetherials!) how thewealthylive inTehran. Foryour Melal’s luxuriousapartmentsare ataste of breakfast US$190-290,dUS$225-325; St,offValiasr0543; www.melal.com;68Naseri Ave; swith Melal Apartment Hotel Apartment Melal If ever thereIf ever wasanargument forthe it would be good if the men cooked…but we’dallbewaitingalongtimefordinner.’it wouldbegoodifthemencooked…but thingstochangeanytimesoon.Forsurewho cooksisa‘ladyman’,soI’mnotexpecting Ithink husbands whocancook,andmytwosonsaren’t muchbetter. Iranisaman’scountryandman has recently anomelette. beenlearninghowtomake Butthat’snormalinIran.Idon’tknowany them. This isfunny,too,becauseIranianmennever cook…although,tobefair,[myhusband]Ali allthetime! I thinkbecausetheyare sickofeatingkababs and so I like tocookdishes fromthatarea,so Ilike suchas sure tomake theyhave effort goodmemoriesofourhouse.extra IamfromtheCaspian Searegion they have different customs. foreigners forget theirshoesoff,butit’snotaproblemforusasweunderstandthat totake some foreigners can’tsitthatwayandit’sfunnytoseethemwiththeirlegsstuckout.Some Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels your stay Book The menandwomenwhocomehere alwaysaskhowtocookthedishesandI’mhappytell If theycomefordinner,theforeigners eatwhatwenormallyeat,thoughImightgotosome gheyme . Amongtheforeigners, to seesomeoftheirculture, too. they cometovisit.Someofourcustomsare unusualforthemandweget home. WeIraniansdon’tseemanyforeigners soit’svery interesting when ‘My husbandisadriver andsometimeshebringshisforeign passengers Occupation: Lives in: Age: VOICES OFIRAN:FARAHNAZ TAHERI

For example,whenweeatsitonthefloor–carpetbut Mp p110; (Map 44 ais Western Tehran Housewife fesenjun x ) The 8879 , ghorme sabzi mirza ghasemi from anywhere excepttheInternationalTradeFair Ground. Tehran life;previous locationinfarnorth isalongway Crossing; s/dUS$120/145; .azadigrandhotel.com; ChamranExpressway, nearEvin Continental isideallylocatedandroomshavefineviews. pais & HejabSt;s/d/stewithbreakfast US$130/145/254; 5021; www.lalehhotel.com;cnrDrHosseinFatemi Ave internet. internet. flashbacks. Tired, rooms,thoughallhavefree overpriced itforthe almost, butnotquite,worth US$183/245; .homa St;d/stewithbreakfast hotels.com; 51Khoddami restaurants take amore Western approach to ends of thebudget modern spectrum. Sleek tion of cultural influencesandcaters toboth Tehran’s foodscene drawsonabroadselec- Likefrom theIranian staples. thecityitself, foreign cuisinesmake arefreshing change butitsrangeworld’s culinarycapitals, of Tehran isa long wayfrombeingoneof the EATING Homa Hotel Hotel Laleh International GrandHotel Azadi reasonable rates canbehadonline. the wrinkledpresent. Fortunately, very and fishare probablythefavourites – pais Mp p110; (Map , fesenjun ) North ofPark-e Laleh,theex-Inter- ) North Mp p94; (Map , x pai TEHRAN ••Eating khashke bademjan ) Former Sheraton that’s ) FormerSheratonthat’s Mp p94; (Map 8877 3021;www x Saturday NightFeverSaturday 2207 3021;www ) TheHyattinits x 8896 , fish 117

TEHRAN TEHRAN the or should askforthe delicious refreshing range of Gilanifood. Vegetarians a vegan) fare serves –theno-frills Khosbin or are lookingforsomevegetarian (not 2194; 406Sa’diSt;mealsIR15,000-35,000; & 7.30-10.30pm) busy Imam Khomeini Sq. busy ImamKhomeini classic Persian from dishesattracttraffic busy atlunchtime, whenitswell-priced Ferdosi isapopularplacethatespecially Ferdosi St;mealsIR15,000-30,000; huge potsof with theusualkababssharingspace a surprisingrange of lunchtime dishes, Hotel Naderi,thishole-in-the-wallserves Tucked away20mdownalanenear the Eslami Ave; mealsIR20,000-30,000; are (see actually teahouses p120 ). The mostatmosphericIranianrestaurants IRANIAN RESTAURANTS anonymous-looking stairwells. underground, sobeonthelookoutfor Many Iranianrestaurants are hiddenaway Restaurants Food&Drink( Iranian food,see p78 ). food. cheapest tomostexpensive. Formore on Iranian excellent All listingshere are ordered byprice, from serve also ( p120) the placeslisted underTeahouses &Cafés to thewealthiernorth.Note thatmostof havefood you’llalmostcertainly tohead able allover Tehran, butfornon-Iranian back home. less thanyou’dpay foracoupleof beers as exoticThaicurrywillprobably cost something andprice,buteven presentation 118 Thu) St;mealsIR35,000; 3097; AmirKabir Recommended particularlyforbudgeteers. squash,garlic,tomatoandegg). eggplant, and mince) stew), with riceandbarberry). zereshk polobamorgh interpretations of kababsand thestandard reliably good this lunchtime placeserves o Tarighat Restaurant Tarighat Restaurant Istanbul-No Restaurant Not surprisingly,Iranianfoodisavail- Ferdosi Sonnati baghli Khosbin Restaurant Restaurant Khosbin TEHRAN••Eating Handy tothebudget accommodation, zeytoun parvardeh ghorme sabzi (abroad beandish),or perhaps If you can’t face another kabab – If youcan’tfaceanotherkabab – khoresht Mp pp102-3; (Map mirza ghasemi (stewed beans,greens (roast chicken served (roastchicken served (anykindof meaty (olives marinated in (Map pp102-3; (Map Mp pp102-3 ; (Map Mp pp102-3 ; (Map h h mirza ghasemi 11am-9pm) h x h noon-4pm Sat- off Jomhuri-ye off Jomhuri-ye 11.30am-3pm 11.30am-3pm (mashed 6671 4503; 11am-5pm) x x The 3390 3391

midnight daily & noon-3pm Fri) midnight daily&noon-3pmFri) St,cnrFranceAve;Khark mealsIR80,000-150,000; a housing estate onyourleft. a housingestate one blocknorthandit’sinwhatlookslike the expressway, thentake thefirst go right, five minutes westonMollaSodraSt,under lent. Tofindit,get toVanak Sq,walkabout own. Thefishandveal dishesare alsoexcel- tion, they’dhappilymake amealontheir IR27,000) starters alldelicious;incombina- (IR25,000) and mirza ghasemi pian. It’safavourite of vegetarians, withthe But thedeliciousfoodiswonderfullyCas- are more reminiscent of EuropethanIran. atGilac décor, musicandfoodpresentation the traditional band starts at 9pm. at9pm. the traditionalbandstarts by Tehran andgets standards more soafter able astheIranianfood.Thefunisexpensive thetoneandatmosphereset isasenjoy- ous groupmeal.Waiters intraditionaldress restaurant iswhere Iraniansgoforaboister- x writing onthefrontwindow. There’s noEnglishsign;lookforthered pomegranate juicewithcrushedwalnuts). you don’t addtoomany extras.Unfortu- kofte value, with h offKordestanHwy;mealsIR70,000-130,000; des Prices, e Jamshidiyeh government’s direction) cannot enter. welcomes guests.Note thatMuslims(atthe a yellowawningandtinybuzzer –but advertise itsexistence –lookfordoesn’t allthewayto‘Mexican’.goes Theclub are bothwinners, andtherange of kababs (IR50,000) stroganoff (IR100,000) andbeef where tofind it).Thebarbecuedsturgeon drink itwithyourmeal(sorry,noadviceon harder thanFanta, it’sfinetoBYOand if youcanget yourhandsonsomething hejab,and legally eatorjusthangoutsans womencana Christianestablishment, inTehran.is almostaone-off it’s Because Azarbaijan Azarbaijan is the slope. Thefirst oneyou’ll see is hometofourrestaurants perching on varan St,Tajrish; 3pm &7.30-11pm) o Armenian Club Sofre-Khaneh Sonatee AliGhapoo Sonatee Sofre-Khaneh Literally onthesideof amountain, noon-4pm & 7pm-midnight Sun-Fri) noon-4pm &7pm-midnightSun-Fri) 8877 7803; Gandhi Ave;8877 7803;Gandhi mealsaboutIR85,000; Gilac ( Mp p110; (Map x ash-e reshte (bothIR35,000) fairvalue if h (Stone Park; Map p94 Feizieh; Ave, Niya- 2282 0114) Thisbig,noisysubterranean (IR22,000),

all restaurants about10am-midnight) dokhtar-e luce Mp pp102-3; (Map , which isalsothebest x (IR10,000), The ArmenianClub 8804 8291;15Park borani bademjan lonelyplanet.com x The ambience, (‘spoilt girl’, 670 0521-2;68 Mp p110; (Map dizi h h Khaneh Khaneh Park- noon- 8pm- and

The foodisfresh andfilling. mon inWestern citiesbutisnewtoTehran. farm, Market and itsfare wouldbecom- and salad shop, partdelicatessen sandwich and complemented by exceptional service. and complemented byexceptional service. in anintimate setting ries tosushi, served in Tehran. Thefare ranges fromThaicur- and hasareputation for the bestAsian food years now aroundforseveral soon hasbeen (yogurt andbarleysoup)orjustsnacks. meals togenerous helpingsof fromfullkabab everything serving taurants walking trailsare linedwithcafésandres- head forDarbandandDarakeh, where the costs IR45,000. about bringingapicniclunch thetea –even the table. Theparkisworthavisit,butthink you’ll becharged theyputon foreverything flating thebilltotwicewhatyouanticipated – IR100,000 ameal)andextracostssoonin- Turkmen influences,overpriced (more than which hasbarely discernible Kurdishand overcharging tourists,withtheIranianfood, nately, totake pridein theotherthree seem lonelyplanet.com to bookonweekend nights. papers forotherforeign restaurants. Itpays the English-language news- at home. See you’d probablypaymuch more forfarless is expensive but byIranianstandards, Fortunately, Tehran hasit.Foreign food alittlespicy!exotic thankababs–even be desperate forsomethingalittlemore By thetimeyouget toTehran youmight OTHER CUISINES Mollasadra Ave, 29 Sheikh Bahaei St;mealsIR55,000) Mollasadra Ave, Bahaei 29Sheikh 11pm Sat-Thu &6-11pmFri) Ave;Centre, Gandhi sandwichesIR40,000-50,000; Shopping Centre, cnrValiasr Ave &Taheri St) inches of make-up. Iran, complete withdesignerclothingand est thingtoaWestern-style pick-upbarin theclos- coffee isn’tbad.Youcometosee come here the forthefastfood,though options. Pityaboutthelocation. ing andthere isagoodrange of vegetarian in Iran.Thecurrieshere are mouth-water- thebestIndianfood reputation forserving the hotel of name,theTaj the same hasa Centre, Gandhi Ave;Centre, Gandhi mealsIR80,000; Jaam-e JamFoodCourt Jaam-e On balmy evenings insummer,TehranisOn balmyevenings Market Market Taj Mahal Monsoon Mp p110; (Map

Mp p110; (Map

Mp p94; (Map x x Part café,partgourmet 8879 1959; Gandhi Shopping 8879 1959;Gandhi x 8879 1982; Gandhi Shopping 8879 1982;Gandhi

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Ananda is agem ifyou’re avegetarian, and off Iranshahr Ave;off Iranshahr mealsIR15,000-35,000; Ave; mealsaboutIR200,000; Hotel,1081Valiasr Residence gorestaurant.com; Raamtin fee Shop khoresht (IR20,000),pizzas(IR25,000) or sandwiches tery (lessthanIR10,000), meatinthesalads thereAman promised wouldbenomys- young peoplecomingandgoing. Owner and hasaninformal,busyambience with building atthesouthernedge of Park-e Teh ran, educated andartisticTehranis. It’sinabrick young, lent valueandagoodplacetomeet This dedicated vegetarian restaurant isexcel- Forum Artists’ site forany newoptions. Check outthewww.iranvegetarians.com Some Tehranis have ‘no’tokabab. justsaid VEGETARIAN RESTAURANTS are justIR110,000. (IR170,000).Lunchtimeratatouille specials withgarlicroasted and Dijon salmon potato rial itcoststhem.Forfood,thinkhoney keep Tehranis comingdespite thewadsof relatively adventurous international cuisine and go’s airof sophistication,refined service Arguably Tehran’s bestrestaurant, Bistan- vegetarian dishesforabout IR35,000each. ifyouwantithot,ask.Therethough are afew the lambwasfarsuperiortochicken), south tofindadecentcurry(whenweate, tion andisthemostconvenient placeinthe popular inTehran sincebefore therevolu- Under theSafirHotel, theTandoor hasbeen come inEnglish. sive andvery newTehran –menusonly It’s smart,sophisticated, relatively expen- of northTehran’s youngandwell-heeled. andmeatdishes drawplenty salads pastas, menu of gourmetpizzasandwell-presented well-trainedwaiterssetting, andlimited not farfromthetruth.Theindoor-outdoor pizzeria,andthat’s aCalifornian-Italian self 7pm-midnight Sat-Thu, 7pm-midnightFri) Ave;Gandhi mealsIR70,000-100,000; Ardalan St;mealsIR80,000; h off 10thBehestanSt, St;mealsIR35,000-60,000; o Coffee Shop & Vegie Restaurant of Iranian ofIranian Restaurant Coffee Shop&Vegie Bix Tandoor Restaurant Bistango 12.30-10.30pm) Ananda Vegetarian Restaurant &Cof- Restaurant Ananda Vegetarian Mp p110; (Map

(IR18,000), among others. (IR18,000),amongothers. Mp p110; (Map Mp p110; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map x Way upin northTehran the x 8878 8272; Gandhi ShoppingCentre, 8878 8272;Gandhi

2255 6767; South Ekhtiyarieh St, 2255 6767;SouthEkhtiyarieh TEHRAN ••Eating Mp pp102-3; (Map x x h h 8855 4409;www.bistan 8831 0462; noon-3pm &7-11pm) noon-3pm &7-11pm) h h Bixcallsit- 12.30-4.30pm & x

11am-10pm) 11am-10pm) Batulshan St, Batulshan St, 8830 0873; 8830 0873;

119 TEHRAN TEHRAN near toAmirKabir Sq. Baharestan St,off One such kalleh pache bigboilingpotsfulloflooking placesselling east of Tajrish Sq. agree. Melli, It’snexttoBank about150m (IR7000)andyou’llprobably bastani tachio cream inIranandtheworld’.Trypis- modestly describesas‘themostfamousice whathetoday hissoncontinuestosell famous forhisicecream inthe1950sand (Map (Map p110 ; St13,offSanaeeSt) derneath the ern Tehran, including theluxuryfoodsun- east of Ferdosi St. for thebazaarandJomhuri-yeEslami Ave, Kabir St. Ifyou’re insouthernTehran, head are alsocommon,exceptaroundAmir rice andshelves stacked withotherstaples yogurt,fruitjuices,coldmeat,pasta, cheese, ing foodsuch astinnedfish, Iranianfetta types of bread). Smallgrocerystores stock- won’t befaraway(see p79 fordifferent vegetables andvarioustypesof flatbread No matter where youare, fresh fruitand Self-Catering has felafel places. wiches. Thearea around Tehran also Bazar burgers,joint selling pizzaandmeatsand- kababi any major square andyou’llfindbotha chain) andpizzeria,butheadtoalmost the burger joint(Boof isthebigIranian pressure fromsuch foreign influencesas The Quick Eats ians sociation withthe ifyou’re even delightful not.Runinas- 120 imported coffee. p1 Vlar Ave) Valiasr p110; eini St) –it’sjustnextdoor.Pasdaran PTT andaskfor Comebytaxi ice andsetting. (noplasticwrap!)andtheserv- made salad and Anandacalzone(IR33,000),thefreshly recommend (IR35,000) theAnandalasagne food isbothdeliciousandcheap. Wecan of findingroguebitsof meathere andthe Ave; Ave; For breakfast, you’llnoticesomelow-key More extravagant optionsexistinnorth- Bastani Akbar Mashti

TEHRAN••Eating h (www.iranvegetarians.com) kababi worth checking outisconveniently and,usually,atleastonefastfood 10am-midnight) kalleh pazi kalleh (kabab shop) might beunder(kabab shop)might (sheep brain and other offal). brainandotheroffal). (sheep and thetiny Jaam-e JamShoppingCentre Jaam-e Iranian SocietyofVegetar- Akbar Mashti became Mp p123; otf Khom- Mostafa pp102-3; (Map (Map p94 ; Shahid Bahonar Bahonar Shahid p94; (Map forahuge range of , there’s nochance Sanaee CoffeeShop

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part toonecomplexfullof cafés… ofthe cafécapital Tehran, thanksinnosmall skin of modernIran.GandhiAve isprobably whom willspeakEnglish)andget underthe people(manyof fun placestohangout,meet Which makesthan theMiddleEast. them look fortheirinfluencesinEuropemore so educated, relatively sophisticated youthwho Tehran’s an cafésare modernplacesserving 10.30pm) Ahmed Qasir St, off Arzhantin Sq; Ahmed QasirSt,offArzhantin does theusualrange ofdoes kababs. only).Italso (IR40,000, 4pmtomidnight carnage overtraffic tea, qalyananddates place fromwhich towatch thepeopleand Sq, thisisanideal,ifsomewhatpricey, well onthesoutheastern cornerof Tajrish andupanunmarkedhind acurtain stair- 4.30pm &8pm-midnight) Sq;mealsIR30,000-65,000; near Rah-Ahan Coffee Tajrish Sq;mealsIR35,00-65,000; ambience of the suburbs. Incontrast the Tehrani youth,mainlyinthenorthern no shortage of trendy placesattracting Tehran’s cafésceneisalsoimproving, with the bestrestaurants are actuallyteahouses. food, also serve and inTehran of several Almost allIranianteahouses &Cafés Teahouses group, and bookingsare recommended. boisterous atmosphere isbest enjoyed witha whenthe ditional bandplays mostevenings and chicken kababs community centre.it asanunofficial The itremainscause popularwithlocals,who use south Tehran iswonderfullyatmospheric be- Rah-Ahan Sq,thisrestored ‘coffeehouse’ in x working-class Tehran experience. and smokingqalyan(IR10,000).Agenuine cheap classic southTehran local,withmeneating name,thisunderground same placeisthe just southof ArzhantinSq. of babyproducts.Lookforthegreen façade condoms,magazinesandplenty tampons, such ascoffee, baby products,padsand place isfullof hard-to-find Western goods, Sofrekhaneh Amol Mazandaran AmolMazandaran Sofrekhaneh o Supermarket Hiland Ghaem Teahouse 3394 1630; Amin Darbar Alley, off Amir Kabir St; 3394 1630;AminDarbarAlley,offAmirKabir Azari Traditional Teahouse Azari house; Map house; Map p94 ; dizi Under the (IR13,000), drinking tea (IR500) (IR13,000), drinkingtea (IR500)

Mp p94; (Map are popular. rightly Atra- About 250mnorth of x chaykhaneh mosaferkhaneh

Mp p110; (Map 5537 6702;Valiasr Ave, to the traditional h h noon-midnight) x lonelyplanet.com 10am-10pm) (chaykhaneh) (chaykhaneh) 0912 3200113; x , mostof Mp pp102-3; (Map 8850 5701; h h of the the of (Azari This 7am- 9am- dizi Be-

dinner) x Blvd; mealsIR45,000; Bozorg; Map pp102-3 ; the tone. embellished withantiquephotographs, set Shahr, coupledwiththerelatively quietspace for lunch inPark-e (ortea). Thegreen setting Palace,or Golestan thisistheplacetostop times play between noonand3pm. times playbetween dishes are recommended. Musicianssome- little cafés peopledlargely by youngand the Canon/Konica shop. the Canon/Konica justeastofdown anornately tiledstaircase, won’t beallowedtolinger. It’stucked away atbusytimesyou for thislocation,though kababs are reliably goodandwell-priced and tiledceilings.The ing (inthatorder)underattractive vaulted young Iraniansflirting,smokingandeat- cial inter action inmicrocosm,andfullof derground placeismodernIranianso- lonelyplanet.com h x & 4thSt; is irritating. Still,fortea, qalyan is irritating. on topof alltheextrasyouhave topayfor charge ice haddroppedandthe15%service and plentiful.Butonthisvisitwe felt serv- kabab, chicken and fish) iswellprepared 2002. ThetypicallyIranianfood (mainly Itwasrestored Stintervened. Khayyam in 300-year-old when buildingwasseparated area. Originally partof themosque, the is anoasisamidthechaos of thebazaar ), thisbeautifullydecorated restaurant Nasreddin Mosque (lookforthe deh Seyyed Metro andopposite station theImamza- hard tobeat. (IR25,000) after anoutingin thebazaar,it’s Enqelab Ave, offFerdosi Sq;mealsIR60,000; plant, master. ‘Submissive: IR25,000’.Apparently it’segg- Tehranyour standard such as basement, notexpectin and acouplethatyoumight Iranian menuhassomehard-to-find dishes thelarge However, tour groups(ie,high). of Ferdosi prices are Sq,though aimed at makes anattractive escapefromthefumes midnight) Sofreh Khane Ayyaran Khane Sofreh o Sofre Khane SonnatiSangalag Khane Sofre Gandhi Shopping Centre ShoppingCentre Gandhi Khayyam Traditional Restaurant Traditional Restaurant Khayyam 5580 0760; Khayyam St;mealsIR60,000; 5580 0760;Khayyam 9am-11pm) 6673 1075; Park-e Shahr; mealsIR40,000-60,000; 6673 1075;Park-e Shahr; Iranian TraditionalRestaurant

About 200msouthof theKhayyam h This subterranean Dizi 10am-11pm) If you’re visiting themuseums andthe h x noon-midnight) Home to several cool Home to several Mp pp102-3; (Map 8890 0522; 28 Keshavarz 8890 0522;28Keshavarz bademjan dizi (Map (Map p110 Ave; cnrGandhi (IR24,000)and

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11.30am- lunch & (Agha value light mealswithitsrangevalue light of coffee. andfair- tasty is equallypopularandserves north of theshoppingcentre, thishipcafé international scene. meals.It’sanartsy, coffees andlight Italian wide range of expensive butvery drinkable ofseum Iran( p109 a ), thischic caféserves be ableto attend plays, filmsandconcerts of Dawn(1 to11February), whenyouwill organised isover entertainment the10Days and are unlikely toreappear anytimesoon. the revolution have long-sincedisappeared, described inguidebookspublished before and discos lovingly nightclubs All those Tehran…a justyet. sleeps’ citythatnever ably since1997, no-one’s singing‘Tehran, upconsider- Iranhasloosened Although ENTERTAINMENT in oneof thecentre’s upscalerestaurants. café youlike, inandthenperhapseat settle in theafternoon a justchoose andevening; café-society stop.It’safunplacetohangout fairly liberalTehranis, thisisyourone-stop grumpy-grandad waiters. or two. Don’texpectanychange fromthe ish andFrench andperhapsapastry coffee 1940s Paris. Thefare islimited toTurk- and lingering over coffee. Thedécoriscirca suited to reading alone,people-watching bustling. yetdisinterested, atmosphere, well the Naderimanaged toperfectly create a tellectuals andartists.Onetraveller said afavouritethis caféhaslongbeen of in- shakes onearth(youbethejudge). some of therichest andbestchocolate milk- allmannerofand sells imported bean, and Around thecornerfromIkea, makes Sanaee hid Azodi St], off Karim Khan ZandAve; Khan St],offKarim hid Azodi x Iran ian contemporary art. art. contemporary Iran ian Gallery ( p122 ) hasregular exhibitionsof are allgood, andthedownstairs Mehrva The coffee, widerange of teas andsnacks hip youngartisticcommunityisthiscafé. the bestplacestoget intouch withTehran’s h 11pm) 7.30pm Sat-Thu) o Cafe Naderi Naderi Cafe Sanaee CoffeeShop The onetimewhen there is quite alot of 35 Gandi Café 8891 9862-3;www.cafe78.com; 78SouthAbanSt[Sha- 11am-11pm Sat-Thu, 5-11pmFri) Café In thelovely gardensof theFilmMu- (Map (Map p94 Ferdows,; Bagh-e offValiasr Ave;

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TEHRAN •• Entertainment TEHRAN ••Entertainment Underneath theHotel Naderi, Mp pp102-3; (Map

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TEHRAN TEHRAN Zand Ave; Khan St,offKarim Azodi 78Shahid .mehrvagallery.com; h .silkroadphoto.com; 112 Lavasani Ave, ; and photography. in amixof media,butprimarilypainting Mehrva’s galleryexhibitscontemporary art Hafta-do Hasht ( p121 ), English-speaking h Eslamboli; No6,4thSt,offKhaled .seyhounartgallery.com; approval forarock concert,forexample, is performances of modern music,sogetting the religious eligibilityof organised public There isstillmuch debate inIranabout Music the websites forthelatest exhibitions. profile of Iraniancontemporary art.Check reflects thegrowinglocalandinternational roster of mainlycontemporary artiststhat spected galleries inTehran, witharotating The followingare someof themostre- Galleries releases and p75 formore onIranianfilm. www.tehranavenue.com fornewsonrecent oftles) attheFilmMuseum Iran( p109 ). See remotelything else controversial. Makhmalbafanything Kiarostami, orany- dubbed intoFarsi, andforget aboutseeing IR5000 ashow.AllfilmswillbeinFarsi or hours 10amand8.30pmforabout between where filmsare two shownaboutevery in southernTehran, oraroundValiasr Sq, zar Storeastern Jomhuri-yeEslamiAve, the oldmovie hallsalongsouthernLaleh- For cinemaIranian -style, headforoneof Cinema cinema andartsevents. .tehranavenue.com forupcomingtheatre, from aroundtheworld. of traditionalIranianmusicaswell 122 run andapleasure tovisit. delves intoothermedia. It’sprofessionally mary focusisphotographicart,but italso its distinctive, black-fronted gallery. photography, sculpture andgraphicartin houn hasregular exhibitionsof painting, of youngIraniancontemporary artists, Sey- Silk Road Gallery SilkRoadGallery Seyhoun Art Gallery Gallery Art Seyhoun Iranianclassics(withsubti- You cansee At othertimes,keep youreyesonwww Mehrva Gallery Gallery Mehrva 10am-6pm) 11am-7pm Sat-Wed,5-8pmThu) TEHRAN••Shopping h 5-9pm) In its 4th decade as a sponsor In its4thdecadeasasponsor Mp pp102-3; (Map Below thepopularCafé Below Mp p94; (Map Mp p110; (Map x x Silk Road’spri- x 2272 7010;www 8893 9046;www 8871 1305;www 0595; cnrValiasr &EnqelabAves) Theatre; Map Theatre; Map about IR25,000. are normallyat6.30pmor7.30pmandcost find outwhat’scomingup.Performances speakEnglishsocallthemto booking staff work –performinginFarsi, of course. The most likely tosee Iranian stage actors at most impressive theatre andtheplaceyou’re lar Tezatre Shahr isTehran’s biggest and the city. around wallsinsmall stadia behind high circle. Mostothersportsaretraffic played and justsitinthemiddleof anyTehran latter youcouldsave yourtimeandmoney forthe motorracing–though and even assuming youare notawoman,thatis. Esteqlal and Persepolis, thendo(see p50 ) – make ittothebigTehran derbybetween ask amanworkinginyourhotel. Ifyoucan day buttofindoutwhere, yourbestbetisto are normally playedonThursday andFri- Sports Stadium Sports and thegiant-sized,100,000-capacity smallerstadiums which isplayedatseveral Iran’s favourite sportisfootball(soccer), Sports Shahr Tezatre Theatre Dream on. Nightclubs Your bestbetistocall not widelyadvertised intheEnglishmedia. againdates arefind, though infrequent and Traditional andclassicalmusiciseasierto tofindoutwherepen butit’stough orwhen. prohibitively hard.Theydosometimeshap- you can’t findwhatyou’re looking for,a theTehranthrough bazar ( p100 ), where if towander ahalf-day worth givingyourself and theprices usually smaller. It’s well therangeHowever, inTehran isbigger atmospheric of EsfahanandShiraz. the joyable asworkingyourwaythrough Souvenir shoppinginTehran is notasen- SHOPPING for possibilities). traditional restaurant (see orteahouse p117 eye ontrustywww.tehranavenue.com. The Azadi complex also stages wrestlingThe Azadicomplexalsostages For a guaranteed performance,headtoa For aguaranteed pp102-3; (City Theatre; (off Map (off Map p94 Hwy) ; x 6646 0595) Map Map pp102-3 ; The huge, circu- Tezatre Shahr andkeep your lonelyplanet.com . Matches x Azadi Azadi

6646 (City & SavehSt; Ferdosi St(Map pp102–3 ). the cornerof Jomhuri-yeEslamiAve and of Ferdosi thestores Sq.Forthreads, see on choice onEnqelab Ave (Map pp102–3 ), east thehead-spinning hran, whilemencansee St(Mapzaffari pp102–3 ) insouthernTe- should headfortheboutiquesalongMo- of theircostbackhome. women Forshoes, forafraction which sell clothes andshoes, a goodplacetoshopforEuropean-style are lined withwomen’sclothingstores. St,justwestofDr Labafinezhad Valiasr Ave, near Vanak Sq.Furthersouth,bothsidesof intheboutiquesof‘sexier’ AfriqaHwy, manteau pect topayaboutIR150,000forastandard more trendy, shorter modes.Youcanex- styleand both inthelong,conservative Sq andVanak adecentselection, Sqsell a lookingfor this isalsoagoodplacetostart Tehran’s major shoppingdistricts.Ladies, world’s longest thoroughfare andit’soneof any bargaining form. Prices are ‘fixed’ butfallfastifyoushow Ave (opposite theUSDenof Espionage). Ferdosi StaroundFerdosi SqandTaleqani hotels. Othersouvenir shopstripsinclude near orinsidemostmidrange andtop-end and expensive souvenir shopvariety. rather thanthemore elaborately decorated where you’ll get thegenuine workingarticle Qalyans are alsoagoodbuyinthebazaar, ally meansyouwon’thave tocarryitaround. carpets, inparticular,andbuyinghere usu- of course. it foryou–after you’ve stoppedfortea, find willalmostcertainly carpet salesman lonelyplanet.com for directions. to larger shops, sopricescanbegood–ask Alley, withmerchants who usuallysupply Parsa bazaar (Map pp102–3 ), off Kababihah small store isintheinteresting littleSerai prices onhismainlynomadiccarpets. His pet found thisyoungmanfromafamily of car- buyingmissions; we between Hosseiny sein [email protected]) [email protected]) manteau Hossein Hosseiny besurprising,butTehranIt might is Locals claimthatValiasr Ave isthe Souvenir shops,of canbefound course, The bazaarisanexcellentplacetoshopfor Dusto-e bazaris , uptoIR2,000,000forsomething h (overcoat). Stores aroundValiasr Mp p110; (Map to be straight upandoffering tobestraight fair 9am-1.30pm &3-9pm) ( If youcan,catch Hos- x x 0912 3885994;trible_carpet 2205 0071; cnr Valiasr Ave The mother p3 www.ikia.ir) p130; Eslami Ave; combine atripwithcoffee ormeal. tre ( p121 ) hasagoodrange, andyoucan store upstairs intheGandhiShopping Cen- be found. wherethe carparkitself, somebargains can sure floors, togoupthehigher in Be whatever theycanonFridaymornings. sell Asiaacross layout theirrugsand Central Air France Aeroflot and Thursday morning. about 9amto4pm, SaturdaytoWednesday, Airline offices are generally openfrom AIRLINE OFFICES Airport International ImamKhomeini flying fewer routes, lessoften. Iran’s growingnumberof smaller airlines inIran.IranAirfliesmostroutes, with tal Tehran and provincialalmost every capi- p400 . Every daythere are between flights information aboutroutes andcarriers, see Tehran isIran’smaininternational hub.For Air soon asyouknowwhenyou’re leaving. Tickets fromTehran fastsobookas cansell usually byairandincreasingly bytraintoo. is directly linked toTehran –alwaysbybus, Every town air services. and cityof anysize Tehran isthehubof almostallbus,trainand THERE&AWAY GETTING tion forthe Eslami Ave andFerdosi Stisalsotheloca- probably better thanaverage. the range ishuge, andquality priceshigh of allsouvenir stores isDusto-e,where Bldg, cnrValiasr Ave &SayyehSt) airline office. atraveluse agency ( p98 ) ratherthanan you’re inIran,you’re to stronglyadvised check online before makingfirmplans.If only link. on thewestern edge of thecity.Taxi is the national Airport national Airport theold use Domestic flights Damascus andsomeSaudiArabiancities. fromexceptions (fornow)beingflights For modernIranianmusic,thesmall Almost all international services use Almost allinternational services A carparknearthecornerof Jomhuri-ye Routes andpriceschange regularly so TEHRAN •• Getting There &Away TEHRAN ••Getting Mp pp102-3; (Map h Mp p110; (Map Jameh Bazar mornings Fri) , 35kmsouthof Tehran, the Mp p4; http://mehrabadairport.ir) p94; (Map x x 2204 4498; 12th fl,Sayyeh , where hawkers from 8880 8480; 23 Nejatollahi St) 8880 8480;23Nejatollahi

(Map pp102-3 ; Jomhuri-ye Jomhuri-ye pp102-3; (Map Mehrabad Inter- Mehrabad

(IKIA; Map (IKIA; Map 123

TEHRAN TEHRAN Sayyeh Bldg,cnrValiasr Ave &SayyehSt) Sayyeh Tower,cnrValiasr Ave &SayyehSt) Motahhari Ave) Motahhari 8701; 2SarafrazSt,offDrBeheshtiAve) KLM minal, and with services tomajor destina- minal, and withservices more general adviceonbus travel, see p127 . out which isbestforyourtrip.For station has fourbus terminals towork soyouneed cityandtowninthecountry.Tehranevery Masses of linkTehran buses tojustabout Bus rialsintocasheuros. unused have areceipt toprove it,you canconvert have changed money legally atabank,and correct airport (mostlikely IKIA).Ifyou sure driver totell yourtaxi gration. Be the minutes toget customsandimmi- through fic fromcentralTehran, thenatleast90 well over anhourtoget thetraf- through isveryflight earlyorvery late, give yourself getting totheairportontime. Unlessyour The hardestpartaboutleaving Tehran is INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURES have simplemapsbutlittleelse. from IKIA.Theladiesattouristinformation –therefor yourtaxi isnopublictransport at goodrates, which todopay you’llneed banks inthearrivalshallcanchange money hall, buttouristsare hassled.Two seldom are usuallyX-rayedasyouleave thebaggage IKIA are slowbutgenerally hassle-free. Bags Customs andimmigrationprocedures at INTERNATIONAL ARRIVALS Airlines Turkish Qatar Airways Airlines &Austrian Lufthansa Iran Aseman domestic flights. useatravelagentfor onlyinternationaltickets; Sells Iran Air Gulf Air Emirates Airways British Airlines Azerbaijan Airlines Afghan Ariana Air India 124 .com; Nejatollahi St) .com; Nejatollahi Eslamboli St) fl, 29 Khaled Eslamboli St) Next doortoCocoRestaurant. EslamboliSt)Next fl, 29Khaled Valiasr Ave &SayyehSt) Tickets are atthebus ter- usuallybought Mp p110; (Map TEHRAN •• Getting There &Away TEHRAN••Getting Mp pp102-3; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map Mp p110; (Map Mp p110; (Map

Mp pp102-3; (Map Mp p110; (Map x Mp p110; (Map Mp p110; (Map

2204 4757;12thfl,SayyehBldg,cnr x Mp p110; (Map x x x 8873 9762;SarafrazSt) Mp p110; (Map 8134 1480;1211Valiasr Ave) x 8880 8472; Nejatollahi St) 8880 8472;Nejatollahi 2225 3284-7; x x x 2201 5217-18;2ndfl, (Map (Map p110 ; 2204 4552;10thfl, x 8874 8450;239 8889 5568;www.iaa 8855 3335; Khaled 8855 3335;Khaled x

Nejatollahi St) Nejatollahi 8855 0156;1st x 8873 x x are for will beforaVolvobusorsimilar;twoprices Tehran. Where onlyonepriceislisted it major destinationsondirect from buses tral office nearFerdosi tickets. Sqthatsells etnto ae uain Departures Duration Destination Fare therein mostcases willbemore. list includessomedeparture times,though thanotherterminals. This ally alittlehigher this terminal are Volvosandpricesare usu- fromaroundTehran.buses from Allbuses andlocal shuttletaxis accessible bytaxis, here are for fromthisterminal. Prices the mostservices Tehran. IranPeyma andTaavoni 14have willcostaboutIR40,000fromcentral taxi trolleybus directly totheterminal. Aprivate ortrythe Sq, andthenanothershuttletaxi, toImamHossein take ashuttletaxi wise, Line 2willsoonreach theterminal; other- region.and theCaspian HopefullyMetro adI5,0 0r 9pm IR55,000 Tabriz IR60,000 10hr 3-8pm 4.30-7.30pm Shiraz IR75,000 2.45-8pm hourly 13-15hr 14hr IR71,000 Mashhad IR74,000 Kerman 15hr 1.30pm IR50,000 Esfahan 5-7hr Bushehr IR108,000 18-21hr The (TERMINAL-E ARZHANTIN) CENTRAL TERMINAL bus company Iran’slargest tobookahead.However, need tions leaving sofrequently youdon’tusually 000 2pm&6pm 9pm&11pm 40,000 5am-noon;5pm, 3perday 70,000 50,000 IR21,000/ Sari 7-8hr frequent Kavus IR22,000/ 55,000 IR40,000/ Mashhad 5hr 13-14hr 5.30am, Gorgan 9hr IR24,000/ 1-6pm -e The compact EASTERN TERMINAL(TERMINAL-E SHARGH) haqi terminal; Map haqi terminal;Map p110 ; 8.30am-noon Thu) etnto ae uain Departures Duration Destination Fare The following tables show services to showservices The followingtables 7786 8080) 6671 9857;Ferdosi St; central terminal mahmooly has buses to Khorasan toKhorasan has buses mahmooly does havedoes aconveniently cen- Iran Peyma eastern terminal terminal eastern /Volvo.

x (Arzhantin, SayroSafarorBey- (Arzhantin, h 8873 2535; Arzhantin Sq) 8873 2535;Arzhantin 9-10hr /Volvo buses. 8.30am-4.30pm Sat-Wed, (Taavoni 1;M (Taavoni lonelyplanet.com hourly 7am-noon; 9am, 8.30-10pm (off Map (off Map p94 ; ap pp102-3 ; pp102-3 ; is for at11pm. closes and walkfurther fromthere. Theterminal terminal. Ortake Metro Line2toAzadi taxi (Syria). Turkey), (inAzerbaijan)andDamascus The huge, round (TERMINAL-E JONUB) SOUTHERN TERMINAL lonelyplanet.com 4,0 4-10pm 3-9pm The 3pm, 4pm, (TERMINAL-E GHARB ORTERMINAL-E AZADI) WESTERN TERMINAL 45,000 &T14) 85,000 IR120,000 Zahedan 19-23hr (IranPeyma every 10,000 6am-10pm Yazd IR33,000/ 2hr several Shiraz IR37,000/ 10hr 25,000 hourly 13-16hr 7.30am-6pm IR6000/ (Iran hourly 50,000 1½hr Peyma) IR90,000 Kerman 14-16hr 6pm, IR15,000/ Kashan hourly hourly 3½hr IR26,000/ Esfahan 9pm 2hr every 7hr 14-18hr Bushehr IR120,000 18-21hr IR120,000 Bandar Abbas 10.30am, 6pm Ahvaz IR95,000 15hr 2pm etnto ae Duration Destination Fare Departures for pricesareVolvo orsimilarbus.Otherwise, where onlyonepriceisquoted itisfora are theminimumyoucanexpect,and fare. to spendsometimenegotiatingadecent south. Comingfromhere prepare bytaxi, walk about300m)orgrab ashuttletaxi Metro Line1toTerminal-e Jonub(then and southeastof thecity. x jonub nations includingAnkaraand western Iran,aswellinternational desti- regionminal, catering fortheCaspian and 8am-6pm Prices indicated are inthe followingtable To get here askanywestboundshuttle Departure timesinthefollowingtable To get tothesouthernterminal take 4465 9695 ext 233) 4465 9695ext mahmooly mahmooly ; ‘Azadi?’ western terminal western Map Map p94 ) , thenwalknorthtothehuge has buses headingtothesouth has buses /Volvo buses. /Volvo buses. isthecity’sbusiestter- southern terminal

(terminal-e gharb; Map gharb;Map (terminal-e İ stanbul (in (in stanbul

(terminal-e (terminal-e p94 ; Mp p4; a-hn Sq) Rah-Ahan ; p94 (Map andfinishatthe impressivestart Tehran isIran’srailhub and many services Train direction.the right and ‘savari’ andyou’ll soonbepointed in yourdestination Azadi terminal. Justsay fromthe thing westtoQazvinorZanjan from outsidetheeastern terminal, andany- terminal, savaris toSari andAmolleave from thenortheastcornerof thesouthern minals. Forexample,forKashan theyleave usually justoutsidetheappropriate buster- trips. Savaris leave fromdesignated sections there quickly; anexcellentoptionforday tofill)andget need ately (onlyfourseats paying soyoucanleave almostimmedi- cheapest bustickets, butare often worth are twotothree thanthe timeshigher andanywhere alongtheway.Prices Rasht Amol, Sari,Kashan, Qom,Qazvin,Zanjan, of Tehran are linked bysavari, including Most townswithinaboutthree hours’ drive Savari 10.30pm nals, dependingonthedestination. the eastern, southernandwestern termi- They leave within fromdesignated sections 10.30pm bus andslower,butdepartmore frequently. areMinibuses priceasa about thesame 6am-10pm pian townsare linked toTehran byminibus. 60,000 A few townsincentralIranandnearbyCas- Minibus 60,000 35,000 6am-8pm Tabriz IR26,500/ 12,000 Sanandaj IR27,000/ 9-11hr 6am-10.30pm 80,000 6-8hr hourly IR15,500/ Rasht 60,000 IR6500/ Qazvin 7am- 5hr 40,000 every 2-2½hr 10.30pm Orumiyeh IR39,500/ every 40,000 12hr every hourly IR27,000/ Kermanshah 9hr 30min 30min 60,000 4-9pm Hamadan IR16,500/ 15min 69,000 6hr every Chalus IR18,500/ 6hr Astara IR26,500/ 15-30min every 9hr Ardabil IR38,000/ Ardabil Destination Fare Duration 10hr 15min Departures hourly bus 6am- TEHRAN •• Getting There &Away TEHRAN ••Getting at thesouth endof Valiasr hourly 6.30am- hourly 6.30am- train station 125

TEHRAN TEHRAN 1800 3.40pm 57,750/27,200 couchette,2nd-classseats only *Ghazal six-berth 4.40pm Zanjan IR14,500 4hr Yazd IR44,150 8hr 3.40pm Tabriz9pm, IR139,000*/ 158,000* seeSchedules( IR13,750 Sari 10.40am above ) 12hr Qom IR4200 9.20am 7hr 26,500 2½hr 3 Mashhad 5.40pm, 10pm 4.45pm, IR63,150/ Kerman 215,000* 13hr daily 7pm 11pm Gorgan IR39,750/ 23,400 8.15pm 10½hr IR35,150 Esfahan 7½hr Bandar Abbas Ahvaz IR104,600/ 15/17hr 5.15pm/ ing only7½hours),Sa (IR197,000,dailyat7am,allegedly tak- Set best, followedbytheoddlynamedTrain at 5pm,7.50pmand8.45pm,11hours) is The Ghazaltrain(IR198,000,three daily comfortandprice.siderably inspeed, well becomemuch lessfrequent inwinter. insummermay in particular,dailyservices listed heretimetable are liabletochange; The pricesanddaysof departure inthe SCHEDULES information times are at listed inEnglish, andstaff Ave. Destinationsandarrivaldeparture 126 etnto ae Duration Departures Destination Fare p404. see to Forservices tails. trains –speaktothetravel agent forde- Abbasexample, ontheBandar orKerman also bepossibletobuytickets toYazd, for only;itmight ondedicatedstated services arrive10.45am, which until1am. doesn’t (IR26,150)at service sleepers totheall-seat 9.30pm, 11hours), arange downthrough of 8½ hours), (IR145,000,dailyat Train (IR148,000/128,000,dailyat8.25am, (IR179,000, dailyat6pm,11hours), Turbo daily at6.55pm,11½hours), Simorgh Khomeini Sq; just ask for ‘Rah Ahan’. Sq;justaskfor‘Rah Khomeini headingwestfromImamshuttle taxi and prices.Departures are punctual. .com website, which hasup-to-date schedules theexcellentwww.rajatrainsplanning, use Note that trains toMashhad varycon- Prices shownare for1st/2ndclassunless The train station iseasytoreachThe trainstation ina TEHRAN •• Getting Around TEHRAN••Getting

( x R870 9r 2.40pm/ IR88,700/ 19hr 139) are walking timetables. For are For walkingtimetables. İ bz (Gre stanbul andAnkara, stanbul en, IR179,000, tourist tourist underground from there. IR15,000) toAzadiMetro and go station for door-to-door. way; itcostsmoresengers goingthesame door),andhewilllookforother pas- closed around ortell driver ataxi from theairporttocitycentre), ask twice aslong. is fairconsideringthetripwillprobably take which it’s peakhour,thepricewillbehigher, IR80,000 tonorthernandeastern Tehran. If should costaboutIR50,000,andupto you shouldpay. where they can tell you exactlyhowmuch dispatcher, thetaxi but it’sstillbesttouse Faresand payforaprivate taxi. are fixed Tehran, tobite thebullet it’swise however, Enqelab andVanak Sqs. diately outside thedomesticterminal for leave 15to20minutes every fromimme- If you’re (IR500) confident,publicbuses town andbetter bypublictransport. served The maindomesticairportisnearer to MEHRABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT for nowtheyremain justthat–plans. Metro Line1(red) allthewaytoIKIA,but it shouldcostless.There are planstoextend pay thefullIR100,000,butfromsouth north Tehran, forexample,you’llprobably pends onwhere you’re coming from.From (IR10,000) less.GoingtoIKIAthepricede- hard bargainers get might itforaKhomeini IR100,000,though the airportisastandard to You’ll need Thepricefrom take ataxi. lic transportremains astranger toIKIA. After almostthree years of operations,pub- AIRPORT (IKIA) IMAM KHOMEINIINTERNATIONAL transport infrastructures. Tehran’s two airports have vastlydiffering To/From theAirport AROUND GETTING day. on thesame youcanonlybuyticketsstation fortravel St, amongothers, cansortyouout.Atthe at atravel agency onNejatollahi –those You canbuytickets amonthinadvance BUYING TICKETS A final option is to take a taxi (aboutA finaloptionis totake ataxi (aboutIR12,000 If youwantashuttle taxi tosouthernorcentralTehranA taxi Unless you’re travelling andknow light na darbaste lonelyplanet.com (no gaining skills,andhowfaryouplan togo. US$25 to$30–italldependson your bar- Paykan inworsecondition costsfromabout ably costaboutUS$40to$50; charter a a newishPeugeot forthedaywouldprob- taxi service Tehran isavailable forhire (knownlocallyas as taxis buttake halfthetime. as taxis Goodluck! look foronegoingnorth.Theycostasmuch lami Ave andFerdosi Stisagoodplaceto thecorneroftown, though Jomhuri-yeEs- themloitering oncornersYou’ll see allover town inahurryisonmotorcycletaxi. see p380 fordetails. tion –and180-degree vision–atalltimes; the localsandbedrivingwith100%atten- soon assimilate tothelawlessaggression of you’ll Out of abasicinstinctforsurvival about roadrules–noneof itapplieshere. you’veyour mindeverything learned ever If you’re drivinginTehran, trytoputoutof & Motorcycle Car lonelyplanet.com roughly 6amuntil 10pmor11pm, finish- roughly runfrom ellers Buses end up usingtaxis. they’re often crowdedandslow, mosttrav- coverBuses virtuallyallof Tehran, butas BUS Transport Public yourself, a carwithdriver. Ifyoureally mustdrive under Tours ( p415 you ) willbeabletolease car alone. Any of thetravel agencies listed and English-speakingdriver forlessthana is littleincentive whenyoucanget acar a driver, too. butusuallyunnecessary There tofindacarwithout It’s notonlydifficult CAR RENTAL translator is US$50 andUS$80aday. as aguide–butreckon onpayingbetween an English-speakingdriver whocandouble many variables,notleastwhetheryouwant out cars fromIR440,000aday. or larger vehicles. arrange tours tootherpartsof Iran, inhis will costyou€50aday,andhecanalso history) well.He andhisair-con Peugeot lish andknowsTehran (andmuch of its 9345; [email protected]). 9345; [email protected]). Just about any taxi (indeed, anycar)in (indeed, Just aboutanytaxi One adrenalin-inducing waytoget across One highly recommendedOne highly driver-cum- For private hire thecostdependson Europcar , agence Ali Taheri

(

x or 5567 8316) dar baste

( x Ali speaksEng- 4443 1105,0912-134 atIKIArents ). Tocharter network, the Tehran’s ambitiousunderground railway METRO expect more. Azadi SqtoTajrish wasthefirst route, and for aflatIR1000cashfare.and faster buses in 2006,withnewer,more comfortable Tajrish Sq. meini SqtoTajrish Sq;andValiasr Sqto SqtoArzhantinSq;ImamKho- Khomeini clude ArzhantinSqtoTajrish Sq;Imam Some handyroutes goingnorth–southin- stop, you’llbepointed bus. totheright orbus ifyouaskatthestation However, English andnumberingisinconsistent. Sq,forthefarsouth. Rah-Ahan north; AzadiSq,forfurtherwest;and Arzhantin, Vanak andValiasr Sqs,forthe ofMuseum Iran,forthewest(Map pp102–3 ); of ImamKhom eini Ave fromtheNational rections; theterminal ontheopposite side meini Sq,fromwhere goinalldi- buses includeImamKho- use points youmight take more thanone. Major busdeparture terminal to toanother,soyoumayneed travel etiquette. theboxedthe bus;see text ( p413 ) forbus give themtothedriver whenyouboard near busstopsoratterminals, andthen IR200. Youbuythemfromticket booths Tickets more costslightly thannothing– ing earlieronFridayandpublicholidays. .com) around town. tion about buslinkstoits variousstations maps insidethetrains. in Farsi only,sokeep aneyeontheEnglish at peakhours. announcements are Station 10pm or10.30pm,runningmostfrequently atabout 6amandstoparound Trains start longer stored-value cardsare alsoavailable. travellers), days; oneday, three daysorseven journey, 10journeys(probably thebestfor magnetic stripsandare validforasingle moreslightly onLine5.Tickets have Line 5(green) were operating, the red line),Line2(navy blue)andallof time of of writingonlysections Line1(or theboxed(see text, p128 atthe ). However, Private buscompaniesbeganoperating showtheirdestinationsin never Buses normallytravelBuses fromonelocalbus The Metro website has extensive informa- Tickets costIR1000perjourneyand , will eventually service much of thecity service , willeventually TEHRAN •• Getting Around TEHRAN ••Getting Tehran Metro

(www.tehranmetro

127 TEHRAN TEHRAN Gharme (thewestern busterminal), pro- ing itwillrunallthewaytoTerminal-e completed bythetimeyouread this,mean- Theeastern extensionstation). shouldbe Amir Kabir Stcheap hotels (Mellat Metro Sq,andishandytothe at ImamKhomeini to Dardashtintheeast.ItconnectsLine1 west, where itconnectswithLine5toKaraj, Line 2runsfromTehran inthe (Sadeghieh) Line 2(DarkBlue) International Airport. Khomeini martyrs cemetery, butnotyetImam Zahra Jonub, ReyandShohada, fortheBehesht-e faster. will bemuch, much cheaper easier, and up tothenorthernpalacesandDarband would becompleted in2009,sogetting us thenorthernextension toTajrish Sq theMetroportantly, PRpeopleassured im- junction of Sq.More ImamKhomeini to Mirdamadinthenorth,viamain tomb)inthesouthhar (ImamKhomeini’s ful fortravellers. ItrunsfromHaram-eMota- For now,thered lineisbyfarthemostuse- Line 1(Red) 128 Heading south,Line1stopsatTerminal-e staggering 370kmoftunnel completed by2020 –longerthanthe New Yorksubway. to accountforhalf ofalljourneysinmetropolitanTehran by2015andtheplanistohave a reduced pollutionand stress bornofnot beingstuckinTehran traffic. The Metroisexpected every andhealthcosts,nottomentionthe day,savingcountless millionsonfuel,productivity benefits oftheMetroare plaintosee. Already more than1million peopleare usingtheMetro probably notbecompleted foranother20years. Buteven atthisrelatively earlystage,the only justbegun.The grand plancallsformore than10linestoeventually criss-crossthecity. been slow.By2008Lines1and2had stillnotbeencompleted, andworkonLines34had of every trainiswomenonly,allowingthemtoavoidgroping men. became afrotteur’s paradise. Butwhilewomenare free torideinanycarriage,thefrontcarriage just gettingonwasatest ofstrength (it’sonlymarginally better today).Insidethecarriages 2002. Tehranis ofcarriagesmeantthatduring peakhours totheMetroandashortage flocked tunnels andstations. ofTehranaspects life. Bytheearly2000salmostUS$600millionayearwasbeingspentonnew four-hour commutes fortripsoflessthan20kmnotuncommon,traffichadbeguntoaffect all Tehran’s congestionproblemshadbecomecriticaland,insomeways,even life-threatening. With It wasn’tuntil1999thatthefirstline(Line5)waseventually opened.Bytheneveryone agreed revolutionary government in1981,withjust2kmoftunnelcompleted. cancelledthecontracts todeathonchronicpollutionandendlesstrafficjams.choking It’s nooverstatement tosaythe Tehran Metroistheonlyhopeof salvationforacityliterally SAVIOUR ACITY’S TEHRAN METRO: TEHRAN •• Getting Around TEHRAN••Getting When wedroppedinfortea theurbaneMetroguysexplainedthatfull network would Despite themoneyandcollective willpower of15milliondesperate Tehranis, progress has ofLine2wereIn 2000thefirstsections ofLine1in2001and opened,followedbysections Tehran’s Metrowasfirstproposedin1974andFrench companieshadbegunworkwhenthe Mehrabad airport. ful totravellers, withaspurrunningto suburbs. Thewestern legwillbemostuse- neath Enqelab Ave toTehran’s eastern western terminal (Azaditerminal) under- runfromthe east–west linewilleventually with thewholelinecompleted by2013.This first are stations scheduled toopenin2008, Work forLine4beganin2005andthe Line 4(Yellow) ofthousands cars off Valiasr Ave. andhopefullytake1 (atShahid Beheshti), It willconnectwithLine2,4and Ave. DrBeheshti underneath veering east along mega-crowdedValiasr Ave before Ahan)north (Rah from thetrainstation and travellers itincludesasection because forbothTehranisLine 3willbemostuseful the southtofarnortheastern suburbs, Running fromsatellite townIslamsharhin Line 3istheoneTehranis are prayingfor. Line 3(LightBlue) ofwithin walkingdistance AzadiSq. and western Tehran, where is Azadistation Sq viding afastlinktoImamKhomeini lonelyplanet.com taxi’ ( taxi’ tive istoget yourhotel tocalla‘wireless ple, ‘Meydan Azadi IR50,000, solongasthey’re nottoodistant. sites should costabout or sotovisit several IR40,000/60,000. Tohire foranhour a taxi SqtoTajrishImam Khomeini Sq about hour;and IR15,000/25,000 in off-peak/peak SqtoValiasrImam Khomeini Sqforabout trips. Negotiationisencouraged. up inlotsof IR5000orIR10,000forlonger for lessthanIR10,000,andwillpush prices In Tehran mostdrivers won’tgoanywhere rates, agree onapricebefore out. setting women then,too. when youcalltobookyou’llspeakonly women, forwomenpassengers only,and could alsocallthe past Karaj toGolshahr. Line 2.ItrunsfromTehran out (Sadeghieh) anextensionground andis,ineffect, of The completed Line5islargely above Line 5(Green) lonelyplanet.com ( you butanyemptycarwillusuallytaketaxis, Yellow are tobeprivate taxis supposed PRIVATE TAXI ifthedriver therial. to beataxi needs roads, almostallof which have thepotential Then there othercaronTehran’s isevery many of themshitboxes of thefirst order. Thevastmajoritygoes. of are taxis Paykans, can offer. it’sanything Inpractice,however, they that, intheory,govern whatservices Tehran comeinavarietyof taxis colours Taxi Sq. eastern busterminal andKhorasan theAn electrictrolleybusrunsbetween TROLLEYBUS Tochal costsIR1000. prices, thetripfromTajrish toDarakeh or is goingnorthof Tajrish Sq;foranideaof The placeyou’re mostlikely one toneed ibus isnoteasy,soask,askandagain. min- them.Ifyoudo,findingtheright need suburbs andmosttravellers are unlikely to areCrowded publicminibuses foundinthe MINIBUS x Sample fares include thefollowing: Unless you’re familiarwiththegoing 1821) dar baste x , whose green are taxis , whose driven by 133), which costalittlemore. You if you ask; just say, forexam- ifyouask;justsay, dar baste Women’s Taxi Company ’. Thealterna- i, e p413 . see sit, in. Formore andwhere onshuttletaxis to pull over whileyouleap forhalf asecond or give onthehornand youaquickbeep so on.Thedriver willeitherignore you, larly, ‘eHESHTe!’ StorSq;and forBeheshti ‘FeDOSe!’ willdofor Ferdosi StorSq;simi- before then. Shout itquicklyandloudly: ifyouaredestination, even getting off a major landmarkoratownsquare asa be halfwaythere before youknowit.Use word ‘hotel’, picked and upsomeoneelse the driver willhave lostinterest after the the linesof ‘IranHotel, onthecornerof…’: bother withanythinginanylanguage along ing shuttletaxis. Sq. Metro alsohave stations plentyof loiter- but often youwillhave tochange atVanak Valiasrfrom, say, SqtoTajrish Sq (IR6000), be luckyandget alltheway ashuttle taxi heading indifferent directions. Youmight forshuttletaxis have ministations several these even hubs. However, areand ImamHossein major shuttle-taxi Ferdosi, Enqelab,Haft-e Tir, Rah-Ahan Vanak, Valiasr, Tajrish, Arzhantin,Azadi, the Middle East. the Middle East. in mountain and skislopes, andthehighest are easilyaccessible daytrips capital several Away fromthe hyperactive streets of the AROUND TEHRAN go to. meydans themistolearnthenamesofto use the majorbetween going rate. paying andyou’llsoonget anideaof the trips. Watch whatotherpassengers are climbing toaboutIR7000forthelongest for oneortwo where inIran.Theminimumfare isIR1000 Taxi fares inTehran are thanelse- higher TAXISHUTTLE a meter actuallyworking. accordingly. when pricesrise half anhour,much longer inpeakhour inaprivatetakeseven taxi, aminimumof To get fromsouthernTehran tothenorth, When trying to hail a shuttle taxi, don’t When tryingtohailashuttletaxi, Shuttle plymainthoroughfares taxis Meter doexist,butwe’ve taxis yettosee Meydans andknowwhich oneyouwantto meydans such as Imam Khomeini, such asImamKhomeini, meydans AROUND TEHRAN (squares) of travel, andthebestway meydans may

129 TEHRAN TEHRAN in Karbala. anddiedwithImamHossein who fought the72martyrs72 tulips,which symbolise huge goldcentraldomeisadornedwith age whenhedied.Theising Khomeini’s flanked towers byfour91m-high symbol- his theologicaltraining.It’senormousand and Qom,where thegreat manunderwent the townthatlaunched the1979revolution, sites. aircraft hangarthanoneof Iran’s holiest looks more like ashoddilybuiltandempty is quite enormous,forthetimebeingit of Holy Imam Khomeini endeavours.those Butwhilethescaleof the isthegrandestofness ImamKhomeini, front. This,theresting placeof HisHoli- a timeof great endeavour onthe building the IslamicRepublic will be remembered as historical periodsof Iran, theearlyyears of When future generations lookbackonthe HOLY KHOMEINI SHRINEOFIMAM 130 (330km) To Qazvin(23km); (30km) To Bu'in To Hamadan Rasht (199km) AROUND TEHRAN The shrine itself is inside a stainless steel steel isinsideastainless The shrineitself Tehran,The shrineislocated between Qazvin Eshtehard AROUND TEHRAN •• Holy Shrine ofImamKhomeini AROUNDTEHRAN••HolyShrine A01 Markazi Abyek

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a bothononetrip. see martyr’scemetery, andmostpeople Zahra ond laststopisShohada, fortheBehesht-e trip, butwhywouldyoubother?Thesec- here. domake andbuses Shuttle the taxis just IR1000itisbyfarthebestwaytoget is -e theholyshrine, andat Motahar, The laststoponTehran Metro Line1(red) &Away There Getting Islamic university. simple foodandsouvenirs andanadjoining wishes have largely met. been for themegalomaniacalarchitecture, his they mustbehave withreverence, and but themselves, ratherthanamosquewhere be apublicplacewhere peoplecouldenjoy Theayatollahwanted hisshrineto sleep. coins alongthefloorandhomelessmen and where familieshave picnics,kidsroll crete, that’soften covered withlarge carpets, ofrounded byavastemptyexpanse con- must approach fromdifferent sides.It’ssur- number of banknotes. Men andwomen pilgrims paytheirrespects andnosmall

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Amol River (4076m) 20miles 30km 0 0 A01 6 Qa'emshahr lonelyplanet.com Firuzkuh Pol-e Sefid Veresk To Shahmirzad A83 To Semnan (20km) Sari 4 lonelyplanet.com E Abdal-Azim Shah-e just wanderingaround onfoot. ferent –onebest experiencedby sensibility but retains historytogive enough itadif- lowed upbytheurbansprawlof thecapital, swal- daysithas been These swept through. whentheMongols but itwasdevastated centre thatwasmuch larger thanTehran, 11th and12thcenturiesReywas amajor places inTehran province is Rey. Inthe One of themosthistoricallyimportant REY emptyatothertimes. days butiseerily ispacked onmourning Zahra Behesht-e trip totheHolyShrine of ImamKhomeini. kilometres. the graves of ordinarypeoplestretch onfor crowd duringthemid-1980s.Elsewhere, Saudi Arabiansoldiers openedfire ona annual haj (pilgrimage toMecca), when shrine toIranianpilgrimskilledduringthe some of thehorrificcostof war. It’s ahauntingexperiencethatbringshome have grownsincethen,butthefacesremain. from ayellowedphotograph.Thepinetrees out to thelostfather/son/husbandstaring watch, aknife, maybealetter thatbelonged small,glassboxesthese a onstiltscontain of thedead.Like windowsintoanothertime, mourners surroundedbycountlessportraits images fromthe’80sdepictinghysterical andnewspaper be familiarfromtheTV visitors, 200,000glassboxes theroughly will heresented thatismostmoving. Forsome scaleof88). Itisthesheer thedeathrepre- whodiedintheIran–IraqWar(1980– those Zahra Behesht-e ZAHRA BEHESHT-E The main attractionis the A visithere isusually combinedwitha attheheartofRight the cemetery isa anniversary of the ayatollah’s death,whenhundredsanniversary ofthousands ofmournersvisittheshrine. oftheayatollah’s to tear asholyrelics. piecesofftheshroudtokeep the armedKomiteh guardscouldn’tstopthebodyfallingoutofcoffin,andcrowdtrying passing itover theirheads. Bythetimeahelicopter wassummonedittoolate andeven cemetery itwasstoppedrepeatedly before the crowd eventually took thecoffinandstarted mourners. Itwasachaoticscene. As thehearsetriedtomove throughthecrowdtowards culminated inthelargest funeral ever heldintheworld–acrushof10millioninconsolable Khomeini, In 1989,theIslamicRepublic’sfinalsend-offforitsfounderandinspiration,Ayatollah THE FUNERALOFAYATOLLAH KHOMEINI Unless youthrive onchaos,you’re advisednottocomehere onoraround4June,the is themainresting placefor , builtfor adescendantof ﺯﻫﺮﺍ Imamzadeh

ﺑﻬﺸﺖ ﺭی Qajar-period the kinginthetowncentre;of and aSeljuk Toghoral Gonbad-e tress onanearbyhill;the12th-century experienced climbers. orMayJune toSeptember, andOctober for isfrom to Reyneh.The climbing season byheading so toclimbthepeak, andstart merous othercommercialitems. springwater andnu- bottles of Damarvand in Iran,appearingontheIR10,000 note, on image isoneof themostrecognisable icons Its tokillunfortunate straysheep. enough that stillbelches outsulphuricfumesstrong with itbutinreality itisadormantvolcano associated vand hasmanymythologicaltales is actuallyinMazandaran province. Dama- It’s easilyaccessiblefromTehran, it although intheMiddleEast. mountain is thehighest Shaped like MtFuji, DAMAVANDMT by yourhotel. IR30,000 perhour,ortake atourorganised Taxis canbehired inReyforanegotiable reached headingsouthonMetro Line1. Shahr-e Rey(Cityof iseasily Rey)station &Away There Getting mains of theSassanid available attheentrance. towearachador,Women need which are Imam Hamzeh (brotherof ImamReza). complexisashrineto dizzy. Inthesame mirrortilestomakewood, andenough you constructed frombetel intricate carvings, with courtyard, a14th-centurysarcophagus rate tilework,agoldendome,poolinthe Thismausoleumhaselabo- Imam Hossein. Most peoplewho gotoDamavand do Rey’s otherattractionsincludethere- AROUND TEHRAN •• Behesht-e Zahra Zahra AROUND TEHRAN••Behesht-e Cheshmeh Ali carvings mineralsprings,withsome , the 20m-high tombtower , the20m-high nearby. Mt Damavand Qal’-e TabarakQal’-e ﺩﻣﺎﻭﻧﺪ (5671m) (5671m) , afor-

131 ﮐﻮﻩ TEHRAN TEHRAN hours to Barghah-e-Sevvom (4250m), bet- hours to Barghah-e-Sevvom you’d drive here, thenwalk aboutfour Azaman Mosque. Onatwo-day itinerary, IR25,000), where intheSaheb youcansleep (about Camp 2’, akaGusfandSara orBase or five hours) ortake apickupto‘Camp fewer headaches. more and means timeforacclimatisation, three-day optionispreferable asitallows three readers days,though report the and companies. See Camp. p372 forotherreliable guides during summer,atGusfandSaraorBase fee foreignersUS$50 mountain mustpay, all-inclusive two-daytour,excludingthe upwards. He charges aboutUS$200foran of peopletoget and youtothemountain he speakslimited English,hasanetwork countless timesand,whilethe mountain marzpour marzpour guide recommended byreaders is first-timers aguide. OneReyneh-based use which kills peoplehere year. every Most andswollenfingersheadaches, nausea – out forsignsof altitudesickness–dizziness, this climb.As youascendbesure towatch so quicklyisthemostdangerous aspectof vand isbasicallyawalk-up.Climbingsofar route. Fromatechnical pointof view, Dama- describestheclassicsouthern This section Climbing theMountain GPS pointsandlinkstotours. for Polur,nearer toTehran. Ithasmaps, new campandjumping-offpointplanned have Itmight ofmountaineers. details a it isrunbytheAzadGroupof Iranian thanwecanincludeheredetail because mt.blogspot.com bloghasmore recent of themainroadasyoudrive intotown. eration Hut routes andguidesisthe put youintouch withalocalguide. home foraboutIR65,000perperson and around someonewillputyouupintheir Theremountain. isnohotel, butifyouask ifyoudon’twanttoclimbthe trails, even makes pointforlocalwalking ajumping-off of villages onthefarsideof thevalleyand The pretty village of Reynehoffers fineviews Reyneh 132 Starting atReyneh,youcan walk(four Starting Damavand canbeclimbedin two or The excellentblogathttp://damavand The bestplacetoget informationabout AROUND TEHRAN •• Alborz Ski Resorts Ski AROUNDTEHRAN••Alborz ( x , on the right (northeastern) side , ontheright 0122-325 2270) Reyneh MountainFed- Reyneh , whohasclimbed Reza Fara-Reza ﺭﻳﻨﻪ and adipinoneof thebaths. for aroundUS$15,includingbreakfast, tea springs. Youcanrent aroomforthenight hotels haveseveral builtaroundhot been that just4kmeastof Reyneh,at toknow Mt Damavand, you’llbepleased After expendingallthatenergy climbing Hot Springs Reyneh, inoneday. from thesummittoTehran, from viaataxi summer. inhigh even Mostpeoplereturn suddenly andsnowfallsare apossibility, inmindthattheweathercanchange Bear ing bootsforthetreacherously rocks. loose ness, warmclothesandgood-qualityhik- any technical require gear butitdoes fit- requirefrom thepeak.Thesummitdoesn’t another fourtofive hours backtothehut to thepeakwithoutspecialequipment.It’s when youget up. sincethewaterthe evening willbefrozen reader recommends fillingwater bottlesin ing anditcanbe-10°Catthesummit.A the shelter. Even are inJuly,nights freez- onereaderthough reported hiringatent at the finalascent)isstronglyrecommended, perhaps astove (andleaving itthere during Tehran. Bringingatent,bagand sleeping and holidaysitispacked withstudentsfrom booking thehut,andonThursday nights bring someupwithyou.There’s nowayof There’s nowater enroute soyoushould hutandcleanwatertaineers’ isavail able. 3hasamoun- 3’.Camp ter knownas‘Camp Darbansar ordinarily cheap for adayonthe have equipment forhire andare extra- allofsorts withinday-trip distance, which pleasures of atriptoIran. There are fourre- hran canbeoneof themostunexpected Skiing inthe aboveAlborz Mountains Te- ALBORZ SKIRESORTS to Reyneh. is adecentrestaurant, take ashuttletaxi ‘Reyneh’). Fromthejunction,where there at thejunctiontoReyneh(tell thedriver ern busterminal towardsAmolandget off take asavari dar baste The easiestwaytoget toReynehisbytaxi &Away There Getting In Augustyoushouldbeable toclimb (day passIR60,000; forabout IR165,000. Alternatively,

or minibusfromTehran’s east- h 8.30am-3.30pm Jan-Mar) lonelyplanet.com Ab Karm slopes. slopes. , , Book your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels your stay Book h IR60,000/80,000;rUS$40-120; day passweekday/weekend h is plenty of scope for off-piste ifyouget a is plentyof scope foroff-piste the mountain. lifts, twochairlifts andaT-bar around the eastern slopes.There are alsosixPoma to thetop.Athirdgondolaferries youto andanothergondola tothemid-station, youtake anantique-looking From thebase, usually possiblefromDecemberuntil April. and theupperslopesabout3500m,skiingis campatabout2700m Withbase for speed. should appealtoanyonefeeling theneed Still, withavertical dropof about900mit Shemshak buttherunsaren’t asdifficult. sort at best forbeginners; whiletheslopesandre- near Shemshak, hasthree easyslopesandis lonelyplanet.com ii skiing, The largest fieldinIranandhometoIranian x Dizin Resort Just upthevalleyfromDarbansar, x Shemshak in Tehran. ischeaper. Mid-week in summer/winter, orformore fromagents agents foraboutIR500,000/600,000anight ment, which canberented fromlocal scene andlodgingisusuallyinanapart- valley.Ithasalivelyin asteep-sided café privateslopes, tobeinvited parties. tothese someoneonthe know someone,ormeet to butthisisIransoyou’llneed boggling’, andmind- scribed as‘out-of-control and polescanbehired forIR100,000aday. guls. Snowboardsare welcome. Boots, inducing 45-degree angle)andplentyof mo- of about500m(someof itatanadrenalin- being about1450mwithavertical descent most excited. There are sixlifts,thelongest has theslopesthatwillget hardcore skiers and Dizin. pick of thebunch, are however, Shemshak Telecabin ( p113 ) innorthernTehran. The Pistes are sometimesgroomedandthere Shemshak is, in effect, a series ofShemshak aseries villages is,ineffect, The après-skiscenehere de- hasbeen 8.30am-3.30pm) 0262 / elev 2700m 0262 /elev 2450m 0221 /elev 8.30am-3.30pm Dec-Apr)

(day pass Dizin Resort Tochal

( IR140,000; x are viatheTochal accessed 021-2240 4001-5;www.tochal.org;

(day passIR150,000-400,000; h has more liftsthan 8.30am-3.30pm Jan-Mar) Shemshak Shemshak ﺷﻤﺸﮏ ﺩﻳﺰﻳﻦ

-hotel.com; rUS$60; 2978; d/tr/5-bedrUS$53/71/119; shak fromTehran’s eastern busterminal. should becheaper. far awayyouare. backtoTehran Getting IR80,000 andIR120,000,depending onhow to Shemshak shouldcostbetween bytaxi the aforementioned summerroad.Getting rect Shemshak Rd,which linkstoDizin via 55km northof Tehran onmuch more di- 4WD forthelast10kmorso. Tehran. chains Inwinter you’ll need ora 2½hours’123km orroughly drive from Chalus roadtoget toDizin,which isthen and May. totake Instead, the you’llneed most of late November thetimebetween for roadbutit’sclosed mountain unsealed help withbudget trips. Hamid attheFirouzehHotel ( p115 ) can language newspapers, oraskatyourhotel; costs). Lookfortripsadvertised inEnglish- are ludicrouslyexpensive consideringthe (tours booked foreign through agencies forreasonable pricestion andliftpasses trips thatincludetransport,accommoda- Local travel one-andtwo-day agencies sell &Away There Getting Hotel Dizin Tourist SLEEPING &EATING tennis, mainlyonweekends. as grass-skiing, ridingand hiking, horse decent skis. do hire aguide,theywillensure youget asIR250,000.Ifyou and climbingashigh ataboutcan bealottery, IR80,000 starting for liftsisnotreally anissue. Hiringskis fresh snowfall.ApartfromFriday,waiting serving Dizin. serving one of unstylish resort-style several places the roadtoTehran, theGajereh Resortis villas are also available forUS$230/264. building have better views.Four-/five-bed rooms aren’t inthemain badandthose bottom of thehill.Therecently renovated of atthe –right onlytwohotels inDizinitself AROUND TEHRAN •• Alborz Ski Resorts Resorts Ski AROUND TEHRAN••Alborz Shuttle taxis or minibuses also serve Shem- alsoserve Shuttle orminibuses taxis Shemshak are andDarbansar about Shemshak andDizinare linked byan Dizin boastssummeractivitiessuch Gajereh Resort Resort Gajereh ps ( x (Hotel Jahangardi; (Hotel Jahangardi; 0261-521 2232;www.gajereh ) About 2kmdown pi ) Thisisone x 0262-521

133 TEHRAN TEHRAN the above - ‘Do the right thingwithourcontent.’ the above-‘Doright thetermsandconditionsonoursiteforalongerwayofsaying youknow,orresell it.See everyone site,massemailitto only. Inotherwords,pleasedon’tuploadthischaptertoapeer-to-peer Inreturn, wethinkit’sfairtoaskyouuseitforpersonal,non-commercialpurposes restricted. © LonelyPlanetPublications. iteasierforyoutouse,accessthischapterisnotdigitally Tomake 134 © LonelyPlanetPublications

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