© Lonely Planet Publications 369 DIRECTORY Directory

PRACTICALITIES

CONTENTS Electrical current is 220V AC, 50Hz. Wall sockets are the European, two round- Accommodation 369 pin type. Activities 371 Business Hours 374 All English-language daily newspapers Calendars 375 in Iran are government-run and avail- Children 375 able only in Tehran and some other Climate Charts 376 large cities. They include the Iran Daily Courses 377 and Iran News, both of which offer good Customs 377 international coverage; Kayhan Inter- Dangers & Annoyances 377 national, which gives new meaning to Embassies & Consulates 380 ‘hardline’; and the Tehran Times, which Festivals & Events 382 cleaves to the government line. Food 383 All Iranian broadcasters are controlled Gay & Lesbian Travellers 383 by the state. However, many Iranians Holidays 383 have access to satellite TV, including Insurance 385 many stations broadcasting in Farsi Internet Access 386 from North America. Legal Matters 386 On Iranian TV, channels 1 to 4 are na- Maps 386 tional, 5 and 6 province-based. Channel Money 387 4 has 10 minutes of news in English at Photography & Video 390 midnight. Most hotels have the 24-hour Post 390 IRINN news channel, which has a news- Shopping 391 ticker in English. Telephone 391 Time 393 Good frequencies for the BBC World Toilets 393 Service (www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice Tourist Information 393 /schedules) include 11760Hz, 15575Hz Travellers With Disabilities 393 and 1413kHz; and for VOA (www Visas 393 .voanews.com) 11740Hz and 15195kHz. Women Travellers 396 Iran uses the metric system. A conver- sion chart is on the inside front cover. ACCOMMODATION Iran has a reasonable choice of accommo- dation, from tiny cells in noisy mosafer- serve mainly as a guide, see the boxed text, khanehs (basic lodging houses) to luxury p388 for details. rooms in world-class hotels. Camping, Dual-pricing or not, it’s possible to engage however, is almost nonexistent, and don’t in a bit of friendly negotiation, especially expect anything resembling an eco-resort. during the low season between mid-Octo- The Orwellian-sounding Ministry of Cul- ber and early March. Having said that, we ture & Islamic Guidance categorises most found that in most of Iran getting anything hotels and decides what they can charge. more than a nominal discount on an otagh Up until recently, in midrange and top- (room) seemed as difficult as negotiating an end establishments foreign guests have had end to the nuclear crisis. If dual-pricing is to pay more than Iranians for the same still happening, you could try asking for a room. However, this officially mandated discount for longer stays, or learn the Farsi practice of dual-pricing looked like it was numbers so you can point out the difference coming to an end as this book went to press, between local and foreign prices (most hotels which means the prices in this book might have Iranian and foreign prices displayed in © Lonely Planet Publications 369 DIRECTORY Directory

PRACTICALITIES

CONTENTS Electrical current is 220V AC, 50Hz. Wall sockets are the European, two round- Accommodation 369 pin type. Activities 371 Business Hours 374 All English-language daily newspapers Calendars 375 in Iran are government-run and avail- Children 375 able only in Tehran and some other Climate Charts 376 large cities. They include the Iran Daily Courses 377 and Iran News, both of which offer good Customs 377 international coverage; Kayhan Inter- Dangers & Annoyances 377 national, which gives new meaning to Embassies & Consulates 380 ‘hardline’; and the Tehran Times, which Festivals & Events 382 cleaves to the government line. Food 383 All Iranian broadcasters are controlled Gay & Lesbian Travellers 383 by the state. However, many Iranians Holidays 383 have access to satellite TV, including Insurance 385 many stations broadcasting in Farsi Internet Access 386 from North America. Legal Matters 386 On Iranian TV, channels 1 to 4 are na- Maps 386 tional, 5 and 6 province-based. Channel Money 387 4 has 10 minutes of news in English at Photography & Video 390 midnight. Most hotels have the 24-hour Post 390 IRINN news channel, which has a news- Shopping 391 ticker in English. Telephone 391 Time 393 Good frequencies for the BBC World Toilets 393 Service (www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice Tourist Information 393 /schedules) include 11760Hz, 15575Hz Travellers With Disabilities 393 and 1413kHz; and for VOA (www Visas 393 .voanews.com) 11740Hz and 15195kHz. Women Travellers 396 Iran uses the metric system. A conver- sion chart is on the inside front cover. ACCOMMODATION Iran has a reasonable choice of accommo- dation, from tiny cells in noisy mosafer- serve mainly as a guide, see the boxed text, khanehs (basic lodging houses) to luxury p388 for details. rooms in world-class hotels. Camping, Dual-pricing or not, it’s possible to engage however, is almost nonexistent, and don’t in a bit of friendly negotiation, especially expect anything resembling an eco-resort. during the low season between mid-Octo- The Orwellian-sounding Ministry of Cul- ber and early March. Having said that, we ture & Islamic Guidance categorises most found that in most of Iran getting anything hotels and decides what they can charge. more than a nominal discount on an otagh Up until recently, in midrange and top- (room) seemed as difficult as negotiating an end establishments foreign guests have had end to the nuclear crisis. If dual-pricing is to pay more than Iranians for the same still happening, you could try asking for a room. However, this officially mandated discount for longer stays, or learn the Farsi practice of dual-pricing looked like it was numbers so you can point out the difference coming to an end as this book went to press, between local and foreign prices (most hotels which means the prices in this book might have Iranian and foreign prices displayed in DIRECTORY hosts once youget home willbegreatly ap- inappropriate. be ing cashforsuch accommodation might presents toexpress yourgratitude,aspay- worth comingtoIranprepared withsmall that sucksyouinto‘real’ It’s homestays. to encounter heart-warminghospitality As youget off thebeaten trackyou’re likely for theday.Check-outtimeisusually 2pm. get itbackifyou’re headingoutof town port overnight sokeep aphotocopy, and carry anemergency stash. have toiletpaper,butyoushould always usually provided. Mostmidrange hotels better placessoapand(small)towelsare reduce your chances of In itchy surprises. bagcan matandsheet orsleeping sleeping Using and/orstained. be semi-clean alight andmattresses cansometimes tion sheets euros. Inthecheapest budget accommoda- tobepushing manybacktorialor seems we visited, thefallingUSdollar though book are what thehotels were listing when paid in)rials.Thecurrencies listed inthis will accept(andsometimesrequire tobe lars, andincreasingly they ineuros,though places often quote theirpricesinUSdol- brackets. mostly beinthemidrange andtop-end willtake andwill timetomaterialise, ised of newhotels thegovernment hasprom- Yazd, Mashhad andShiraz. The‘hundreds’ worst, exceptionsinclude whilenotable Abbas, EsfahanandKashan are amongthe tels tocreate effective competition.Bandar mostcitiesdon’thavecause ho- enough met withalookof ‘so?’whenwetriedit. reception). wasusually thistactic Though 370 Sending postcardsand photostoyour Sending Hotels willalmostalwayskeep yourpass- For foreigners, midrange andtop-end The reluctance tobargain ispartlybe- demand. Wequote high-seasonprices(notNoRuzprices)throughoutthisbook. Yazdalong theCaspian whileinhotplaceslike Seacoastcanskyrocket, and Bampricesfallwith (low season)rate, andstaythatwayuntilOctober. There are afew exceptions. Insummerprices madness ofthe13-dayholidayperiodisover you’llfindpricesrisebyabout20% fromthewinter highest. NoRuzalsomarkstheannualgovernment-approved priceincrease, andafter allthe theCaspian SeacoastandYazd, Island,Esfahan, such asKish are andpricesare packed, attheir the beginning ofspring. Fromafew daysbefore NoRuz,hotels inpopularholidaydestinations, beforeand continuesthroughwinter NoRuz(IranianNewYear, untilshortly on21March)and There are twoclear inOctober seasons inIran,withacoupleofotherspikes. Lowseasonstarts THE SEASONALSWING DIRECTORY ••Accommodation DIRECTORY introduction. maybeableThe office towrite aletter of not accompaniedbyarecognised guide. tourist informationoffice first ( p393 ) if still discuss plans withtheprovincial tocamp,should eers, whoobviouslyneed facilitiesandborders.tary of steer clear tocamprough, mili- choose attention fromtheauthorities.Ifyoudo camping anywhere willdrawunwanted else you canmake yourselflooklike anomad, few campinggrounds,andunless official holiday period. thereHowever, are very scattered parksduringtheNoRuz through Iranians love them tents, andyou’llsee Camping hover upwardsof US$80. $US80 (IR746,000or€54);top-endlistings US$26(IR242,000or€17)andbetween (about US$25or€16);midrange isroughly est up;budget isgenerally uptoIR220,000 is presented inbudget order,fromcheap- preciated. Allaccommodation inthisbook As wellas BUDGET Hotels in thebudget range, you’re unlikely toget side, double bedsare almostunheard of ing onyournegotiating skills.Onthedown go uptoabout IR180,000/220,000,depend- IR80,000/100,000 forasingle/doubleand beworking. almost certainly a phone. Theheatingandhotwater will (Iranian channels only),fridge andmaybe a shower(usuallyhot)plusair-con, aTV have bathroom withatleast anattached budget range. placesyounormally Inthese two-star hotels have roomsthatfallintothe Long-distance trekkersLong-distance andmountain- Prices inthisrange atabout start mosaferkhanehs, basicone-and lonelyplanet.com afraid toaskforfresh sheets. hairstelltale onyourpillowanddon’tbe ous astheycouldbe,sowatch outforthose breakfast andsomeplacesare notasfastidi- lonelyplanet.com the total price.the total we’ve though included thisin and service, US$240/300. Some hotels add 17%fortax for asingle/double andrisingtoabout fromabout US$85/100 the West,starting ards, butpretty reasonable of bythose women. segregatedset swimmingtimesformenand poolsdohavehotels whose water willhave ally filled.Meanwhile better top-end those with swimmingpoolsthatare actu- never like you establishments totease Gees–era typically blandmodern-hotel style. Bee placesbeforeish these they’re refitted in out-dated thatit’salmostretro-cool. Rel- isnowso Gees, décor which, like theBee maintain accidentally revolution. Several Many of Iran’stophotels pre-date the1979 TOP END nati worthaimingfor,areand those the present; trynegotiating. more glorious pastthanthebeaten-around in thisrange charge rates thatreflect a Like a40-somethingboxer, alotof places double andgouptoasmuch asUS$60/85. ataboutUS$15/20forasingle/ Prices start bathplugsareplaces, though along-shot. included. You’llfindtoiletpaperinmost able restaurant, andbreakfast willoften be sche Welt).There beareason- even might WorldandDeut- (sometimes withBBC aphone,fridgealmost certainly andTV room withhotshowerandtoilet, four-star placeswillhave aprivate bath- hotels,Most two-star andallthree- and MIDRANGE at least oneEnglishspeaker.at least they are usuallyfairvalueandoften employ varyconsiderably but hangardi). Standards ment-run TouristInn(Mehmansara Ja- Most townsof decentsizehave agovern- season. be excellentvalueoutsidethehigh of modern‘apartmenthotels’, which can this range ishometoagrowingnumber Esfahan andKashan. Theupperendof the first exampleshave recently openedin Prices are astronomicalbyIranianstand- The mostcharismatic midrange places, (traditional)hotels. Yazd has manyand son- mosaferkhanehs In afew cities,includingEsfahan,some price. it allowstheownertorackupahigher Useless are often oldTVs addedjustbecause cost IR30,000(US$3.30or€2)toIR130,000. Simple, private rooms,perhapswithasink, bed inanoisy,grotty,male-onlydorm. shower. ataroundIR30,000per Pricesstart haveend placeswon’teven acommunal rooms norspoken English. Somebottom- 9pm and6am,whenit’sshut! police –solongasyoudon’tarrive between visit tothelocalAmaken –anarmof the a10-minute toorganise through enough anywherepolice tostay cheap. That’seasy Yasuj, written youneed permission fromthe and Bushehr,Khorramabad others, notably foreigners theboxed (see text, p325 ). In generally youcan varysomewhatbut dominated. Standards mehmanpazirs adormorbasichotel, andsimilar houses’), little to compare itwith.But facedwith well,it’sacoast andtheyhavebecause, much lowerprofile and amore localfeel. Hawaii’, whileQeshmIsland( p303 ) hasa KishIsland ( and scarves, p292 ) is‘Iran’s undeterred bywomeninorange jumpsuits potential funoutof lyingonthem.Ifyou’re regation of thebeaches takes much of the must seg- swim infullhejab) andsexual iftheywere,even thedress code(women Iranians are notreally sun-worshippers and Beach Going ACTIVITIES otagh oflish soit’sjustacase askingaroundfor an arestays unmarked inFarsi letaloneEng- bookings are virtuallyessential. byupto400%and in summerpricesrise pricescanbevery reasonable,season but homes, gardensorabove shops.Inthelow apartments(‘suites’) intheir self-contained locals renting outrooms,bungalowsand frequented by Iranian tourists,you’llfind northwestern rural resort-villages most coastandinthose Sea Along theCaspian &Homestays Suites are Iran’s mostbasicaccommodationoptions &Mehmanpazirs Mosaferkhanehs Iranians love coast( theCaspian p174 ) Some suites andalmostallrooms/home- mosaferkhanehs . Foodisgenerally notincluded. DIRECTORY •• Activities ••Activities DIRECTORY . Bothare very much male- aren’t allowedtoaccept not (literally ‘travellers’ expectprivate bath-

371 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY hosts once youget home willbegreatly ap- inappropriate. be ing cashforsuch accommodation might presents toexpress yourgratitude,aspay- worth comingtoIranprepared withsmall that sucksyouinto‘real’ It’s homestays. to encounter heart-warminghospitality As youget off thebeaten trackyou’re likely for theday.Check-outtimeisusually 2pm. get itbackifyou’re headingoutof town port overnight sokeep aphotocopy, and carry anemergency stash. have toiletpaper,butyoushould always usually provided. Mostmidrange hotels better placessoapand(small)towelsare reduce your chances of In itchy surprises. bagcan matandsheet orsleeping sleeping Using and/orstained. be semi-clean alight andmattresses cansometimes tion sheets euros. Inthecheapest budget accommoda- tobepushing manybacktorialor seems we visited, thefallingUSdollar though book are what thehotels were listing when paid in)rials.Thecurrencies listed inthis will accept(andsometimesrequire tobe lars, andincreasingly they ineuros,though places often quote theirpricesinUSdol- brackets. mostly beinthemidrange andtop-end willtake andwill timetomaterialise, ised of newhotels thegovernment hasprom- Yazd, Mashhad andShiraz. The‘hundreds’ worst, exceptionsinclude whilenotable Abbas, EsfahanandKashan are amongthe tels tocreate effective competition.Bandar mostcitiesdon’thavecause ho- enough met withalookof ‘so?’whenwetriedit. reception). wasusually thistactic Though 370 Sending postcardsand photostoyour Sending Hotels willalmostalwayskeep yourpass- For foreigners, midrange andtop-end The reluctance tobargain ispartlybe- demand. Wequote high-seasonprices(notNoRuzprices)throughoutthisbook. Yazdalong theCaspian whileinhotplaceslike Seacoastcanskyrocket, and Bampricesfallwith (low season)rate, andstaythatwayuntilOctober. There are afew exceptions. Insummerprices madness ofthe13-dayholidayperiodisover you’llfindpricesrisebyabout20% fromthewinter highest. NoRuzalsomarkstheannualgovernment-approved priceincrease, andafter allthe theCaspian SeacoastandYazd, Island,Esfahan, such asKish are andpricesare packed, attheir the beginning ofspring. Fromafew daysbefore NoRuz,hotels inpopularholidaydestinations, beforeand continuesthroughwinter NoRuz(IranianNewYear, untilshortly on21March)and There are twoclear inOctober seasons inIran,withacoupleofotherspikes. Lowseasonstarts THE SEASONALSWING DIRECTORY ••Accommodation DIRECTORY introduction. maybeableThe office towrite aletter of not accompaniedbyarecognised guide. tourist informationoffice first ( p393 ) if still discuss plans withtheprovincial tocamp,should eers, whoobviouslyneed facilitiesandborders.tary of steer clear tocamprough, mili- choose attention fromtheauthorities.Ifyoudo camping anywhere willdrawunwanted else you canmake yourselflooklike anomad, few campinggrounds,andunless official holiday period. thereHowever, are very scattered parksduringtheNoRuz through Iranians love them tents, andyou’llsee Camping hover upwardsof US$80. $US80 (IR746,000or€54);top-endlistings US$26(IR242,000or€17)andbetween (about US$25or€16);midrange isroughly est up;budget isgenerally uptoIR220,000 is presented inbudget order,fromcheap- preciated. Allaccommodation inthisbook in thebudget range, you’re unlikely toget side, double bedsare almostunheard of ing onyournegotiating skills.Onthedown go uptoabout IR180,000/220,000,depend- IR80,000/100,000 forasingle/doubleand beworking. almost certainly a phone. Theheatingandhotwater will (Iranian channels only),fridge andmaybe a shower(usuallyhot)plusair-con, aTV have bathroom withatleast anattached budget range. placesyounormally Inthese two-star hotels have roomsthatfallintothe As wellas BUDGET Hotels Long-distance trekkersLong-distance andmountain- Prices inthisrange atabout start mosaferkhanehs, basicone-and lonelyplanet.com afraid toaskforfresh sheets. hairstelltale onyourpillowanddon’tbe ous astheycouldbe,sowatch outforthose breakfast andsomeplacesare notasfastidi- lonelyplanet.com the total price.the total we’ve though included thisin and service, US$240/300. Some hotels add 17%fortax for asingle/double andrisingtoabout fromabout US$85/100 the West,starting ards, butpretty reasonable of bythose women. segregatedset swimmingtimesformenand poolsdohavehotels whose water willhave ally filled.Meanwhile better top-end those with swimmingpoolsthatare actu- never like you establishments totease Gees–era typically blandmodern-hotel style. Bee placesbeforeish these they’re refitted in out-dated thatit’salmostretro-cool. Rel- isnowso Gees, décor which, like theBee maintain accidentally revolution. Several Many of Iran’stophotels pre-date the1979 TOP END oneEnglishspeaker.at least they are usuallyfairvalueandoften employ varyconsiderably but hangardi). Standards ment-run TouristInn(Mehmansara Ja- Most townsof decentsizehave agovern- season. be excellentvalueoutsidethehigh of modern‘apartmenthotels’, which can this range ishometoagrowingnumber Esfahan andKashan. Theupperendof the first exampleshave recently openedin nati worthaimingfor,areand those the present; trynegotiating. more glorious pastthanthebeaten-around in thisrange charge rates thatreflect a Like a40-somethingboxer, alotof places double andgouptoasmuch asUS$60/85. ataboutUS$15/20forasingle/ Prices start bathplugsareplaces, though along-shot. included. You’llfindtoiletpaperinmost able restaurant, andbreakfast willoften be sche Welt).There beareason- even might WorldandDeut- (sometimes withBBC aphone,fridgealmost certainly andTV room withhotshowerandtoilet, four-star placeswillhave aprivate bath- hotels,Most two-star andallthree- and MIDRANGE Prices are astronomicalbyIranianstand- The mostcharismatic midrange places, (traditional)hotels. Yazd has manyand son- 9pm and6am,whenit’sshut! police –solongasyoudon’tarrive between visit tothelocalAmaken –anarmof the a10-minute toorganise through enough anywherepolice tostay cheap. That’seasy Yasuj, written youneed permission fromthe and Bushehr,Khorramabad others, notably foreigners theboxed (see text, p325 ). In mosaferkhanehs In afew cities,includingEsfahan,some price. it allowstheownertorackupahigher Useless are often oldTVs addedjustbecause cost IR30,000(US$3.30or€2)toIR130,000. Simple, private rooms,perhapswithasink, bed inanoisy,grotty,male-onlydorm. shower. ataroundIR30,000per Pricesstart haveend placeswon’teven acommunal rooms norspoken English. Somebottom- generally youcan varysomewhatbut dominated. Standards mehmanpazirs adormorbasichotel, andsimilar houses’), little to compare itwith.But facedwith well,it’sacoast andtheyhavebecause, much lowerprofile and amore localfeel. Hawaii’, whileQeshmIsland( p303 ) hasa KishIsland ( and scarves, p292 ) is‘Iran’s undeterred bywomeninorange jumpsuits potential funoutof lyingonthem.Ifyou’re regation of thebeaches takes much of the must seg- swim infullhejab) andsexual iftheywere,even thedress code(women Iranians are notreally sun-worshippers and Beach Going ACTIVITIES otagh oflish soit’sjustacase askingaroundfor an arestays unmarked inFarsi letaloneEng- bookings are virtuallyessential. byupto400%and in summerpricesrise pricescanbevery reasonable,season but homes, gardensorabove shops.Inthelow apartments(‘suites’) intheir self-contained locals renting outrooms,bungalowsand frequented by Iranian tourists,you’llfind northwestern rural resort-villages most coastandinthose Sea Along theCaspian &Homestays Suites are Iran’s mostbasicaccommodationoptions &Mehmanpazirs Mosaferkhanehs Iranians love coast( theCaspian p174 ) Some suites andalmostallrooms/home- mosaferkhanehs . Foodisgenerally notincluded. DIRECTORY •• Activities ••Activities DIRECTORY . Bothare very much male- aren’t allowedtoaccept not (literally ‘travellers’ expectprivate bath-

371 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY for mountain walkers.for mountain attractive lake near thesummitand isideal Ithasan Mountains. of thesplendidZagros (4070m; p212 ) isthe mostaccessiblepeak before out. setting guides andequipmentinTabriz ( p146 Shahr ( ) p160 it’swortharranging ), though ing peakusuallyapproached fromMeshgin class challenge. northernface:aworld- its mostdifficult with an800mnear-vertical granite wallon Alam; p175 ) isIran’smosttechnical peak peaks over 4000m.At4850mAlamKuh(Mt aroundanother70 surrounding itcontain tude. ThemagnificentAlborzMountains of foramountain suchcal difficulty alti- reaching thesummitisnotof great techni- p131 ) hasaclassicFuji-esqueprofile, but best-known peak,MtDamavand (5671m; to late August isthebestclimbingseason. trek. June embarking onamountain Early should alwayscheck thesituationbefore equipment, experienceoraguide,butyou be climbedbyanyonefitwithoutspecial them permanentlysnowcapped.Many can someof mountains, high boasts several It maycomeasa tolearnthatIran surprise Mountaineering sunk duringtheIran–IraqWar. range of reefs Qeshmplusthree off ships zephyr of breeze. More appealingare the ited, particularlywhenthere’s more thana the numberof dive sites aroundKish islim- ( p305 ) inthePersian Gulf. Readers report to KishIsland( p295 ) andQeshmIsland Scuba diving andsnorkelling islimited Diving Europe andAsia. landers brave enroute between thetraffic ing thepedals,butasteady stream of over- touring ( p406 ). You’llfindfew localspush- routes aresecondary well-suited tocycle truck-dominated, butthewell-surfaced Iran’s main canbeterrifyinglyhighways Cycling time. to spendyourvisa rainwethinktherestant are better places uninspiringarchitecturesand, andcon- rubbish-strewna scraggy, ribbonof black 372 Too tame forclimbers,Too tame MtOshturan Mt Sabalan(4811m)isanelegantly soar- Northeast of Tehran, and Iran’shighest DIRECTORY ••Activities DIRECTORY Mountaineering Federation ofIran Mountaineering avoided. are vaBaluchestan, best border inSistan Taftan (4042m)volcano,nearthePakistani south of Kerman, andthesnowcappedMt (4374m)inthePayeh Mt Lalezar Mountains, MtHezardown security-wise, (4420m)and Mt GashMastan (4460m).Untilthingssettle peaks over of 4000m,thehighest thembeing the Denarange, northwestof Shiraz, with37 westof Mountains, Esfahan,or in theZagros (4337m) you couldinvestigate MtZardkouh climbed. Ifyoufancyyourselfasatrailblazer, in Iran,buttheyare very ifever, seldom, wonderful to read. Highly recommended. toread. Highly wonderful maps –by‘Nader’,whoselovefortheIranianmountainsis –somewith reports for ‘Iran’andyou’llfindexcellenttrip Iranianpeaks,includingMtDamavandandSabalan. several and from some mountain guides. guides. and fromsomemountain equipment canberented atDarband( p113 ) ing Shop ( p177 ) inQazvin.Alimited range of Well-stocked shopsinclude relativelybought inexpensively inIran. andclimbingequipment canbe Camping EQUIPMENT RENTAL &PURCHASE Summit Post Peakware also details. See climbing clubsandtheircontact opposite . logsinEnglishandalonglistoflocal but hassometrip Mountain Zone climbing mapsfortheAlam Kuharea are maps on Iranavailable inEnglish, though There are few trekking ormountain-climbing MAPS other work. tion andwhetherthedonkey for isneeded ment, dependingonhowremote yourloca- US$25 andUS$80adaytocarryyour equip- a donkey andhandlerwillcostbetween guide willchargea you wanttoundertake. AnEnglish-speaking of thetripanddifficulty of the route thelength the group,equipmentneeded, gaining skills,thenumberof climbers in The costof aguidedependsonyourbar- GUIDES &PORTERS pp102-3; English pageduesoon. fed.com inFarsi) TheIranmountainfederation’s site; St, Ferdosi Sq) Helpful websites: There are of thousands othermountains x (www.peakware.com) Including summit logs for (www.peakware.com) Including summitlogsfor inTehran andtheNakhajir Camp- 021-830 1037;4thfl,cnrEnqelabAve &Ferdosi (www.summitpost.org) Search ‘objects’ ‘objects’ (www.summitpost.org) Search (www.mountainzone.ir) MostlyinFarsi, bout US$50 a day, and bout US$50aday,and Varzesh Kooh Varzesh lonelyplanet.com (www.iranmount

(Map (Map some peaksandwalkingroutes marked. has amapof with theAlborzMountains Shenasioutline, whileGita ( p386 ) inTehran available in thevalleysbehindGorgan thecommonly saved onmapsalocalguide. Forhiking ( p175 ). Elsewhere, spendthemoneyyou available attheclimbingcentre inRudbarak lonelyplanet.com challenge. TheKermanshah touristinfor- rock-face istheregion’s classicclimbing ancient inscriptions,Farhad Tarash ( p200 ) Bisotun where, justbeyondacollectionof around Kermanshah. culminate at Thecliffs andoverhangs cliffs rocks, sink-holes,sheer of Tehran. It’sbusyonFridays. cal climbtothesummit,withstunningviews butnotespeciallytechni-mer it’sadifficult up forclimbingandreports are thatinsum- Hut.Thelower25mhave set been Shervin wallawait;there’s ahuthereShervin called where lowwallsandthe200m-high several e Yakhchal (N35°85’58.0”,E51°44’48.0”), toTehransible placestotry.Closest isBand- thing, there are excellentandacces- several If clambering about onrocksismore your Rock Climbing Further afield,there are someawesome speak English,orcanfind someonewhodoes. Federation theMountaineering peoplearemountain climbingandtrekking, amineofinformationandadvice. Staff Ave,15 No17,8thBaharestan offPasdaran St,Tehran; run by Ahmad Shirmohammad, an experienced climberwhospeaksEnglish. run byAhmadShirmohammad,anexperienced expeditions andmore. MountainsincludeDamavand,Sabalan,Zardkouh and‘anymountainyouwanttoclimb’.Itis desert trips, trekking and eco-cum-sociological tours. andeco-cum-sociological trekking trips, desert Sepid Mountaineering Company Mountaineering Federation ofIran Mountaineering &TourismKassa Araz Adventure Tours Aftab Kalout agencies, pleaseletusknowatwww.lonelyplanet.com/contact. inIran.Ifyouhavetaineering andeco-tourism good(orbad)experienceswiththeseorother We’ve hadpositive feedback moun- aboutthe followingcompanies,whichspecialiseintrekking, Some ofthe travel agencieslisted underTours( p415 andclimbingtrips.) canarrangewalking OUTDOOR &ADVENTUREAGENCIES the cookhadmadeitwithin45minutesofMtEverest summit’.Mostequipmentisprovided. climberMohsenAghajani speaksEnglish.Onereaderexperienced whoclimbedMtDamavandwith Arazwrotethat‘even and plusculturaltours. Director andcamel-trekking, readers. climbing,horse- Itoffers awiderangeofmountaineering, St, Tehran; Alley, off Shariati St, Tehran) This private trekking agency offers a full range of trekking and climbing tours, desert St,Tehran)Alley, offShariati andclimbingtours,desert agencyoffers afullrangeoftrekking trekking Thisprivate and toursby horseback. nomad cross-country skiing, andcrew organisemountaineering, Raeesi sightseeing.com) BasedinShiraz,Abdollah Golestan Province h 8am-4pm Sat-Wed, 8am-12.30pm Thu) This helpful outdoor tourism agency has been recommended by agencyhasbeenrecommended by 8am-4pm Sat-Wed,8am-12.30pmThu)Thishelpfuloutdoortourism ( x 021-6648 8374; www.kalout.com) Professional Tehran-based021-6648 8374;www.kalout.com) outfitspecialisingineco-tourism, (Map p110 ; p110 (Map map gives a basic mapgives abasic x ( Mp pp102-3; (Map x 021-7760 9292; www.araz.org; 1st fl, 1 Chahar Baradran Alley, North Bahar Bahar Baradran Alley,North 021-7760 9292;www.araz.org;1stfl,1Chahar Mp p94; (Map 0711-235 5939;0917-313 2926;www.sepidtour.com orwww.iran h x x 8.30am-6.30pm Sat-Wed) Experts inanythingrelating to 8.30am-6.30pm Sat-Wed)Experts 021-2256 9995-96;www.iranmountfed.com inFarsi; facilities andequipmentforhire. There is ( p133 ) –are easilyaccessible,have reliable Shemshak ( p133 ), Dizin( p133 ) andTochal Four downhillfieldsnearTehran –( p132 ), Western fields,skiinginIranisabargain. is often powderyand,compared with islong,thesnow fields inIran.Theseason There are more than20functioningski Skiing is onlineatwww.summitpost.org. climbs peoplewhoknowthese place tomeet Ganjnameh ( p205 ), nearHamadan. Agood good ice-climbsinwinter, mostaccessiblyat .mountainzone.ir. Many waterfalls become descriptionofis athorough routes atwww (Mt Alam; p175 ) isamajor expedition;there wallof posts.The800m-high AlamKuh tary looking climbscanoverlook sensitive mili- innocuous fices before outascertain setting check withpoliceortouristinformationof- todoso.few localsseem to You’dbewise easy toreach andtempting toclimb,although Bijar ( p189 ( ) andKhorramabad p208 ) are equipment. with thelocalclimbers clubforsupportand mation office ( p195 ) canputyouintouch 021-7751 0463; www.kassa.ir/tourism; 9 Naghdi 021-7751 0463;www.kassa.ir/tourism; The rockycanyonsaroundMaku ( p137 ), DIRECTORY •• Activities ••Activities DIRECTORY

373 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY for mountain walkers.for mountain attractive lake near thesummitand isideal Ithasan Mountains. of thesplendidZagros (4070m; p212 ) isthe mostaccessiblepeak before out. setting guides andequipmentinTabriz ( p146 Shahr ( ) p160 it’swortharranging ), though ing peakusuallyapproached fromMeshgin class challenge. northernface:aworld- its mostdifficult with an800mnear-vertical granite wallon Alam; p175 ) isIran’smosttechnical peak peaks over 4000m.At4850mAlamKuh(Mt aroundanother70 surrounding itcontain tude. ThemagnificentAlborzMountains of foramountain suchcal difficulty alti- reaching thesummitisnotof great techni- p131 ) hasaclassicFuji-esqueprofile, but best-known peak,MtDamavand (5671m; to late August isthebestclimbingseason. trek. June embarking onamountain Early should alwayscheck thesituationbefore equipment, experienceoraguide,butyou be climbedbyanyonefitwithoutspecial them permanentlysnowcapped.Many can someof mountains, high boasts several It maycomeasa tolearnthatIran surprise Mountaineering sunk duringtheIran–IraqWar. range of reefs Qeshmplusthree off ships zephyr of breeze. More appealingare the ited, particularlywhenthere’s more thana the numberof dive sites aroundKish islim- ( p305 ) inthePersian Gulf. Readers report to KishIsland( p295 ) andQeshmIsland Scuba diving andsnorkelling islimited Diving Europe andAsia. landers brave enroute between thetraffic ing thepedals,butasteady stream of over- touring ( p406 ). You’llfindfew localspush- routes aresecondary well-suited tocycle truck-dominated, butthewell-surfaced Iran’s main canbeterrifyinglyhighways Cycling time. to spendyourvisa rainwethinktherestant are better places uninspiringarchitecturesand, andcon- rubbish-strewna scraggy, ribbonof black 372 Too tame forclimbers,Too tame MtOshturan Mt Sabalan(4811m)isanelegantly soar- Northeast of Tehran, and Iran’shighest DIRECTORY ••Activities DIRECTORY Mountaineering Federation ofIran Mountaineering avoided. are vaBaluchestan, best border inSistan Taftan (4042m)volcano,nearthePakistani south of Kerman, andthesnowcappedMt (4374m)inthePayeh Mt Lalezar Mountains, MtHezardown security-wise, (4420m)and Mt GashMastan (4460m).Untilthingssettle peaks over of 4000m,thehighest thembeing the Denarange, northwestof Shiraz, with37 westof Mountains, Esfahan,or in theZagros (4337m) you couldinvestigate MtZardkouh climbed. Ifyoufancyyourselfasatrailblazer, in Iran,buttheyare very ifever, seldom, wonderful to read. Highly recommended. toread. Highly wonderful maps –by‘Nader’,whoselovefortheIranianmountainsis –somewith reports for ‘Iran’andyou’llfindexcellenttrip Iranianpeaks,includingMtDamavandandSabalan. several and from some mountain guides. guides. and fromsomemountain equipment canberented atDarband( p113 ) ing Shop ( p177 ) inQazvin.Alimited range of Well-stocked shopsinclude relativelybought inexpensively inIran. andclimbingequipment canbe Camping EQUIPMENT RENTAL &PURCHASE Summit Post Peakware Mountain Zone climbing mapsfortheAlam Kuharea are maps on Iranavailable inEnglish, though There are few trekking ormountain-climbing MAPS other work. tion andwhetherthedonkey for isneeded ment, dependingonhowremote yourloca- US$25 andUS$80adaytocarryyour equip- a donkey andhandlerwillcostbetween guide willchargea you wanttoundertake. AnEnglish-speaking of thetripanddifficulty of the route thelength the group,equipmentneeded, gaining skills,thenumberof climbers in The costof aguidedependsonyourbar- GUIDES &PORTERS St, Ferdosi Sq) pp102-3; also details. See climbing clubsandtheircontact opposite . logsinEnglishandalonglistoflocal but hassometrip English pageduesoon. fed.com inFarsi) TheIranmountainfederation’s site; Helpful websites: There are of thousands othermountains x (www.peakware.com) Including summit logs for (www.peakware.com) Including summitlogsfor inTehran andtheNakhajir Camp- 021-830 1037;4thfl,cnrEnqelabAve &Ferdosi (www.summitpost.org) Search ‘objects’ ‘objects’ (www.summitpost.org) Search (www.mountainzone.ir) MostlyinFarsi, bout US$50 a day, and bout US$50aday,and Varzesh Kooh Varzesh lonelyplanet.com (www.iranmount

(Map (Map available in thevalleysbehindGorgan thecommonly saved onmapsalocalguide. Forhiking ( p175 ). Elsewhere, spendthemoneyyou available attheclimbingcentre inRudbarak lonelyplanet.com challenge. TheKermanshah touristinfor- rock-face istheregion’s classicclimbing ancient inscriptions,Farhad Tarash ( p200 ) Bisotun where, justbeyondacollectionof around Kermanshah. culminate at Thecliffs andoverhangs cliffs rocks, sink-holes,sheer of Tehran. It’sbusyonFridays. cal climbtothesummit,withstunningviews butnotespeciallytechni-mer it’sadifficult up forclimbingandreports are thatinsum- Hut.Thelower25mhave set been Shervin wallawait;there’s ahuthereShervin called where lowwallsandthe200m-high several e Yakhchal (N35°85’58.0”,E51°44’48.0”), toTehransible placestotry.Closest isBand- thing, there are excellentandacces- several If clambering about onrocksismore your Rock Climbing some peaksandwalkingroutes marked. has amapof with theAlborzMountains Shenasioutline, whileGita ( p386 ) inTehran Further afield,there are someawesome speak English,orcanfind someonewhodoes. Federation theMountaineering peoplearemountain climbingandtrekking, amineofinformationandadvice. Staff Ave,15 No17,8thBaharestan offPasdaran St,Tehran; run by Ahmad Shirmohammad, an experienced climberwhospeaksEnglish. run byAhmadShirmohammad,anexperienced expeditions andmore. MountainsincludeDamavand,Sabalan,Zardkouh and‘anymountainyouwanttoclimb’.Itis desert trips, trekking and eco-cum-sociological tours. andeco-cum-sociological trekking trips, desert Sepid Mountaineering Company Mountaineering Federation ofIran Mountaineering &TourismKassa Araz Adventure Tours Aftab Kalout agencies, pleaseletusknowatwww.lonelyplanet.com/contact. inIran.Ifyouhavetaineering andeco-tourism good(orbad)experienceswiththeseorother We’ve hadpositive feedback moun- aboutthe followingcompanies,whichspecialiseintrekking, Some ofthe travel agencieslisted underTours( p415 andclimbingtrips.) canarrangewalking OUTDOOR &ADVENTUREAGENCIES the cookhadmadeitwithin45minutesofMtEverest summit’.Mostequipmentisprovided. climberMohsenAghajani speaksEnglish.Onereaderexperienced whoclimbedMtDamavandwith Arazwrotethat‘even and plusculturaltours. Director andcamel-trekking, readers. climbing,horse- Itoffers awiderangeofmountaineering, St, Tehran; Alley, off Shariati St, Tehran) This private trekking agency offers a full range of trekking and climbing tours, desert St,Tehran)Alley, offShariati andclimbingtours,desert agencyoffers afullrangeoftrekking trekking Thisprivate and toursby horseback. nomad cross-country skiing, andcrew organisemountaineering, Raeesi sightseeing.com) BasedinShiraz,Abdollah Golestan Province h 8am-4pm Sat-Wed, 8am-12.30pm Thu) This helpful outdoor tourism agency has been recommended by agencyhasbeenrecommended by 8am-4pm Sat-Wed,8am-12.30pmThu)Thishelpfuloutdoortourism ( x 021-6648 8374; www.kalout.com) Professional Tehran-based021-6648 8374;www.kalout.com) outfitspecialisingineco-tourism, (Map p110 ; p110 (Map map gives a basic mapgives abasic x ( Mp pp102-3; (Map x 021-7760 9292; www.araz.org; 1st fl, 1 Chahar Baradran Alley, North Bahar Bahar Baradran Alley,North 021-7760 9292;www.araz.org;1stfl,1Chahar Mp p94; (Map 0711-235 5939;0917-313 2926;www.sepidtour.com orwww.iran h x x 8.30am-6.30pm Sat-Wed) Experts inanythingrelating to 8.30am-6.30pm Sat-Wed)Experts 021-2256 9995-96;www.iranmountfed.com inFarsi; facilities andequipmentforhire. There is ( p133 ) –are easilyaccessible,have reliable Shemshak ( p133 ), Dizin( p133 ) andTochal Four downhillfieldsnearTehran –( p132 ), Western fields,skiinginIranisabargain. is often powderyand,compared with islong,thesnow fields inIran.Theseason There are more than20functioningski Skiing is onlineatwww.summitpost.org. climbs peoplewhoknowthese place tomeet Ganjnameh ( p205 ), nearHamadan. Agood good ice-climbsinwinter, mostaccessiblyat .mountainzone.ir. Many waterfalls become descriptionofis athorough routes atwww (Mt Alam; p175 ) isamajor expedition;there wallof posts.The800m-high AlamKuh tary looking climbscanoverlook sensitive mili- innocuous fices before outascertain setting check withpoliceortouristinformationof- todoso.few localsseem to You’dbewise easy toreach andtempting toclimb,although Bijar ( p189 ( ) andKhorramabad p208 ) are equipment. with thelocalclimbers clubforsupportand mation office ( p195 ) canputyouintouch 021-7751 0463; www.kassa.ir/tourism; 9 Naghdi 021-7751 0463;www.kassa.ir/tourism; The rockycanyonsaroundMaku ( p137 ), DIRECTORY •• Activities ••Activities DIRECTORY

373 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY mania.com/trave l/tours/ski/history.asp. www.iran for ahistoryof skiinginIran see www.goski.com;and about someslopes,see ( p140 ) andTakht-e Soleiman( ( Gazor Khan p187 p182 ). Day ) andaroundOrumiyeh pian region; aroundMashhad ( p353 ); from ( p171 ( ) andNaharKhoran p339 ) intheCas- Tochal ( p133 ); atKelardasht ( p175 ), Masuleh north of Tehran, aroundDarband( p113 ) and day walks.Possibilitiesexistinthemountains text ( p373 ) forlistingsof companies. for somethingmore theboxed organised see are while probablythebestplacetostart, of variousroutes onwww.summitpost.org be hardtocomeby.Nader’sdescriptions tion. Trekking can information,however, experience acountryandIranisnoexcep- Trekking isarguably thesinglebestwayto Trekking Federation but notclothes,attheresorts. a day.Youcanhire skis,polesandboots, for aroom.SkiliftscostaslittleIR40,000 which charge fromaboutUS$30toUS$100 other daysitshouldbepretty quiet. with diplomatsandexpatsonSaturdays; with IraniansonThursdays andFridays, can lastuntilmid-May. Theslopesare busy (ie late March); aroundTabriz andatDizinit as November andlastsuntiljustafter NoRuz (where mostslopesare located)asearly starts young. popular amongtheaffluent skiingisvery tosay, Needless to beseen. slopestherehigher isusuallyplentyof hair must stillkeep theirheadscovered, buton ing of restrictions ontheslopes.Women presidency in1997cameaconsiderable eas- tothe rise manteaus. ButwithKhatami’s 1988 theimages were of womenskiingin revolution, andafter thebanwaslifted in family home;skiingwasbannedafter the equalareassexually of Iranoutsideof the Chelgerd ( p252 ), west of Esfahan. ( near Sepidan p253 and ) northof Shiraz, and (p205), Mountains smaller fieldsintheZagros Ganjnameh and (p152) Tabriz also gooddownhillskiingavailable near 374 Pasdaran Ave, Tehran). Federation, 8Alley,off IranSki 17Baharetan .ir; Shahid Iran offers manyexcellent one-andtwo- For more the information,contact All theresorts have lodges andhotels, intheAlborzMountains The season The skislopesare alsosomeof themost DIRECTORY ••BusinessHours DIRECTORY

Mp p94; (Map For reviews andcomments x 021-2256 9595;www.skifed Skiing Skiing in smalltowns. and Thursdaymornings. Airline offices otherwise. unless stated accord (more orless)withthefollowinglist daily exceptFriday.Inthisbookhours will 9amandnoon, anything openisbetween until about5pm.Themostlikely timetofind blistering Persian Gulfcoast,doors shut stay from about noonuntilabout4pm;alongthe duringthehotafternoons, close businesses Iranian weekend). During summer,many ing Thursday afternoons andFriday(the but youcan rely clos- onmostbusinesses Opening andclosingtimescanbeerratic, BUSINESS HOURS filters elsewhere. regions, orwater andpurificationtablets scarce, sotake yourownsuppliesindesert misunderstandings. Drinkingwater isoften ofphrases Farsi shouldsmoothover any areas;security anIranianguideorafew you maystumbleacrossmilitary/police/ totake aguide.easiest it’sadvisable forthe many possiblevariations,buteven (see p183 ). There are twomainroutes and anddowntotheCaspian Alborz Mountains youacrossthe tions, includingsometaking forests. andthrough routes across mountains more time,Iranalsooffers longer several ditions canbeorganised ondemand. ranged fromYazd ( p257 ), whilelonger expe- and overnight treks desert canbeeasilyar- Saturday to Thursday, 7.30amtonoon Friday. agencies Travel Telephone offices Shops the lastdinerleaves. 7pm to11pm,orwhenever Restaurants businesses Private Post offices Museums to Wednesday,8amnoonThursday. offices Government Banks close Thursdayafternoon. to haveasiestabetween1pmand3.30pm and possibly 5pm or6pmSaturdaytoWednesday,untilnoon Thursday. 5pm winter,withonedayoff,usuallyMondayorTuesday. 7.30am to12.30pmThursday. Thursday, somemainofficesopenlater. In remote regions, especiallynearborders, The Alamutarea isrich intrekking op- For themore adventurous, with orthose

Open7.30amto1.30pmSaturdayWednesday, Open 9am to 8pm Saturday to Thursday, but likely Open 9amto8pmSaturdayThursday,butlikely Tend toopen8.30am6pmsummer,4pmor Generally 7.30amto3pm Saturdayto Generally Offer lunchnoonto3pm,dinner6pmor Offer Open 9am to 4pm, Saturday to Wednesday, Open9amto4pm,SaturdayWednesday, Generally 7.30am to5pmor6pm Generally Operate8amto8pmor 9pm;earlier Conduct business8amor9amto Conduct Openoffices8amto2pmSaturday lonelyplanet.com endar (andinFarsi numerals).Whenbook- passport willusuallybeinthePersian cal- for yourownreference: inyour thestamp forget tomake anote of theWestern date timeallocated thewholevisa don’t to use details). for below astrians alsohave theirowncalendar(see and Jamada I61428(Muslim).TheZoro- also appeared 21386(Persian) asKhordad newspapers carrythree dates; 23May 2007 some historybooks.As aresult, Iranian indealingwithforeignersis used andin ters; andtheWestern (Gregorian) calendar forIslamicreligiouscalendar isused mat- theMuslimlunar use; ficial andeveryday the Persian solarcalendaristheoneinof- Three calendars are inIran: incommonuse CALENDARS lonelyplanet.com When entering Iranifyou’re planning hhia 3Ag2 e Efn 20Feb-20 Mar same asthose inthePersian calendar. 22Nov-21Dec Except forAndarmaz, whichreplaces Esfand,the monthsoftheZoroastriancalendarare the holy days. As inthe Persian calendar,theZoroastrianyearbegins in March atthevernal equinox. Esfand and presided over byitsown angelorarchangel.The 1st,8th,15thand23rdof eachmonthare days. The weekhasnoplaceinthissystem, andeachofthe30daysmonthisnamedafter Azar The Zoroastriancalendarworkstoasolaryearof12 months of30dayseach,withfive additional Zoroastrian Calendar dates toWestern (Gregorian) onesandviceversa. Islamic(Hijri) Gha’deh andZu-l-Hejjeh. converts The handywebsite www.rabiah.com/convert 23Aug-22Sep Shavval,Zu-l- Sha’ban,Ramazan, (orJamadi-ul-Sami),Rajab, Jamadi-ul-Awai), Jamadi-l-Okhra in Farsi are: Moharram,Safar, Rabi’-ol-Avval, Jamadi-l-Ula(or (orRabi’-ol-Akhar), Rabi’-ol-Osani Approximate with thePersian solar calendar bysome40years. The namesofthe12Muslimcalendar months Jun Shahrivar 22May-21 before theHejira,but is basedonthelunaryearof354or355days,soitcurrently outofstep fromthemonthThe Muslimcalendar, whichisusedtosomeextent inallIslamiccountries,starts Persian Muslim Calendar Khordad Season (tabestan) summer Approximate (bahar) Persian spring Month Season Equivalent Persian monthsare asfollows: Month Year (NoRuz)usuallyfallingon21MarchaccordingtotheWestern calendar. The namesofthe hammed fromMeccatoMedinainAD622.Ithas365days(366every leapyear),withitsNew Equivalent calculated fromthefirstdayofspringinyearHejira,flightProphetMo- The modernPersian solarcalendar,adirect descendantoftheancientZoroastriancalendar,is Persian Calendar IRANIAN CALENDARS Farvardin 21 Mar-20 Apr Ordibehesht 21 Apr-21 May i 22Jun-22Jul Tir odd 23Jul-22Aug Mordad (zamestan) winter (pa’iz) autumn would wanttorelate fairlyclearlytotheir the attractionsoften rather‘adult’.Parents country where journeysare often longand be tryingtokeep children ina entertained ing tohuntabout. Thehardestthingwill wanttobringyourownsavemight hav- on are available you inmostcities,although formula, mostsimplemedicationsandso a while. Nappies (diapers), powders, baby may drive them(andyou)todespairafter of andcuriosity,which much amusement In Iran,foreign children willbethesource CHILDREN online atpayvand.com/calendar. Persian, Gregorian andIslamicdates) or a calendar(mostcalendars inIranshow try todouble-check theGregorian date with ing publictransportorextending yourvisa Aban 23 Oct-21 Nov 23Oct-21 Aban e 22Dec-20Jan Dei Mehr 23 Sep-22 Oct 23Sep-22 Mehr amn 21Jan-19Feb Bahman DIRECTORY ••Calendars DIRECTORY

375 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY mania.com/trave l/tours/ski/history.asp. www.iran for ahistoryof skiinginIran see www.goski.com;and about someslopes,see Federation ( p140 ) andTakht-e Soleiman( ( Gazor Khan p187 p182 ). Day ) andaroundOrumiyeh pian region; aroundMashhad ( p353 ); from ( p171 ( ) andNaharKhoran p339 ) intheCas- Tochal ( p133 ); atKelardasht ( p175 ), Masuleh north of Tehran, aroundDarband( p113 ) and day walks.Possibilitiesexistinthemountains text ( p373 ) forlistingsof companies. for somethingmore theboxed organised see are while probablythebestplacetostart, of variousroutes onwww.summitpost.org be hardtocomeby.Nader’sdescriptions tion. Trekking can information,however, experience acountryandIranisnoexcep- Trekking isarguably thesinglebestwayto Trekking but notclothes,attheresorts. a day.Youcanhire skis,polesandboots, for aroom.SkiliftscostaslittleIR40,000 which charge fromaboutUS$30toUS$100 other daysitshouldbepretty quiet. with diplomatsandexpatsonSaturdays; with IraniansonThursdays andFridays, can lastuntilmid-May. Theslopesare busy (ie late March); aroundTabriz andatDizinit as November andlastsuntiljustafter NoRuz (where mostslopesare located)asearly starts young. popular amongtheaffluent skiingisvery tosay, Needless to beseen. slopestherehigher isusuallyplentyof hair must stillkeep theirheadscovered, buton ing of restrictions ontheslopes.Women presidency in1997cameaconsiderable eas- tothe rise manteaus. ButwithKhatami’s 1988 theimages were of womenskiingin revolution, andafter thebanwaslifted in family home;skiingwasbannedafter the equalareassexually of Iranoutsideof the Chelgerd ( p252 ), west of Esfahan. ( near Sepidan p253 and ) northof Shiraz, and (p205), Mountains smaller fieldsintheZagros Ganjnameh and (p152) Tabriz also gooddownhillskiingavailable near 374 Pasdaran Ave, Tehran). Federation, 8Alley,off IranSki 17Baharetan .ir; Shahid Iran offers manyexcellent one-andtwo- For more the information,contact All theresorts have lodges andhotels, intheAlborzMountains The season The skislopesare alsosomeof themost DIRECTORY ••BusinessHours DIRECTORY

Mp p94; (Map For reviews andcomments x 021-2256 9595;www.skifed Skiing Skiing in smalltowns. and Thursdaymornings. Airline offices otherwise. unless stated accord (more orless)withthefollowinglist daily exceptFriday.Inthisbookhours will 9amandnoon, anything openisbetween until about5pm.Themostlikely timetofind blistering Persian Gulfcoast,doors shut stay from about noonuntilabout4pm;alongthe duringthehotafternoons, close businesses Iranian weekend). During summer,many ing Thursday afternoons andFriday(the but youcan rely clos- onmostbusinesses Opening andclosingtimescanbeerratic, BUSINESS HOURS filters elsewhere. regions, orwater andpurificationtablets scarce, sotake yourownsuppliesindesert misunderstandings. Drinkingwater isoften ofphrases Farsi shouldsmoothover any areas;security anIranianguideorafew you maystumbleacrossmilitary/police/ totake aguide.easiest it’sadvisable forthe many possiblevariations,buteven (see p183 ). There are twomainroutes and anddowntotheCaspian Alborz Mountains youacrossthe tions, includingsometaking forests. andthrough routes across mountains more time,Iranalsooffers longer several ditions canbeorganised ondemand. ranged fromYazd ( p257 ), whilelonger expe- and overnight treks desert canbeeasilyar- Saturday to Thursday, 7.30amtonoon Friday. agencies Travel Telephone offices close Thursdayafternoon. to haveasiestabetween1pmand3.30pm and possibly Shops the lastdinerleaves. 7pm to11pm,orwhenever Restaurants businesses Private Post offices Museums to Wednesday,8amnoonThursday. offices Government Banks 5pm or6pmSaturdaytoWednesday,untilnoon Thursday. Thursday, somemainofficesopenlater. 5pm winter,withonedayoff,usuallyMondayorTuesday. 7.30am to12.30pmThursday. In remote regions, especiallynearborders, The Alamutarea isrich intrekking op- For themore adventurous, with orthose

Open7.30amto1.30pmSaturdayWednesday, Open 9am to 8pm Saturday to Thursday, but likely Open 9amto8pmSaturdayThursday,butlikely Tend toopen8.30am6pmsummer,4pmor Generally 7.30amto3pm Saturdayto Generally Offer lunchnoonto3pm,dinner6pmor Offer Open 9am to 4pm, Saturday to Wednesday, Open9amto4pm,SaturdayWednesday, Generally 7.30am to5pmor6pm Generally Operate8amto8pmor 9pm;earlier Conduct business8amor9amto Conduct Openoffices8amto2pmSaturday lonelyplanet.com endar (andinFarsi numerals).Whenbook- passport willusuallybeinthePersian cal- for yourownreference: inyour thestamp forget tomake anote of theWestern date timeallocated thewholevisa don’t to use details). for below astrians alsohave theirowncalendar(see and Jamada I61428(Muslim).TheZoro- also appeared 21386(Persian) asKhordad newspapers carrythree dates; 23May 2007 some historybooks.As aresult, Iranian indealingwithforeignersis used andin ters; andtheWestern (Gregorian) calendar forIslamicreligiouscalendar isused mat- theMuslimlunar use; ficial andeveryday the Persian solarcalendaristheoneinof- Three calendars are inIran: incommonuse CALENDARS lonelyplanet.com When entering Iranifyou’re planning hhia 3Ag2 e Efn 20Feb-20 Mar same asthose inthePersian calendar. 22Nov-21Dec Except forAndarmaz, whichreplaces Esfand,the monthsoftheZoroastriancalendarare the holy days. As inthe Persian calendar,theZoroastrianyearbegins in March atthevernal equinox. Esfand and presided over byitsown angelorarchangel.The 1st,8th,15thand23rdof eachmonthare days. The weekhasnoplaceinthissystem, andeachofthe30daysmonthisnamedafter Azar The Zoroastriancalendarworkstoasolaryearof12 months of30dayseach,withfive additional Zoroastrian Calendar dates toWestern (Gregorian) onesandviceversa. Islamic(Hijri) Gha’deh andZu-l-Hejjeh. converts The handywebsite www.rabiah.com/convert 23Aug-22Sep Shavval,Zu-l- Sha’ban,Ramazan, (orJamadi-ul-Sami),Rajab, Jamadi-ul-Awai), Jamadi-l-Okhra in Farsi are: Moharram,Safar, Rabi’-ol-Avval, Jamadi-l-Ula(or (orRabi’-ol-Akhar), Rabi’-ol-Osani Approximate with thePersian solar calendarbysome40years. The namesofthe12Muslimcalendar months Jun Shahrivar 22May-21 before theHejira,but is basedonthelunaryearof354or355days,soitcurrently outofstep fromthemonthThe Muslimcalendar, whichisusedtosomeextent inallIslamiccountries,starts Persian Muslim Calendar Khordad Season (tabestan) summer Approximate (bahar) Persian spring Month Season Equivalent Persian monthsare asfollows: Month Year (NoRuz)usuallyfallingon21MarchaccordingtotheWestern calendar. The namesofthe hammed fromMeccatoMedinainAD622.Ithas365days(366every leapyear),withitsNew Equivalent calculated fromthefirstdayofspringinyearHejira,flightProphetMo- The modernPersian solarcalendar,adirect descendantoftheancientZoroastriancalendar,is Persian Calendar IRANIAN CALENDARS Farvardin 21 Mar-20 Apr Ordibehesht 21 Apr-21 May i 22Jun-22Jul Tir odd 23Jul-22Aug Mordad winter (pa’iz) autumn (zamestan) would wanttorelate fairlyclearlytotheir the attractionsoften rather‘adult’.Parents country where journeysare often longand be tryingtokeep children ina entertained ing tohuntabout. Thehardestthingwill wanttobringyourownsavemight hav- on are available you inmostcities,although formula, mostsimplemedicationsandso a while. Nappies (diapers), powders, baby may drive them(andyou)todespairafter of andcuriosity,which much amusement In Iran,foreign children willbethesource CHILDREN online atpayvand.com/calendar. Persian, Gregorian andIslamicdates) or a calendar(mostcalendars inIranshow try todouble-check theGregorian date with ing publictransportorextending yourvisa Aban 23 Oct-21 Nov 23Oct-21 Aban e 22Dec-20Jan Dei Mehr 23 Sep-22 Oct 23Sep-22 Mehr amn 21Jan-19Feb Bahman DIRECTORY ••Calendars DIRECTORY

375 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY When to Go( p15 ). humidity makes life also more bearable. See temperatures are very butlow warmindeed, fun outof travel. Furtherinland,summer and oppressive humidity take much of the the doublewhammyof temperatures high earlyMaybetween andmid-October,when man, it’sbesttoavoid thePersian Gulfcoast routes impassable. until earlyspring,makingsomemountain below zeroandsnowfrequently remains Iran winter temperatures are regularly well coast.Inwestern ontheCaspian muggy humiditymakesthe high summerpretty keep summertemperatures manageable year-roundbut although cloud helps nual average of about1300mm of rain, of receives theAlborzMountains anan- to thefarnorthandwest–area north Persian Gulfcoastandsouthernprovinces. are nothingoutof theordinaryalong to August)temperatures as50°C ashigh are the nights very cold.Insummer(June west, andinmostof therest of thecountry cold,especiallyinthenorthand pleasantly Winters (DecembertoFebruary) canbeun- Iran experiences great climaticextremes. of itssize,topographyandaltitude, Because CLIMATE CHARTS not agreat idea. Asindeed. forbreastfeeding inpublic,it’s and nappy-changing facilitiesare scarce anywhere. chairs, High childcare agencies of hiscarbeforeseat hisclientswoulddrive forced tohave fitted intheback seatbelts least onebewildered agent wemetwas At be worthinsistingonacarthatdoes. also soitmight inthebackseats, seatbelts Veryyour ownbabyseat. few vehicles have you’llprobablyhaveusing taxis, tobring not spicy. meal tothesizeof thechild. Mostfoodis thesizeof willusuallytailor dren, the staff few menusincludespecialmealsforchil- Whilebring youmore-attentive service. rant willnotonlybewelcomebutoften yourkidsintoarestau-Iran, andtaking tantrums. have towearhejab daughters aged nineorolderthatthey’ll 376 Unless you’re amaddogoranEnglish- Regular rainfallismore orlessrestricted If youhave smallchildren andplanon withthefamilyisnorminEating DIRECTORY ••ClimateCharts DIRECTORY , andpraythere are no TEHRAN MASHHAD ESFAHAN BUSHEHR TABRIZ -10 -10 -10 -10 -10 C°F °C C°F °C °F °C C°F °C C°F °C 10 40 10 40 10 40 10 40 10 40 30 30 30 30 30 20 20 20 20 20 0 0 0 0 0 JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND Temp Temp Temp Temp Temp 1316m (4316ft) 1191m (3906ft) 19m (62ft) 1591m (5218ft) 980m (3214ft) 2 4 0 in in in in in 2 4 2 4 2 4 2 4 0 0 0 0 104 104 104 104 104 32 32 32 32 32 14 14 14 14 14 86 68 68 86 68 86 68 86 68 86 50 50 50 50 50 JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND lonelyplanet.com Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Average Average Average Average Average 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 mm mm mm mm mm need tofindyourownaccommodation. courses. Tuition/seven-month isinexpensive,butyou’ll and3½- Persian Studiesattheinstituteoffers five-week Valiasr Ave, Shemiran,Tehran) TheInternationalCenterfor Ferdows, Bagh-e off [email protected] [email protected]; Dehkhoda Institute Dehkhoda intensive courses. .easypersian.com. online Farsi trytheexcellentwww classes, and cometoIranonastudentvisa. Forfree have tofret extensions. aboutvisa options are mainlyfordiplomatswhodon’t advertise private schools. these However, English-language newspapers, which also yourembassyoroneofthrough Tehran’s foreigners. Farsi teachers canbearranged There are not alotof courses aimedat COURSES lonelyplanet.com tors are to declare supposed cash worthmore thing but thelargest video equipment.Visi- your laptop,shortwave radio, ipodandany- skin orhairvisible onthecover. haveas longitdoesn’t toomuch female no matter howcriticalof thegovernment, zero alcohol, which remains strictlyillegal. sonable quantity’of perfume. Andof course free, 200cigarettes and50cigars, anda‘rea- skin mags.Youare allowedtoimport,duty- load yourluggage withvodka,baconand don’ttakeHowever, thistomeanyoucan atall. your bagsprobablywon’tbesearched take intoand out of thecountry;atairports, dom isfairlyrelaxed aboutwhatforeigners Contrary topopularbelief,Iranianofficial- CUSTOMS ofIsfahan University on the summit of Shah-e KuhabovePaveh –priceless)’. on thesummitofShah-e nights agoIspentadayandnightwithnomadicshepherds you intonewworldsmightnototherwisesee(egtwo from Bob:‘Needlesstosay,learningthelanguagetakes coursescostUS$1000.Thefinalword the rest. One-month looksafter holders) andtheuniversity’sInternationalOffice (longerforUKandUSpassport before youintendtoarrive floor withviewsoverthecity.Applyaboutthree months guesthouse oncampus,where foreign studentsshare a accommodationintheuniversity morning andcomfortable that hisUS$2000paidfor3½hoursoflessonseach coursehere in2007,reported completed athree-month agoodbet.Bob,traveller who Thissoundslike Esfahan) St, www2.ui.ac.ir [email protected]; HezarJerib Two schools have goodreputations for Or youcouldarrange itallinadvance You shouldhave notroublebringingin You’ll probablyget awaywithanybook, Mp p94: (Map Mp p233; (Map x x 021-271 1902; 0311-793 2039-41; 0311-793 2039-41; create space (underabed, perhaps) thatwon’t protect yourhead. over. thepillowto Inahotel room, use fall as freestanding wardrobes)thatmight dows, appliancesandheavy furniture (such to acleararea outside. clearof Stay win- until theshakingstopsandyoucan move prepared tomove withit.Holdtheposition or otherfurniture. Holdontoitandbe try totake cover underasturdydesk,table bris, soifyou’re indoors insideand stay help. tions might a bigquake strikes, thefollowingprecau- tobeinthewrongplacewhen lucky enough most but travellers feel willnever one. Ifyouare un- p86), Confidence, Iran’s Shaking dayinIran(see happenevery Earthquakes Earthquakes DANGERS &ANNOYANCES inIranintotheUS. goods purchased can’t take more than US$100worthof allowed tobetaken outof Iran. No more than IR200,000inIraniancashis speak withthecustomsoffice before buying. that anexpensive item beconfiscated, might ing couldbeconfiscated. Ifyouare worried risk thatanythingvaguely‘antique’look- stones andcoins,sothere isalwaysaslight 50 years old),includinghandicrafts,gem- to exportanything‘antique’(iemore than permission youneed toms office. Officially anexportpermitfromthelocalcus- need limits,youwill these If youwanttoexceed of goldand3kgof silver, withoutgemstones. commercial numberof Persian carpets,150g rugsoutof Iran. of) paperwork whencarrying(smallnumbers askedence, we’ve been never toshowany receipts issued toforeigners. Inourexperi- goodson traders are willingtoundervalue are of notfor‘thepurpose trade’.Many (hang ontoyourreceipts), aslongthey carpets orrugsuptothevalueof US$160 includinghandicraftsotherthanbought, gally imported into Iran,andanythingyou youcantake outanythingyoule- Officially, Restrictions Export the authoritiesaren’t really interested. than US$1000.Inpracticefew peopledoand In a mud-brick building it’s important to In amud-brick to building it’simportant The greatest danger isfromfallingde- intheorymeanyou American sanctions You cantake outareasonable, non- DIRECTORY ••Courses DIRECTORY

377 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY When to Go( p15 ). humidity makes life also more bearable. See temperatures are very butlow warmindeed, fun outof travel. Furtherinland,summer and oppressive humidity take much of the the doublewhammyof temperatures high earlyMaybetween andmid-October,when man, it’sbesttoavoid thePersian Gulfcoast routes impassable. until earlyspring,makingsomemountain below zeroandsnowfrequently remains Iran winter temperatures are regularly well coast.Inwestern ontheCaspian muggy humiditymakesthe high summerpretty keep summertemperatures manageable year-roundbut although cloud helps nual average of about1300mm of rain, of receives theAlborzMountains anan- to thefarnorthandwest–area north Persian Gulfcoastandsouthernprovinces. are nothingoutof theordinaryalong to August)temperatures as50°C ashigh are the nights very cold.Insummer(June west, andinmostof therest of thecountry cold,especiallyinthenorthand pleasantly Winters (DecembertoFebruary) canbeun- Iran experiences great climaticextremes. of itssize,topographyandaltitude, Because CLIMATE CHARTS not agreat idea. Asindeed. forbreastfeeding inpublic,it’s and nappy-changing facilitiesare scarce anywhere. chairs, High childcare agencies of hiscarbeforeseat hisclientswoulddrive forced tohave fitted intheback seatbelts least onebewildered agent wemetwas At be worthinsistingonacarthatdoes. also soitmight inthebackseats, seatbelts Veryyour ownbabyseat. few vehicles have you’llprobablyhaveusing taxis, tobring not spicy. meal tothesizeof thechild. Mostfoodis thesizeof willusuallytailor dren, the staff few menusincludespecialmealsforchil- Whilebring youmore-attentive service. rant willnotonlybewelcomebutoften yourkidsintoarestau-Iran, andtaking tantrums. have towearhejab daughters aged nineorolderthatthey’ll 376 Unless you’re amaddogoranEnglish- Regular rainfallismore orlessrestricted If youhave smallchildren andplanon withthefamilyisnorminEating DIRECTORY ••ClimateCharts DIRECTORY , andpraythere are no TEHRAN MASHHAD ESFAHAN BUSHEHR TABRIZ -10 -10 -10 -10 -10 C°F °C C°F °C °F °C °F °C C°F °C 10 40 10 40 10 40 10 40 10 40 30 30 30 30 30 20 20 20 20 20 0 0 0 0 0 JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND Temp Temp Temp Temp Temp 1316m (4316ft) 1191m (3906ft) 19m (62ft) 1591m (5218ft) 980m (3214ft) 2 4 0 in in in in in 2 4 2 4 2 4 2 4 0 0 0 0 104 104 104 104 104 32 32 32 32 32 14 14 14 14 14 68 86 68 86 68 86 68 86 68 86 50 50 50 50 50 JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND JFMAMJJASOND lonelyplanet.com Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Rainfall Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Max/Min Average Average Average Average Average 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 0 50 100 mm mm mm mm mm need tofindyourownaccommodation. courses. Tuition/seven-month isinexpensive,butyou’ll and3½- Persian Studiesattheinstituteoffers five-week Valiasr Ave, Shemiran,Tehran) TheInternationalCenterfor Ferdows, Bagh-e off [email protected] [email protected]; Dehkhoda Institute Dehkhoda intensive courses. .easypersian.com. online Farsi trytheexcellentwww classes, and cometoIranonastudentvisa. Forfree have tofret extensions. aboutvisa options are mainlyfordiplomatswhodon’t advertise private schools. these However, English-language newspapers, which also yourembassyoroneofthrough Tehran’s foreigners. Farsi teachers canbearranged There are not alotof courses aimedat COURSES lonelyplanet.com tors are to declare supposed cash worthmore thing but thelargest video equipment.Visi- your laptop,shortwave radio, ipodandany- skin orhairvisible onthecover. haveas longitdoesn’t toomuch female no matter howcriticalof thegovernment, zero alcohol, which remains strictlyillegal. sonable quantity’of perfume. Andof course free, 200cigarettes and50cigars, anda‘rea- skin mags.Youare allowedtoimport,duty- load yourluggage withvodka,baconand don’ttakeHowever, thistomeanyoucan atall. your bagsprobablywon’tbesearched take intoand out of thecountry;atairports, dom isfairlyrelaxed aboutwhatforeigners Contrary topopularbelief,Iranianofficial- CUSTOMS ofIsfahan University on the summit of Shah-e KuhabovePaveh –priceless)’. on thesummitofShah-e nights agoIspentadayandnightwithnomadicshepherds you intonewworldsmightnototherwisesee(egtwo from Bob:‘Needlesstosay,learningthelanguagetakes coursescostUS$1000.Thefinalword the rest. One-month looksafter holders) andtheuniversity’sInternationalOffice (longerforUKandUSpassport before youintendtoarrive floor withviewsoverthecity.Applyaboutthree months guesthouse oncampus,where foreign studentsshare a accommodationintheuniversity morning andcomfortable that hisUS$2000paidfor3½hoursoflessonseach coursehere in2007,reported completed athree-month agoodbet.Bob,traveller who Thissoundslike Esfahan) St, www2.ui.ac.ir [email protected]; HezarJerib Two schools have goodreputations for Or youcouldarrange itallinadvance You shouldhave notroublebringingin You’ll probablyget awaywithanybook, Mp p94: (Map Mp p233; (Map x x 021-271 1902; 0311-793 2039-41; 0311-793 2039-41; create space (underabed, perhaps) thatwon’t protect yourhead. over. thepillowto Inahotel room, use fall as freestanding wardrobes)thatmight dows, appliancesandheavy furniture (such to acleararea outside. clearof Stay win- until theshakingstopsandyoucan move prepared tomove withit.Holdtheposition or otherfurniture. Holdontoitandbe try totake cover underasturdydesk,table bris, soifyou’re indoors insideand stay help. tions might a bigquake strikes, thefollowingprecau- tobeinthewrongplacewhen lucky enough most but travellers feel willnever one. Ifyouare un- p86), Confidence, Iran’s Shaking dayinIran(see happenevery Earthquakes Earthquakes DANGERS &ANNOYANCES inIranintotheUS. goods purchased can’t take more than US$100worthof allowed tobetaken outof Iran. No more than IR200,000inIraniancashis speak withthecustomsoffice before buying. that anexpensive item beconfiscated, might ing couldbeconfiscated. Ifyouare worried risk thatanythingvaguely‘antique’look- stones andcoins,sothere isalwaysaslight 50 years old),includinghandicrafts,gem- to exportanything‘antique’(iemore than permission youneed toms office. Officially anexportpermitfromthelocalcus- need limits,youwill these If youwanttoexceed of goldand3kgof silver, withoutgemstones. commercial numberof Persian carpets,150g rugsoutof Iran. of) paperwork whencarrying(smallnumbers askedence, we’ve been never toshowany receipts issued toforeigners. Inourexperi- goodson traders are willingtoundervalue are of notfor‘thepurpose trade’.Many (hang ontoyourreceipts), aslongthey carpets orrugsuptothevalueof US$160 includinghandicraftsotherthanbought, gally imported into Iran,andanythingyou youcantake outanythingyoule- Officially, Restrictions Export the authoritiesaren’t really interested. than US$1000.Inpracticefew peopledoand In a mud-brick building it’s important to In amud-brick to building it’simportant The greatest danger isfromfallingde- intheorymeanyou American sanctions You cantake outareasonable, non- DIRECTORY ••Courses DIRECTORY

377 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY Americans, too. courtesy andfriendliness –thatapplies to are unlikely tobetreated withanythingbut your besttofitin withlocalcustoms,you won’t bewelcome isplainwrong.Ifyoudo of, andtheideathatasaWesterner you crime againstforeigners isalmostunheard couldn’t befurtherfromthetruth. Violent as anunpredictable, dangerous destination Iran…and often. Buttheperceptionof Iran most beaskedcertainly before youcometo ‘Iran? Isitsafe?’ It’saquestionyou’llal- Security one of places. these toun-uniformedofficerselse untilyouare at Never disappear. theywilleventually otherwise oryourhotel, will take youtothestation probably leave. Iftheyare real policethey advice ittoignore the‘policemen’andthey’ll of passports,camerasormoney.Thebest your bag/camera. Theusualmotive istheft yourpassportorforyoutohandoversee ‘police’andaskto to pullupbesideyou,say men inplainclothesandanunmarked car to beaware… Theusualprocedure isfor has largely endedtheproblem.Still,itpays police, particularlyinTehran andEsfahan, The good by newsisthataconcerted effort organised scamsistheboguspolicesting. ofThe mostnotable Iran’smercifullyfew BOGUS POLICE Scams from buildingsandpowerlines. theboxedof (see deathinBam text, p323 ). –which wastheprimarycause to suffocation be filledwithdirtanddust,which couldlead 378 If you’re outside,get intotheopen,away front wheelinaswell.They were stilltryingtoliftitoutthree hourslater. of the wrong whenthebackwheeldroppedinto the they canquicklyturnintoraging torrents. carefully, andafterthey canalsobeahazardforanyonecrossingroadwithoutlooking rain pleasant urbanfeature, withwater spreading throughthecityandtrees usuallynearby. However, channels forrainwater andwater runningoffnearbymountains. At thebestoftimesthey’re a as watertubes), whichoriginally todistribute throughthecitybutnowserve drinking served In almostevery Iranian citythemainstreets are linedwith BIG JUBS DIRECTORY ••Dangers&Annoyances DIRECTORY If you’re driving, jub hand over yourpassportoranything jub without any form of kerb whatsoever. withoutanyformofkerb InMashhad,wesawonereverse-park gohorribly before hisboss,whomhe’djustdroppedoff,returned, butonlymanagedtodropthe jubs canbeeven more hazardous. Inmanytownstheroaddropsstraightinto jub . The anxiousdriver triedtodrive hiswayout The kidnappings are tohave believed been from travelling va Baluchestan. in Sistan became sobadthat foreigners were banned Kerman since 1999.In2007thesituation provinces of and vaBaluchestan Sistan have kidnapped in thesoutheastern been overnight. bly demandthatyoudeposityour passport hotel or you’llsimplyhaveHowever, totrustyour keep yourpassportstrappedtobody. len foreign passports.Ifyou’re carryingit, booming blackmarket inforged andsto- travelling toWestern countries,there isa of Iraniansfaceinbecause thedifficulty to replace – isaforeign passport.Largely ers usuallybringtoIran–andthehardest borders. where Pakistani near theAfghani, andIraqi orany- on thestreet overnight inZahedan Most placeshave asafe forguests’valuables. locked. Hotels are locked orguardedatnight. toiletries –whileyou’re out; your yourbags–and‘sampling’ through going sometimes extends tohotel staff and residents. of Thislevel observation keep carefulsince staff watch over visitors crowded bazaars. The occasionalpickpocket operates insome money andcamerawithyouatalltimes. keep yourpassport, international services, bypublictransport,especiallyon distances ellers beingrobbed.Whentravelling long in fairness we’ve heardof very few trav- pays totake theusualprecautions, though Several individualandgroupsof tourists Several Western-The mostvaluable possession If you’re driving,trytoavoid parking Theft fromahotel roomisvery unlikely, stillexist,soit crimedoes Of course, mosaferkhaneh, jubs (canals, pronouncedjubes,like which willinevita- lonelyplanet.com keep your bags keep yourbags more days,orplantovisitremote places. especially ifyouwillbeinIranfor10or nationals toregister withthemonarrival, do NOT applytoanyotherareas of Iran. dangersthe trouble. Rememberthatthese ous thataforeigner get upin might caught tourists, buttheauthoritiesare very nerv- 2005 and2007,have sofarnottargeted in vaBaluchestan inSistan bloody attacks guys,whostaged so cutanddried.These as Jundallahof Iran)terrorists isn’tquite Movement of Iran(PRMI;formerlyknown The threat fromthePeople’s Resistance their wayyoushouldn’t have anyproblem. ing foreign outof tourists,soifyoustay ested inthe troublethatcomesfromharm- theboxedSee text, p325 fordetails. and Pakistan areas. these toEuropethrough huge quantitiesof opiates fromAfghanistan war withpowerfuldrugsmugglers whoship in response togovernment intheir successes lonelyplanet.com you’ll see will be busy in a fruitless effort willbebusyinafruitlesseffort you’ll see the Iranianpolice. Themajority of those It isunlikely you’llhave anyproblemwith FORCES POLICE &SECURITY Western embassies( p381 their) advise Drug smugglers generally aren’t inter- time toget abetter map! forMI6,Andrew’swere was returned bike notworking andwe were released, promising next Basijis were enthusiasticwiththeirallegations. Eventually, the Basijiswere persuadedthatwe but as Andrew’sbikes, wasintransit,itlegal).The real policewere asapologeticthe of sensitive sites (at 1am?),andofbeingonanillegalmotorcycle(Iraniansare limited to200cc pictureshotel’s frontdesk,welearnedwe’dbeenaccusedofbeing Britishspiesandoftaking see themselves as‘defenders of therevolution’. As Basijisargued withuniformedpoliceatthe The original assailantsturnedouttobemembersofthe Basij (‘volunteer’), ahardlinemilitiawho weand13others wenttothestation.Wewereoff onthebike, underarrest. separate policestations. This agoodidea. didn’tsoundlike Eventually, after oneguyjustrode that ‘weare Australian usto tourists’were andtake thebike, metwithdemandsthattheytake whoseemedmostagitated.young guysinbeardsandblackleatherjackets Ourfrustrated pleas andwewere fromhisbike the keys goingnowhere. to London,decideditwastimesplit.Alas,amansnatchedhis large fromDhaka motorbike quiet Tehran street, andthishadallthehallmarksofarobbery.Andrew, afellow traveller riding we knewcouldhave beenhisIDforthelocalvideorental store. Itwas1amonalarge butvery ‘Police, police!’oneofthebeardedmenshouted, holdingaloftatattyplasticcardthatforall more intohispants,itsuddenlylooked aroundhisfaceandaguntucked sinister.style scarf going anddirections wouldbegiven. twopulledup,onewithaHezbollah- Butwhenthenext hospitality. These atthemapwhere youngguyswouldaskthelostforeigners theywere looking screechedWhen thefirsttwobikes toahaltwethoughtitwasanotherinstanceofIranian A NIGHTWITHTHEBASIJ After twofruitlesshourswewere backatthehotel withsomeideaofwhatwasgoingon. hour wearguedFor thenext bythesideofroad.Uniformed policearrived, butitwasthe Andrew Burke carry their passports with them at all times. carry theirpassportswiththematalltimes. meini inTehran. Foreigners are expected to of ImamRezainMashhad andImamKho- in somepublicplaces,such astheshrines expect theusualinspectionsatairportsand users, theyrarely troubleforeigners. Youcan on themovements of pedestriansandroad streets checking andpatrolthehighways soldiers Although andpolicemenroamthe CHECKS SECURITY below). Basij, Withthe ANight a bitcarriedaway(see religious militiasdosometimesgetSepah codes, isnomore. and theBasij However, than rigorousadherence toIslamicdress tobailuptouristsforless lice’), whoused Committee, or‘religiousRevolutionary po- (Komiteh-ye Enqelab-eEslami;theIslamic who does. speak English,oratleastfindsomeone booths. Oneof themshouldbeable to Tourist Policeinconveniently located Esfahan, Shiraz andMashhad you’llfind have no interest inhasslingforeigners. to improve flow, andtheyreally thetraffic DIRECTORY ••Dangers&Annoyances DIRECTORY Thankfully, thetrulydreaded Komiteh In populartouristdestinationssuch as

379 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY Americans, too. courtesy andfriendliness –thatapplies to are unlikely tobetreated withanythingbut your besttofitin withlocalcustoms,you won’t bewelcome isplainwrong.Ifyoudo of, andtheideathatasaWesterner you crime againstforeigners isalmostunheard couldn’t befurtherfromthetruth. Violent as anunpredictable, dangerous destination Iran…and often. Buttheperceptionof Iran most beaskedcertainly before youcometo ‘Iran? Isitsafe?’ It’saquestionyou’llal- Security one of places. these toun-uniformedofficerselse untilyouare at Never disappear. theywilleventually otherwise oryourhotel, will take youtothestation probably leave. Iftheyare real policethey advice ittoignore the‘policemen’andthey’ll of passports,camerasormoney.Thebest your bag/camera. Theusualmotive istheft yourpassportorforyoutohandoversee ‘police’andaskto to pullupbesideyou,say men inplainclothesandanunmarked car to beaware… Theusualprocedure isfor has largely endedtheproblem.Still,itpays police, particularlyinTehran andEsfahan, The good by newsisthataconcerted effort organised scamsistheboguspolicesting. ofThe mostnotable Iran’smercifullyfew BOGUS POLICE Scams from buildingsandpowerlines. theboxedof (see deathinBam text, p323 ). –which wastheprimarycause to suffocation be filledwithdirtanddust,which couldlead 378 If you’re outside,get intotheopen,away front wheelinaswell.They were stilltryingtoliftitoutthree hourslater. of the wrong whenthebackwheeldroppedinto the they canquicklyturnintoraging torrents. carefully, andafterthey canalsobeahazardforanyonecrossingroadwithoutlooking rain pleasant urbanfeature, withwater spreading throughthecityandtrees usuallynearby. However, channels forrainwater andwater runningoffnearbymountains. At thebestoftimesthey’re a as watertubes), whichoriginally todistribute throughthecitybutnowserve drinking served In almostevery Iranian citythemainstreets are linedwith BIG JUBS DIRECTORY ••Dangers&Annoyances DIRECTORY If you’re driving, jub hand over yourpassportoranything jub without any form of kerb whatsoever. withoutanyformofkerb InMashhad,wesawonereverse-park gohorribly before hisboss,whomhe’djustdroppedoff,returned, butonlymanagedtodropthe jubs canbeeven more hazardous. Inmanytownstheroaddropsstraightinto jub . The anxiousdriver triedtodrive hiswayout The kidnappings are tohave believed been from travelling va Baluchestan. in Sistan became sobadthat foreigners were banned Kerman since 1999.In2007thesituation provinces of and vaBaluchestan Sistan have kidnapped in thesoutheastern been overnight. bly demandthatyoudeposityour passport hotel or you’llsimplyhaveHowever, totrustyour keep yourpassportstrappedtobody. len foreign passports.Ifyou’re carryingit, booming blackmarket inforged andsto- travelling toWestern countries,there isa of Iraniansfaceinbecause thedifficulty to replace – isaforeign passport.Largely ers usuallybringtoIran–andthehardest borders. where Pakistani near theAfghani, andIraqi orany- on thestreet overnight inZahedan Most placeshave asafe forguests’valuables. locked. Hotels are locked orguardedatnight. toiletries –whileyou’re out; your yourbags–and‘sampling’ through going sometimes extends tohotel staff and residents. of Thislevel observation keep carefulsince staff watch over visitors crowded bazaars. The occasionalpickpocket operates insome money andcamerawithyouatalltimes. keep yourpassport, international services, bypublictransport,especiallyon distances ellers beingrobbed.Whentravelling long in fairness we’ve heardof very few trav- pays totake theusualprecautions, though Several individualandgroupsof tourists Several Western-The mostvaluable possession If you’re driving,trytoavoid parking Theft fromahotel roomisvery unlikely, stillexist,soit crimedoes Of course, mosaferkhaneh, jubs (canals, pronouncedjubes,like which willinevita- lonelyplanet.com keep your bags keep yourbags more days,orplantovisitremote places. especially ifyouwillbeinIranfor10or nationals toregister withthemonarrival, do NOT applytoanyotherareas of Iran. dangersthe trouble. Rememberthatthese ous thataforeigner get upin might caught tourists, buttheauthoritiesare very nerv- 2005 and2007,have sofarnottargeted in vaBaluchestan inSistan bloody attacks guys,whostaged so cutanddried.These as Jundallahof Iran)terrorists isn’tquite Movement of Iran(PRMI;formerlyknown The threat fromthePeople’s Resistance their wayyoushouldn’t have anyproblem. ing foreign outof tourists,soifyoustay ested inthe troublethatcomesfromharm- theboxedSee text, p325 fordetails. and Pakistan areas. these toEuropethrough huge quantitiesof opiates fromAfghanistan war withpowerfuldrugsmugglers whoship in response togovernment intheir successes lonelyplanet.com you’ll see will be busy in a fruitless effort willbebusyinafruitlesseffort you’ll see the Iranianpolice. Themajority of those It isunlikely you’llhave anyproblemwith FORCES POLICE &SECURITY Western embassies( p381 their) advise Drug smugglers generally aren’t inter- time toget abetter map! forMI6,Andrew’swere was returned bike notworking andwe were released, promising next Basijis were enthusiasticwiththeirallegations. Eventually, the Basijiswere persuadedthatwe but as Andrew’sbikes, wasintransit,itlegal).The real policewere asapologeticthe of sensitive sites (at 1am?),andofbeingonanillegalmotorcycle(Iraniansare limited to200cc pictureshotel’s frontdesk,welearnedwe’dbeenaccusedofbeing Britishspiesandoftaking see themselves as‘defenders of therevolution’. As Basijisargued withuniformedpoliceatthe The original assailantsturnedouttobemembersofthe Basij (‘volunteer’), ahardlinemilitiawho weand13others wenttothestation.Wewereoff onthebike, underarrest. separate policestations. This agoodidea. didn’tsoundlike Eventually, after oneguyjustrode that ‘weare Australian usto tourists’were andtake thebike, metwithdemandsthattheytake whoseemedmostagitated.young guysinbeardsandblackleatherjackets Ourfrustrated pleas andwewere fromhisbike the keys goingnowhere. to London,decideditwastimesplit.Alas,amansnatchedhis large fromDhaka motorbike quiet Tehran street, andthishadallthehallmarksofarobbery.Andrew, afellow traveller riding we knewcouldhave beenhisIDforthelocalvideorental store. Itwas1amonalarge butvery ‘Police, police!’oneofthebeardedmenshouted, holdingaloftatattyplasticcardthatforall more intohispants,itsuddenlylooked aroundhisfaceandaguntucked sinister.style scarf going anddirections wouldbegiven. twopulledup,onewithaHezbollah- Butwhenthenext hospitality. These atthemapwhere youngguyswouldaskthelostforeigners theywere looking screechedWhen thefirsttwobikes toahaltwethoughtitwasanotherinstanceofIranian A NIGHTWITHTHEBASIJ After twofruitlesshourswewere backatthehotel withsomeideaofwhatwasgoingon. hour wearguedFor thenext bythesideofroad.Uniformed policearrived, butitwasthe Andrew Burke carry their passports with them at all times. carry theirpassportswiththematalltimes. meini inTehran. Foreigners are expected to of ImamRezainMashhad andImamKho- in somepublicplaces,such astheshrines expect theusualinspectionsatairportsand users, theyrarely troubleforeigners. Youcan on themovements of pedestriansandroad streets checking andpatrolthehighways soldiers Although andpolicemenroamthe CHECKS SECURITY below). Basij, Withthe ANight a bitcarriedaway(see religious militiasdosometimesgetSepah codes, isnomore. and theBasij However, than rigorousadherence toIslamicdress tobailuptouristsforless lice’), whoused Committee, or‘religiousRevolutionary po- (Komiteh-ye Enqelab-eEslami;theIslamic who does. speak English,oratleastfindsomeone booths. Oneof themshouldbeable to Tourist Policeinconveniently located Esfahan, Shiraz andMashhad you’llfind have no interest inhasslingforeigners. to improve flow, andtheyreally thetraffic DIRECTORY ••Dangers&Annoyances DIRECTORY Thankfully, thetrulydreaded Komiteh In populartouristdestinationssuch as

379 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY rible death whilecrossing the road.Vehicles underestimate the possibilityof dyingahor- accident,never aserious tocause fast enough crowdedbazaars.through red drive lights, on footpaths andcareen Motorbikesof through speed thetraffic). hurtle inthe the contraflowbuslanes(alongwhich buses big) matters. Size (oratleasttheperceptionthat you’re Paykan/Pride theintersection. through sails outsized.Meanwhile,been themodestlittle suddenly screech toahalt,fearing they’ve othertraffic and Prides.Aquickblastsees totheirPaykansfound ontrucksandbuses, ists have fitted deafening airhorns,usually gest. Playingonthis,somecunningmotor- of thebig- it’ssurvival its path;that’sright, proportional tothesizeof the vehicles in car tostopatabusyintersection isdirectly notice toroadrules.Thewillingnessof a you willlikely behorrified.No-onepays any butifyou’veprise, arrived fromtheWest chaos may comeaslittlesur-Iran’s traffic reduced,’ in2007. he said is belowournation’sdignityandshould be reduce thedeathtoll:‘Therate of accidents management. Hein traffic to haspromised Iran’s president AhmadinejadholdsaPhD other 270,000injured. Somewhatironically, 2006 thatwasnearly28,000people,withan- numberofcapita roaddeat per- thatIranhasthehighest horror andglee mixof Iranians willtell youwithaperverse trouble withthe thananythingelse. traffic with Iran,you’re more likely toget into pers orany other threats you’ve associated Forget religious fanatics,gun-totingkidnap- Traffic goods. ing fordrugsandothersmuggled stopped more frequently bypolicesearch- yourtransportislikelylate atnight, tobe just incase. tocopies of pages thefrontandvisa handy limits. It’salsoworthhaving acoupleof pho- if you’re planninganyexcursion beyondcity you canretrieve advisable it byday:highly yourpassportatnight as thehotel onlyneeds However, yourstay. onto themthroughout This canbetrickyashotels alsolike tohang 380 While traffic inmajor While traffic citiesrarely goes Some cars andallmotorbikes alsouse If you’ve travelled elsewhere intheregion In theeastern provinces, oriftravelling DIRECTORY ••Embassies&Consulates DIRECTORY opposite direction totherest hs onearth–in Jad-e Walayat,Herat) Jad-e Nau,Kabul); Sherpur, Shahr-e can forget aloanforonward travel. assist withgetting anewpassport,but you your moneyanddocumentsstolen, itmight expect youtohave insurance. Ifyouhave all unlikelyexceedingly –theembassy would togetneed homeurgently, afree ticket is have exhausted. Forexample,ifyou been butonlyifotherchannelssome assistance, ple. Ingenuine emergencies get youmight youmakecal statements inIran,forexam- Don’t expectsupportforfeminist orpoliti- tions wouldbelegalinyourowncountry. ifsuchcommitting acrimelocally,even ac- not besympatheticifyouendupinjailafter the countryyouare in.Yourembassywill member thatyouare boundbythelawsof you’re inisremotely your ownfault.Re- ally speaking,itwon’thelpifthetrouble to helpyouifget intotrouble. Gener- which youare acitizen–canandcan’tdo embassy –the embassy of thecountryof torealise whatyourownIt’s important EMBASSIES &CONSULATES to beinalow-budget establishment. questions –ifyouare asked it’smostlikely foreigners anddon’tusuallyasktoomany tounderstand theweirdwishesofstarting are hotelficult. Recently,however, staff couples foundgetting aroominIrandif- There wasatimewhenunmarriedforeign Couples Foreign Unmarried approaching traffic.’ but make sure tothe theIranianisclosest ‘Cross abusystreet withanIranianperson, advice comesfromonepragmaticreader: perhapsthebest head aroundthetraffic, family of thevictim.Untilyou’ve gotyour and theoneliabletopaybloodmoney destrian thedriver isalwaystheoneatfault thatifadriverbut thelawsays hitsape- slow down.Itmaynotbemuch consolation, Iranians do,andhopingthatthedrivers will to stepping asthe outinfrontof thetraffic, quickly realise thatthere’s littlealternative stopat pedestrian crossings.Youwill never Afghanistan Afghanistan www.iranianvisa.com. up-to-date listsee and consulates abroad.Fora full,reasonably This isanabridged listof Iranianembassies Iranian Embassies&Consulates Kabul Kabul ( x 020-210 1390/4; Charahi 020-210 1390/4;Charahi Herat (040220015; lonelyplanet.com h Nakhchivan Nakhchivan 4 Ave d’Iena,75116,Paris) 47 Nepean Sea Rd,Mumbai) 47 NepeanSea ( .org.in; 5 Barakhamba Rd,NewDelhi,110001); .org.in; 5Barakhamba ulatiran.de; Alsterkrugchaussee333,Hamburg22297) 60320); Raimundstr. 90,Frankfurt 5600 0739;www.irangk.de; Luganski St,Almaty) Luganski 67,BerlinD-14195); Podbielskiallee .iranianembassy.nl; Duinweg 20,2585JX,TheHague) .com; 10-32-3Ch Ave,72 MountMerrion Blackrock,Dublin) -embassy.dk; Engskiftevej 6,2100København) Engskiftevej -embassy.dk; lonelyplanet.com B1050; Ave 3,behindFranklinRoosveltlaan15,Brussels Victoria New Zealand New Zealand Netherlands Kazakhstan Japan Ireland India Germany France Denmark Canada Belgium Azerbaijan Australia www.iranembassy.az; C 245 Metcalfe St, Ottawa, Ontario K2P2K2) Ontario St,Ottawa, 245 Metcalfe .org.au; 25 Culgoa Crt, O’Malley, Canberra, ACT 2606) Canberra,ACT O’Malley, .org.au; 25CulgoaCrt, Wellington) www.iranembassy.org.nz; 151Te AnauRd,Hataitai, x & Trade Australian ofForeign Department Affairs advice: travelally quite warningsand conservative) Check thesewebsites forthelatest (usu- YOU’VE BEENWARNED US Department ofStateUS Department (www.fco.gov.uk/travel) UK Foreign &CommonwealthOffice & Trade New Zealand MinistryofForeign Affairs (www.minbuza.nl) Netherlands MinistryofForeign Affairs (MOFA; www.mofa.go.jp) Japan MinistryofForeign Affairs & International Trade Canadian ofForeign Department Affairs 10.30am-noon Mon-Thu) 3630073; www.iriconmumbai.com; 1stflSwapnalok, 3630073; www.iriconmumbai.com;

Delhi h Tokyo

Hamburg Paris

Dublin Ottowa Ottowa

Brussels Berlin ( Canberra Copenhagen 9am-noon Mon & Fri, 1-4pmWed) 9am-noon Mon&Fri, ( x x

( ( Baku (www.safetravel.govt.nz) (www.smartraveller.gov.au)

x x

Almaty ( The Hague Wellington ( 0136-50343; Atatüurk küç 13, Nakhchivan; 0136-50343; Atatüurkküç13,Nakhchivan; x ( ( ō 91-011-23329600; www.iran-embassy x x (consular section (consularsection x me Minami Aazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo) Minato-ku, Aazabu, me Minami 01 40697960-65;www.amb-iran.fr; ( 3-3446 8022-23;www.iranembassyjp x ( x 01-288 0252;[email protected]; ( 030-84 3530; www.iranembassy.de; 030-84 3530;www.iranembassy.de; 613-233 4726;www.salamiran.org; 040-514 4060;www.generalkons x ( 2-627 0380;www.iranembassy.be; ə x f ( 02-6290 2421;www.iranembassy ə ( x r Cabbarli küç 44, Baku); r Cabbarliküç44,Baku); 0272-541974-75; 31-33, x 39 160073;www.iran 070-354 8483;www (www.voyage.gc.ca) 04-386 2976; (www.travel.state.gov) (www.travel.state.gov) x Frankfurt 012-4980766; ( x Mumbai 069-

Kizil ToprakSok,Trabzon) Kizil İ ( 0374; 55-A Shadman II, Lahore); 0374; 55-AShadmanII,Lahore); Karachi); Clifton, Yenishehir justoffAtatürkBulvar Girisi, 10, Kavaklidere, Ankara); 10, Kavaklidere, 18 aka Tehran18 aka St,Dushanbe) ( Park845403; 18-C Ave, UniversityTown,Peshawar); Karachi House 222-238,St2,G-5/1DiplomaticEnclave,Islamabad); Damascus) .azembassy.ir; NaderSq,15Golbarg St,Chizar,Tehran; 2209 WisconsinAve, NW,Washington,20007) embassy( Pakistan Azerbaijan Australia Armenia Afghanistan the emergency number,andcallthat. listed here, gives waituntilthemessage you embassy swimmingpool), callthenumber a genuine emergency (nottoaskaboutthe them knowwhenyouleave. of Intheevent ing fortheconsul.Ifyoudo,besure tolet ister theirpresence byphoning inandask- were askingtravellersNew Zealand, toreg- Australia and tries, plustheUSA,Canada, The embassiesof manyEuropean coun- inIran Embassies &Consulates USA UK Turkmenistan Turkey Tajikistan Syria Spain Pakistan h (Map p354 ; at www.smarttraveller.gov.au. .embassy.gov.au; 15EslamboliSt,23rdTehran) Register attheArmenianborderorYerevanarrival airport. for visainformation.Notethatvisasare alsoavailableon three photos. Call between2pmand4pm(notothertimes) 11 daysforUS$50,inthree tofivedaysforUS$80.Bring h EslamiAve, St,Jomhuri-ye St,Razi Tehran;Shahriar cost €75andare issuedintwotothree days; Tehran; St,offBeheshtiAve,fax 88735600;cnr4thSt&Pakistan -embassy.org.uk; 50 Kensington Court, LondonW85DB) Court, 50Kensington -embassy.org.uk; Tehran köçesi 3,Ashgabat) stanbul); x x DIRECTORY ••Embassies&Consulates DIRECTORY

London 8am-noon Sat-Wed) 9am-noon Sun-Thu) visasissuedin nineto Tourist

0212-513 8230; Ankara Caddesi1/2,Ca 0212-513 8230;Ankara 081-843527, fax829766;2/33HaliRd,Quetta) Washington

Damascus ( Madrid h

x Ankara Mp pp102-3; (Map Trabzon

(consulate Islamabad Mp p110; (Map x 8am-2pm Sat-Wed) Thirty-day tourist visas tourist 8am-2pm Sat-Wed)Thirty-day Dushanbe 021-5874371; fax 5874633; 81 Shahrah-i-Iran, 021-5874371; fax5874633;81Shahrah-i-Iran,

Tehran ( x ( Tehran ( The Iranian Interests Section isinthe TheIranianInterests Section 0511-854 1653; Do Shahid St, Mashhad; St,Mashhad; 0511-854 1653;DoShahid x Ashgabat x Lahore Lahore ( x x 6135 9642; 28016 Calle Jeres 5,Madrid) 6135 9642;28016CalleJeres Mp p94; (Map 0312-468 2820;Tahran Caddesi ( (Map (Map p110 ; 011-222 6459; Autostraad al-Mezzeh, 011-222 6459;Autostraadal-Mezzeh, x ( x x 0462-326 7651;Taksim Caddesi, 202-965 4990;www.daftar.org; x ( x Erzurum Erzurum ( 051-2276270; fax2824839; x 020 79375225;www.iran x 0372-210072-74; Kucai Bokhtar 0372-210072-74; KucaiBokhtar 021-8872 4456;www.iran 042-7590926-29; fax757 021-6670 4833;1Ostad x 012-34 1452;fax350565; Peshawar ( x x 021-2224 8770; www 021-8873 5040; ı 0442-316 2285; , Erzurum); , Erzurum); ( x ğ Mashhad alo 091- ğ lu, İ stanbul Quetta

381

DIRECTORY DIRECTORY hurtle inthe the contraflowbuslanes(alongwhich buses big) matters. Size (oratleasttheperceptionthat you’re Paykan/Pride theintersection. through sails outsized.Meanwhile,been themodestlittle suddenly screech toahalt,fearing they’ve othertraffic and Prides.Aquickblastsees totheirPaykansfound ontrucksandbuses, ists have fitted deafening airhorns,usually gest. Playingonthis,somecunningmotor- of thebig- it’ssurvival its path;that’sright, proportional tothesizeof the vehicles in car tostopatabusyintersection isdirectly notice toroadrules.Thewillingnessof a you willlikely behorrified.No-onepays any butifyou’veprise, arrived fromtheWest chaos may comeaslittlesur-Iran’s traffic reduced,’ in2007. he said is belowournation’sdignityandshould be reduce thedeathtoll:‘Therate of accidents management. Hein traffic to haspromised Iran’s president AhmadinejadholdsaPhD other 270,000injured. Somewhatironically, 2006 thatwasnearly28,000people,withan- numberofcapita roaddeat per- thatIranhasthehighest horror andglee mixof Iranians willtell youwithaperverse trouble withthe thananythingelse. traffic with Iran,you’re more likely toget into pers orany other threats you’ve associated Forget religious fanatics,gun-totingkidnap- Traffic goods. ing fordrugsandothersmuggled stopped more frequently bypolicesearch- yourtransportislikelylate atnight, tobe just incase. tocopies of pages thefrontandvisa handy limits. It’salsoworthhaving acoupleof pho- if you’re planninganyexcursion beyondcity you canretrieve advisable it byday:highly yourpassportatnight as thehotel onlyneeds However, yourstay. onto themthroughout This canbetrickyashotels alsolike tohang 380 rible death whilecrossing the road.Vehicles underestimate the possibilityof dyingahor- accident,never aserious tocause fast enough crowdedbazaars.through red drive lights, on footpaths andcareen Motorbikesof through speed thetraffic). Some cars andallmotorbikes alsouse If you’ve travelled elsewhere intheregion In theeastern provinces, oriftravelling While traffic inmajor While traffic citiesrarely goes DIRECTORY ••Embassies&Consulates DIRECTORY opposite direction totherest hs onearth–in Jad-e Walayat,Herat) Jad-e Nau,Kabul); Sherpur, Shahr-e can forget aloanforonward travel. assist withgetting anewpassport,but you your moneyanddocumentsstolen, itmight expect youtohave insurance. Ifyouhave all unlikelyexceedingly –theembassy would togetneed homeurgently, afree ticket is have exhausted. Forexample,ifyou been butonlyifotherchannelssome assistance, ple. Ingenuine emergencies get youmight youmakecal statements inIran,forexam- Don’t expectsupportforfeminist orpoliti- tions wouldbelegalinyourowncountry. ifsuchcommitting acrimelocally,even ac- not besympatheticifyouendupinjailafter the countryyouare in.Yourembassywill member thatyouare boundbythelawsof you’re inisremotely your ownfault.Re- ally speaking,itwon’thelpifthetrouble to helpyouifget intotrouble. Gener- which youare acitizen–canandcan’tdo embassy –the embassy of thecountryof torealise whatyourownIt’s important EMBASSIES &CONSULATES to beinalow-budget establishment. questions –ifyouare asked it’smostlikely foreigners anddon’tusuallyasktoomany tounderstand theweirdwishesofstarting are hotelficult. Recently,however, staff couples foundgetting aroominIrandif- There wasatimewhenunmarriedforeign Couples Foreign Unmarried approaching traffic.’ but make sure tothe theIranianisclosest ‘Cross abusystreet withanIranianperson, advice comesfromonepragmaticreader: perhapsthebest head aroundthetraffic, family of thevictim.Untilyou’ve gotyour and theoneliabletopaybloodmoney destrian thedriver isalwaystheoneatfault thatifadriverbut thelawsays hitsape- slow down.Itmaynotbemuch consolation, Iranians do,andhopingthatthedrivers will to stepping asthe outinfrontof thetraffic, quickly realise thatthere’s littlealternative stopat pedestrian crossings.Youwill never Afghanistan Afghanistan www.iranianvisa.com. up-to-date listsee and consulates abroad.Fora full,reasonably This isanabridged listof Iranianembassies Iranian Embassies&Consulates Kabul Kabul ( x 020-210 1390/4; Charahi 020-210 1390/4;Charahi Herat (040220015; lonelyplanet.com Nakhchivan Nakhchivan h 4 Ave d’Iena,75116,Paris) 60320); Raimundstr. 90,Frankfurt 5600 0739;www.irangk.de; 67,BerlinD-14195); Podbielskiallee Luganski St,Almaty) Luganski ulatiran.de; Alsterkrugchaussee333,Hamburg22297) 47 Nepean Sea Rd,Mumbai) 47 NepeanSea ( Rd,NewDelhi,110001); .org.in; 5Barakhamba .com; 10-32-3Ch Ave,72 MountMerrion Blackrock,Dublin) .iranianembassy.nl; Duinweg 20,2585JX,TheHague) 6,2100København) Engskiftevej -embassy.dk; B1050; Ave 3,behindFranklinRoosveltlaan15,Brussels Victoria lonelyplanet.com New Zealand New Zealand Netherlands Kazakhstan Japan Ireland India Germany France Denmark Canada Belgium www.iranembassy.az; C Azerbaijan Australia 245 Metcalfe St, Ottawa, Ontario K2P2K2) Ontario St,Ottawa, 245 Metcalfe .org.au; 25 Culgoa Crt, O’Malley, Canberra, ACT 2606) Canberra,ACT O’Malley, .org.au; 25CulgoaCrt, Wellington) www.iranembassy.org.nz; 151Te AnauRd,Hataitai, x & Trade Australian ofForeign Department Affairs advice: travelally quite warningsand conservative) Check thesewebsites forthelatest (usu- YOU’VE BEENWARNED US Department ofStateUS Department (www.fco.gov.uk/travel) UK Foreign &CommonwealthOffice & Trade New Zealand MinistryofForeign Affairs (www.minbuza.nl) Netherlands MinistryofForeign Affairs (MOFA; www.mofa.go.jp) Japan MinistryofForeign Affairs & International Trade Canadian ofForeign Department Affairs 10.30am-noon Mon-Thu) 3630073; www.iriconmumbai.com; 1stflSwapnalok, 3630073; www.iriconmumbai.com;

Delhi h Tokyo

Hamburg Paris

Dublin Ottowa Ottowa

Brussels Berlin ( Canberra Copenhagen 9am-noon Mon & Fri, 1-4pmWed) 9am-noon Mon&Fri, ( x x

( ( Baku (www.safetravel.govt.nz) (www.smartraveller.gov.au)

x x

Almaty ( The Hague Wellington ( 0136-50343; Atatüurk küç 13, Nakhchivan; 0136-50343; Atatüurkküç13,Nakhchivan; x ( ( ō 91-011-23329600; www.iran-embassy x x (consular section (consularsection x me Minami Aazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo) Minato-ku, Aazabu, me Minami 01 40697960-65;www.amb-iran.fr; ( 3-3446 8022-23;www.iranembassyjp x ( x 01-288 0252;[email protected]; ( 030-84 3530; www.iranembassy.de; 030-84 3530;www.iranembassy.de; 613-233 4726;www.salamiran.org; 040-514 4060;www.generalkons x ( 2-627 0380;www.iranembassy.be; ə x f ( 02-6290 2421;www.iranembassy ə ( x r Cabbarli küç 44, Baku); r Cabbarliküç44,Baku); 0272-541974-75; 31-33, x 39 160073;www.iran 070-354 8483;www (www.voyage.gc.ca) 04-386 2976; (www.travel.state.gov) (www.travel.state.gov) x Frankfurt 012-4980766; ( x Mumbai 069-

Kizil ToprakSok,Trabzon) Kizil İ ( 0374; 55-A Shadman II, Lahore); 0374; 55-AShadmanII,Lahore); Karachi); Clifton, Yenishehir justoffAtatürkBulvar Girisi, 10, Kavaklidere, Ankara); 10, Kavaklidere, 18 aka Tehran18 aka St,Dushanbe) Karachi House 222-238,St2,G-5/1DiplomaticEnclave,Islamabad); ( Park845403; 18-C Ave, UniversityTown,Peshawar); Damascus) .azembassy.ir; NaderSq,15Golbarg St,Chizar,Tehran; 2209 WisconsinAve, NW,Washington,20007) embassy( Pakistan Azerbaijan Australia Armenia Afghanistan the emergency number,andcallthat. listed here, gives waituntilthemessage you embassy swimmingpool), callthenumber a genuine emergency (nottoaskaboutthe them knowwhenyouleave. of Intheevent ing fortheconsul.Ifyoudo,besure tolet ister theirpresence byphoning inandask- were askingtravellersNew Zealand, toreg- Australia and tries, plustheUSA,Canada, The embassiesof manyEuropean coun- inIran Embassies &Consulates USA UK Turkmenistan Turkey Tajikistan Syria Spain Pakistan h (Map (Map p354 ; cost €75andare issuedintwotothree days; arrival attheArmenianborderorYerevanarrival airport. for visainformation.Notethatvisasare alsoavailableon three photos. Call between2pmand4pm(notothertimes) 11 daysforUS$50,inthree tofivedaysforUS$80.Bring h EslamiAve, St,Jomhuri-ye St,Razi Tehran;Shahriar Tehran; St,offBeheshtiAve,fax 88735600;cnr4thSt&Pakistan at www.smarttraveller.gov.au. .embassy.gov.au; 15EslamboliSt,23rdTehran) Register -embassy.org.uk; 50 Kensington Court, LondonW85DB) Court, 50Kensington -embassy.org.uk; Tehran köçesi 3,Ashgabat) stanbul); x x DIRECTORY ••Embassies&Consulates DIRECTORY

London 8am-noon Sat-Wed) 9am-noon Sun-Thu) visasissuedin nineto Tourist

0212-513 8230; Ankara Caddesi1/2,Ca 0212-513 8230;Ankara 081-843527, fax829766;2/33HaliRd,Quetta) Washington

Damascus ( Madrid h

x Ankara Mp pp102-3; (Map Trabzon

(consulate Islamabad Mp p110; (Map x 8am-2pm Sat-Wed) Thirty-day tourist visas tourist 8am-2pm Sat-Wed)Thirty-day Dushanbe 021-5874371; fax 5874633; 81 Shahrah-i-Iran, 021-5874371; fax5874633;81Shahrah-i-Iran,

Tehran ( x ( Tehran ( The Iranian Interests Section isinthe TheIranianInterests Section 0511-854 1653; Do Shahid St, Mashhad; St,Mashhad; 0511-854 1653;DoShahid x Ashgabat x Lahore Lahore ( x x 6135 9642; 28016 Calle Jeres 5,Madrid) 6135 9642;28016CalleJeres Mp p94; (Map 0312-468 2820;Tahran Caddesi ( (Map (Map p110 ; 011-222 6459; Autostraad al-Mezzeh, 011-222 6459;Autostraadal-Mezzeh, x ( x x 0462-326 7651;Taksim Caddesi, 202-965 4990;www.daftar.org; x ( x Erzurum Erzurum ( 051-2276270; fax2824839; x 020 79375225;www.iran x 0372-210072-74; Kucai Bokhtar 0372-210072-74; KucaiBokhtar 021-8872 4456;www.iran 042-7590926-29; fax757 021-6670 4833;1Ostad x 012-34 1452;fax350565; Peshawar ( x x 021-2224 8770; www 021-8873 5040; ı 0442-316 2285; , Erzurum); , Erzurum); ( x ğ Mashhad alo 091- ğ lu, İ stanbul Quetta

381

DIRECTORY DIRECTORY St, Zahedan) were not issuing visas when we asked. were notissuingvisaswhenweasked. St, Zahedan) by air at Baku airport but airport by airatBaku around US$80toUS$101.Visasare alsoavailableonarrival daysfor visasissuedinthree working tourist Single-entry and p354; fromyourembassy.Consulatesin introduction entry visasaboutUS$35issuedintwodayswithaletterof Hossein Fatemi Ave, Tehran; 4898; BlockNo1,EtemadzadehAve, Jamshidabad, Dr .gc.ca; 57 Shahid Sarafraz St, Motahhari Ave, Tehran) SarafrazSt,Motahhari .gc.ca; 57Shahid -japan.go.jp; cnrBucharest &Fifth Sts,Tehran) Nth Pasdaran, Tehran) abroad.se/tehran; 2NasdaranSt,cnrofBoostan St, days forabout IR500,000. Arash Blvd, Tehran) Ifyouneedone, visasinoneortwo Darous, Tehran) Blvd, www.mfa.nl/teh; 1stEastLane,33Shahrzad .ambafrance-ir.org; 85NoflLoshato St,Tehran) Syria Switzerland Sweden Pakistan New Zealand Netherlands Lebanon Japan Ireland Iraq India Germany Georgia France Canada Mohabarat St,Valiasr, Tabriz; h 382 Expressway, Tehran; Sadr Qalandari, .gov.ge; No9,8thAlley,offShahid about US$40. St,Tehran)off Nejatollahi Ifyouneedavisa,itcosts with aletterfromyourembassy. St,Tehran)Khomeini Visas(IR370,000)issuedinfourdays Zahedan Dr BeheshtiSts,Tehran; Ave, cnrNinth& anembassy-tehran.com; 46Mir-emad .teheran.diplo.de; 324Ferdosi St,Tehran) Tehran) Just southofValiasr visas. Sq.Notissuingtourist Nth GolestanComplex,Aghdasiyeh St,Niavaran,Tehran) .nzembassy.com/iran; cnr2ndPark Alley,SosanSt, Tehran) Ave, Alley,Kamraniyeh Kamraniyeh, dfa.ie; 8Nahid don’t needvisasatall. mostWesterners However, service). (US$60 fortwo-day fourdays visascostUS$40andtake tourist Two-week .admin.ch; Yasamin St, off Sharifi Manesh, Elahieh, Tehran).admin.ch; Yasamin Elahieh, Manesh, St,offSharifi Zahedan 9am-noon Sun,Tue, Thu); DIRECTORY ••Festivals &Events DIRECTORY Mp pp102–3; (Map Mp p110; (Map

x Tehran Mp p110; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map (Map (Map pp326-7 ; Mp p110; (Map Mp p94; (Map Mp p94; (Map Mp p110; (Map

(Map (Map p110 ; 0511-222 9845; Imam Khomeini St, Mashhad) St,Mashhad) 0511-222 9845;ImamKhomeini Tehran Mp pp102-3; (Map (Map pp326-7 ; (Map (Map p110 ; Mp p110; (Map Mp p110 ; (Map Mp p94; (Map (Map p94 ; x x x h x x x x x 021-2205 9031-32; Afriqa Hwy, 021-2205 9031-32;Afriqa x x 021-8871 7922;www.ir.emb h 021-2280 3835;tehranembassy@ 9.15am-1.30pm Sun,Tue, Thu) 021-2229 6802;www.sweden 021-8873 2623;www.dfait-maeci x not 021-8893 8865-66;Valiasr Ave, 021-2260 4154;www.iran.mfa x x x 021-8890 8451;30Afshin St, h x x x 0541-322 2337;offImam 021-6670 6005-08;www 8.30am-5pm Sun-Thu); atthelandborders. h 021-8875 5103-5;www.indi Tabriz 021-3999 0000;www 021-2200 8333;www.eda 021-2280 0289;www 9-11am Sat-Wed)Single- 021-2256 7005-7; 0541-322 3389; Pahlavani 0541-322 3389;Pahlavani 021-6694 4888; fax 6694 021-6694 4888;fax6694 9am-noon Sun-Thu) ( x 0411-333 4802; Mashhad (Map (Map on the price paid. on theprice Once approvalhasbeengiven,speedofstampingdepends referred atleastaweek. toAshgabatwhichusuallytakes Eitherwayyourapplicationwillnormallybe Uzbekistan. documentation ifyoushowavalidonwardvisafor visa. Transitvisasare sometimespossiblewithoutsuch letter (egfromwww.stantours.com) toapplyforatourist h DeySq,Mashhad; StoffDah-e 854 7066;DoShahid ( 314Ferdosi St,Tehran);.e-konsolosluk.net; near theSadafShoppingCentre. Alternatively, useatravelagencyinTehran. Theembassyis two weekstoarrange(US$65),orUS$93forurgentservice. about visatakes If youhaveone,anormal15-daytourist needaletterofinvitation(LOI)fromUzbekistan. countries End, AqdasiehSt,offPasdaran St,Aqdasieh,Tehran) Most Tehran; 5 BavatiSt,offVatanpour St,offLavasaniFarmanieh, Embassy, itcannotoffer fullconsularservices. Ave,Gharbi, Africa Jordan,Tehran) oftheSwiss Part (City Theatre; p122 ). Held 1to11February, atTehran’s primarily Tezatre Shahr for newfestivals. Festivals worthnoting: Uzbekistan Section US Interests UK ( DastjerdiAve,1333; 355Vahid Tehran); ArabEmirates United Turkmenistan Turkey Tajikistan Young Cinema Society. or November.Usually held inOctober Organisedby theIran Tehran Film Festival Short Plays andTraditional Festival ofRitual International Fajr FestivalInternational Theatre Fajr Film Festival comingtopower.lah Khomeini’s which commemorates thelead-uptoAyatol- or the10Daysof Dawn(1to11February), festivals are concentrated inDahe-yeFajr, Holidays, (see opposite ). Iran’sfew major The majority of Iran’s festivals are religious FESTIVALS &EVENTS ( cinemasacross Tehran.international filmsinseveral February. festival, itfeatures Iran’spremier Iranianand arts embassy.gov.uk/iran; 198Ferdosi St,Tehran) Palace; visasforIR280,000inaboutfourdays. issuestourist Zeinaly St,Niavaran,Tehran)Shahid oftheNiavaran North

x x x Mp pp102-3; (Map Keep aneyeonwww.tehranavenue.com 8.30-noon Mon-Thu &Sat)Youneedaninvitation 0411-300 1070,Firoudi St,Tabriz) 0761-222 4229;NasrBlvd,BandarAbbas) 0441-222 8970,BeheshtiSt,Orumiyeh); (en.theater.ir) August orSeptember. h

Tehran 9.30am-noon Sun-Thu); Mp p94; (Map (Map (Map p94 ; Mp pp102-3; (Map

Tehran x (www.fajrfestival.ir) Held1to11 (www.fajrfestival.ir) Mp p94; (Map x 021-6670 5011;www.british ( x x

Tehran 021-2283 4650;10,3rdAlley, 021-2229 1519;15,4thDead 021-8878 2964;59Farzan-e- x (www.shortfilmfest-ir.com) Mp p110; (Map x 021-3311 5299;www Mashhad lonelyplanet.com 021-2220 6731; Bandar Abbas (en.theater.ir) Orumiyeh x ( Tabriz x 021-8678 0511-

For lotsmore onPersian cuisinesee p78 . overall alsoTipping, mealprice(see p389 ). ice charge’ includedinthe hasusuallybeen a furtheramount.Inthisbookthe‘serv- will rarely receive anythingunlessyouadd in thename thewaiter though of service, oftenRestaurants add10%or15%tothebill FOOD lonelyplanet.com aware of thedates, especially ifyouare plan- gious or secular It’sworthstaying events. Public holidays commemorate eitherreli- HOLIDAYS being more gay-friendly thanothers. is onesmoothhotel intheoldtownnoted for adoublebed. InYazdour whenseeking there places thatdiscretion isthebetter partof val- findinsome you might good friends’,though Most hoteliers willacceptthatyou’re ‘just thatyou’retise partof couple. asame-sex plenty of links. life ing articlesonhomosexual inIranplus (www.homanla.org)ganisation hasinterest- andTransgender Bisexual Or-Gay, Lesbian, ing itinthepark.Thewebsite of theIran all sortsof doors more safely thanchanc- theinternet,through which canopenup lesbian communities,such astheyare, is existence of womenwhoprefer women. most Iranianswouldprobably denythe Tehran. more Forlesbiansit’seven difficult; parksin ting aloneinDaneshgu andLaleh mensit- ‘scene’ are afew nervous-looking thatthenearestno surprise thingtoagay so manyculturalandlegalconstraints,it’s With betough. and lesbianswill,however, refrained fromovert signsof affection. ellers beingtreated badlyaslongthey we have notheardof trav- anyhomosexual applicationforms,and of onvisa sexuality shouldn’t visitIran.There are noquestions no reason whygayandlesbiantravellers lawsaside,there Barbaric sex. issensual in Gorgan forthe‘crime’of having con- death.In2005twomenwereeven hanged but punishablebyhundreds of lashesand in Iranhomosexuality is notonlyillegal exist. Unlike mostotherplaces,however, like tosay, Iranian gaysandlesbiansdo Despite what President Ahmadinejadmight GAY &LESBIANTRAVELLERS Of course, it makes sense nottoadver- itmakesOf course, sense thegayand The bestwaytocontact withIraniangaysArranging meetings 2012. Fatima wasdaughterofProphetMohammed. 2011,25April 2010,7May 2009,17May 28May Okhra)

26 October 2012. Marks the day when Abraham offered the day whenAbraham 2012.Marks 26 October November 2009, 17November2010, 6November2011, ary 2009,13February 2010,3February 2011,22January2012 10 February 2012 2010,20FebruaryAvval) 2009,3March 14March 2011, 27 July2010,172011,52012 religious theatre andsombre parades. AD680.Thisiscelebrated with inOctober battle atKarbala ofHossein,thethirdShiiteimam,in sary ofthemartyrdom 2009, 16December2010,62011.Theanniver- 2010, 15June2011,32012 zan largemealsare consumedacross thecountry. sunsetonthelastdayofRama- After the endofRamazan. 2012. TheFestival oftheFast oftheBreaking that marks 2010, 31August2011,19 2009, 10September Eid-e Ghorban Eid-e Death ofImamJafar Sadegh Eid al-Fitr Death ofImamAli ofImamMahdi Birthday ofHoly Prophet Mission ofImamAli Birthday ofthedeathFatimaAnniversary oftheProphetMohammed Birthday Death ofImamReza Death oftheProphetMohammed Arbaeen Ashura Tasua year.ward by10or11daysevery dates intheWestern calendarmove for- calendar, which meansthecorresponding Religious holidaysfollowtheMuslimlunar Holidays Religious Imam Ali; below ). Sadegh; below ) and13Rajab (Birthdayof below ), 25Shavval (Deathof ImamJafar p385 dad (Anniversary of AyatollahKhomeini; ), 30Safar(Deathof ImamReza; from theholidayroster, including15Khor- ment) wasconsideringcuttingfive dates day iftheyfallneartheIranianweekend. Holidaysareclose. sometimesextended fora tels remain open,butmanyrestaurants will Transport functionsfairlynormallyandho- often willopenafter lunch. smallbusinesses for themorning,atleast,onaholiday,but willclose fices andjustabout else everything ning toextend Government yourvisa. of-

10 August2012 2010,21August2011, 2009,1September 11 September

At thetimeof writingtheMajlis (parlia- (9 Moharram) (10Moharram)7January2009,27December (20 Safar) The 40th day after Ashura. (20Safar)The40thdayafter (1 Shavval) 1 October 2008, 20 September 2008,20September 1October (1Shavval) (10 Zu-l-Hejjeh)8December 2008,27 (21 Ramazan) 21 September 2008, 21September (21Ramazan) (30Safar) (13 Rajab) 6July2009,26June (13 Rajab) DIRECTORY ••Food DIRECTORY (27 Rajab) (15Shaban)6August 2009, (25 Shavval) (25 Shavval) (28 Safar)24Febru- (3Jamadi-l- (17Rabi’-ol-

383 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY St, Zahedan) were not issuing visas when we asked. were notissuingvisaswhenweasked. St, Zahedan) by air at Baku airport but airport by airatBaku around US$80toUS$101.Visasare alsoavailableonarrival daysfor visasissuedinthree working tourist Single-entry and p354; fromyourembassy.Consulatesin introduction entry visasaboutUS$35issuedintwodayswithaletterof Hossein Fatemi Ave, Tehran; 4898; BlockNo1,EtemadzadehAve, Jamshidabad, Dr .gc.ca; 57 Shahid Sarafraz St, Motahhari Ave, Tehran) SarafrazSt,Motahhari .gc.ca; 57Shahid -japan.go.jp; cnrBucharest &Fifth Sts,Tehran) .ambafrance-ir.org; 85NoflLoshato St,Tehran) days forabout IR500,000. Arash Blvd, Tehran) Ifyouneedone, visasinoneortwo Nth Pasdaran, Tehran) abroad.se/tehran; 2NasdaranSt,cnrofBoostan St, Darous, Tehran) Blvd, www.mfa.nl/teh; 1stEastLane,33Shahrzad Syria Switzerland Sweden Pakistan New Zealand Netherlands Lebanon Japan Ireland Iraq India Germany Georgia France Canada Mohabarat St,Valiasr, Tabriz; h 382 about US$40. St,Tehran)off Nejatollahi Ifyouneedavisa,itcosts Expressway, Tehran; Sadr Qalandari, .gov.ge; No9,8thAlley,offShahid with aletterfromyourembassy. St,Tehran)Khomeini Visas(IR370,000)issuedinfourdays Zahedan Dr BeheshtiSts,Tehran; Ave, cnrNinth& anembassy-tehran.com; 46Mir-emad .teheran.diplo.de; 324Ferdosi St,Tehran) Tehran) Just southofValiasr visas. Sq.Notissuingtourist Nth GolestanComplex,Aghdasiyeh St,Niavaran,Tehran) .nzembassy.com/iran; cnr2ndPark Alley,SosanSt, Tehran) Ave, Alley,Kamraniyeh Kamraniyeh, dfa.ie; 8Nahid don’t needvisasatall. mostWesterners However, service). (US$60 fortwo-day fourdays visascostUS$40andtake tourist Two-week .admin.ch; Yasamin St, off Sharifi Manesh, Elahieh, Tehran).admin.ch; Yasamin Elahieh, Manesh, St,offSharifi Zahedan 9am-noon Sun,Tue, Thu); DIRECTORY ••Festivals &Events DIRECTORY Mp pp102–3; (Map Mp p110 ; (Map

x Tehran Mp p110; (Map Mp pp102-3; (Map (Map (Map pp326-7 ; Mp p110; (Map Mp p94; (Map Mp p94; (Map Mp p110; (Map

(Map (Map p110 ; 0511-222 9845; Imam Khomeini St, Mashhad) St,Mashhad) 0511-222 9845;ImamKhomeini Tehran Mp pp102-3; (Map (Map pp326-7 ; (Map (Map p110 ; Mp p110; (Map Mp p110; (Map Mp p94; (Map (Map p94 ; x x x h x x x x x 021-2205 9031-32; Afriqa Hwy, 021-2205 9031-32;Afriqa x x 021-8871 7922;www.ir.emb h 021-2280 3835;tehranembassy@ 9.15am-1.30pm Sun,Tue, Thu) 021-2229 6802;www.sweden 021-8873 2623;www.dfait-maeci x not 021-8893 8865-66;Valiasr Ave, 021-2260 4154;www.iran.mfa x x x 021-8890 8451;30Afshin St, h x x x 0541-322 2337;offImam 021-6670 6005-08;www 8.30am-5pm Sun-Thu); atthelandborders. h 021-8875 5103-5;www.indi Tabriz 021-3999 0000;www 021-2200 8333;www.eda 021-2280 0289;www 9-11am Sat-Wed)Single- 021-2256 7005-7; 0541-322 3389; Pahlavani 0541-322 3389;Pahlavani 021-6694 4888; fax 6694 021-6694 4888;fax6694 9am-noon Sun-Thu) ( x 0411-333 4802; Mashhad (Map (Map on the price paid. on theprice Once approvalhasbeengiven,speedofstampingdepends referred atleastaweek. toAshgabatwhichusuallytakes Eitherwayyourapplicationwillnormallybe Uzbekistan. documentation ifyoushowavalidonwardvisafor visa. Transitvisasare sometimespossiblewithoutsuch letter (egfromwww.stantours.com) toapplyforatourist h DeySq,Mashhad; StoffDah-e 854 7066;DoShahid ( 314Ferdosi St,Tehran);.e-konsolosluk.net; Tehran; 5 BavatiSt,offVatanpour St,offLavasaniFarmanieh, near theSadafShoppingCentre. Alternatively, useatravelagencyinTehran. Theembassyis two weekstoarrange(US$65),orUS$93forurgentservice. about visatakes If youhaveone,anormal15-daytourist needaletterofinvitation(LOI)fromUzbekistan. countries End, AqdasiehSt,offPasdaran St,Aqdasieh,Tehran) Most (City Theatre; p122 ). Held 1to11February, atTehran’s primarily Tezatre Shahr Embassy, itcannotoffer fullconsularservices. Ave,Gharbi, Africa Jordan,Tehran) oftheSwiss Part Uzbekistan Section US Interests UK ( DastjerdiAve,1333; 355Vahid Tehran); ArabEmirates United Turkmenistan Turkey Tajikistan Young Cinema Society. or November.Usually held inOctober Organisedby theIran Tehran Film Festival Short Plays andTraditional Festival ofRitual International Fajr Festival International Theatre cinemasacross Tehran.international filmsinseveral February. festival, itfeatures Iran’spremier Iranianand arts Fajr Film Festival for newfestivals. Festivals worthnoting: comingtopower.lah Khomeini’s which commemorates thelead-uptoAyatol- or the10Daysof Dawn(1to11February), festivals are concentrated inDahe-yeFajr, Holidays, (see opposite ). Iran’sfew major The majority of Iran’s festivals are religious FESTIVALS &EVENTS ( embassy.gov.uk/iran; 198Ferdosi St,Tehran) Palace; visasforIR280,000inaboutfourdays. issuestourist Zeinaly St,Niavaran,Tehran)Shahid oftheNiavaran North x x x Mp pp102-3; (Map Keep aneyeonwww.tehranavenue.com 8.30-noon Mon-Thu &Sat)Youneedaninvitation 0411-300 1070,Firoudi St,Tabriz) 0761-222 4229;NasrBlvd,BandarAbbas) 0441-222 8970,BeheshtiSt,Orumiyeh); (en.theater.ir) August orSeptember. h

Tehran 9.30am-noon Sun-Thu); Mp p94; (Map (Map (Map p94 ; Mp pp102-3; (Map

Tehran x (www.fajrfestival.ir) Held1to11 (www.fajrfestival.ir) Mp p94; (Map x 021-6670 5011;www.british ( x x

Tehran 021-2283 4650;10,3rdAlley, 021-2229 1519;15,4thDead 021-8878 2964;59Farzan-e- x (www.shortfilmfest-ir.com) Mp p110; (Map x 021-3311 5299;www Mashhad lonelyplanet.com 021-2220 6731; Bandar Abbas (en.theater.ir) Orumiyeh x ( Tabriz x 021-8678 0511-

For lotsmore onPersian cuisinesee p78 . overall alsoTipping, mealprice(see p389 ). ice charge’ includedinthe hasusuallybeen a furtheramount.Inthisbookthe‘serv- will rarely receive anythingunlessyouadd in thename thewaiter though of service, oftenRestaurants add10%or15%tothebill FOOD lonelyplanet.com aware of thedates, especially ifyouare plan- gious or secular It’sworthstaying events. Public holidays commemorate eitherreli- HOLIDAYS being more gay-friendly thanothers. is onesmoothhotel intheoldtownnoted for adoublebed. InYazdour whenseeking there places thatdiscretion isthebetter partof val- findinsome you might good friends’,though Most hoteliers willacceptthatyou’re ‘just thatyou’retise partof couple. asame-sex plenty of links. life ing articlesonhomosexual inIranplus (www.homanla.org)ganisation hasinterest- andTransgender Bisexual Or-Gay, Lesbian, ing itinthepark.Thewebsite of theIran all sortsof doors more safely thanchanc- theinternet,through which canopenup lesbian communities,such astheyare, is existence of womenwhoprefer women. most Iranianswouldprobably denythe Tehran. more Forlesbiansit’seven difficult; parksin ting aloneinDaneshgu andLaleh mensit- ‘scene’ are afew nervous-looking thatthenearestno surprise thingtoagay so manyculturalandlegalconstraints,it’s With betough. and lesbianswill,however, refrained fromovert signsof affection. ellers beingtreated badlyaslongthey we have notheardof trav- anyhomosexual applicationforms,and of onvisa sexuality shouldn’t visitIran.There are noquestions no reason whygayandlesbiantravellers lawsaside,there Barbaric sex. issensual in Gorgan forthe‘crime’of having con- death.In2005twomenwereeven hanged but punishablebyhundreds of lashesand in Iranhomosexuality is notonlyillegal exist. Unlike mostotherplaces,however, like tosay, Iranian gaysandlesbiansdo Despite what President Ahmadinejadmight GAY &LESBIANTRAVELLERS Of course, it makes sense nottoadver- itmakesOf course, sense thegayand The bestwaytocontact withIraniangaysArranging meetings 2012. Fatima wasdaughterofProphetMohammed. 2011,25April 2010,7May 2009,17May 28May Okhra)

26 October 2012. Marks the day when Abraham offered the day whenAbraham 2012.Marks 26 October November 2009, 17November2010, 6November2011, ary 2009,13February 2010,3February 2011,22January2012 10 February 2012 2010,20FebruaryAvval) 2009,3March 14March 2011, 27 July2010,172011,52012 religious theatre andsombre parades. AD680.Thisiscelebrated with inOctober battle atKarbala ofHossein,thethirdShiiteimam,in sary ofthemartyrdom 2009, 16December2010,62011.Theanniver- 2010, 15June2011,32012 zan largemealsare consumedacross thecountry. sunsetonthelastdayofRama- After the endofRamazan. 2012. TheFestival oftheFast oftheBreaking that marks 2010, 31August2011,19 2009, 10September Eid-e Ghorban Eid-e Death ofImamJafar Sadegh Eid al-Fitr Death ofImamAli ofImamMahdi Birthday ofHoly Prophet Mission ofImamAli Birthday ofthedeathFatimaAnniversary oftheProphetMohammed Birthday Death ofImamReza Death oftheProphetMohammed Arbaeen Ashura Tasua year.ward by10or11daysevery dates intheWestern calendarmove for- calendar, which meansthecorresponding Religious holidaysfollowtheMuslimlunar Holidays Religious Imam Ali; below ). Sadegh; below ) and13Rajab (Birthdayof below ), 25Shavval (Deathof ImamJafar p385 dad (Anniversary of AyatollahKhomeini; ), 30Safar(Deathof ImamReza; from theholidayroster, including15Khor- ment) wasconsideringcuttingfive dates day iftheyfallneartheIranianweekend. Holidaysareclose. sometimesextended fora tels remain open,butmanyrestaurants will Transport functionsfairlynormallyandho- often willopenafter lunch. smallbusinesses for themorning,atleast,onaholiday,but willclose fices andjustabout else everything ning toextend Government yourvisa. of-

10 August2012 2010,21August2011, 2009,1September 11 September

At thetimeof writingtheMajlis (parlia- (9 Moharram) (10Moharram)7January2009,27December (20 Safar) The 40th day after Ashura. (20Safar)The40thdayafter (1 Shavval) 1 October 2008, 20 September 2008,20September 1October (1Shavval) (10 Zu-l-Hejjeh)8December 2008,27 (21 Ramazan) 21 September 2008, 21September (21Ramazan) (30Safar) (13 Rajab) 6July2009,26June (13 Rajab) DIRECTORY ••Food DIRECTORY (27 Rajab) (15Shaban)6August 2009, (25 Shavval) (25 Shavval) (28 Safar)24Febru- (3Jamadi-l- (17Rabi’-ol-

383 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY to Mecca. med appointedImamAliashissuccessorwhilereturning fast so you don’t need to worry about finding toworryaboutfinding fast soyoudon’tneed function andtravellers are exempt fromthe done. public transport continuesto However, odd hours andvery businessgets littleserious shorten tempers. andshopskeep Businesses much longer andtheheathunger tend to larly ifitfallsinsummerwhenthedaysare that drink infrontof others who are fasting. as are non-Muslimsbuttheymustn’teator women, travellers, theelderlyandsick), the fast(egpregnant andmenstruating month. SomeMuslimsare exempted from fast, butmostdoforatleastpartof the the especially incities,don’tfullyobserve cleansing of bodyandmind.Somepeople, ordeal thanachance toperformaritual lessasanunpleasant smoking. Thisisseen from alldrinks(includingwater) andfrom dawn-to-dusk fastthatincludesabstaining azan, Muslimsare expected toperforma During themonthknowninIranas Ram- RAMAZAN (RAMADAN) Khom Qadir-e butchered. toseeplentyofsheepbeing hisson.Expect to sacrifice 384 Ramazan canbeatryingperiod,particu- Ramazan most commonlyseen newsstudiostotaxidashboards.home, thoughyou’llseethemeverywhere Today’s fromTV items withFarsi withtheletter ‘s’.They are names starting supposed tobelaidonatableat might have represented or perhapsitsimplysymbolises the ancientgod/angel offertility, Anahita, tiny bowls. knewhoworwhy thegoldfishfounditswayintothistradition. Fish weasked No-one to wardoffbitterness), goldfishin amirror,Quranandcandles. You’llalsoseesorry-looking sign ofNoRuzisstreet-side stallssellingthe Islamic theocracy. thatmanyIraniansareto dowithIslam–afact proudofbutwhichdoesn’tsitwellwiththe celebrated sincebefore Achaemenidtimes. It’sapeculiarlyPersian traditionthathasnothing tradition stretch deep intohistory,withthespringequinox (usually21March)havingbeen the traditionalceremony isaboutrenewal andhopeforthefuture. The rootsoftheNoRuz No Ruzliterally means‘newday’andwhilethecelebrationisforPersian newyear,muchof IRAN’S AGE-OLDCELEBRATION OFTHENEWYEAR On manytablesyou’ll alsosee DIRECTORY ••Holidays DIRECTORY No Ruzfestivities stretch foraboutthree fromfrenzied weeks. shopping,theoutward Apart sonbol sib seer sabzi represent andfertility; rebirth (apple)and (garlic)and (green grass orsproutshoots)and (hyacinth)isforbeauty (18Zu-l-Hejjeh)ThedayProphetMoham- senjed sumaq seen (adriedfruit)represent thesweetness oflife; (sumac)symbolisehoped-forgoodhealth; , andtheirsymbolicmeanings: sekeh (agoldcoin,symbolising adequate income), samanu haft seen, of Iran oftheIslamicRevolution Victory Magnificent year accordingtotheWestern calendar. dayeach endar, andusuallyfallonthesame holidaysfollowthePersianSecular solarcal- Holidays Secular hours. duringdaylight bedifficult any foodmight lems inlarger cities,inruralareas finding food toeatinyourroom. soyoucanbuy Ramazan, open throughout after dark.Many foodremain shopsselling altogether oropenonly eitherclose taurants hotels keep theirrestaurants open.Otherres- trainsorbustrips,andmany food onflights, Khomeini’s comingtopowerin1979. Khomeini’s (sweetwheatpudding) Although youshouldn’thaveAlthough manyprob- RAMAZAN: FOR ‘APPROXIMATE’ DATES 21Julyto18August 2012 1to30August 2011 12August to9September 2010 22August to19September 2009 1to30September 2008 orseven ‘s’es;seven (ormore) symbolic (11 February; 22 Bahman) Theanniversaryof (11February; 22Bahman) serkeh lonelyplanet.com (vinegar New Year. No Ruz OilNationalisationDay lonelyplanet.com of newyear)andSizdah beDar(2April). shuts downfrom21March (thebeginning From apracticalpointof view, Iranvirtually intheWest. tion onaparwithChristmas Iranian NewYear, isahuge familycelebra- theboxedNo Ruz(see text, opposite NO RUZ ), the Khomeini ofAyatollah oftheArrest Anniversary ofIran of theIslamicRepublic Leader oftheGreat Departure Heart-Rending beDar Sizdah Day Islamic Republic Oil Company. memorates the1951nationalisationofAnglo-Iranian Iran in1979. of niversary oftheestablishmentIslamicRepublic houses fortheday. Iranian NewYear, whenIranianstraditionallyleavetheir was born). (where he trained andlived)thevillageofKhomein About 500,000IraniansflocktoTehran, Qom(where he in1989. Khomeini Commemorates thedeathofAyatollah superpowers. upagainstthe oftheworldtorise urging theMuslims wasarrested after In1963Khomeini (5 June;15Khordad) off theroofof car. Eitherway,the previous year,sothis ceremony symbolisesgetting ridofbadluck. out. million live, andthendie,onIraniantablesevery NoRuz. life –andthepoorgoldfishis the easiest‘living’beingtoputonatable–anestimated five haft seen Sizdah beDar and friendsintheirhometowns,before NoRuzcelebrations finishonthe13thdayofyear, of theflames.findingafire actually Unfortunately, canbetough. The jumpingsymbolisestheburningaway of illluckorhealth,tobereplaced bythehealthyredness are given the momentofequinox andhugchildren (announcedonevery radiostation) peoplekiss and happiness,goodhealthandprosperity,before eating prayer seeking to theuncontrolledimpromptudisplays forfireworks thrownbyexcitable youths. grudgingly ‘approved’ fire-sites butvisitingthesecanbecomedeafening andratherhazardousdue leave, hurledintheirdirection. accompaniedbylaughter Some townsdonowhave andfire-crackers and orderfires tobedoused anddancingtostop.After beingignored forafew minutes theywould between revellers andthe(often Basijmilitiamenwasinstructive. half-hearted) Basijiswouldarrive a paganfestival bythegovernment. Whenwewent fire jumpingoutsideMashhadtheanimosity After allthisNoRuz itselffinallyarrives. Families gatheraround the On theTuesday nightbefore traditionisplayed thelastWednesdayofyearanotherpre-Islamic mahi (21 to 24 March; 1to4Farvardin) Iranian (21 to24March; Chahar shanbe-soori

(fish).Mothersare alsoexpected toeatsymbolic hard-boiledeggs,oneforevery child. At sabzi eidi (2 April; 13Farvardin) The13thdayofthe (2April; (presents). (usually 2 April). Everyone leaves home to go picnicking out of town, taking their(usually 2April).Everyone outoftown, taking leaves hometogopicnicking withthem.The (1 April; 12Farvardin) Thean- (1April; (20 March; 29Esfand)Com- (20March; (WednesdayFire) seespeoplesing,dance(menonly)andjumpover fires. For thefollowingtwoweeksIranianscross thecountrytovisitrelatives (4 June; 14 Khordad) (4June;14Khordad) sabzi iseitherthrowninto water or,insome cases, lefttoblow sabzi ismeanttohave ofthe up thebadaspects soaked

tors directly orhospitals ratherthanyou trekking.skiing, motorcycling,even tivities, which canincludescubadiving, policies specificallyexcludedangerous ac- and medicalproblems isagoodidea. Some A travel insurance policytocover theft,loss INSURANCE attractionsopenspecially. closed much longer hours whilesomenormally andtouristsites open stay side museums relatively uncrowded.Andonthepositive cities like Tehran andKermanshah, remain like andprimarilybusiness ruralKordestan areas coasts.Mountain sian GulforCaspian had, Yazd, Shiraz andanywhere onthePer- tourist destinations,such asEsfahan,Mash- then thinkagain,before headingtopopular during NoRuz,butyoushould thinktwice, March inclusive. It’snotimpossibletotravel ing manyrestaurants, from21to25 close includ- at othertimes.Mostbusinesses, making someshorter-hop tripseasierthan booked, savaris runmore though frequently of public transportare long-distance heavily about 18March until2Aprilandallforms midrange andtopend)isvery from tough Finding hotel accommodation(especially You might preferYou might apolicythatpaysdoc- Chahar shanbe-soori sabzi polo DIRECTORY ••Insurance DIRECTORY haft seen (riceandvegetables) tabletorecite a isviewedas

385 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY to Mecca. med appointedImamAliashissuccessorwhilereturning fast so you don’t need to worry about finding toworryaboutfinding fast soyoudon’tneed function andtravellers are exempt fromthe done. public transport continuesto However, odd hours andvery businessgets littleserious shorten tempers. andshopskeep Businesses much longer andtheheathunger tend to larly ifitfallsinsummerwhenthedaysare that drink infrontof others who are fasting. as are non-Muslimsbuttheymustn’teator women, travellers, theelderlyandsick), the fast(egpregnant andmenstruating month. SomeMuslimsare exempted from fast, butmostdoforatleastpartof the the especially incities,don’tfullyobserve cleansing of bodyandmind.Somepeople, ordeal thanachance toperformaritual lessasanunpleasant smoking. Thisisseen from alldrinks(includingwater) andfrom dawn-to-dusk fastthatincludesabstaining azan, Muslimsare expected toperforma During themonthknowninIranas Ram- RAMAZAN (RAMADAN) Khom Qadir-e butchered. toseeplentyofsheepbeing hisson.Expect to sacrifice 384 Ramazan canbeatryingperiod,particu- Ramazan most commonlyseen newsstudiostotaxidashboards.home, thoughyou’llseethemeverywhere Today’s fromTV items withFarsi withtheletter ‘s’.They are names starting supposed tobelaidonatableat might have represented or perhapsitsimplysymbolises the ancientgod/angel offertility, Anahita, tiny bowls. knewhoworwhy thegoldfishfounditswayintothistradition. Fish weasked No-one to wardoffbitterness), goldfishin amirror,Quranandcandles. You’llalsoseesorry-looking sign ofNoRuzisstreet-side stallssellingthe Islamic theocracy. thatmanyIraniansareto dowithIslam–afact proudofbutwhichdoesn’tsitwellwiththe celebrated sincebefore Achaemenidtimes. It’sapeculiarlyPersian traditionthathasnothing tradition stretch deep intohistory,withthespringequinox (usually21March)havingbeen the traditionalceremony isaboutrenewal andhopeforthefuture. The rootsoftheNoRuz No Ruzliterally means‘newday’andwhilethecelebrationisforPersian newyear,muchof IRAN’S AGE-OLDCELEBRATION OFTHENEWYEAR On manytablesyou’ll alsosee DIRECTORY ••Holidays DIRECTORY No Ruzfestivities stretch foraboutthree fromfrenzied weeks. shopping,theoutward Apart sonbol sib seer sabzi represent andfertility; rebirth (apple)and (garlic)and (green grass orsproutshoots)and (hyacinth)isforbeauty (18Zu-l-Hejjeh)ThedayProphetMoham- senjed sumaq seen (adriedfruit)represent thesweetness oflife; (sumac)symbolisehoped-forgoodhealth; , andtheirsymbolicmeanings: sekeh (agoldcoin,symbolising adequate income), samanu haft seen, of Iran oftheIslamicRevolution Victory Magnificent year accordingtotheWestern calendar. dayeach endar, andusuallyfallonthesame holidaysfollowthePersianSecular solarcal- Holidays Secular hours. duringdaylight bedifficult any foodmight lems inlarger cities,inruralareas finding food toeatinyourroom. soyoucanbuy Ramazan, open throughout after dark.Many foodremain shopsselling altogether oropenonly eitherclose taurants hotels keep theirrestaurants open.Otherres- trainsorbustrips,andmany food onflights, Khomeini’s comingtopowerin1979. Khomeini’s (sweetwheatpudding) Although youshouldn’thaveAlthough manyprob- RAMAZAN: FOR ‘APPROXIMATE’ DATES 21Julyto18August 2012 1to30August 2011 12August to9September 2010 22August to19September 2009 1to30September 2008 orseven ‘s’es;seven (ormore) symbolic (11 February; 22 Bahman) Theanniversaryof (11February; 22Bahman) serkeh lonelyplanet.com (vinegar New Year. No Ruz OilNationalisationDay lonelyplanet.com of newyear)andSizdah beDar(2April). shuts downfrom21March (thebeginning From apracticalpointof view, Iranvirtually intheWest. tion onaparwithChristmas Iranian NewYear, isahuge familycelebra- theboxedNo Ruz(see text, opposite NO RUZ ), the Khomeini ofAyatollah oftheArrest Anniversary ofIran of theIslamicRepublic Leader oftheGreat Departure Heart-Rending beDar Sizdah Day Islamic Republic Oil Company. memorates the1951nationalisationofAnglo-Iranian houses fortheday. Iranian NewYear, whenIranianstraditionallyleavetheir Iran in1979. of niversary oftheestablishmentIslamicRepublic superpowers. upagainstthe oftheworldtorise urging theMuslims wasarrested after In1963Khomeini (5 June;15Khordad) was born). (where he trained andlived)thevillageofKhomein About 500,000IraniansflocktoTehran, Qom(where he in1989. Khomeini Commemorates thedeathofAyatollah previous year,sothis ceremony symbolisesgetting ridofbadluck. off theroofof car. Eitherway,the out. million live, andthendie,onIraniantablesevery NoRuz. life –andthepoorgoldfishis the easiest‘living’beingtoputonatable–anestimated five of theflames.findingafire actually Unfortunately, canbetough. The jumpingsymbolisestheburningaway of illluckorhealth,tobereplaced bythehealthyredness haft seen Sizdah beDar and friendsintheirhometowns,before NoRuzcelebrations finishonthe13thdayofyear, are given the momentofequinox andhugchildren (announcedonevery radiostation) peoplekiss and happiness,goodhealthandprosperity,before eating prayer seeking to theuncontrolledimpromptudisplays forfireworks thrownbyexcitable youths. grudgingly ‘approved’ fire-sites butvisitingthesecanbecomedeafening andratherhazardousdue leave, hurledintheirdirection. accompaniedbylaughter Some townsdonowhave andfire-crackers and orderfires tobedoused anddancingtostop.After beingignored forafew minutes theywould between revellers andthe(often Basijmilitiamenwasinstructive. half-hearted) Basijiswouldarrive a paganfestival bythegovernment. Whenwewentfire jumpingoutsideMashhadtheanimosity After allthisNoRuz itselffinallyarrives. Families gatheraround the On theTuesday nightbefore traditionisplayed thelastWednesdayofyearanotherpre-Islamic mahi (21 to 24 March; 1to4Farvardin) Iranian (21 to24March; Chahar shanbe-soori

(fish).Mothersare alsoexpected toeatsymbolic hard-boiledeggs,oneforevery child. At sabzi eidi (2 April; 13Farvardin) The13thdayofthe (2April; (presents). (usually 2 April). Everyone leaves home to go picnicking out of town, taking their(usually 2April).Everyone outoftown, taking leaves hometogopicnicking withthem.The (1 April; 12Farvardin) Thean- (1April; (20 March; 29Esfand)Com- (20March; (WednesdayFire) seespeoplesing,dance(menonly)andjumpover fires. For thefollowingtwoweeksIranianscross thecountrytovisitrelatives (4 June; 14 Khordad) (4June;14Khordad) sabzi iseitherthrowninto water or,insome cases, lefttoblow sabzi ismeanttohave ofthe up thebadaspects soaked

tors directly orhospitals ratherthanyou trekking.skiing, motorcycling,even tivities, which canincludescubadiving, policies specificallyexcludedangerous ac- and medicalproblems isagoodidea. Some A travel insurance policytocover theft,loss INSURANCE attractionsopenspecially. closed much longer hours whilesomenormally andtouristsites open stay side museums relatively uncrowded.Andonthepositive cities like Tehran andKermanshah, remain like andprimarilybusiness ruralKordestan areas coasts.Mountain sian GulforCaspian had, Yazd, Shiraz andanywhere onthePer- tourist destinations,such asEsfahan,Mash- then thinkagain,before headingtopopular during NoRuz,butyoushould thinktwice, March inclusive. It’snotimpossibletotravel ing manyrestaurants, from21to25 close includ- at othertimes.Mostbusinesses, making someshorter-hop tripseasierthan booked, savaris runmore though frequently of public transportare long-distance heavily about 18March until2Aprilandallforms midrange andtopend)isvery from tough Finding hotel accommodation(especially You might preferYou might apolicythatpaysdoc- Chahar shanbe-soori sabzi polo DIRECTORY ••Insurance DIRECTORY haft seen (riceandvegetables) tabletorecite a isviewedas

385 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY newsstands. newsstands. The cards are available at one ineach city–itwon’t break thebank. local areas tobuyanew only,soyou’llneed most of have these accessnumbers for IR10,000 forfive hours. Unfortunately, a pre-paid accesscard,which costsabout tobuy day). Iftheydo,you’llthenneed aroundsinceAlexander GrahamBell’s been calls (manyswitchboards looklike they’ve sophisticated toallow longlocal enough to findoutifyourhotel hasaswitchboard work todoget online. First, youneed electronics stores. plugs intothebackof; they’re available in are unusualtwo-pintypesthatyourRJ-11 adaptor toplugintothephoneline. Most anyour hotel. you’llneed Inmostcases own computer andconnecttodial-upfrom Iranian machine. your owncomputer inan thathasbeen scan carefully before stickinganythinginto the anti-virus software isuptodate, and careful aboutdoinginternet bankingunless horses, key-loggers andothernasties. Sobe up more worms,Trojan than50viruses, tripourUSBsearch memorystickpicked badly infected Duringthisre- withviruses. many .skype.com) isgrowinginpopularity,but .msn.com) ishardertofind. everywhere, butMSNMessenger (www senger (www.yahoo.com) almost isused note thatYahoo! service, a messenger Mes- have ADSLconnections.Ifyouplantouse areSpeeds variable,butmostcitiesnow about IR10,000anhour;more inhotels. of smallercentres. Most cities andbigtowns,agrowingnumber the menu.Youcanget onlineinallIranian feenets In Iran, internet cafésare knownas ACCESS INTERNET gether premiums. orinsistonexorbitant a ‘danger zone’andeitherexcludeitalto- particularly intheUSA,considerregion tries ifyou’re travelling on.Someinsurers, the policycovers Iranandadjacentcoun- or anemergency home. Make flight sure Check thatthepolicycovers ambulances having topayonthespotandclaimlater. 386 Even withtheadaptor,you’llstillhave isbringyour One waytoavoid viruses Unfortunately, Iranian DIRECTORY ••InternetAccess DIRECTORY coffeenets , though you’llrarely, though findcoffee on don’thave headsets. coffeenets coffeenets coffeenets

Skype (www charge charge and are cof- and gay sex areand gaysex bothillegal. 13 andboyswhentheyare 15.Premarital ried –girlscanbemarriedwhen they turn and canlegallyhave whenthey’re sex mar- at age 15,canlegallydrive when theyare 17, Tehran assoonpossibleifthingsget heavy. ment, andget with yourembassyin incontact cially anyoneIranian,withacareless state- espe- to incriminate yourself oranyoneelse, flattered.importance Take specialcare not of theirownself- allayed andtheirsense theirsuspicion their curiosityissatisfied, powerful. Answeryourinterrogators sothat ity, mildsuspicionandthedesire toappear for arresting aforeigner are usuallycurios- the boxed text, p379 ) –the primarymotives have arrested been acoupleof times(see diplomatically. Inourexperience–yes,we answer questions,dosopolitely, openlyand any questionsinFarsi. to Ifyoudochoose best nottoreply to,orappeartounderstand, a foreigner willprobably bedeported). can alsoresult (although inapublicflogging rect hejab(theIslamic dress codeforwomen) some Iranians.Deliberate refusal towearcor- gal andhasresulted inthedeathpenaltyfor not beaware of. activityis ille- Homosexual death penalty. heroinoropiumcarriesthe cell. Trafficking ance fromyourembassyoracomfortable don’texpectassist- six-month jailsentence; amount of hashishcanresult inaminimum are smuggling harsh. thesmallest Carrying and The penaltiesfordrugoralcohol use abouttwoyears injail. released after serving hewaseventually Muslim woman,though to deathforhaving withanunmarried sex businessmanwassentenced ago aGerman thisisnotanabsolute.though Afew years crimes, foreigners willprobably bedeported, ties canbemuch harsher. Formostminor Iran. Themaindifference isthatthepenal- that are illegalinyour country are illegalin of Sharia law.Mostof activities thesame isnotthestrictesthowever, interpretation onIslamicprinciples.Thesystem, is based Like mostthingsinIran,thelegalsystem LEGAL MATTERS is The undisputed kingof Iranianmap-making MAPS In Iran,peopleare legallyallowedtovote In theunlikely youare event arrested, it’s There are two‘crimes’that foreigners may Gita Shenasi

Mp pp102-3 ; (Map x lonelyplanet.com 021-6670 9335; places are marked onlyinFarsi. many islimited because their usefulness Sabalan such as cellent maps outsideIranisn’teasy;lookfortheex- bers onthemajor intercity roads.Finding haveannoyingly itdoesn’t anyroute num- but is updated detailed, annuallyandishighly Maps are hardertofindoutsideTehran. including thetext andindexes, isinFarsi. squares else, everything inEnglish,although list thenamesof major streets, suburbsand its mapsare inEnglish, while manyothers ranges.mountain Agrowingnumberof major townsandcitiessomeof the impressive arrayof mapscovering allthe Crossroads, Enqelab-e EslamiAve;Crossroads, Enqelab-e St,Valiasr St,Razi www.gitashenasi.com; 15OstadShahrivar lonelyplanet.com 8am-1pm Thu) cash –preferably inhigh-denomination travellers cheques. Justbringcold, hard purely cash economy. Nocredit cards.No theinsidefrontcover.rates see ofan idea costssee p16 ; andforexchange breviation ‘IR’toindicate Iranianrials.For theab- thisbookweuse can. Throughout around theideaof tomansassoon asyou itistoget howimportant yourhead enough or Tomans?, below ). Wecan’temphasise Rials of tomans,aunitequalto10rials(see rial, but interms Iranians almostalwaystalk The official unit of currency istheIranian MONEY Gita ShenasiGita publishesclimbingmaps, Gita Shenasi’sGita For allintents Iranisa andpurposes, 10 rials, so it’s a bit like shopkeepers in Europe asking for10centswhenever inEurope theywanted shopkeepers asking 10 rials,soit’sabitlike €1. travellers eventually get used tothis,atfirstitiscompletely bamboozling. Onetomanisworth of talking about pricesintomanseven though thecurrency isdenominated inrials. Whilemost No soonerhave youarrived inIranthanyouwillcomeupagainsttheidiosyncraticlocalpractice RIALS ORTOMANS? is handy, too, asthenumbers showinWestern rather thanArabicnumerals. whether it’sinrials ortomans(written pricesare usuallyexpressed inrials)–using acalculator too bad–itprobably is. feel forwhatthingscost,you’llunderstandthatifsomethingsoundstoo goodtobetrue–or togetathat thetwofingerstaxidriver justshowedyoumean IR20,000.Andasyoustart on thegroundsofcommercialconfusion, rest assured thatafter afew daysyou’llunderstand forIR10,000.However, beforesay ‘one’asshorthand youconsidercancellingyourtriptoIran To make mattersTo make worse,taxidrivers and In theinterim, you can alwayshave ask thepricewritten down, andthentodouble-check Reise Know-HowIran and Central Alborz, in Tehran, which publishes an Damavand anditsRidges, Iran RoadMap

h The Peaks of the 8am-6pm Sat-Wed& (1:1,500,000). (1:1,500,000). (1:2,250,000) (1:2,250,000) but bazaris much cashasyou’re likely thena toneed, thingtorememberimportant istobringas and Pakistani currencies. Azerbaijani, Turkmen ditto fortheAfghan, rywhere totheTurkishborder; except close ish liraare treated withtheutmostscorneve- along thePersian Turk- Gulfcoast.However, euros foremergencies. changers, sohave atleastafew dollars or changed atborders orinsmallermoney- bigger townstoo,butcan’talwaysbeex- euros. UKpoundsget decentrates inmost one ortheotherthenit’ssafer togofor 1996), butifyouhave between tochoose (as longasthenotes were printed since trip wehadnoproblem changing dollars change dollars anymore. Onthisresearch So much so thatsomebankswon’teven away fromthedollarandtowardeuro. toturn aged Iranianbanksandbusinesses Ahmadinejad government hasencour- clear programandfallingUSdollar,the to strongUScondemnationof Iran’snu- US dollarwaskinginIran.Butresponse tobe,somewhatironically,thatthe used sort of cashyoushouldbringtoIran.It inrials. everything tocartaround awheelbarrow you’d need carry amixof rialsanddollars oreuros– they are quoted. to You’llobviously need we’ve listed pricesinthecurrency inwhich tions are inrials(ortomans).Inthisbook, you canpayindollars oreuros,alltransac- tels, carpetshops andtouragencies where euros orUSdollars. Apartfromsomeho- (the shopkeepers inthebazaar)willoften(the shopkeepers Whichever currency themost youchoose, There isathriving businessinUAE dirhams Which bringsustothequestionof what DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY

387 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY newsstands. newsstands. The cards are available at one ineach city–itwon’t break thebank. local areas tobuyanew only,soyou’llneed most of have these accessnumbers for IR10,000 forfive hours. Unfortunately, a pre-paid accesscard,which costsabout tobuy day). Iftheydo,you’llthenneed aroundsinceAlexander GrahamBell’s been calls (manyswitchboards looklike they’ve sophisticated toallow longlocal enough to findoutifyourhotel hasaswitchboard work todoget online. First, youneed electronics stores. plugs intothebackof; they’re available in are unusualtwo-pintypesthatyourRJ-11 adaptor toplugintothephoneline. Most anyour hotel. you’llneed Inmostcases own computer andconnecttodial-upfrom Iranian machine. your owncomputer inan thathasbeen scan carefully before stickinganythinginto the anti-virus software isuptodate, and careful aboutdoinginternet bankingunless horses, key-loggers andothernasties. Sobe up more worms,Trojan than50viruses, tripourUSBsearch memorystickpicked badly infected Duringthisre- withviruses. .msn.com) ishardertofind. everywhere, butMSNMessenger (www senger (www.yahoo.com) almost isused note thatYahoo! service, a messenger Mes- have ADSLconnections.Ifyouplantouse areSpeeds variable,butmostcitiesnow about IR10,000anhour;more inhotels. many .skype.com) isgrowinginpopularity,but of smallercentres. Most cities andbigtowns,agrowingnumber the menu.Youcanget onlineinallIranian feenets In Iran, internet cafésare knownas ACCESS INTERNET gether premiums. orinsistonexorbitant a ‘danger zone’andeitherexcludeitalto- particularly intheUSA,considerregion tries ifyou’re travelling on.Someinsurers, the policycovers Iranandadjacentcoun- or anemergency home. Make flight sure Check thatthepolicycovers ambulances having topayonthespotandclaimlater. 386 Even withtheadaptor,you’llstillhave isbringyour One waytoavoid viruses Unfortunately, Iranian DIRECTORY ••InternetAccess DIRECTORY coffeenets , though you’llrarely, though findcoffee on don’thave headsets. coffeenets coffeenets coffeenets

Skype (www charge charge and are cof- and gay sex areand gaysex bothillegal. 13 andboyswhentheyare 15.Premarital ried –girlscanbemarriedwhen they turn and canlegallyhave whenthey’re sex mar- at age 15,canlegallydrive when theyare 17, Tehran assoonpossibleifthingsget heavy. ment, andget with yourembassyin incontact cially anyoneIranian,withacareless state- espe- to incriminate yourself oranyoneelse, flattered.importance Take specialcare not of theirownself- allayed andtheirsense theirsuspicion their curiosityissatisfied, powerful. Answeryourinterrogators sothat ity, mildsuspicionandthedesire toappear for arresting aforeigner are usuallycurios- the boxed text, p379 ) –the primarymotives have arrested been acoupleof times(see diplomatically. Inourexperience–yes,we answer questions,dosopolitely, openlyand any questionsinFarsi. to Ifyoudochoose best nottoreply to,orappeartounderstand, a foreigner willprobably bedeported). can alsoresult (although inapublicflogging rect hejab(theIslamic dress codeforwomen) some Iranians.Deliberate refusal towearcor- gal andhasresulted inthedeathpenaltyfor not beaware of. activityis ille- Homosexual death penalty. heroinoropiumcarriesthe cell. Trafficking ance fromyourembassyoracomfortable don’texpectassist- six-month jailsentence; amount of hashishcanresult inaminimum are smuggling harsh. thesmallest Carrying and The penaltiesfordrugoralcohol use abouttwoyears injail. released after serving hewaseventually Muslim woman,though to deathforhaving withanunmarried sex businessmanwassentenced ago aGerman thisisnotanabsolute.though Afew years crimes, foreigners willprobably bedeported, ties canbemuch harsher. Formostminor Iran. Themaindifference isthatthepenal- that are illegalinyour country are illegalin of Sharia law.Mostof activities thesame isnotthestrictesthowever, interpretation onIslamicprinciples.Thesystem, is based Like mostthingsinIran,thelegalsystem LEGAL MATTERS is The undisputed kingof Iranianmap-making MAPS In Iran,peopleare legallyallowedtovote In theunlikely youare event arrested, it’s There are two‘crimes’that foreigners may Gita Shenasi

Mp pp102-3 ; (Map x lonelyplanet.com 021-6670 9335; places are marked onlyinFarsi. many islimited because their usefulness Sabalan such as cellent maps outsideIranisn’teasy;lookfortheex- bers onthemajor intercity roads.Finding haveannoyingly itdoesn’t anyroute num- but is updated detailed, annuallyandishighly Maps are hardertofindoutsideTehran. including thetext andindexes, isinFarsi. squares else, everything inEnglish,although list thenamesof major streets, suburbsand its mapsare inEnglish, while manyothers ranges.mountain Agrowingnumberof major townsandcitiessomeof the impressive arrayof mapscovering allthe 8am-1pm Thu) EslamiAve;Crossroads, Enqelab-e St,Valiasr St,Razi www.gitashenasi.com; 15OstadShahrivar lonelyplanet.com cash –preferably inhigh-denomination travellers cheques. Justbringcold, hard purely cash economy. Nocredit cards.No theinsidefrontcover.rates see ofan idea costssee p16 ; andforexchange breviation ‘IR’toindicate Iranianrials.For theab- thisbookweuse can. Throughout around theideaof tomansassoon asyou itistoget howimportant yourhead enough or Tomans?, below ). Wecan’temphasise Rials of tomans,aunitequalto10rials(see rial, but interms Iranians almostalwaystalk The official unit of currency istheIranian MONEY Gita ShenasiGita publishesclimbingmaps, Gita Shenasi’sGita For allintents Iranisa andpurposes, is handy, too, asthenumbers showinWestern rather thanArabicnumerals. whether it’sinrials ortomans(written pricesare usuallyexpressed inrials)–using acalculator too bad–itprobably is. feel forwhatthingscost,you’llunderstandthatifsomethingsoundstoo goodtobetrue–or togetathat thetwofingerstaxidriver justshowedyoumean IR20,000.Andasyoustart on thegroundsofcommercialconfusion, rest assured thatafter afew daysyou’llunderstand forIR10,000.However, beforesay ‘one’asshorthand youconsidercancellingyourtriptoIran for10centswhenever inEurope theywanted shopkeepers asking 10 rials,soit’sabitlike €1. travellers eventually get used tothis,atfirstitiscompletely bamboozling. Onetomanisworth of talking about pricesintomanseven though thecurrency isdenominated inrials. Whilemost No soonerhave youarrived inIranthanyouwillcomeupagainsttheidiosyncraticlocalpractice RIALS ORTOMANS? In theinterim, you can alwayshave ask thepricewritten down, andthentodouble-check mattersTo make worse,taxidrivers and Reise Know-HowIran and Central Alborz, in Tehran, which publishes an Damavand anditsRidges, Iran RoadMap

h The Peaks of the 8am-6pm Sat-Wed& (1:1,500,000). (1:1,500,000). (1:2,250,000) (1:2,250,000) but bazaris much cashasyou’re likely thena toneed, thingtorememberimportant istobringas and Pakistani currencies. Azerbaijani, Turkmen ditto fortheAfghan, rywhere totheTurkishborder; except close ish liraare treated withtheutmostscorneve- along thePersian Turk- Gulfcoast.However, euros foremergencies. changers, sohave atleastafew dollars or changed atborders orinsmallermoney- bigger townstoo,butcan’talwaysbeex- euros. UKpoundsget decentrates inmost one ortheotherthenit’ssafer togofor 1996), butifyouhave between tochoose (as longasthenotes were printed since trip wehadnoproblem changing dollars change dollars anymore. Onthisresearch So much so thatsomebankswon’teven away fromthedollarandtowardeuro. toturn aged Iranianbanksandbusinesses Ahmadinejad government hasencour- clear programandfallingUSdollar,the to strongUScondemnationof Iran’snu- US dollarwaskinginIran.Butresponse tobe,somewhatironically,thatthe used sort of cashyoushouldbringtoIran.It inrials. everything tocartaround awheelbarrow you’d need carry amixof rialsanddollars oreuros– they are quoted. to You’llobviously need we’ve listed pricesinthecurrency inwhich tions are inrials(ortomans).Inthisbook, you canpayindollars oreuros,alltransac- tels, carpetshops andtouragencies where euros orUSdollars. Apartfromsomeho- (the shopkeepers inthebazaar)willoften(the shopkeepers Whichever currency themost youchoose, There isathriving businessinUAE dirhams Which bringsustothequestionof what DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY

387 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY paperwork. Often ittakes around30min- ofhelp youtoget themountains through in somesmallercitiesaFarsi-speaker will you whenchanging moneyinabank,and totake yourpassportwith You willneed should besomeonewhospeaksEnglish. bankstherenear theentrance. Atthese ‘Foreign Exchange’ displayedinEnglish nearly alwayshave thesign‘Exchange’ or thatoffer foreign-exchangeBanks facilities Tejarat, Saderat. andBank Sepah Bank the othermajor Mellat, banks:Bank Bank to change moneyatthecentralbranches of are in.Inlarger citiesyoumayalsobeable of Melli Bank (BMI)inwhichever townyou will alwaysbethecentralbranch often, Britishpoundsincash.Yourbestbet then usuallyonlyUSdollars, eurosor,less banks willactuallychange yourmoneyand fourth building inIranisabank,onlyfew asifevery itsometimesseems Although Banks local account. are totravellers useless unless youopena withlocallyissued bankcards,so be used ATMs (cashpointmachines), theycanonly IranhasafunctioningnetworkofAlthough ATMs once you’re insideIranisanightmare. bit more. yourhandsonmoney Getting 388 ordered all hotels touseonerate forall –apolicycalled itmightfinallybecomingtoanend.Inearly2008thegovernmentlike tourism organisation ofchargingpractice foreigners 30%to50%more thanIraniansforthe same hotel roomlooks in Shiraz. government funding,suchasVank Eram(GardenofParadise) andBagh-e Cathedral inEsfahan Entry fees are nowthesameforeveryone, exceptatafew privately runplacesthatdon’treceive of charging foreigners 10times the Iranianpricetoseehistoricalmonumentsandmuseums. First, ofCulture toapplaudtheMinistry we’dlike &IslamicGuidanceforabolishingthepractice DUAL-PRICING your share ofameal. insisting onpaying good chanceyou’ll be humbledbysomeoneforwhomIR20,000 isafortune fair.and elsewhere willbeperfectly you’llfindthe vast majorityoftransactions Indeed,there’s a all inperspective. Asmall butgrowingnumberofhotels docharge thesamerates foreveryone, than literal, withrampantinflation alsoplayingitspart. a singlepricethatsitsbetweentheold Iranianandforeign prices. obeyed andothersdidnot.The outcomeremains unclear. The mostlogical conclusionwouldbe were nothappy aboutthisnewdirective, andamonths-longargument ensuedwhilesomehotels DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY However, aswewenttopress dual-pricingwasstillhappening...just. officially sanctioned The In the unlikely event that the hoteliers win and dual-pricing continues, it’s worth keeping it event keeping In theunlikely thatthehoteliers winanddual-pricingcontinues,it’sworth What doesthismeanforyou?Well,the hotel prices listed inthisguidewillbeindicative more (markazi) read asthenumbers andnamesare printed falling apart,Iranianbanknotes are easyto without anytears whatsoever. Ifthey’re not currencies, which tobecleanand need applytoforeignthat thistolerancedoesn’t that ithasatinytear oristoogrubby.Note blue someonewillreject oneonthegrounds rialnoteswhat state are in,thenoutof the notes topayshared fares. taxi Hang ontoyourfilthyIR500andIR1000 IR50,000 notes lookconfusinglysimilar. symbol. Thered-coloured IR20,000and note bearing thethree-elipse nuclear IR20,000 and,sinceMarch 2007,aIR50,000 varieties), IR5000(twoIR10,000, IR500, IR1000(twovarieties),IR2000 are notes forIR100(rare), IR200(rare), lucky despite beingutterly worthless. There (no longer minted) thattheyare considered sorareall common.Indeed, are IR1coins only thelatter fourdenominationsare at IR10, IR20, IR50,IR100,IR250andIR500, thereAlthough are coinsforIR1,IR2,IR5, Cash 9amand10am. between rates have faxed fromTehran been through most willnotchange moneyuntiltheday’s signatures. utes orlonger andrequires five different Most of the time no-one seems tocareMost of thetimeno-oneseems While banksusuallyopenat7.30am, yeksansazi . Notsurprisingly,hoteliers lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com unlike inmostbanks where half anhouris where thewholedeal isdoneinseconds, cash isatan money-exchangeofficial office, The quickest andeasiest waytochange Moneychangers become almostimpossible. cut completely, transfers inwhich case will banking relations withsomecountriesare mean might thateconomicsanctions ever, Show Me theMoney, above . Note, how- see dividual’s accountinIran;fordetails, ferred from overseas toabankoranin- It shouldbepossibletohave moneytrans- Transfers International tic andbesure cash. tobringenough tojustfileawaytheplas- relying upon. Better accounts willtake credit cards, it’snotworth carpet shopsandtravel agencies withforeign fromhome. Whileahandfulofmoney sent then hadtospend10traumaticdaysgetting banktoldatravellerGerman wemet,who cash onyourcredit card,despite whatone a planeticket, nothing.Youcannotdraw card inIran.You cannot payforahotel, embargo anycredit meanyoucannotuse The ‘waronterror’ andtheUStrade Cards Credit only marked inFarsi. in Farsi andEnglish. coinsare However, 2 1 haven’t cutoffIranianbanksentirely. plan, butifyouneedmoneysentfromabroad,thissystem shouldwork–assumingsanctions cash. Don’t despair. Whatisdescribedhere isdefinitely notsomethingtobuildintoyourtravel So you’ve beenrobbed,lostyourwallet,maybeboughtonetoomanycarpetsandyou’re outof SHOW METHEMONEY souvenir foryoursaviour. is theleastofyourworries. Onceyou’re inthemoneyagain,don’tforget topickupadecent Be warnedthatthecharges inyourhomecountrycanbehigh.Butifyou’re desperate, this 5 4 3 Find anEnglishspeaker, counter 13speaksEnglishandhashelpedmanytravellers outofsuchsituations. Go tothenearest BankMelli(BMI)centralbranch,preferably inTehran at where MrAbdollahi Between twoandfourdayslater, thecashshouldarrive atyourbranchinIran. numberandtheSwiftcode,depositmoney. name, passport Ask yoursaviourathometogoabranchofthenominated bank(eg ANZ)withyourfull www.bmi.ir), orwhichbankinyourcountryhasarelationship withBMI(eg inAustralia, it’sANZ). andaskwhetherthereMELIIRTH060); isaBMIbranchinyourhomecountry(theseare listed at BMIbranch(eg TehranGet theSwiftidentificationcodeforthisparticular centralbranchis details.contact insh’Allah, outlinewhatyouwanttodoandgive themyourlocal it! Like credit cards,travellers cheques are American Express. Leave home without Cheques Travellers there isnoculture of inIran. ‘baksheesh’ Ta’arof,(see p45 ). You’llberelieved tohear sist inmakingitthree timesbefore givingup your offer isinitiallyrefused, youshould per- If opens abuildingthatisnormally closed. offer asmalltiptoanyone whoguidesyouor It’snormal to surprise. will beapleasant But everywhere anymoneyyouleave else charge that’softenservice builtintothebill. beexpected –ontopofity might the10% restaurants (mainlyinTehran) a10%gratu- Tipping isnotabigdealinIran.Inupmarket Tipping the bazaarshouldbeable tohelp. office, carpetshops,jewellers orsomeonein correct. Ifyoucan’tfindabankorexchange don’t handover yourbilluntilyou’re sure it’s fee’. Countthemoneycarefully, and ‘service and expectthechanger totake aIR10,000 rate asyou’dgetmand thesame inthebank with noideaof current rates. Youshould de- street, expecttobetreated like moron atotal money changer. Ifyoudochange onthe is much safer thandoingsowithastreet cities, usuallysignedinEnglish. fast. Exchange shopscanbefoundinmost Changing moneyinanexchange shop DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY

389 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY paperwork. Often ittakes around30min- ofhelp youtoget themountains through in somesmallercitiesaFarsi-speaker will you whenchanging moneyinabank,and totake yourpassportwith You willneed should besomeonewhospeaksEnglish. bankstherenear theentrance. Atthese ‘Foreign Exchange’ displayedinEnglish nearly alwayshave thesign‘Exchange’ or thatoffer foreign-exchangeBanks facilities Tejarat, Saderat. andBank Sepah Bank the othermajor Mellat, banks:Bank Bank to change moneyatthecentralbranches of are in.Inlarger citiesyoumayalsobeable of Melli Bank (BMI)inwhichever townyou will alwaysbethecentralbranch often, Britishpoundsincash.Yourbestbet then usuallyonlyUSdollars, eurosor,less banks willactuallychange yourmoneyand fourth building inIranisabank,onlyfew asifevery itsometimesseems Although Banks local account. are totravellers useless unless youopena withlocallyissued bankcards,so be used ATMs (cashpointmachines), theycanonly IranhasafunctioningnetworkofAlthough ATMs once you’re insideIranisanightmare. bit more. yourhandsonmoney Getting 388 ordered all hotels touseonerate forall –apolicycalled itmightfinallybecomingtoanend.Inearly2008thegovernmentlike tourism organisation ofchargingpractice foreigners 30%to50%more thanIraniansforthe same hotel roomlooks in Shiraz. government funding,suchasVank Eram(GardenofParadise) andBagh-e Cathedral inEsfahan Entry fees are nowthesameforeveryone, exceptatafew privately runplacesthatdon’treceive of charging foreigners 10times the Iranianpricetoseehistoricalmonumentsandmuseums. First, ofCulture toapplaudtheMinistry we’dlike &IslamicGuidanceforabolishingthepractice DUAL-PRICING your share ofameal. insisting onpaying good chanceyou’ll be humbledbysomeoneforwhomIR20,000 isafortune fair.and elsewhere willbeperfectly you’llfindthe vast majorityoftransactions Indeed,there’s a all inperspective. Asmall butgrowingnumberofhotels docharge thesamerates foreveryone, than literal, withrampantinflation alsoplayingitspart. a singlepricethatsitsbetweentheold Iranianandforeign prices. obeyed andothersdidnot.The outcomeremains unclear. The mostlogical conclusionwouldbe were nothappy aboutthisnewdirective, andamonths-longargument ensuedwhilesomehotels DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY However, aswewenttopress dual-pricingwasstillhappening...just. officially sanctioned The In the unlikely event that the hoteliers win and dual-pricing continues, it’s worth keeping it event keeping In theunlikely thatthehoteliers winanddual-pricingcontinues,it’sworth What doesthismeanforyou?Well,the hotel prices listed inthisguidewillbeindicative more (markazi) read asthenumbers andnamesare printed falling apart,Iranianbanknotes are easyto without anytears whatsoever. Ifthey’re not currencies, which tobecleanand need applytoforeignthat thistolerancedoesn’t that ithasatinytear oristoogrubby.Note blue someonewillreject oneonthegrounds rialnoteswhat state are in,thenoutof the notes topayshared fares. taxi Hang ontoyourfilthyIR500andIR1000 IR50,000 notes lookconfusinglysimilar. symbol. Thered-coloured IR20,000and note bearing thethree-elipse nuclear IR20,000 and,sinceMarch 2007,aIR50,000 varieties), IR5000(twoIR10,000, IR500, IR1000(twovarieties),IR2000 are notes forIR100(rare), IR200(rare), lucky despite beingutterly worthless. There (no longer minted) thattheyare considered sorareall common.Indeed, are IR1coins only thelatter fourdenominationsare at IR10, IR20, IR50,IR100,IR250andIR500, thereAlthough are coinsforIR1,IR2,IR5, Cash 9amand10am. between rates have faxed fromTehran been through most willnotchange moneyuntiltheday’s signatures. utes orlonger andrequires five different Most of the time no-one seems tocareMost of thetimeno-oneseems While banksusuallyopenat7.30am, yeksansazi . Notsurprisingly,hoteliers lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com unlike inmostbanks where half anhouris where thewholedeal isdoneinseconds, cash isatan money-exchangeofficial office, The quickest andeasiest waytochange Moneychangers become almostimpossible. cut completely, transfers inwhich case will banking relations withsomecountriesare mean might thateconomicsanctions ever, Show Me theMoney, above . Note, how- see dividual’s accountinIran;fordetails, ferred from overseas toabankoranin- It shouldbepossibletohave moneytrans- Transfers International tic andbesure cash. tobringenough tojustfileawaytheplas- relying upon. Better accounts willtake credit cards, it’snotworth carpet shopsandtravel agencies withforeign fromhome. Whileahandfulofmoney sent then hadtospend10traumaticdaysgetting banktoldatravellerGerman wemet,who cash onyourcredit card,despite whatone a planeticket, nothing.Youcannotdraw card inIran.You cannot payforahotel, embargo anycredit meanyoucannotuse The ‘waronterror’ andtheUStrade Cards Credit only marked inFarsi. in Farsi andEnglish. coinsare However, souvenir foryoursaviour. is theleastofyourworries. Onceyou’re inthemoneyagain,don’tforget topickupadecent Be warnedthatthecharges inyourhomecountrycanbehigh.Butifyou’re desperate, this 5 4 3 2 1 haven’t cutoffIranianbanksentirely. plan, butifyouneedmoneysentfromabroad,thissystem shouldwork–assumingsanctions cash. Don’t despair. Whatisdescribedhere isdefinitely notsomethingtobuildintoyourtravel So you’ve beenrobbed,lostyourwallet,maybeboughtonetoomanycarpetsandyou’re outof SHOW METHEMONEY Between twoandfourdayslater, thecashshouldarrive atyourbranchinIran. numberandtheSwiftcode,depositmoney. name, passport Ask yoursaviourathometogoabranchofthenominated bank(eg ANZ)withyourfull www.bmi.ir), orwhichbankinyourcountryhasarelationship withBMI(eg inAustralia, it’sANZ). andaskwhetherthereMELIIRTH060); isaBMIbranchinyourhomecountry(theseare listed at BMIbranch(eg TehranGet theSwiftidentificationcodeforthisparticular centralbranchis details.contact Find anEnglishspeaker, counter 13speaksEnglishandhashelpedmanytravellers outofsuchsituations. Go tothenearest BankMelli(BMI)centralbranch,preferably inTehran at where MrAbdollahi insh’Allah, outlinewhatyouwanttodoandgive themyourlocal it! Like credit cards,travellers cheques are American Express. Leave homewithout Cheques Travellers there isnoculture of inIran. ‘baksheesh’ Ta’arof,(see p45 ). You’llberelieved tohear sist inmakingitthree timesbefore givingup your offer isinitiallyrefused, youshould per- If opens abuildingthatisnormally closed. offer asmalltiptoanyone whoguidesyouor It’snormal to surprise. will beapleasant But everywhere anymoneyyouleave else charge that’softenservice builtintothebill. beexpected –ontopofity might the10% restaurants (mainlyinTehran) a10%gratu- Tipping isnotabigdealinIran.Inupmarket Tipping the bazaarshouldbeable tohelp. office, carpetshops,jewellers orsomeonein correct. Ifyoucan’tfindabankorexchange don’t handover yourbilluntilyou’re sure it’s fee’. Countthemoneycarefully, and ‘service and expectthechanger totake aIR10,000 rate asyou’dgetmand thesame inthebank with noideaof current rates. Youshould de- street, expecttobetreated like moron atotal money changer. Ifyoudochange onthe is much safer thandoingsowithastreet cities, usuallysignedinEnglish. fast. Exchange shopscanbefoundinmost Changing moneyinanexchange shop DIRECTORY ••Money DIRECTORY

389 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY ture of the port,andwe canspeakfrom Abbashours in Bandar apic- fortaking of Polishtravellers whowere for detained ment buildingat all.Weknowof agroup –basically,anygovern-or policestations sies/consulates, prisons,telephone offices embas- installations, roadblocks, military ports, naval dockyards,nuclear reactors, photographing government buildings,air- toavoidIn Iranitisespeciallyimportant Restrictions don’tmaketo keep thepromise, it. ber topostoremailthem.Ifyoudon’tplan greatly appreciated –aslongyouremem- friends andpostoremailtothemlater is for womenphotographers. bemade chador might orscarf.Exceptions intoherexpect hertoquicklydisappear at awomanwithoutpermission youcan almost alwaysbeno. Ifyoupointyourlens matter how nicelyyouask,theanswerwill where lonewomenare concerneditdoesn’t ture taken provided youaskfirst. However, Most Iraniansare happytohave theirpic- People Photographing so ifyouask(orplead)nicely. to hand-check yourfilm;they’llusuallydo art soit’sworthgettingguards thesecurity ray machines are notexactlystate-of-the- you’re likely Note toneed. thatairportX- impossible outsideTehran, sobringall much hardertofind,andslidefilmalmost filmsare speed good prices.Higher now no problemfindinggardenvarietyfilmsat being inTehran. rates inthelarger cities,thewidestrange latest formatsare available atreasonable DVD. Memory cardsinallbutthevery net and/orburnthemtoCDor,lessoften, you canuploadyourimages totheinter- lers. Many country andthat’sgoodnewsfortravel- raphy bandwagon asmuch asanyother Iran hasjumpedonthe digital photog- PHOTOGRAPHY &VIDEO rely onit. thiscould changeeven atanytimesodon’t change(unofficially) travellers cheques, but tached tointernational hotels inTehran can inIran.Onlyacoupleofuseless banksat- 390 Offering totake picturesOffering of yourIranian If you’re still usingfilmthenyou’llhave DIRECTORY ••Photography&Video DIRECTORY coffeenets have cardreaders so where bysurfacemail should costless than quoting them, buta5kg parceltoany- tend tovarydepending onwhoisRates (express), cate. – There are three parcelservices checked, packaged andsignedforintri pli- the bigger thebetter. There it willbe huneh-ye amanat-e posti) readers, unreliable. restante and,accordingto islittleused Poste exceptoutsidepostoffices. between, the envelope. Postboxes are few andfar someone towrite theaddress inFarsi on address ortosomewhere remote, trytoget getting itacrossthecountry. letter across theworldisoften quicker than isreliable a butslow,and sending service five days.Incontrast,thedomesticpostal Postcards usuallyreach Europeinfouror isreliable andreasonably swift. The service to anywhere outsideIranshould beIR4000. The costfora normal-sized letter byairmail an airmailpostcardtoanywhere isIR1000. Postage isvery cheap. Thecostof sending POST thesmog. ful butyoucan’tsee meansit’sjustasbeauti- when thelighting –considercomingbackatnight in Esfahan ruining yourpictures –such asinImamSq lution issobad.Ifhazy,polluted skyis bad incitiessuch asTehran, where thepol- some of theglare, which canbeparticularly A polarisingfilter willalsohelptocutout about11amand3pm. half astopbetween so thinkaboutunderexposing byathirdor canbestrongduringtheday, The sunlight Technical Tips be anythingexceptadumbtourist. doubt, ask.Ifyouget don’ttryto caught, Photography’ Ifyou’re sign,take heed. in be theIraqborder. a‘No Whenyousee aphotooftaking ahillthathappenedto Howraman-at Takht ( p194 ) forun knowing ly first-hand experienceof beingarrested in will u it’s reasonably pricedand yourpackage but frustrating exercise informshuffling, aparceloutof Irancan beaSending Parcels goods to th If you’re mailtoacomplicated sending sually arrive. Take yourunwrapped markazi) havayi e parcelpost counter at themainpostoffice (airmail)and surface. inaprovincial – capital lonelyplanet.com (daftar-e pishtaz (postk-

your passport. will usuallybeasked foraphotocopyof also p377 forcustomsregulations). You what canbeposted abroad,sobenice(see generallypost office hasdiscretion over ondutyattheUS$20. Thecustomsofficer lonelyplanet.com souvenirs. Abbas; andMasuleh. andaroundRasht Maraqeh, near Tabriz; Minab,nearBandar nearHamadan; tiles)atLalejin, (mosaic much more oncarpets. available almosteverywhere –see p61 for carpets are theultimate souvenir andare apply tosomegoods(see p377 ). Persian getting agoodprice.restrictions Export as place tobuysomethingisasimportant cific products.Often, knowingthebest for you. price, thebazaars andShiraz inEsfahan are it allatonceandaren’t tooworriedabout as tohowyoufoundit.Ifyou’dprefer todo away withagreat souvenir andagoodstory insmallerbazaars youshouldstuff come If youare prepared old through to search carpets. at domestictourists,tohigh-quality plaster of Paris atPersepolis, griffins aimed quality ranges fromcheap rubbish,such as in EsfahanandShiraz. Pricesare lowand souvenirs, sold withthewidestselection Iran hasplentyof products thatmake good SHOPPING provinces. Uniquely embroidered available intheKermanshah andKhuzestan abas probably thebestplace distinctly Iraniansouvenir, andEsfahanis more information)are anotherpopular, selling selling Orumiyeh. qabha-ye aks Orumiyeh are alsogoodforminiatures, and examples. Tehran and Khorramabad Bazar, Manuchehri StinTehran hassomegood for thebestpieces.ApartfromEsfahan, a tinywork,climbingintothethousands atures are likely tocostatleastUS$50for mini- willbeoncamelbone. Better see mostofcamel bone?),however whatyou bated (should theybepainted onpaperor constitutes a‘real’ miniature iswidelyde- Traditional clothes canmake great Minyaturha Various inspe- placesinIranspecialise There are dozensof shopsandfactories (traditional coats without sleeves) are (traditionalcoats withoutsleeves) sefalgari Givehs (picture frames)are goodin (miniatures; see (miniatures; see p69 for (pottery) and (lightweight shoes) and shoes) (lightweight to buythem.What moza’i-ha abas from

you step intoasouvenir shop. fast whenback aboutIR80,000.Pricesrise youlong-dead shahonthebowlwillset pipewithsomeries, andastock-standard for asmallerpipewithwoodenaccesso- ataboutIR40,000the qalyan.Pricesstart available bazaarinthecountryis inevery Finally, anotherpopularsouvenir that’s language coffee-table booksabout Iran. least acoupleof inexpensive English- Sanandaj andEsfahan. work), someof thebestdealscomefrom carvings and carvings and Yazd, are readily available. hanna 4567. If you findthenumbers inotherbig was repeated, so123 4567 became1123 to workoutthe change; thefirst number tobearocketyou didn’tneed scientist lines hadanextra digitadded.Fortunately, Iran. Forexample,in2005allTehran land- to change with disconcerting regularity in Phone numbers andarea codescontinue TELEPHONE beronz (water pipes)madefrom chayservis-ha-ye province,estan Kerman orShiraz, and thing madeof silver orgoldfromKhuz- any- pick upincludeknives fromZanjan, ful garmentsandfabricscalled especially impressive. Allsortsof beauti- villages Abbas nearBandar andBushehrare fleece youfortheirfinewoollensocks. fleece women of Masuleh willprobably attempt to and Ilamprovinces are popular,andthe len Kurdish coatsandhatsfromKordestan found inYazd province. Traditionalwool- Tabriz isrenowned forits from Hamadan andYazd are popular,and province.villages inZanjan silver filigree necklacesandearringsfrom fromMashhad, turquoise Kordestan, and geous choices: traditionaljewelleryfrom lery). Ifyoudo,there are plentyof gor- doing whenbuying inYazdbought andTehran. Most citieshave at bookshops selling Za’faran Woodwork iswidelyavailable, butfor Some interesting souvenirs metalwork to Intricate Bags madefrom Bags waryunlessyouknowwhatyou’reBe (henna),particularlyfromTabriz (bronze). (saffron) fromMashhad, (saffron) and shisheh alat DIRECTORY ••Shopping DIRECTORY moarraq (tea sets) andqalyans (tea sets) charmineh javaher alat (marquetryinlay- (glassware) canbe mes abrishom (copper)and termeh (leather) (jewel- (silk).

are 391 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY so ifyouask(orplead)nicely. to hand-check yourfilm;they’llusuallydo art soit’sworthgettingguards thesecurity ray machines are notexactlystate-of-the- you’re likely Note toneed. thatairportX- impossible outsideTehran, sobringall much hardertofind,andslidefilmalmost filmsare speed good prices.Higher now no problemfindinggardenvarietyfilmsat being inTehran. rates inthelarger cities,thewidestrange latest formatsare available atreasonable DVD. Memory cardsinallbutthevery net and/orburnthemtoCDor,lessoften, you canuploadyourimages totheinter- ture of the port,andwe canspeakfrom Abbashours in Bandar apic- fortaking of Polishtravellers whowere for detained ment buildingat all.Weknowof agroup –basically,anygovern-or policestations sies/consulates, prisons,telephone offices embas- installations, roadblocks, military ports, naval dockyards,nuclear reactors, photographing government buildings,air- toavoidIn Iranitisespeciallyimportant Restrictions don’tmaketo keep thepromise, it. ber topostoremailthem.Ifyoudon’tplan greatly appreciated –aslongyouremem- friends andpostoremailtothemlater is for womenphotographers. bemade chador might orscarf.Exceptions intoherexpect hertoquicklydisappear at awomanwithoutpermission youcan almost alwaysbeno. Ifyoupointyourlens matter how nicelyyouask,theanswerwill where lonewomenare concerneditdoesn’t ture taken provided youaskfirst. However, Most Iraniansare happytohave theirpic- People Photographing lers. Many country andthat’sgoodnewsfortravel- raphy bandwagon asmuch asanyother Iran hasjumpedonthe digital photog- PHOTOGRAPHY &VIDEO rely onit. thiscould changeeven atanytimesodon’t change(unofficially) travellers cheques, but tached tointernational hotels inTehran can inIran.Onlyacoupleofuseless banksat- 390 If you’re still usingfilmthenyou’llhave Offering totake picturesOffering of yourIranian DIRECTORY ••Photography&Video DIRECTORY coffeenets have cardreaders so where bysurfacemail should costless than quoting them, buta5kg parceltoany- tend tovarydepending onwhoisRates (express), cate. – There are three parcelservices checked, packaged andsignedforintri pli- the bigger thebetter. There it willbe huneh-ye amanat-e posti) readers, unreliable. restante and,accordingto islittleused Poste exceptoutsidepostoffices. between, the envelope. Postboxes are few andfar someone towrite theaddress inFarsi on address ortosomewhere remote, trytoget getting itacrossthecountry. letter across theworldisoften quicker than isreliable a butslow,and sending service five days.Incontrast,thedomesticpostal Postcards usuallyreach Europeinfouror isreliable andreasonably swift. The service to anywhere outsideIranshould beIR4000. The costfora normal-sized letter byairmail an airmailpostcardtoanywhere isIR1000. Postage isvery cheap. Thecostof sending POST thesmog. ful butyoucan’tsee meansit’sjustasbeauti- when thelighting –considercomingbackatnight in Esfahan ruining yourpictures –such asinImamSq lution issobad.Ifhazy,polluted skyis bad incitiessuch asTehran, where thepol- some of theglare, which canbeparticularly A polarisingfilter willalsohelptocutout about11amand3pm. half astopbetween so thinkaboutunderexposing byathirdor canbestrongduringtheday, The sunlight Technical Tips be anythingexceptadumbtourist. doubt, ask.Ifyouget don’ttryto caught, Photography’ Ifyou’re sign,take heed. in be theIraqborder. a‘No Whenyousee aphotooftaking ahillthathappenedto Howraman-at Takht ( p194 ) forun knowing ly first-hand experienceof beingarrested in goods to th will u it’s reasonably pricedand yourpackage but frustrating exercise informshuffling, aparceloutof Irancan beaSending Parcels If you’re mailtoacomplicated sending sually arrive. Take yourunwrapped markazi) havayi e parcelpost counter at themainpostoffice (airmail)and surface. inaprovincial – capital lonelyplanet.com (daftar-e pishtaz (postk-

your passport. will usuallybeasked foraphotocopyof also p377 forcustomsregulations). You what canbeposted abroad,sobenice(see generallypost office hasdiscretion over ondutyattheUS$20. Thecustomsofficer lonelyplanet.com provinces. Uniquely embroidered available intheKermanshah andKhuzestan abas souvenirs. Abbas; andMasuleh. andaroundRasht Maraqeh, near Tabriz; Minab,nearBandar nearHamadan; tiles)atLalejin, (mosaic much more oncarpets. available almosteverywhere –see p61 for carpets are theultimate souvenir andare apply tosomegoods(see p377 ). Persian getting agoodprice.restrictions Export as place tobuysomethingisasimportant cific products.Often, knowingthebest for you. price, thebazaars andShiraz inEsfahan are it allatonceandaren’t tooworriedabout as tohowyoufoundit.Ifyou’dprefer todo away withagreat souvenir andagoodstory insmallerbazaars youshouldstuff come If youare prepared old through to search carpets. at domestictourists,tohigh-quality plaster of Paris atPersepolis, griffins aimed quality ranges fromcheap rubbish,such as in EsfahanandShiraz. Pricesare lowand souvenirs, sold withthewidestselection Iran hasplentyof products thatmake good SHOPPING selling selling Orumiyeh. qabha-ye aks Orumiyeh are alsogoodforminiatures, and examples. Tehran and Khorramabad Bazar, Manuchehri StinTehran hassomegood for thebestpieces.ApartfromEsfahan, a tinywork,climbingintothethousands atures are likely tocostatleastUS$50for mini- willbeoncamelbone. Better see mostofcamel bone?),however whatyou bated (should theybepainted onpaperor constitutes a‘real’ miniature iswidelyde- probably thebestplace distinctly Iraniansouvenir, andEsfahanis more information)are anotherpopular, Traditional clothes canmake great Minyaturha Various inspe- placesinIranspecialise There are dozensof shopsandfactories (traditional coats without sleeves) are (traditionalcoats withoutsleeves) sefalgari Givehs (picture frames)are goodin (miniatures; see (miniatures; see p69 for (pottery) and (lightweight shoes) and shoes) (lightweight to buythem.What moza’i-ha abas from

you step intoasouvenir shop. fast whenback aboutIR80,000.Pricesrise youlong-dead shahonthebowlwillset pipewithsomeries, andastock-standard for asmallerpipewithwoodenaccesso- ataboutIR40,000the qalyan.Pricesstart available bazaarinthecountryis inevery Finally, anotherpopularsouvenir that’s language coffee-table booksabout Iran. least acoupleof inexpensive English- Sanandaj andEsfahan. work), someof thebestdealscomefrom carvings and carvings and Yazd, are readily available. hanna 4567. If you findthenumbers inotherbig was repeated, so123 4567 became1123 to workoutthe change; thefirst number tobearocketyou didn’tneed scientist lines hadanextra digitadded.Fortunately, Iran. Forexample,in2005allTehran land- to change with disconcerting regularity in Phone numbers andarea codescontinue TELEPHONE beronz (water pipes)madefrom chayservis-ha-ye province,estan Kerman orShiraz, and thing madeof silver orgoldfromKhuz- any- pick upincludeknives fromZanjan, youfortheirfinewoollensocks. fleece women of Masuleh willprobably attempt to and Ilamprovinces are popular,andthe len Kurdish coatsandhatsfromKordestan found inYazd province. Traditionalwool- ful garmentsandfabricscalled especially impressive. Allsortsof beauti- villages Abbas nearBandar andBushehrare Tabriz isrenowned forits from Hamadan andYazd are popular,and province.villages inZanjan silver filigree necklacesandearringsfrom fromMashhad, turquoise Kordestan, and geous choices: traditionaljewelleryfrom lery). Ifyoudo,there are plentyof gor- doing whenbuying inYazdbought andTehran. Most citieshave at bookshops selling Za’faran Woodwork iswidelyavailable, butfor Some interesting souvenirs metalwork to Intricate Bags madefrom Bags waryunlessyouknowwhatyou’reBe (henna),particularlyfromTabriz (bronze). (saffron) fromMashhad, (saffron) and shisheh alat DIRECTORY ••Shopping DIRECTORY moarraq (tea sets) andqalyans (tea sets) charmineh javaher alat (marquetryinlay- (glassware) canbe mes abrishom (copper)and termeh (leather) (jewel- (silk).

are 391 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY a minimum of three minutes. come available. You’ll normallybecharged to thefrontdesk and waitforaboothtobe- is pretty simple:give thenumberyouwant from about7.30am until9pm).Theprocess private telephone (usuallyopen offices rates canbehadatsmall, countries. These cheap –justIR1700perminute tomost phone permittingfree localcalls. minals usuallyhave atleast onepublictele- free of charge. Airportsandmajor buster- nicely mosthotels willletyoumake afew a localnumberandpunch inacode. grocery stores and calling cardsare available fromnewsstands, calls fromthem.Insomecitiesinternational is broken andyoucan’tmake international cardphone second every perience, however, Inourex- calling amobileorlongdistance. IR42 perminute, it’smore though ifyou’re get thelarger through card.Localcallsare just toreallyneed like thesoundof yourvoiceto areand IR20,000.Calls socheap thatyou’ll come indenominationsof IR5000, IR10,000 payphones are available and innewsstands fornewer take IR50andIR100coins.Cards lowed thismethod. cities have changed, have theymight fol- 392 International callsare alsorelatively Local callsare socheap thatifyouask Some old-style payphones still work and Some old-stylepayphonesstillworkand the damagewon’tbetoogreat. athome,ifyoudogetrippedoffinIran itout.And,unlike untilyoudecidetotake your pocket isforcingyoutobuyanything.good deal.Remember,too,thatno-one Yourmoneywillstayin you paidmore thanyourtravelling companion,don’tworry.As longasyou’re happy,itwasa are happyanddoesn’tnecessarilyrequire youtoscrew every lasttomanoutofthevendor. If thanyoualready have.knock thepricedownanyfurther outofthestore, callsyourbluffyou’llstruggleto butiftheshopkeeper you couldtrywalking competition youknowwhatisafairpricesoonlyedgeupslowly.Ifcan’tagree onaprice abetteryou tomake offer: ‘ButIhave ninechildren tofeed’. However, atthe havinglooked acounter-offer,then make thusbeginning thebargaining process. The vendor willoften beseech get anideaofthepriceandquality.Withthisknowledge,casuallyenquire astothepriceand tion amileaway.Second,don’tbuythefirstoneyousee;subtlycheckoutfew alternatives to besureyou findsomethinglike nottoshowtoomuchinterest. Vendors cansmelldespera- Vakil ortheBazar-e inShiraz,bargainingSq inEsfahan isessential. for souvenir-type andabsolutely products alwaysforcarpets. Intouristed areas, suchasImam a few yearsago. allpricesinthebazaarare negotiable,particularly On theotherhand,virtually a pricetagattachedare fixed, andfixed pricesare undoubtedly more prevalent thantheywere As ageneralrule,the (except private taxis)andmostthingswithprices ofgroceries,transport WHAT ABARGAIN! DIRECTORY ••Telephone DIRECTORY Remember thatbargaining isnotalife anddeathbattle. Agoodbargain iswhen Bargaining canbetoughifyou’re notusedtoit,sohere are acoupleofpointers. First, when coffeenets , where youdial calls toorfromIran.Iran’scountrycodeis for some useful numbers.for someuseful alsotheinsidefrontcoverarea codes. See from outsideIran,droptheinitial0all x Sistan va Baluchestan and Khuzestan. and Khuzestan. vaBaluchestan Sistan coverage inallbut three provinces –Kerman, Irancell isgrowing fastandinearly2008had at IR100locallyand IR1500forinternational. SIM’,which onlyallows SMS‘Data messages, a minute international. Irancellalsooffers a about IR850aminute domestic,andIR4000 the timethisbookwenttoprint calls cost more At thanthecard’sfacevalue(haggle). low andblueMTN signs,whousuallycharge scratch cardsfromvendors displaying yel- local address. Totopupyourcredit, buy to fillthe(allFarsi) papers andprovide a alocalfriend need in someplacesyoumight had toshowourpassportsget one,though go SIMcardcostsjustIR300,000.We pay-as-you- Irancell (www.irancell.ir)whose ago). Fortravellers, amuch better optionis age US$300(downfromUS$1000afew years only andtheirwhoppingsign-upcostsaver- very extensive coverage butare forresidents ernment-run MCI andprivate Thaliyahave Iran hasthree mobile- phone networks.Gov- Mobile Phones You can’tmake reverse-charge (collect) 98, todialoutof Irancall x lonelyplanet.com both 00; ifcalling parties parties Iran. back –check onlineforthelatest. ment changes, be saving might daylight times, anditwasscrapped.Ifthegovern- saving wastoodisruptivedaylight toprayer tives withinthegovernment decidedthat and mid-September. Butin2007conserva- NoRuz(usually21March)ing between Zones (Map pp450–1). theWorldTimein Sydney.Formore, see preparing to crossborders); and6.30pm Pakistan (note andTurkmenistan thiswhen 1.30pmin Azerbaijan; nooninAfghanistan; in London;10.30amTurkey; 11.30am in in Tehran is3.30aminNewYork;8.30am of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), sonoon will expectyoutobethesame. neighbours, Iranians are fairlypunctualand Compared withsomeof theirMiddleEast TIME lonelyplanet.com in thebucket nexttothetoilet. sheets designed forpapersoputyourused toask.Mostplumbing isnot you’ll need sometimes supplying toiletpaper,though have joinedtheirtop-endcounterparts in uitous box of tissues. Many midrange hotels you can’tfindanythere’s alwaystheubiq- grocerystoreseverything stockit,andif ier thanitoncewas.Mostof thebit-of- not its top priority, though it’s rising. it’srising. not itstop priority,though and libraries’. As the list suggests, tourismis vation of thecultural heritage, tourism,press audiovisual production,archaeology, preser- propaganda, literaturetural affairs, andarts, & Islamic Guidance isresponsible for‘cul- The ominous-soundingMinistryof Culture TOURIST INFORMATION have toilets, andairportterminals always train stations busand stinky. Mosques,petrolstations, that youwon’thave toenter anywhere too not. Still,there are options usually enough regularly cleaned, others are very definitely lic toiletsare squatsandwhilesomeare thrones ora choice of loos.Almostallpub- but themajority of better hotels have Most Iranianshave squattoiletsathome, TOILETS Thuraya satellite phonesalsoworkin For years sav- Iraniansenjoyeddaylight Time Iranis3½hours throughout ahead Fortunately, buyingtoiletpaperiseas- sans TP. useless. useless. inbusterminalstion offices are generally and have Informa- amap,butlittleelse. airports, where speakEnglish theymight information,andinternational on timetable are wheretrain stations, usuallygood staff arranged, usuallyatreasonable prices. able inEnglish andguidestours canbe whereoffices, basic informationisavail- proactive private tourist orsemi-private paraphernalia. Somecitiesalsohave more maps, postcardsandotherpromotional until youhave ashowbagfullof brochures, aroundinfilingcabinetdrawers and search ally trytofindsomeonewhospeaksEnglish toomanywalk-intouristsbutwillusu- see information.Theydon’t dispense capitals, in restored historicbuildingsinprovincial Miras Faranghi tural Heritage universally offices, knownas went topress wasstilllargely Cul- useless. 11 languages, butatthetimethisbook beavailableIt’s plannedtoeventually in site (www.tourismiran.ir)waslaunched. (www.sath.org) ambitious if spectacularly deluded targetambitious ifspectacularly to attract international tourists, withthe part of the Iranian government istrying frustrating.Evenbe unnecessarily though don’t come toIran isthatgetting can avisa Perhaps thebiggest reason more people VISAS &Hospitality Society forAccessibleTravel Radar Source Access-Able Travel websites: these see disabilities, and prescriptions. down toilets.Bringyourownmedications for wheelchairs andEuropean-stylesit- are tohave guaranteed bigenough elevators presence. Onlythemore upmarket hotels time before youcandependontheramp’s itwillbealong the Iran–IraqWar,though largely veterans tocater todisabled from rampsareWheelchair toappear, starting lers shouldn’tenjoyIran. withdisabilities of mindthere isnoreason why travel- framehealthy andcomewiththeright Facilities are rare, butaslongyouare TRAVELLERS WITHDISABILITIES There are smallinformationbooths in In 2007thefirst nationaltourismweb- For more informationontravelling with (www.radar.org.uk) inFarsi andoften housed DIRECTORY ••Time DIRECTORY (www.access-able.com)

393 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY a minimum of three minutes. come available. You’ll normallybecharged to thefrontdesk and waitforaboothtobe- is pretty simple:give thenumberyouwant from about7.30am until9pm).Theprocess private telephone (usuallyopen offices rates canbehadatsmall, countries. These cheap –justIR1700perminute tomost phone permittingfree localcalls. minals usuallyhave atleast onepublictele- free of charge. Airportsandmajor buster- nicely mosthotels willletyoumake afew a localnumberandpunch inacode. grocery stores and calling cardsare available fromnewsstands, calls fromthem.Insomecitiesinternational is broken andyoucan’tmake international cardphone second every perience, however, Inourex- calling amobileorlongdistance. IR42 perminute, it’smore though ifyou’re get thelarger through card.Localcallsare just toreallyneed like thesoundof yourvoiceto areand IR20,000.Calls socheap thatyou’ll come indenominationsof IR5000, IR10,000 payphones are available and innewsstands fornewer take IR50andIR100coins.Cards lowed thismethod. cities have changed, have theymight fol- 392 International callsare alsorelatively Local callsare socheap thatifyouask Some old-style payphones still work and Some old-stylepayphonesstillworkand the damagewon’tbetoogreat. athome,ifyoudogetrippedoffinIran itout.And,unlike untilyoudecidetotake your pocket isforcingyoutobuyanything.good deal.Remember,too,thatno-one Yourmoneywillstayin you paidmore thanyourtravelling companion,don’tworry.As longasyou’re happy,itwasa are happyanddoesn’tnecessarilyrequire youtoscrew every lasttomanoutofthevendor. If thanyoualready have.knock thepricedownanyfurther outofthestore, callsyourbluffyou’llstruggleto butiftheshopkeeper you couldtrywalking competition youknowwhatisafairpricesoonlyedgeupslowly.Ifcan’tagree onaprice abetteryou tomake offer: ‘ButIhave ninechildren tofeed’. However, atthe havinglooked acounter-offer,then make thusbeginning thebargaining process. The vendor willoften beseech get anideaofthepriceandquality.Withthisknowledge,casuallyenquire astothepriceand tion amileaway.Second,don’tbuythefirstoneyousee;subtlycheckoutfew alternatives to besureyou findsomethinglike nottoshowtoomuchinterest. Vendors cansmelldespera- Vakil ortheBazar-e inShiraz,bargainingSq inEsfahan isessential. for souvenir-type andabsolutely products alwaysforcarpets. Intouristed areas, suchasImam a few yearsago. allpricesinthebazaarare negotiable,particularly On theotherhand,virtually a pricetagattachedare fixed, andfixed pricesare undoubtedly more prevalent thantheywere As ageneralrule,the (except private taxis)andmostthingswithprices ofgroceries,transport WHAT ABARGAIN! DIRECTORY ••Telephone DIRECTORY Remember thatbargaining isnotalife anddeathbattle. Agoodbargain iswhen Bargaining canbetoughifyou’re notusedtoit,sohere are acoupleofpointers. First, when coffeenets , where youdial calls toorfromIran.Iran’scountrycodeis for some useful numbers.for someuseful alsotheinsidefrontcoverarea codes. See from outsideIran,droptheinitial0all x Sistan va Baluchestan and Khuzestan. and Khuzestan. vaBaluchestan Sistan coverage inallbut three provinces –Kerman, Irancell isgrowing fastandinearly2008had at IR100locallyand IR1500forinternational. SIM’,which onlyallows SMS‘Data messages, a minute international. Irancellalsooffers a about IR850aminute domestic,andIR4000 the timethisbookwenttoprint calls cost more At thanthecard’sfacevalue(haggle). low andblueMTN signs,whousuallycharge scratch cardsfromvendors displaying yel- local address. Totopupyourcredit, buy to fillthe(allFarsi) papers andprovide a alocalfriend need in someplacesyoumight had toshowourpassportsget one,though go SIMcardcostsjustIR300,000.We pay-as-you- Irancell (www.irancell.ir)whose ago). Fortravellers, amuch better optionis age US$300(downfromUS$1000afew years only andtheirwhoppingsign-upcostsaver- very extensive coverage butare forresidents ernment-run MCI andprivate Thaliyahave Iran hasthree mobile- phone networks.Gov- Mobile Phones You can’tmake reverse-charge (collect) 98, todialoutof Irancall x lonelyplanet.com both 00; ifcalling parties parties Iran. back –check onlineforthelatest. ment changes, be saving might daylight times, anditwasscrapped.Ifthegovern- saving wastoodisruptivedaylight toprayer tives withinthegovernment decidedthat and mid-September. Butin2007conserva- NoRuz(usually21March)ing between Zones (Map pp450–1). theWorldTimein Sydney.Formore, see preparing to crossborders); and6.30pm Pakistan (note andTurkmenistan thiswhen 1.30pmin Azerbaijan; nooninAfghanistan; in London;10.30amTurkey; 11.30am in in Tehran is3.30aminNewYork;8.30am of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), sonoon will expectyoutobethesame. neighbours, Iranians are fairlypunctualand Compared withsomeof theirMiddleEast TIME lonelyplanet.com not its top priority, though it’s rising. it’srising. not itstop priority,though and libraries’. As the list suggests, tourismis vation of thecultural heritage, tourism,press audiovisual production,archaeology, preser- propaganda, literaturetural affairs, andarts, & Islamic Guidance isresponsible for‘cul- The ominous-soundingMinistryof Culture TOURIST INFORMATION in thebucket nexttothetoilet. sheets designed forpapersoputyourused toask.Mostplumbing isnot you’ll need sometimes supplying toiletpaper,though have joinedtheirtop-endcounterparts in uitous box of tissues. Many midrange hotels you can’tfindanythere’s alwaystheubiq- grocerystoreseverything stockit,andif ier thanitoncewas.Mostof thebit-of- have toilets, andairportterminals always train stations busand stinky. Mosques,petrolstations, that youwon’thave toenter anywhere too not. Still,there are options usually enough regularly cleaned, others are very definitely lic toiletsare squatsandwhilesomeare thrones ora choice of loos.Almostallpub- but themajority of better hotels have Most Iranianshave squattoiletsathome, TOILETS Thuraya satellite phonesalsoworkin For years sav- Iraniansenjoyeddaylight Time Iranis3½hours throughout ahead Fortunately, buyingtoiletpaperiseas- sans TP. useless. useless. inbusterminalstion offices are generally and have Informa- amap,butlittleelse. airports, where speakEnglish theymight information,andinternational on timetable are wheretrain stations, usuallygood staff arranged, usuallyatreasonable prices. able inEnglish andguidestours canbe whereoffices, basic informationisavail- proactive private tourist orsemi-private paraphernalia. Somecitiesalsohave more maps, postcardsandotherpromotional until youhave ashowbagfullof brochures, aroundinfilingcabinetdrawers and search ally trytofindsomeonewhospeaksEnglish toomanywalk-intouristsbutwillusu- see information.Theydon’t dispense capitals, in restored historicbuildingsinprovincial Miras Faranghi tural Heritage universally offices, knownas went topress wasstilllargely Cul- useless. 11 languages, butatthetimethisbook beavailableIt’s plannedtoeventually in site (www.tourismiran.ir)waslaunched. (www.sath.org) ambitious if spectacularly deluded targetambitious ifspectacularly to attract international tourists, withthe part of the Iranian government istrying frustrating.Evenbe unnecessarily though don’t come toIran isthatgetting can avisa Perhaps thebiggest reason more people VISAS &Hospitality Society forAccessibleTravel Radar Source Access-Able Travel websites: these see disabilities, and prescriptions. down toilets.Bringyourownmedications for wheelchairs andEuropean-stylesit- are tohave guaranteed bigenough elevators presence. Onlythemore upmarket hotels time before youcandependontheramp’s itwillbealong the Iran–IraqWar,though largely veterans tocater todisabled from rampsareWheelchair toappear, starting lers shouldn’tenjoyIran. withdisabilities of mindthere isnoreason why travel- framehealthy andcomewiththeright Facilities are rare, butaslongyou are TRAVELLERS WITHDISABILITIES There are smallinformationbooths in In 2007thefirst nationaltourismweb- For more informationontravelling with (www.radar.org.uk) inFarsi andoften housed DIRECTORY ••Time DIRECTORY (www.access-able.com)

393 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY one with an Israeli stamp intheirpassport) one with anIsraelistamp month but usuallylonger. Israelis (andany- departure; tobesafe thatmeans atleasta topayandapplywellahead ofwill need onarrival.Everyonemonth touristvisa else Turkish passportholders canget a three- Applications forVisas Kish office, p293 . Ministryof ForeignAffairs Kish Island,see hassle wasworthit. thinksthe toIran,almosteveryone been the boxed text, opposite ). Andoncethey’ve (which can theneasilybeextended –see get usuallyfor30days do eventually avisa, comfort intheknowledge thatmostpeople planning aholidaytoTurkey instead, take agency. See below forallthedetails. the in ourpassportninedaysafter contacting faster andsimpler–forus,wehadthevisa (this isnotguaranteed) make the process good newsisthatusinganagency should agencywill beavisa ortravel agency. The as itsounds.Formostpeople,their‘sponsor’ years. Fortunately, it’snotasbiganobstacle come almostuniversal inthepastcoupleof requirement foranIraniansponsorhasbe- ting theformsunlesswehada‘sponsor’.This bothersubmit- embassy toldustonoteven granted 45daysin2005.Butby2007the –wewere forthevisa weeks) even several paying themoneyandwaiting(admittedly, simply amatter of applyingtotheembassy, When wevisited in2003and2005itwas years. forseveral to get thanithasbeen avisa since. toget ever struggling visas that much harder. have Canadians been in 2003,thengetting willbecome yourvisa Kazemi journalistZahra Iranian-Canadian following thedeathinaTehran prisonof ble withIran,ashappenedCanada example, yournationhasdiplomatictrou- actions onabigger politicalstage. If,for tion. Sometimesthischange results from to change withoutwarningorexplana- therulesseem isn’teasybecause your visa don’t botherorgive up. protracted hasslethatalotof peopleeither government makes getting such a avisa bordering onparanoiaelsewhere inthe of 20milliontouristsby2020,suspicion 394 For details on the back-door route through ontheback-door routeFor details through So before youshutthebookandstart At thetimeof writingitwasactually harder Trying toworkoutthebestwayget DIRECTORY ••Visas DIRECTORY application form,don’tcomplicate matters approval tothatembassy. numbersent jan orPakistan, forexample),andget your consulate nearer toIran(inTurkey, Azerbai- want toenter Iran,nominate anembassy/ ing anagency abouttwomonths before you can beahassle,sowerecommend contact- within 90days.Ifyou’re onalongtripthis March and3AprilforNoRuz. about21 between includes twofullweeks MFA inTehran forholidays.That closes using adifferent agency. by consulate, notably atthesame even attempthave successfulatasecond been help future applications,sometravellers the first itwon’t timeyouapply.Although then beissuedinadayortwo. with yourapproval number. should Thevisa Sponsors, opposite , formore anote details) and fee, and(ifyouare usinganagency –see with thefullycompleted paperwork,photos yourpassportin, this number,take orsend When therelevant embassyorconsulate has (why notbyemail?Wedon’tknoweither). by telex, which cantake acoupleof days an approval numbertotherelevant embassy (45 days!).Ifyou’re approved, theMFA sends passport (10to15days)oraUS you’re orDanish using aBritish, Canadian were workingdays,unless aboutfive toseven time of approval writingtheofficial times Ministry of Foreign inTehran. Affairs Atthe applicantsmustbe‘approved’All visa bythe PROCESS inWashingtonformanymonths.section be prepared tobadger the Iranian-interests (an organised grouporprivate guide)or izens are tobeonatour welcome, butneed Contrary topopularmisconception,UScit- are notallowedinunderanycircumstances. covered when goingtocollectyourvisa. bassies/consulates require even youto be (any scarfwilldo) inthephoto. Someem- tohaveprobably need yourhaircovered ary andphotographs. For women,you’ll of yourpassport,anoutlineof youritiner- to supplyfullpersonal copies/scans details, toapply,you’llneed youchoose However Getting thePaperwork Right While we don’tadvocate lyingon your areOnce visas issuedyoumustenter Iran whenthe Note thatall applicationsstall ifyou’reDon’t beputoff refused avisa lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com with the tourist visa onceit’sissued. with the tourist visa tion, you’ll beable togoanywhere inIran Whatever youhave written ontheapplica- youritinerary. off Bushehr andNatanz process. your picture downduringtheapplication If youhave itor awebsite, considertaking on herwebsite andthestoriesdidn’tgel. when theauthoritiesrecognised herphoto applicationwas rejectedone womanwhose Googleyourname andweheardofmight Having that,beaware said that theMFA you’rejust tosay ateacher, studentornurse. with fashion(very dangerous!). It’sbetter one womanweheardfrom,anythingtodo unloved like ajournalistor,accordingto byclaimingyou’reunnecessarily something Similarly, keep controversial placeslike firm plans. so askothertravellers andchecktheThorn Tree (thorntree.lonelyplanet.com) before making It’s bestnottorely options. ontheselast-gasp Everything here tosuddenchange issubject First thegood news: there is MORE TIME,PLEASE even 90.This ishowitworks. are acoupleoftipswereceived fromahelpfulvisaofficial: face real problems. However, ifyourvisaisupandyou’ve notyetmadeittotheborder,here original visa. uptoatotalstayof90days. Intheoryyoucanextend asmanytimesyoulike onthedayit’sissued,notendofyourexisting visaisduetoexpire, andyourextension starts you afull30days. Tabriz. Smallercitiesoften longertoissuetheextension, ifatall,andare take togrant lesslikely Bushehrand Gorgan not farbehind.Second-stringoptionsincludeKerman, andRasht Esfahan, to suit.Ingeneral,citiesfamiliarwithtouristsare thebestplaces:Shirazwaseasiestforus,with carefully choosing thecitywhereworth youplantoextend andtryingtotailoryouritinerary it rarely worksasquicklythis. withnewextended visaimmediately, but yourpassport might beluckyandabletocollect staff willusuallyfillthedepositformsforyou.Whenyoureturn withyourbankreceipt, you at aspecific(hopefullynearby)branchofBankMelli–justturnupandsay‘visa’thebank the processing. andyourexistingIranianvisa,IR100,000fortheextension, plusaboutIR3000for passport twoorsometimesthree mugshotsofyourself,photocopiesthepictureport, pageofyour office Aliens Bureau orpassport Ifyouare headingeast andare onlyacoupleofdaysover, have been officersatZahedan note Adoctor’s onofficialstationerystatingyouwere unwellandneeded,say,twodays it alllegal. asmallfineandextend yourvisaonthespotbeforeknown tocollect youleave, justtomake couple ofdaysinthenearest AliensBureau. onceyougettotheborder,orcanbeusedextendrest fora asaquasi-extension willact Head fortheprovincial policeheadquarters The badnewsisthattransitvisascannotbeextended, sothosecrossingIraninfive dayscan Timing youcanonlyapplyforanextension twoorthree daysbefore isalsoimportant: your Instead, you’llprobablyhave towaitafew hoursor,insomecases,several days. As such,it’s Once you’ve filledouttheappropriate todeposityourIR100,000 form(twice)you’llbeasked usually (edareh gozannameh) littledifficultyinextending atouristvisato60days,or (shahrbani) nuclear physics towork out thattoavoid adegree You don’t need in promised. been approved asquicklythey’dhoped, or has notimeleftand theirapplicationisn’t whentheapplicantProblems usually arise fect andthere have complaints. alsobeen the authors themselves. Notoneisper- mended byreaders orhave by used been The followingagencies have recom- been Visa Agencies Usually agencies are worththemoney. tionships withpeoplewithintheministry. the MFA, often andindeed rela- hasclose an use agency todealingwith thatisused sor yourapplication,butit’smuch easierto If youknowsomeoneinIrantheycanspon- SPONSORS , inyourcityofchoice. Take yourpass- orForeign Affairs office,often called DIRECTORY ••Visas DIRECTORY

395 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY one with an Israeli stamp intheirpassport) one with anIsraelistamp month but usuallylonger. Israelis (andany- departure; tobesafe thatmeans atleasta topayandapplywellahead ofwill need onarrival.Everyonemonth touristvisa else Turkish passportholders canget a three- Applications forVisas Kish office, p293 . Ministryof ForeignAffairs Kish Island,see hassle wasworthit. thinksthe toIran,almosteveryone been the boxed text, opposite ). Andoncethey’ve (which can theneasilybeextended –see get usuallyfor30days do eventually avisa, comfort intheknowledge thatmostpeople planning aholidaytoTurkey instead, take agency. See below forallthedetails. the in ourpassportninedaysafter contacting faster andsimpler–forus,wehadthevisa (this isnotguaranteed) make the process good newsisthatusinganagency should agencywill beavisa ortravel agency. The as itsounds.Formostpeople,their‘sponsor’ years. Fortunately, it’snotasbiganobstacle come almostuniversal inthepastcoupleof requirement foranIraniansponsorhasbe- ting theformsunlesswehada‘sponsor’.This bothersubmit- embassy toldustonoteven granted 45daysin2005.Butby2007the –wewere forthevisa weeks) even several paying themoneyandwaiting(admittedly, simply amatter of applyingtotheembassy, When wevisited in2003and2005itwas years. forseveral to get thanithasbeen avisa since. toget ever struggling visas that much harder. have Canadians been in 2003,thengetting willbecome yourvisa Kazemi journalistZahra Iranian-Canadian following thedeathinaTehran prisonof ble withIran,ashappenedCanada example, yournationhasdiplomatictrou- actions onabigger politicalstage. If,for tion. Sometimesthischange results from to change withoutwarningorexplana- therulesseem isn’teasybecause your visa don’t botherorgive up. protracted hasslethatalotof peopleeither government makes getting such a avisa bordering onparanoiaelsewhere inthe of 20milliontouristsby2020,suspicion 394 For details on the back-door route through ontheback-door routeFor details through So before youshutthebookandstart At thetimeof writingitwasactually harder Trying toworkoutthebestwayget DIRECTORY ••Visas DIRECTORY approval tothatembassy. numbersent jan orPakistan, forexample),andget your consulate nearer toIran(inTurkey, Azerbai- want toenter Iran,nominate anembassy/ ing anagency abouttwomonths before you can beahassle,sowerecommend contact- within 90days.Ifyou’re onalongtripthis March and3AprilforNoRuz. about21 between includes twofullweeks MFA inTehran forholidays.That closes using adifferent agency. by consulate, notably atthesame even attempthave successfulatasecond been help future applications,sometravellers the first itwon’t timeyouapply.Although then beissuedinadayortwo. with yourapproval number. should Thevisa Sponsors, opposite , formore anote details) and fee, and(ifyouare usinganagency –see with thefullycompleted paperwork,photos yourpassportin, this number,take orsend When therelevant embassyorconsulate has (why notbyemail?Wedon’tknoweither). by telex, which cantake acoupleof days an approval numbertotherelevant embassy (45 days!).Ifyou’re approved, theMFA sends passport (10to15days)oraUS you’re orDanish using aBritish, Canadian were workingdays,unless aboutfive toseven time of approval writingtheofficial times Ministry of Foreign inTehran. Affairs Atthe applicantsmustbe‘approved’All visa bythe PROCESS inWashingtonformanymonths.section be prepared tobadger the Iranian-interests (an organised grouporprivate guide)or izens are tobeonatour welcome, butneed Contrary topopularmisconception,UScit- are notallowedinunderanycircumstances. application form,don’tcomplicate matters covered when goingtocollectyourvisa. bassies/consulates require even youto be (any scarfwilldo) inthephoto. Someem- tohaveprobably need yourhaircovered ary andphotographs. For women,you’ll of yourpassport,anoutlineof youritiner- to supplyfullpersonal copies/scans details, toapply,you’llneed youchoose However Getting thePaperwork Right Once visas areOnce visas issuedyoumustenter Iran whenthe Note thatall applicationsstall ifyou’reDon’t beputoff refused avisa While we don’tadvocate lyingon your lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com with the tourist visa onceit’sissued. with the tourist visa tion, you’ll beable togoanywhere inIran Whatever youhave written ontheapplica- youritinerary. off Bushehr andNatanz process. your picture downduringtheapplication If youhave itor awebsite, considertaking on herwebsite andthestoriesdidn’tgel. when theauthoritiesrecognised herphoto applicationwas rejectedone womanwhose Googleyourname andweheardofmight Having that,beaware said that theMFA you’rejust tosay ateacher, studentornurse. with fashion(very dangerous!). It’sbetter one womanweheardfrom,anythingtodo unloved like ajournalistor,accordingto byclaimingyou’reunnecessarily something Similarly, keep controversial placeslike firm plans. so askothertravellers andchecktheThorn Tree (thorntree.lonelyplanet.com) before making It’s bestnottorely options. ontheselast-gasp Everything here tosuddenchange issubject First thegood news: there is MORE TIME,PLEASE even 90.This ishowitworks. are acoupleoftipswereceived fromahelpfulvisaofficial: face real problems. However, ifyourvisaisupandyou’ve notyetmadeittotheborder,here original visa. uptoatotalstayof90days. Intheoryyoucanextend asmanytimesyoulike onthedayit’sissued,notendofyourexisting visaisduetoexpire, andyourextension starts you afull30days. Tabriz. Smallercitiesoften longertoissuetheextension, ifatall,andare take togrant lesslikely Bushehrand Gorgan not farbehind.Second-stringoptionsincludeKerman, andRasht Esfahan, to suit.Ingeneral,citiesfamiliarwithtouristsare thebestplaces:Shirazwaseasiestforus,with carefully choosing thecitywhereworth youplantoextend andtryingtotailoryouritinerary it rarely worksasquicklythis. withnewextended visaimmediately, but yourpassport might beluckyandabletocollect staff willusuallyfillthedepositformsforyou.Whenyoureturn withyourbankreceipt, you at aspecific(hopefullynearby)branchofBankMelli–justturnupandsay‘visa’thebank the processing. andyourexistingIranianvisa,IR100,000fortheextension, plusaboutIR3000for passport twoorsometimesthree mugshotsofyourself,photocopiesthepictureport, pageofyour office Aliens Bureau orpassport Ifyouare headingeast andare onlyacoupleofdaysover, have been officersatZahedan note Adoctor’s onofficialstationerystatingyouwere unwellandneeded,say,twodays it alllegal. asmallfineandextend yourvisaonthespotbeforeknown tocollect youleave, justtomake couple ofdaysinthenearest AliensBureau. onceyougettotheborder,orcanbeusedextendrest fora asaquasi-extension willact Head fortheprovincial policeheadquarters The badnewsisthattransitvisascannotbeextended, sothosecrossingIraninfive dayscan Timing youcanonlyapplyforanextension twoorthree daysbefore isalsoimportant: your Instead, you’llprobablyhave towaitafew hoursor,insomecases,several days. As such,it’s Once you’ve filledouttheappropriate todeposityourIR100,000 form(twice)you’llbeasked usually (edareh gozannameh) littledifficultyinextending atouristvisato60days,or (shahrbani) nuclear physics towork out thattoavoid adegree You don’t need in promised. been approved asquicklythey’dhoped, or has notimeleftand theirapplicationisn’t whentheapplicantProblems usually arise fect andthere have complaints. alsobeen the authors themselves. Notoneisper- mended byreaders orhave by used been The followingagencies have recom- been Visa Agencies Usually agencies are worththemoney. tionships withpeoplewithintheministry. the MFA, often andindeed rela- hasclose an use agency todealingwith thatisused sor yourapplication,butit’smuch easierto If youknowsomeoneinIrantheycanspon- SPONSORS , inyourcityofchoice. Take yourpass- orForeign Affairs office,often called DIRECTORY ••Visas DIRECTORY

395 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY list of fees. visa hasanincomplete€40/60. Iranianvisa.com French,and Germans, Dutch andSwedes C$47/70 Canadians tourist visa, with charges) and operates through an easy-to-use website. website. with charges)andoperatesthroughaneasy-to-use Tehran. the MFAsponsor your visitthrough in have inIranwhocan abusiness contact youmustmonth (extendable) business visa Toget orone- tourist visas. atwo-week canbeharder togetBusiness visas than BUSINESS VISAS Types Visa Other procedures, theboxed see text ( p395 ). ing outpaperwork.Foremergency overstay sort- you couldbestuckforuptoaweek IR300,000 for each dayyouoverstay, and What ifyouoverstay? Don’t.You’llbefined Extensions Visa charged UK tries inDecember2007Britswere being to supply.Forexample,intheirhomecoun- costsandwhatyouneed websites detailing Iranian embassies( p380 ) inEuropehave costsvaryfromplacetoplace. Visa Most Costs weeks. Indians, andthenonlyafter you’ve waited tonon- India) willonlyissue transitvisas passport).Theworstthe right (like Delhiin ortwo(ifyou’ve inaweek got tourist visas travellers. lonelyplanet.com) forrecent feedback from Planet’s ThornTree forum(thorntree. individual Iranianmissions. CheckLonely you’ll have todealwiththepeculiaritiesof anagency, Ifyoudon’tuse isn’t necessary. country, butifyou’re usinganagency this Iran wouldprefer youtoapplyinyourhome WHERE TOAPPLY Persian Voyages Agency Pars Tourist Iranianvisa.com possible. toapplyasearly trouble youdoneed 396 have failed.Usuallyquitefast. whenotheragencies expensive atUK£70,butreliable even if you’re rejected. through itsShiraz-basedagency( p271 ), anda50%refund US$30 butoffers discountsifyoubooktours/tickets The bestembassieshandoutone-month DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY ₤ 61/68 fora (www.iranianvisa.com) Charges€30(€32 (www.persianvoyages.com) More (www.persianvoyages.com) (www.Key2Persia.com) Charges transit/single- (insh’Allah) entry , some suggestive comment inFarsi. Reply- ing, ora hopeful ‘hello,missus!’ orperhaps and hope. Itwillrarely gobeyond just look- mix of curiosity,lust you withanunnerving lers enjoy Iranandhave few problems. both womenandmen.Mosttravel- make themfeel welcome –thisapplies to tohelptravellerscan’t doenough andto The overwhelming majority of Iranians TRAVELLERS WOMEN only goodfordesperate lastresorts. are Allup,these under anycircumstances. and Ireland –cannotget thistypeof visa countries –includingtheUK,US,Australia all therequirements. Andcitizensof several theymet though whence theycameeven backtoniously turnedaroundandsent we have heardof peoplebeingunceremo- isunreliable, atbest.Indeed, this service attheairport.Inpractice, visa a seven-day Shiraz, Mashhad orTabriz andbeissued theory, youcanflyintoTehran, Esfahan, designed mainlyforbusinesspeople. In in2005, Iran introducedthevisa-on-arrival VISAS ONARRIVAL and Iran a bigcountry,five daysisavery shorttime cost more. Iranis Themaindisadvantage? actually from yourembassy,which might aletter need ofmight recommendation anagency-sponsoryou don’tneed butyou two orthree Oneadvantage isthat weeks. ing couldbequick,inreality itoften takes andwhileintheoryprocess- tourist visas costalmostasmuch as sort. Transitvisas A five-day isreally transitvisa alastre- TRANSIT VISAS ous moralstanding. if you’re doingsothenyoumustbeof dubi- travel withoutmen;the implicationisthat the factthatmostIranianwomen don’t movies andmedia. They’re alsorooted in ern womenare created largely byforeign perceptionsofand immoral.These West- Western womenas‘easy’ some Iranianssee are black-cloaked, repressed victims,while some Westerners assumeallIranianwomen truths andstereotypes existonbothsides: ers, Western culture istoIranians.Half- As unusualasIranianculture istoWestern- towardsWomen Attitudes It is inevitable that some men will look at thatsomemen will lookat It isinevitable does not extendtransit visas lonelyplanet.com . lonelyplanet.com can become wearing. If it does, itcan be can become wearing.If it does, ignored the maleattention them.That said, chat, andyou’dbemissingoutif youalways overtones. Many to menwillbedelighted or intimidatingin someway,orhave sexual local menwillbeawkwardorthreatening interactionassume thatyourevery with ‘where are youfrom?’,ifyou’re lucky.Don’t exchange extend even beyond thatmight an interesting, friendlyandentirely platonic in Englishoryours inFarsi, itwillleadto Other times,dependingonhisproficiency your‘suitor’intosilence. sometimes surprise ing withacheerful ‘hi,howare you?’will bazaar, a mother of six told me how to make bazaar, amotherofsixtoldmehowtomake me howtorubmyheelsagainsttheroughconcrete Inthe floortosloughoffthedeadskin. ofamosque.section Ina inconveniences. Idiscovered, forexample,thesenseofcamaraderiethatexistsinwomen’s daram. Injaree lezat mibaram.’ questioning: ‘Where are youfrom?Are youmarried?(No.) Are youalone?(Yes.) Why? share theirpicnic,orjusttochat.Isoonlearntwhatsayinresponse totheubiquitouslineof at mystrangelonesomebehaviour. Every day,strangersinvited metojointhemfortea, orto eat outalone. waiter probablyassumedIwaswaitingforsomeoneelse,becauseIranianwomennever, ever minutes forawaiter tocomewithinshoutingdistance,whileeveryone aroundmestares.’ The 100. Oneofmyjournalentriesreads: ‘Anotherdesultorydinnertimealone;have waited 15 Take ofthesolofemale thestigmafactor dineratarestaurant intheWestandmultiplyitby companion, whethermaleorfemale. to women.Inevery way,Iranisaneasydestinationforwomentravelling otherpractical witha proliferation ofawfulfast-food restaurants were mybiggest‘problems’, noneofthemspecific camping inthemountainswithherfiancé.The summerheat,mylimited Farsi andthe skills, rockfacessheplannedtoclimbandhungrywolvesthe vertical shewashopingtoavoidwhile I thought,hopeonedaycanbeasbrave asher.’ English. ‘Iwaswatchingyoubefore,’ Samirasaidtome,‘andwonderingwhyyouwere alone. carrying anenormousbackpackandropesforrock-climbing. Samira,fromTehran, perfect spoke terrorist attacks. times, and walked away. times, andwalked Fatima methree (thedaughter oftheProphet),smiledsympatheticallyatmyaloneness,kissed inMasuleh,awoman I’dneverteahouse metwordlesslyhandedmeagift, asilver statueof women wore received abravery awardforholidayingaloneasawomanincountrywhere, theybelieved, with theperceptionsofmyfriendsbackhomeinAustralia. Accordingtothem,Ishouldhave the Iraniansatnext table invited metojointhem–whywasIalone,theyasked? I wasenjoyingtea inthemountainvillageofMasuleh.As Ipoppedasugarcubeintomymouth, NEVER REALLY ALONEINIRAN Despite thesolodining,pleasures and surprisesoftravelling inIranfaroutweighedthe That said,Iranianswere unfailinglywelcomingandhelpful,even thosewhowere puzzled forwomen.In asocialsense,it’snotalwaystheeasiestcountryifyou’re alone,particularly Despite Samira’sperceptionsofmybravery, senseIfacednochallengestoequal inapractical companionswereMy newteahouse twoscrawnymenandayoung,superblyathleticwoman In amonthoftravelling inIran,Inever reconciled myexperienceofunendinghospitality burqas (a mask with tiny slits for the eyes) to scuttle to the market inbetween (amaskwithtinyslitsfortheeyes)toscuttlemarket hammam (‘I’musedtoit.Ienjoyit.’). Kerryn Burgess isLonelyPlanet’sMiddleEast commissioningeditor. (bathhouse), anotherwomanmassagedmyback,thenshowed Kerryn Burgess bastani all good places to meet localwomen. all good places tomeet ofwomen, and thefoodsections bazaars are relax, women’sclothing stores by staffed women congregate tochat, read, studyor of mosques,public parkswhere groupsof in mixed company. Thewomen’ssections more inexclusively female company than Most Iranianwomenwillopenup to youfar huge advantages womentravellers have. (Iranian orforeign), andthisisoneof the female societyfarmore than anyman women. refreshing outthecompanyof local toseek You will,of course, beaccepted into (Iranianicecream). Andbefore Ileftthe DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY ‘Man odat

397 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY list of fees. visa hasanincomplete€40/60. Iranianvisa.com French,and Germans, Dutch andSwedes C$47/70 Canadians tourist visa, with charges) and operates through an easy-to-use website. website. with charges)andoperatesthroughaneasy-to-use Tehran. the MFAsponsor your visitthrough in have inIranwhocan abusiness contact youmustmonth (extendable) business visa Toget orone- tourist visas. atwo-week canbeharder togetBusiness visas than BUSINESS VISAS Types Visa Other procedures, theboxed see text ( p395 ). ing outpaperwork.Foremergency overstay sort- you couldbestuckforuptoaweek IR300,000 for each dayyouoverstay, and What ifyouoverstay? Don’t.You’llbefined Extensions Visa charged UK tries inDecember2007Britswere being to supply.Forexample,intheirhomecoun- costsandwhatyouneed websites detailing Iranian embassies( p380 ) inEuropehave costsvaryfromplacetoplace. Visa Most Costs weeks. Indians, andthenonlyafter you’ve waited tonon- India) willonlyissue transitvisas passport).Theworstthe right (like Delhiin ortwo(ifyou’ve inaweek got tourist visas travellers. lonelyplanet.com) forrecent feedback from Planet’s ThornTree forum(thorntree. individual Iranianmissions. CheckLonely you’ll have todealwiththepeculiaritiesof anagency, Ifyoudon’tuse isn’t necessary. country, butifyou’re usinganagency this Iran wouldprefer youtoapplyinyourhome WHERE TOAPPLY Persian Voyages Agency Pars Tourist Iranianvisa.com possible. toapplyasearly trouble youdoneed 396 have failed.Usuallyquitefast. whenotheragencies expensive atUK£70,butreliable even if you’re rejected. through itsShiraz-basedagency( p271 ), anda50%refund US$30 butoffers discountsifyoubooktours/tickets The bestembassieshandoutone-month DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY ₤ 61/68 fora (www.iranianvisa.com) Charges€30(€32 (www.persianvoyages.com) More (www.persianvoyages.com) (www.Key2Persia.com) Charges transit/single- (insh’Allah) entry , lers enjoy Iranandhave few problems. both womenandmen.Mosttravel- make themfeel welcome –thisapplies to tohelptravellerscan’t doenough andto The overwhelming majority of Iranians TRAVELLERS WOMEN only goodfordesperate lastresorts. are Allup,these under anycircumstances. and Ireland –cannotget thistypeof visa countries –includingtheUK,US,Australia all therequirements. Andcitizensof several theymet though whence theycameeven backtoniously turnedaroundandsent we have heardof peoplebeingunceremo- isunreliable, atbest.Indeed, this service attheairport.Inpractice, visa a seven-day Shiraz, Mashhad orTabriz andbeissued theory, youcanflyintoTehran, Esfahan, designed mainlyforbusinesspeople. In in2005, Iran introducedthevisa-on-arrival VISAS ONARRIVAL and Iran a bigcountry,five daysisavery shorttime cost more. Iranis Themaindisadvantage? actually from yourembassy,which might aletter need ofmight recommendation anagency-sponsoryou don’tneed butyou two orthree Oneadvantage isthat weeks. ing couldbequick,inreality itoften takes andwhileintheoryprocess- tourist visas costalmostasmuch as sort. Transitvisas A five-day isreally transitvisa alastre- TRANSIT VISAS some suggestive comment inFarsi. Reply- ing, ora hopeful ‘hello,missus!’ orperhaps and hope. Itwillrarely gobeyond just look- mix of curiosity,lust you withanunnerving ous moralstanding. if you’re doingsothenyoumustbeof dubi- travel withoutmen;the implicationisthat the factthatmostIranianwomen don’t movies andmedia. They’re alsorooted in ern womenare created largely byforeign perceptionsofand immoral.These West- Western womenas‘easy’ some Iranianssee are black-cloaked, repressed victims,while some Westerners assumeallIranianwomen truths andstereotypes existonbothsides: ers, Western culture istoIranians.Half- As unusualasIranianculture istoWestern- towardsWomen Attitudes It is inevitable that some men will look at thatsomemen will lookat It isinevitable does not extendtransit visas lonelyplanet.com . lonelyplanet.com can become wearing. If it does, itcan be can become wearing.If it does, ignored the maleattention them.That said, chat, andyou’dbemissingoutif youalways overtones. Many to menwillbedelighted or intimidatingin someway,orhave sexual local menwillbeawkwardorthreatening interactionassume thatyourevery with ‘where are youfrom?’,ifyou’re lucky.Don’t exchange extend even beyond thatmight an interesting, friendlyandentirely platonic in Englishoryours inFarsi, itwillleadto Other times,dependingonhisproficiency your‘suitor’intosilence. sometimes surprise ing withacheerful ‘hi,howare you?’will times, and walked away. times, andwalked Fatima methree (thedaughter oftheProphet),smiledsympatheticallyatmyaloneness,kissed inMasuleh,awoman I’dneverteahouse metwordlesslyhandedmeagift, asilver statueof bazaar, amotherofsixtoldmehowtomake me howtorubmyheelsagainsttheroughconcrete Inthe floortosloughoffthedeadskin. ofamosque.section Ina inconveniences. Idiscovered, forexample,thesenseofcamaraderiethatexistsinwomen’s daram. Injaree lezat mibaram.’ questioning: ‘Where are youfrom?Are youmarried?(No.) Are youalone?(Yes.) Why? share theirpicnic,orjusttochat.Isoonlearntwhatsayinresponse totheubiquitouslineof at mystrangelonesomebehaviour. Every day,strangersinvited metojointhemfortea, orto eat outalone. waiter probablyassumedIwaswaitingforsomeoneelse,becauseIranianwomennever, ever minutes forawaiter tocomewithinshoutingdistance,whileeveryone aroundmestares.’ The 100. Oneofmyjournalentriesreads: ‘Anotherdesultorydinnertimealone;have waited 15 Take ofthesolofemale thestigmafactor dineratarestaurant intheWestandmultiplyitby companion, whethermaleorfemale. to women.Inevery way,Iranisaneasydestinationforwomentravelling otherpractical witha proliferation ofawfulfast-food restaurants were mybiggest‘problems’, noneofthemspecific camping inthemountainswithherfiancé.The summerheat,mylimited Farsi andthe skills, rockfacessheplannedtoclimbandhungrywolvesthe vertical shewashopingtoavoidwhile I thought,hopeonedaycanbeasbrave asher.’ English. ‘Iwaswatchingyoubefore,’ Samirasaidtome,‘andwonderingwhyyouwere alone. carrying anenormousbackpackandropesforrock-climbing. Samira,fromTehran, perfect spoke terrorist attacks. women wore received abravery awardforholidayingaloneasawomanincountrywhere, theybelieved, with theperceptionsofmyfriendsbackhomeinAustralia. Accordingtothem,Ishouldhave the Iraniansatnext table invited metojointhem–whywasIalone,theyasked? I wasenjoyingtea inthemountainvillageofMasuleh.As Ipoppedasugarcubeintomymouth, NEVER REALLY ALONEINIRAN Despite thesolodining,pleasures and surprisesoftravelling inIranfaroutweighedthe That said,Iranianswere unfailinglywelcomingandhelpful,even thosewhowere puzzled forwomen.In asocialsense,it’snotalwaystheeasiestcountryifyou’re alone,particularly Despite Samira’sperceptionsofmybravery, senseIfacednochallengestoequal inapractical companionswereMy newteahouse twoscrawnymenandayoung,superblyathleticwoman In amonthoftravelling inIran,Inever reconciled myexperienceofunendinghospitality burqas (a mask with tiny slits for the eyes) to scuttle to the market inbetween (amaskwithtinyslitsfortheeyes)toscuttlemarket hammam (‘I’musedtoit.Ienjoyit.’). Kerryn Burgess isLonelyPlanet’sMiddleEast commissioningeditor. (bathhouse), anotherwomanmassagedmyback,thenshowed Kerryn Burgess bastani all good places to meet localwomen. all good places tomeet ofwomen, and thefoodsections bazaars are relax, women’sclothing stores by staffed women congregate tochat, read, studyor of mosques,public parkswhere groupsof in mixed company. Thewomen’ssections more inexclusively female company than Most Iranianwomenwillopenup to youfar huge advantages womentravellers have. (Iranian orforeign), andthisisoneof the female societyfarmore than anyman women. refreshing outthecompanyof local toseek You will,of course, beaccepted into (Iranianicecream). Andbefore Ileftthe DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY ‘Man odat

397 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY exception tothis rule. ing withforeigners willsometimesmake an Iranian menwhoare accustomedtodeal- withunrelatedcal contact, men.However, not shake hands,orhave anyotherphysi- an embarrassingshock. Womenshould unless youwanttogive anIranianman they’re related, andyoushouldfollowsuit sitnexttomenunless nian womennever Ira- theback.Onintercitythrough buses, driver thefrontdoor,thenget through on sit attheback.Yougive yourticket tothe entrance inthemiddleof thebus,andmust an ‘honoraryman’inthissituation. eign womanyouwilloften beregarded as when guestsare asafor- present, although homes, menandwomeneatseparately directed tothem.Insomepeople’s straight families. Where you’llbe that’sthecase, areasseparate asideforwomenand set could notdream of being. inawaythatmostIranianwomen teahouses, such as be accepted intoall-malepreserves, times beconsidered anhonorarymaleand cities. As aforeign womanyouwillsome- to approach andengage them,especiallyin ing of womentravellers andmore prepared creases, Iraniansare becomingmore accept- changing. As theirawareness of theworldin- edged. attitudeslike However, thisare slowly you, asawoman,are rarely acknowl- even hours overtion lastsforseveral dinner,and especiallyiftheconversa-can beunsettling, almost exclusively totheforeign man.This in thecompanyof Iranianmen)willtalk find thatIranianmen(andwomen thatforeignersstand have different rules. being honest.Ingeneral, Iraniansunder- feel moreYou might simply comfortable children, orifyoudo,howoldtheyare… why he’snotwithyou,youdon’thave tion aboutyour‘husband’s’occupation, likely tobequizzedwithgenuine fascina- not married,butbeaware thatyou’re then gest ifyou’re wearingaweddingringeven Sometravellersneither isessential. sug- a grouporwithmalecompanion,but unheard of ifthe oddgropein inIran, even Violence against foreign womenis almost Precautions Safety 398 On city buses, womenhaveOn citybuses, theirown Some restaurants andteahouses have If you’re travelling withaman,youmight feel happiertravellingYou might in DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY have asoberingeffect. mere mention of thepolice(‘polis’)should situation worse. Iftheproblempersists, a screaming make bluemurder;itmight the ably stophimoutof shame. Trytoavoid behaving badlytowardsyou,theywillprob- of otherIranians.Iftheythinksomeoneis your tone),andtrytoenlistthesympathy will do;yourmeaningbeclearfrom tor firmly,butpolitely, todesist(English his female relatives willalsobepresent. unlessatleastoneof‘tea’ ataman’shouse to be cautiousaboutacceptinginvitations understandings onanyone’spart,it’sbestto friends, thentoavoid thepossibilityof mis- on. Ifyou’re travelling aloneorwithfemale beinterpretedalmost certainly asacome- unless youknowthemwell,asthiswill if he’snotyourhusband. foreign manshouldn’tbeaproblem, even est precautions andavoid inthecheap- staying of harassmentislower. felt more inIranwhere comfortable thelevel Turkey,stan, Egypt they’ve orMoroccosay eign womenwho’ve travelled Paki- through who speakstoyouhasulterior motives. For- torememberimportant man thatnotevery ofsome guyduringthecourse yourtrip,it’s sonable chance yourbumwillbepinched by a shared isnot.Andwhilethere’s taxi area- quired Iran, includingforeigners, have re- been Since therevolution of 1979 allwomenin What toWear have rubbishbins. andpadsfromtoiletsthatdon’t tampons tic bagsforcarryingoutyourtoiletpaper, available. It’salsohandytotake someplas- and expensive. padsare Sanitary widely your wholetrip.They’re hardtofindinIran tolast take enough tampons, If youuse What toBring ceptable versionsceptable of hejab specifically tothe hair-covering. to ‘modest’dress, to refer andisalsoused known ashejab cover theirhair. Thisformof dressing is theirfigures,clothes todisguise andto If youare tell your persecu- harassed, Try toavoid lookingmenintheeye youshouldtakeOf course, normalsafety Signs in public places show officially ac- Signs in public placesshow officially mosaferkhanehs by law , to wearlong,loose-fitting aterm thatrefers ingeneral . Sharing aroomwith : thechador (lit- lonelyplanet.com tops, butlocalsperceive thisassloppy. lers hippie wearlongIndianskirtswithbaggy completely covers yourbottom.Sometravel- able (albeitfarfromfashionable),provided it shirt wornover isalsoaccept- trousers, baggy India a the season. for suitable trousers jeans orcomfortable thing longer. Wearyourmanteau over version butolderwomenmaywantsome- Younger travellers cangoforamid-thigh find andcheap ataboutUS$15toUS$30. so manystylishIranians.They’re easyto you’llfeel dowdyaround otherwise cause to buyamanteau assoonpossiblebe- day ortwo. you’llprobably However, want get immigrationandyourfirst youthrough sizestoolarge shirt several should sleeved fashion Iran’. Googleimagesfashion, search for‘women’s idea of thediversity of Iranianwomen’s in QomthanyouwouldTehran. Foran probably wanttodress more conservatively around youare wearing;forexampleyou’ll anywhere, itpaystolookatwhatwomen you have as yourfringe showing.Though hejab, andfew Iranianswillbataneyelidif harshly asIranianwomen when itcomesto Foreign women are notusuallyjudged as perched onthebackof theirdyedhair.scarves manteaus, jeans,andcolourfulhead- tight youngTehranissee wearingfigure-hugging and opentointerpretation. It’snotunusualto or wimple). sers anda sers trench coatorshirtdress) trou- with loose oramanteauhand orteeth; (ashapeless with blackgarmentheldclosed head-to-toe erally ‘tent’ inFarsi), anall-encompassing, lonelyplanet.com If you’re comingtoIranfromPakistan or Wearing anyscarfandaman’slong- In reality thedress codeismore relaxed shalwar kameez, maqna’e (anun-like headscarf, a long, loose men’s men’s along,loose make you happy) it’s not necessary. make youhappy)it’snotnecessary. hewantsto (because ifyourguidesays even them asyouapproach invillages, orstay mote area. youshouldalwayswear However, if there’s no-onearoundandyou’re inare- OK toremove yourmanteau andheadscarf suggest it’s still wearhejab.Yourguidemight ‘modern’ womenincities,such asTehran. atbymore smaller townsandbeinglaughed of of beingthought astry-hardbywomenin with achador more generally youruntherisk borrowed onsite. tostruggle Ifyouchoose canalmostalwaysbe and mosques.These wear achador are whenvisitingsomeshrines without socksare fineforsummerwear. before youarrive forasummertrip.Sandals silk. They’re hardtofindinIran,soshop more easily thanslipperypolyester orheavy hold together thepartsof bra-only option,packafew safety pinsto inappropriate. Ifyou’re thinkingaboutthe singlets andplungingnecklinesare usually strappytops, inside someone’shome,tight, sweat, such asCoolMax orDry-FIT. Even shirtinanymaterial thatwicksaway light suggest wearingasyntheticsportstopor a to change into. Alternatively, somereaders situations Iranianwomencarryablouse expected to remove yourmanteau. Insuch if you’re andare invited tosomeone’shouse except abra,butthiscouldbeembarrassing to wearnothingunderneathyourmanteau tofindinIran.It’scoolest be oddlydifficult strongly recommended, theycan though year manteausnaturalfabricsare inlight, tired of itslippingtoofarback. your headscarfunderthechin ifyouget gape. They’remight alsogoodforpinning If you’re hikingorcamping,youshould The onlytimeswhenforeign womenmust Very inplace stay silkscarves fine,light Hejab insummerishell.Atthistimeof DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY © LonelyPlanetPublications themanteau that

399 DIRECTORY DIRECTORY exception tothis rule. ing withforeigners willsometimesmake an Iranian menwhoare accustomedtodeal- withunrelatedcal contact, men.However, not shake hands,orhave anyotherphysi- an embarrassingshock. Womenshould unless youwanttogive anIranianman they’re related, andyoushouldfollowsuit sitnexttomenunless nian womennever Ira- theback.Onintercitythrough buses, driver thefrontdoor,thenget through on sit attheback.Yougive yourticket tothe entrance inthemiddleof thebus,andmust an ‘honoraryman’inthissituation. eign womanyouwilloften beregarded as when guestsare asafor- present, although homes, menandwomeneatseparately directed tothem.Insomepeople’s straight families. Where you’llbe that’sthecase, areasseparate asideforwomenand set could notdream of being. inawaythatmostIranianwomen teahouses, such as be accepted intoall-malepreserves, times beconsidered anhonorarymaleand cities. As aforeign womanyouwillsome- to approach andengage them,especiallyin ing of womentravellers andmore prepared creases, Iraniansare becomingmore accept- changing. As theirawareness of theworldin- edged. attitudeslike However, thisare slowly you, asawoman,are rarely acknowl- even hours overtion lastsforseveral dinner,and especiallyiftheconversa-can beunsettling, almost exclusively totheforeign man.This in thecompanyof Iranianmen)willtalk find thatIranianmen(andwomen thatforeignersstand have different rules. being honest.Ingeneral, Iraniansunder- feel moreYou might simply comfortable children, orifyoudo,howoldtheyare… why he’snotwithyou,youdon’thave tion aboutyour‘husband’s’occupation, likely tobequizzedwithgenuine fascina- not married,butbeaware thatyou’re then gest ifyou’re wearingaweddingringeven Sometravellersneither isessential. sug- a grouporwithmalecompanion,but unheard of ifthe oddgropein inIran, even Violence against foreign womenisalmost Precautions Safety 398 On city buses, womenhaveOn citybuses, theirown Some restaurants andteahouses have If you’re travelling withaman,youmight feel happiertravellingYou might in DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY have asoberingeffect. mere mention of thepolice(‘polis’)should situation worse. Iftheproblempersists, a screaming make bluemurder;itmight the ably stophimoutof shame. Trytoavoid behaving badlytowardsyou,theywillprob- of otherIranians.Iftheythinksomeoneis your tone),andtrytoenlistthesympathy will do;yourmeaningbeclearfrom tor firmly,butpolitely, todesist(English his female relatives willalsobepresent. unlessatleastoneof‘tea’ ataman’shouse to be cautiousaboutacceptinginvitations understandings onanyone’spart,it’sbestto friends, thentoavoid thepossibilityof mis- on. Ifyou’re travelling aloneorwithfemale beinterpretedalmost certainly asacome- unless youknowthemwell,asthiswill if he’snotyourhusband. foreign manshouldn’tbeaproblem, even est precautions andavoid inthecheap- staying of harassmentislower. felt more inIranwhere comfortable thelevel Turkey,stan, Egypt they’ve orMoroccosay eign womenwho’ve travelled Paki- through who speakstoyouhasulterior motives. For- torememberimportant man thatnotevery ofsome guyduringthecourse yourtrip,it’s sonable chance yourbumwillbepinched by a shared isnot.Andwhilethere’s taxi area- quired Iran, includingforeigners, have re- been Since therevolution of 1979 allwomenin What toWear have rubbishbins. andpadsfromtoiletsthatdon’t tampons tic bagsforcarryingoutyourtoiletpaper, available. It’salsohandytotake someplas- and expensive. padsare Sanitary widely your wholetrip.They’re hardtofindinIran tolast take enough tampons, If youuse What toBring ceptable versionsceptable of hejab specifically tothe hair-covering. to ‘modest’dress, to refer andisalsoused known ashejab cover theirhair. Thisformof dressing is theirfigures,clothes todisguise andto If youare tell your persecu- harassed, Try toavoid lookingmenintheeye youshouldtakeOf course, normalsafety Signs in public places show officially ac- Signs in public placesshow officially mosaferkhanehs by law , to wearlong,loose-fitting aterm thatrefers ingeneral . Sharing aroomwith : thechador (lit- lonelyplanet.com tops, butlocalsperceive thisassloppy. lers hippie wearlongIndianskirtswithbaggy completely covers yourbottom.Sometravel- able (albeitfarfromfashionable),provided it shirt wornover isalsoaccept- trousers, baggy India a the season. for suitable trousers jeans orcomfortable thing longer. Wearyourmanteau over version butolderwomenmaywantsome- Younger travellers cangoforamid-thigh find andcheap ataboutUS$15toUS$30. so manystylishIranians.They’re easyto you’llfeel dowdyaround otherwise cause to buyamanteau assoonpossiblebe- day ortwo. you’llprobably However, want get immigrationandyourfirst youthrough sizestoolarge shirt several should sleeved fashion Iran’. Googleimagesfashion, search for‘women’s idea of thediversity of Iranianwomen’s in QomthanyouwouldTehran. Foran probably wanttodress more conservatively around youare wearing;forexampleyou’ll anywhere, itpaystolookatwhatwomen you have as yourfringe showing.Though hejab, andfew Iranianswillbataneyelidif harshly asIranianwomen when itcomesto Foreign women are notusuallyjudged as perched onthebackof theirdyedhair.scarves manteaus, jeans,andcolourfulhead- tight youngTehranissee wearingfigure-hugging and opentointerpretation. It’snotunusualto or wimple). anda sers trench coatorshirtdress) trou- with loose oramanteauhand orteeth; (ashapeless with blackgarmentheldclosed head-to-toe erally ‘tent’ inFarsi), anall-encompassing, lonelyplanet.com If you’re comingtoIranfromPakistan or Wearing anyscarfandaman’slong- In reality thedress codeismore relaxed shalwar kameez, maqna’e (anun-like headscarf, a long, loose men’s men’s along,loose make you happy) it’s not necessary. make youhappy)it’snotnecessary. hewantsto (because ifyourguidesays even them asyouapproach invillages, orstay mote area. youshouldalwayswear However, if there’s no-onearoundandyou’re inare- OK toremove yourmanteau andheadscarf suggest it’s still wearhejab.Yourguidemight ‘modern’ womenincities,such asTehran. atbymore smaller townsandbeinglaughed of of beingthought astry-hardbywomenin with achador more generally youruntherisk borrowed onsite. tostruggle Ifyouchoose canalmostalwaysbe and mosques.These wear achador are whenvisitingsomeshrines without socksare fineforsummerwear. before youarrive forasummertrip.Sandals silk. They’re hardtofindinIran,soshop more easily thanslipperypolyester orheavy tired of itslippingtoofarback. your headscarfunderthechin ifyouget gape. They’remight alsogoodforpinning hold together thepartsof bra-only option,packafew safety pinsto inappropriate. Ifyou’re thinkingaboutthe singlets andplungingnecklinesare usually strappytops, inside someone’shome,tight, sweat, such asCoolMax orDry-FIT. Even shirtinanymaterial thatwicksaway light suggest wearingasyntheticsportstopor a to change into. Alternatively, somereaders situations Iranianwomencarryablouse expected to remove yourmanteau. Insuch if you’re andare invited tosomeone’shouse except abra,butthiscouldbeembarrassing to wearnothingunderneathyourmanteau tofindinIran.It’scoolest be oddlydifficult strongly recommended, theycan though year manteausnaturalfabricsare inlight, If you’re hikingorcamping,youshould The onlytimeswhenforeign womenmust Very inplace stay silkscarves fine,light Hejab insummerishell.Atthistimeof DIRECTORY ••WomenTravellers DIRECTORY © LonelyPlanetPublications themanteau that

399 DIRECTORY © Lonely Planet Publications 400 lonelyplanet.com GETTING THERE & AWAY •• Entering the Country 401

Women flying on Iran Air used to have to Jazeera Airways (code J9; www.jazeeraairways.com) wear hejab from the time they arrived at Kuwait. Transport the departure airport, but these days most KLM (code KL; www.klm.com) Amsterdam. women don’t put on the headscarf until Kuwait Airways (code KU; www.kuwait-airways.com) Passport the plane has landed; if you’re unsure, just Kuwait City. Iran has issues with Israel. If you’re travel- watch what other women do. The same ap- Lufthansa (code LH; www.lufthansa.com) Frankfurt, CONTENTS ling on an Israeli passport you’ll be turned plies to all other airlines. Munich, Zurich. away at the border (and you won’t even get Use the following lists when looking for Pegasus (code LH; www.flypgs.com/en) İstanbul. Getting There & Away 400 onto a flight coming into Iran). Similarly, direct flights to/from Iran. For airline offices Qatar Airways (code QR; www.qatarairways.com) Doha. Entering the Country 400 having an Israeli stamp in your passport in Tehran, see p123 . Syrian Arab Airlines (code RB; www.syriaair.com) Land 402 will see you turned away or put on the next Damascus. Sea 405 IRANIAN AIRLINES & THEIR INTERNATIONAL Tajik Air (code 7J; www.tajikair.tj) Dushanbe. flight out (for details see Applications for TRANSPORT Tours 405 Visas, p394 ). DESTINATIONS Turkish Airlines (code TK; www.turkishairlines.com) Getting Around 406 All airlines are based in Tehran except for İstanbul. Air 406 AIR Taban Air, which is in Mashhad. UM Airlines (code UF; www.umairlines.com) Kiev. Bicycle 406 Airports & Airlines Caspian Airlines (code RV; www.caspian.aero) Beirut,

TRANSPORT Boat 407 The vast majority of international flights Budapest, Damascus, Dubai, İstanbul, Kiev, Minsk, Yerevan. Tickets & Routes Bus 407 come to Tehran. However, a growing Iran Air (code IR; www.iranair.com) Amsterdam, Ankara, If you’re going to Iran you probably know Car & Motorcycle 409 number of travellers are choosing to start Bahrain, Baku, Beijing, Caracas, Cologne, Copenhagen, how to find a fair-priced plane ticket, so Hitching 412 or end their trip in Shiraz, thus saving some Damascus, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Geneva, Gothenburg, we’ll keep this brief. Local Transport 412 backtracking. Hamburg, İstanbul, Kabul, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Most travellers fly into Tehran, though Minibus 414 Tehran has two international airports, London, Milan, Moscow, Mumbai, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Shiraz is a good alternative if you want to Private Taxi 414 the old Mehrabad International Airport Stockholm, Tashkent, Tokyo, Vienna. avoid back-tracking. Buying tickets in Iran Savari (Shared Taxi) 415 (THR) and new Imam Khomeini Interna- Iran Aseman(code EP; www.iaa.ir) Bishkek, Dubai. for flights from Iran is best done through Tours 415 tional Airport (IKA). As of late 2007, all Kish Air (code Y9; www.kishairline.com) Damascus, an agent; Iranian airlines have yet to master Train 416 international flights except those to/from Dubai, İstanbul. internet bookings or even reservations. Medina, Jeddah and Damascus fly into IKA. Mahan Air (code W5; www.mahan.aero) Arbil, Almaty, The Middle East is a popular staging As IKA isn’t that big, delays on arrival are Bahrain, Bangkok, Dammam, Damascus, Delhi, Dubai, point, with several airlines connecting Te- GETTING THERE & AWAY very possible. A second terminal is being İstanbul, Kochi, Lahore, Seoul, Sharjah, Tokyo. hran, Esfahan, Shiraz and Kish to the rest built and can’t come soon enough. Taban Air (code TBM; www.tabanair.ir) Almaty, of the world via various Gulf airports. Iran ENTERING THE COUNTRY Elsewhere in Iran, Shiraz, Esfahan, Damascus, Dubai. Air and other Iranian and regional airlines Arriving in Iran is usually straightforward. Bandar Abbas and Kish are (in that order) fly to/from Abu Dhabi (UAE), Bahrain, Assuming you have a visa, most immigra- potentially useful arrival or departure FOREIGN AIRLINES & THEIR Beirut (Lebanon), Damascus (Syria), Doha tion and border officials are efficient and points, while Abadan, Ahvaz, Mashhad, DESTINATIONS (Qatar), Dubai (UAE), Kuwait, Sharjah tourists rarely get too much hassle. If you’re Tabriz and Zahedan are less useful. Aeroflot (code SU; www.aeroflot.com) Moscow. (UAE), İstanbul and Ankara, among oth- flying in, you should be negotiating with a Iran Air is the national airline and has Air Arabia (code G9; www.airarabia.com) Sharjah; ers. It’s worth checking whether your air- taxi inside an hour. Land borders can take the Homa, a mythical bird, as its symbol. budget airline. line flies to Shiraz, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm longer if you’re on a bus or train. Of course, It has a reasonably good reputation. As the Air France (code AF; www.airfrance.com) Paris. or Kish Islands, because shorter flights are women need to be adequately covered from government-owned carrier, it offers service Air India (code AI; www.airindia.com) Delhi. cheaper and it could save you doubling the moment they get off the plane or arrive with an Islamic flavour (ie no pork, no alco- Alitalia (code AZ; www.alitalia.com) Milan. back to Tehran. at the border (see p398 , for details). hol and no exposed hair on the hostesses). Ariana Afghan Airlines (code FG; www.flyariana.com) Flights to Central Asia are less frequent Kabul. and more expensive than you might ex- Armavia (code U8; www.u8.am) Yerevan. pect, though things are getting better. Iran ESPECIALLY IN IRAN, THINGS CHANGE… Austrian Airlines (code OS; www.aua.com) Vienna. Air, Iran Aseman and Caspian Airlines fly You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that the information in this chapter is particularly Azerbaijan Airlines (code J2; www.azal.az) Baku. between Tehran and Almaty (Kazakhstan), vulnerable to change. Where we have listed prices, they should be read as a guide only. In a British Airways (code BA; www.britishairways.com) Ashgabat (Turkmenistan), Baku (Azerbai- country where inflation was running at about 25% and fuel costs rising sharply when we were London. jan), Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), Dushanbe researching, prices on the ground will almost certainly be higher than those listed here. China Southern (code CZ; www.cs-air.com/en) Beijing, (Tajikistan) and Tashkent (Uzbekistan), and Such economic factors are particularly trying for small businesses, so don’t be surprised if some Urumqi. the respective national carrier usually does services have closed altogether. Having said that, we’re confident we’ve listed strong businesses Emirates (code EM; www.emirates.com) Dubai. too. Ariana flies to Kabul. wherever possible. We’re also confident that on the ground you will be able to get the latest Etihad Airways (code EY; www.etihadairways.com) Elsewhere in Asia, India, Pakistan, China, taxi/bus/train fares yourselves, just as you check with airlines or travel agents to make sure you Abu Dhabi. Japan, Thailand and Singapore are all con- understand how a given airfare (and ticket) works. Shop carefully, of course, and for more up-to- Gulf Air (code GF; www.gulfair.com) Bahrain. nected by direct flights to Tehran. Travellers date details ask other travellers on the Thorn Tree (www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree). Iraqi Airways (code IA; www.iraqiairways.co.uk) from Australia and New Zealand usually Baghdad. stage through these (usually Singapore or © Lonely Planet Publications 400 lonelyplanet.com GETTING THERE & AWAY •• Entering the Country 401

Women flying on Iran Air used to have to Jazeera Airways (code J9; www.jazeeraairways.com) wear hejab from the time they arrived at Kuwait. Transport the departure airport, but these days most KLM (code KL; www.klm.com) Amsterdam. women don’t put on the headscarf until Kuwait Airways (code KU; www.kuwait-airways.com) Passport the plane has landed; if you’re unsure, just Kuwait City. Iran has issues with Israel. If you’re travel- watch what other women do. The same ap- Lufthansa (code LH; www.lufthansa.com) Frankfurt, CONTENTS ling on an Israeli passport you’ll be turned plies to all other airlines. Munich, Zurich. away at the border (and you won’t even get Use the following lists when looking for Pegasus (code LH; www.flypgs.com/en) İstanbul. Getting There & Away 400 onto a flight coming into Iran). Similarly, direct flights to/from Iran. For airline offices Qatar Airways (code QR; www.qatarairways.com) Doha. Entering the Country 400 having an Israeli stamp in your passport in Tehran, see p123 . Syrian Arab Airlines (code RB; www.syriaair.com) Land 402 will see you turned away or put on the next Damascus. Sea 405 IRANIAN AIRLINES & THEIR INTERNATIONAL Tajik Air (code 7J; www.tajikair.tj) Dushanbe. flight out (for details see Applications for TRANSPORT Tours 405 Visas, p394 ). DESTINATIONS Turkish Airlines (code TK; www.turkishairlines.com) Getting Around 406 All airlines are based in Tehran except for İstanbul. Air 406 AIR Taban Air, which is in Mashhad. UM Airlines (code UF; www.umairlines.com) Kiev. Bicycle 406 Airports & Airlines Caspian Airlines (code RV; www.caspian.aero) Beirut,

TRANSPORT Boat 407 The vast majority of international flights Budapest, Damascus, Dubai, İstanbul, Kiev, Minsk, Yerevan. Tickets & Routes Bus 407 come to Tehran. However, a growing Iran Air (code IR; www.iranair.com) Amsterdam, Ankara, If you’re going to Iran you probably know Car & Motorcycle 409 number of travellers are choosing to start Bahrain, Baku, Beijing, Caracas, Cologne, Copenhagen, how to find a fair-priced plane ticket, so Hitching 412 or end their trip in Shiraz, thus saving some Damascus, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Geneva, Gothenburg, we’ll keep this brief. Local Transport 412 backtracking. Hamburg, İstanbul, Kabul, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Most travellers fly into Tehran, though Minibus 414 Tehran has two international airports, London, Milan, Moscow, Mumbai, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Shiraz is a good alternative if you want to Private Taxi 414 the old Mehrabad International Airport Stockholm, Tashkent, Tokyo, Vienna. avoid back-tracking. Buying tickets in Iran Savari (Shared Taxi) 415 (THR) and new Imam Khomeini Interna- Iran Aseman(code EP; www.iaa.ir) Bishkek, Dubai. for flights from Iran is best done through Tours 415 tional Airport (IKA). As of late 2007, all Kish Air (code Y9; www.kishairline.com) Damascus, an agent; Iranian airlines have yet to master Train 416 international flights except those to/from Dubai, İstanbul. internet bookings or even reservations. Medina, Jeddah and Damascus fly into IKA. Mahan Air (code W5; www.mahan.aero) Arbil, Almaty, The Middle East is a popular staging As IKA isn’t that big, delays on arrival are Bahrain, Bangkok, Dammam, Damascus, Delhi, Dubai, point, with several airlines connecting Te- GETTING THERE & AWAY very possible. A second terminal is being İstanbul, Kochi, Lahore, Seoul, Sharjah, Tokyo. hran, Esfahan, Shiraz and Kish to the rest built and can’t come soon enough. Taban Air (code TBM; www.tabanair.ir) Almaty, of the world via various Gulf airports. Iran ENTERING THE COUNTRY Elsewhere in Iran, Shiraz, Esfahan, Damascus, Dubai. Air and other Iranian and regional airlines Arriving in Iran is usually straightforward. Bandar Abbas and Kish are (in that order) fly to/from Abu Dhabi (UAE), Bahrain, Assuming you have a visa, most immigra- potentially useful arrival or departure FOREIGN AIRLINES & THEIR Beirut (Lebanon), Damascus (Syria), Doha tion and border officials are efficient and points, while Abadan, Ahvaz, Mashhad, DESTINATIONS (Qatar), Dubai (UAE), Kuwait, Sharjah tourists rarely get too much hassle. If you’re Tabriz and Zahedan are less useful. Aeroflot (code SU; www.aeroflot.com) Moscow. (UAE), İstanbul and Ankara, among oth- flying in, you should be negotiating with a Iran Air is the national airline and has Air Arabia (code G9; www.airarabia.com) Sharjah; ers. It’s worth checking whether your air- taxi inside an hour. Land borders can take the Homa, a mythical bird, as its symbol. budget airline. line flies to Shiraz, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm longer if you’re on a bus or train. Of course, It has a reasonably good reputation. As the Air France (code AF; www.airfrance.com) Paris. or Kish Islands, because shorter flights are women need to be adequately covered from government-owned carrier, it offers service Air India (code AI; www.airindia.com) Delhi. cheaper and it could save you doubling the moment they get off the plane or arrive with an Islamic flavour (ie no pork, no alco- Alitalia (code AZ; www.alitalia.com) Milan. back to Tehran. at the border (see p398 , for details). hol and no exposed hair on the hostesses). Ariana Afghan Airlines (code FG; www.flyariana.com) Flights to Central Asia are less frequent Kabul. and more expensive than you might ex- Armavia (code U8; www.u8.am) Yerevan. pect, though things are getting better. Iran ESPECIALLY IN IRAN, THINGS CHANGE… Austrian Airlines (code OS; www.aua.com) Vienna. Air, Iran Aseman and Caspian Airlines fly You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that the information in this chapter is particularly Azerbaijan Airlines (code J2; www.azal.az) Baku. between Tehran and Almaty (Kazakhstan), vulnerable to change. Where we have listed prices, they should be read as a guide only. In a British Airways (code BA; www.britishairways.com) Ashgabat (Turkmenistan), Baku (Azerbai- country where inflation was running at about 25% and fuel costs rising sharply when we were London. jan), Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), Dushanbe researching, prices on the ground will almost certainly be higher than those listed here. China Southern (code CZ; www.cs-air.com/en) Beijing, (Tajikistan) and Tashkent (Uzbekistan), and Such economic factors are particularly trying for small businesses, so don’t be surprised if some Urumqi. the respective national carrier usually does services have closed altogether. Having said that, we’re confident we’ve listed strong businesses Emirates (code EM; www.emirates.com) Dubai. too. Ariana flies to Kabul. wherever possible. We’re also confident that on the ground you will be able to get the latest Etihad Airways (code EY; www.etihadairways.com) Elsewhere in Asia, India, Pakistan, China, taxi/bus/train fares yourselves, just as you check with airlines or travel agents to make sure you Abu Dhabi. Japan, Thailand and Singapore are all con- understand how a given airfare (and ticket) works. Shop carefully, of course, and for more up-to- Gulf Air (code GF; www.gulfair.com) Bahrain. nected by direct flights to Tehran. Travellers date details ask other travellers on the Thorn Tree (www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree). Iraqi Airways (code IA; www.iraqiairways.co.uk) from Australia and New Zealand usually Baghdad. stage through these (usually Singapore or TRANSPORT for 25years. Theborder withAfghanistan cross in and outof Iran thanithasbeen on terror’ notwithstanding, it’s easierto notto mentiontheIran–IraqWar.stan, in IranandtheSoviet invasion of Afghani- things gotheavy, man,withtherevolution of ’70stravel cametoanabrupt endwhen ’70s ‘HippyTrail’.Therelative faire laissez thing altogether different onthe1960sand (see p34 some- seeking tothose ) through fortunesontheSilkRoad chants seeking ofthousands years, fromtheearliestmer- People have crossingIranbyland for been LAND Moscow) are usuallycheaper. Asdle East. usual,lessdirect routes (eg via have regular toTehran, flights ortheMid- Europe,wherethrough ahostof airlines South America. Instead, mostpeoplecome in theUAE. to AfricaisbestdoneonEmirates orEtihad Connecting ortheMiddleEast. Bangkok) 402 Well, thegood news isthat,the‘war There are nodirect fromNorthor flights tion over awholeyear. contribute asmuchtoclimate changeasanaverage consump- household’sgasandelectricity The statisticsare areturn frightening: flightbetweenEurope twopeopletaking andtheUSwill they allowustotravel, butbecausetheyrelease greenhouse gaseshighintotheatmosphere. climate change),butplanesare theworstoffenders, notjustbecauseofthesheerdistances Pretty muchevery formofmotorisedtravel generates CO2(themaincauseofhuman-induced Flying &Climate Change efit, butbelieves weallhave aresponsibility onglobalwarming. tolimitourpersonal impact fastest-growing contributortotheproblem.LonelyPlanetregards travel, overall, asaglobalben- Climate change isaseriousthreat totheecosystems thathumansrely upon,andairtravel isthe CLIMATE CHANGE &TRAVEL your vehicle is, when it was last serviced, andhowheavyisyourdriver’s foot.your vehicle is,whenitwaslastserviced, (electric ordieseltrain?),hownew/old includingthetypeoftransport a hugearrayoffactors, createdthan the610kg howmuchless. byair,thoughit’shardtosayexactly That dependson ple do. GettingtoTehran byroadorrailfrom,say,Londonwillcreate lessCO2perpassenger course,it’spossibletocomeIranwithoutgetting on aplaneandgoodnumberofpeo- Of Getting toIranWithoutTaking totheSkies author travel. Formore informationseewww.lonelyplanet.com. thecarbonoffset schemerunbyclimatecare.org.support LonelyPlanetoffsets allofitsstaffand and Uganda. travel schemesthatreduce inIndia,Honduras, Kazakhstan globalwarming–includingprojects level ofgreenhouse gases theyare responsible forwithfinancialcontributionstosustainable Climatecare.org andotherwebsites use‘carboncalculators’that allowtravellers tooffset the Carbon Offset Schemes GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING Lonely Planet, together with Rough Guides and other concerned partners inthetravel industry,Lonely Planet,togetherwithRoughGuidesandotherconcernedpartners are marked on thecolourmap. relevant chapter. Alllegalcrossingpoints specifics followthecross-references tothe pointsareGeneral given here, butforthe ing theBorderat…’boxes withinthetext. points available toforeigners in‘Cross- of thedetails allthecrossingsummarised in trans-Asian travel, inthisbookwe’ve you tryit. cross intoIraq,butthink20timesbefore Intheoryit’spossibletoily comfortable. ifnotnecessar-crossing isstraightforward of cake. Mostoverlanders thePakistan say ing degrees of hassle, andTurkey isapiece areand Turkmenistan do-ablewithvary- is open;routes intoArmenia,Azerbaijan or anyothers. had noreports of borders, troubleatthose Turkeybetween andPakistan, and wehave A smallbutsteady stream of cyclistscross and outof Iran atanyof thelandborders. There isno reason whyyoucan’tridein Bicycle In recognition of position Iran’spivotal lonelyplanet.com Africa Overland Network Overland Africa for details. change regularly. Trythefollowingwebsites ple doitnonetheless.Rulesandferry times expensive, butareasonable numberof peo- time-consuming, annoyingandrelatively tion aboutdrivingaroundIran,see p409 . deal of attention ifyou’re onone. Forinforma- With bigbikes sorare, expecttoattractagreat they take thebike with are allowed toridebikes of anysizesolongas motorbike over 150cc. Foreigners, however, ( p136 ) ischeaper thanattheborder. it,buyingtheinsuranceinMakuIf youneed Bureau).Iran Bimeh,theIranianGreen Card policy isvalidforIranandaccredited with outside Iran(ifyoudoget it,make sure the foreign drivers, toobtain butcanbedifficult it. Third-partyinsuranceiscompulsoryfor sure you don’tleave thecountrywithout vehicle’s inyourpassporttomake details willprobably note your waiting. Officials order it’sjustamatter of followingand and Pakistan. As isin longaseverything hassle-free crossingsinandoutof Turkey automobile organisation inyourcountry. fromtherelevant international be obtained document),which porary importation can vehicle, a you’llneed current international drivingpermit.Forthe must bemore than 18 years oldandhave a To bringyourownvehicle intoIran,you & Motorcycle Car lonelyplanet.com only 35km long, with one crossing point in only 35km long,withone crossingpointin The border IranandArmeniais between ARMENIA more information. theboxedsued here. See text ( p368 ) for are simplerstill.Visas the tripeven buses Heratbetween andMashhad make Taybad, Daily isopenand straightforward. 20kmeastofThe borderatDogharon, AFGHANISTAN Border Crossings Unlimited Horizons fuel, shippingandrepair shops. Theoverlander’sBible. thread onitsHUBBforum,whichhasdetailborders, East detail,searchtheMiddle For themostup-to-date Aimed atmotorcyclists,butgoodforanyonewithavehicle. Asia branchhaslinkstoblogsbyoverlanders. Shipping bikes acrossthePersian Gulfis No-one butthepoliceisallowedtohave a Most peoplewithvehicles have reported (www.horizonsunlimited.com) (www.horizonsunlimited.com) carnet depassage (www.africa-overland.net) (www.africa-overland.net) them when they leave. them whentheyleave. not (tem- is- it was thoroughly straightforward. straightforward. it wasthoroughly theAstarawe crossed borderforthisbook train options, see train options, see p329 . ( p330 ). Forbusinformation,see p328 theboxed see For borderdetails textstan). ; for Mirjavehbetween (Iran)andTaftan (Paki- only recognised crossingforforeigners is Along the830kmborderwithPakistan, the PAKISTAN the latest information. Tree (www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree) for ( p144 ) andcheck LonelyPlanet’s Thorn theboxed andopensfitfully;see tan text Piranshahr isthegateway toIraqiKurdis- Further north,theHaj Omranbordernear bala inIraq–are openforlocalsonly. theholycitiesof Najaf andKar-servicing border postsatMehran – andKhosravi ing intosouthernIraq.Andanyway,the rocks inyour considercross- head toeven tohave situation,you’dneed the security Until there isadramaticimprovement in IRAQ duringthelife of thisbook. service willallegedlyat Astara, begin viaRasht, A trainlinkingQazvintotheAzeriborder Train Crossing asapedestrianis considerably lessinteresting thanitsounds. conveyance gets afullcavity which search, is avoid athree- delayasyour toseven-hour if you’re not onacross-border busyou’ll horse shit.Which isagoodthing,because viaAstara,and Baku, are asrare asrocking- Tehran daysdirect between These buses Bus are Visas to Baku. cannot enter Armeniaandmustflytoget exclave of fromwhere Nakhchivan, you boxed text, p157 ), thelatter leadingtothe the Culfa (Azerbaijan)andJolfa(Iran;see (Iran;see tara the boxed text, p166 Astaraings: between (Azerbaijan)andAs- ), and The Azeriborderhastworecognised cross- AZERBAIJAN text ( p158 ) formore information. theboxedfrom thatit’spretty smooth.See bus leaves before youhave –apart yourvisa sometimesthe the borderforUS$30,though areIran atNorduz.Armenianvisas issuedat GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING not issuedhere. When much easier.

403 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT for 25years. Theborder withAfghanistan cross in and outof Iran thanithasbeen on terror’ notwithstanding, it’s easierto notto mentiontheIran–IraqWar.stan, in IranandtheSoviet invasion of Afghani- things gotheavy, man,withtherevolution of ’70stravel cametoanabrupt endwhen ’70s ‘HippyTrail’.Therelative faire laissez thing altogether different onthe1960sand (see p34 some- seeking tothose ) through fortunesontheSilkRoad chants seeking ofthousands years, fromtheearliestmer- People have crossingIranbyland for been LAND Moscow) are usuallycheaper. Asdle East. usual,lessdirect routes (eg via have regular toTehran, flights ortheMid- Europe,wherethrough ahostof airlines South America. Instead, mostpeoplecome in theUAE. to AfricaisbestdoneonEmirates orEtihad Connecting ortheMiddleEast. Bangkok) 402 Well, thegood news isthat,the‘war There are nodirect fromNorthor flights your vehicle is, when it was last serviced, andhowheavyisyourdriver’s foot.your vehicle is,whenitwaslastserviced, (electric ordieseltrain?),hownew/old includingthetypeoftransport a hugearrayoffactors, createdthan the610kg howmuchless. byair,thoughit’shardtosayexactly That dependson ple do. GettingtoTehran byroadorrailfrom,say,Londonwillcreate lessCO2perpassenger course,it’spossibletocomeIranwithoutgetting on aplaneandgoodnumberofpeo- Of Getting toIranWithoutTaking totheSkies author travel. Formore informationseewww.lonelyplanet.com. thecarbonoffset schemerunbyclimatecare.org.support LonelyPlanetoffsets allofitsstaffand and Uganda. travel schemesthatreduce inIndia,Honduras, Kazakhstan globalwarming–includingprojects level ofgreenhouse gases theyare responsible forwithfinancialcontributionstosustainable Climatecare.org andotherwebsites use‘carboncalculators’that allowtravellers tooffset the Carbon Offset Schemes tion over awholeyear. contribute asmuchtoclimate changeasanaverage consump- household’sgasandelectricity The statisticsare areturn frightening: flightbetweenEurope twopeopletaking andtheUSwill they allowustotravel, butbecausetheyrelease greenhouse gaseshighintotheatmosphere. climate change),butplanesare theworstoffenders, notjustbecauseofthesheerdistances Pretty muchevery formofmotorisedtravel generates CO2(themaincauseofhuman-induced Flying &Climate Change efit, butbelieves weallhave aresponsibility onglobalwarming. tolimitourpersonal impact fastest-growing contributortotheproblem.LonelyPlanetregards travel, overall, asaglobalben- Climate change isaseriousthreat totheecosystems thathumansrely upon,andairtravel isthe CLIMATE CHANGE &TRAVEL GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING Lonely Planet, together with Rough Guides and other concerned partners inthetravel industry,Lonely Planet,togetherwithRoughGuidesandotherconcernedpartners are marked on thecolourmap. relevant chapter. Alllegalcrossingpoints specifics followthecross-references tothe pointsareGeneral given here, butforthe ing theBorderat…’boxes withinthetext. points available toforeigners in‘Cross- of thedetails allthecrossingsummarised in trans-Asian travel, inthisbookwe’ve you tryit. cross intoIraq,butthink20timesbefore Intheoryit’spossibletoily comfortable. ifnotnecessar-crossing isstraightforward of cake. Mostoverlanders thePakistan say ing degrees of hassle, andTurkey isapiece areand Turkmenistan do-ablewithvary- is open;routes intoArmenia,Azerbaijan or anyothers. had noreports of borders, troubleatthose Turkeybetween andPakistan, and wehave A smallbutsteady stream of cyclistscross and outof Iran atanyof thelandborders. There isno reason whyyoucan’tridein Bicycle In recognition of position Iran’spivotal lonelyplanet.com Africa Overland Network Overland Africa for details. change regularly. Trythefollowingwebsites ple doitnonetheless.Rulesandferry times expensive, butareasonable numberof peo- time-consuming, annoyingandrelatively tion aboutdrivingaroundIran,see p409 . deal of attention ifyou’re onone. Forinforma- With bigbikes sorare, expecttoattractagreat they take thebike with are allowed toridebikes of anysizesolongas motorbike over 150cc. Foreigners, however, ( p136 ) ischeaper thanattheborder. it,buyingtheinsuranceinMakuIf youneed Bureau).Iran Bimeh,theIranianGreen Card policy isvalidforIranandaccredited with outside Iran(ifyoudoget it,make sure the foreign drivers, toobtain butcanbedifficult it. Third-partyinsuranceiscompulsoryfor sure you don’tleave thecountrywithout vehicle’s inyourpassporttomake details willprobably note your waiting. Officials order it’sjustamatter of followingand and Pakistan. As isin longaseverything hassle-free crossingsinandoutof Turkey automobile organisation inyourcountry. fromtherelevant international be obtained document),which porary importation can vehicle, a you’llneed current international drivingpermit.Forthe must bemore than 18 years oldandhave a To bringyourownvehicle intoIran,you & Motorcycle Car lonelyplanet.com only 35km long, with one crossing point in only 35km long,withone crossingpointin The border IranandArmeniais between ARMENIA more information. theboxedsued here. See text ( p368 ) for are simplerstill.Visas the tripeven buses Heratbetween andMashhad make Taybad, Daily isopenand straightforward. 20kmeastofThe borderatDogharon, AFGHANISTAN Border Crossings Unlimited Horizons fuel, shippingandrepair shops. Theoverlander’sBible. thread onitsHUBBforum,whichhasdetailborders, East detail,searchtheMiddle For themostup-to-date Aimed atmotorcyclists,butgoodforanyonewithavehicle. Asia branchhaslinkstoblogsbyoverlanders. Shipping bikes acrossthePersian Gulfis No-one butthepoliceisallowedtohave a Most peoplewithvehicles have reported (www.horizonsunlimited.com) (www.horizonsunlimited.com) carnet depassage (www.africa-overland.net) (www.africa-overland.net) them when they leave. them whentheyleave. not (tem- is- train options, see train options, see p329 . ( p330 ). Forbusinformation,see p328 theboxed see For borderdetails textstan). ; for Mirjavehbetween (Iran)andTaftan (Paki- only recognised crossingforforeigners is Along the830kmborderwithPakistan, the PAKISTAN the latest information. Tree (www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree) for ( p144 ) andcheck LonelyPlanet’s Thorn theboxed andopensfitfully;see tan text Piranshahr isthegateway toIraqiKurdis- Further north,theHaj Omranbordernear bala inIraq–are openforlocalsonly. theholycitiesof Najaf andKar-servicing border postsatMehran – andKhosravi ing intosouthernIraq.Andanyway,the rocks inyour considercross- head toeven tohave situation,you’dneed the security Until there isadramaticimprovement in IRAQ duringthelife of thisbook. service willallegedlyat Astara, begin viaRasht, A trainlinkingQazvintotheAzeriborder Train Crossing asapedestrianis considerably lessinteresting thanitsounds. conveyance gets afullcavity which search, is avoid athree- delayasyour toseven-hour if you’re not onacross-border busyou’ll horse shit.Which isagoodthing,because viaAstara,and Baku, are asrare asrocking- Tehran daysdirect between These buses Bus straightforward. it wasthoroughly theAstarawe crossed borderforthisbook are Visas to Baku. cannot enter Armeniaandmustflytoget exclave of fromwhere Nakhchivan, you boxed text, p157 ), thelatter leadingtothe the Culfa (Azerbaijan)andJolfa(Iran;see (Iran;see tara the boxed text, p166 Astaraings: between (Azerbaijan)andAs- ), and The Azeriborderhastworecognised cross- AZERBAIJAN text ( p158 ) formore information. theboxedfrom thatit’spretty smooth.See bus leaves before youhave –apart yourvisa sometimesthe the borderforUS$30,though areIran atNorduz.Armenianvisas issuedat GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING not issuedhere. When much easier.

403 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT Iran along the way. By taking a bus to – but abus to–but Iran along theway.Bytaking enjoy some of eastern Turkey and western more likely tobetaken apart atcustoms. bus, which isfullof traders andtherefore embassy workers, ratherthanthe the Ankarabus,which isfullof studentsand intheknowswearit’sbetter totakeThose bus thatruns(see p124 for busdepartures). butusuallyit’sjust one offer theservice, buscompanies ern busterminals; several They leave fromboth the centralandwest- but IR300,000toAnkara,which isnearer. IR250,000 to Ankara orErzurum. Tehranbus to,say, orTabriz from The easieristotake adirect long-distance Travelling bybusyouhave twooptions. Bus cross atGürbulakandBazargan. for furtherinformation.Motoristsusually be infrequent; theboxed see text ( p140 ) oneithersideandtransportcanto stay near OrumiyehinIran.There isnowhere (40km fromYüksekova, Turkey) andSero, boxed text ( p136 ) fordetails. Maku ( p136 of innearby staying theborder,though the) ismore see pleasant; cilities andregular transportoneitherside where there are hotels, moneychanging fa- at Gürbulak( Turkey) andBazargan (Iran), There main roadcrossingto/fromTurkey is TURKEY 404 Alternatively, take itmore slowlyand Buses to/fromTehranBuses costabout Foreigners canalsocrossatEsendere beat goingacrossAsia bytrain.Ifyoufancyit,seewww.seat61.comtoplanyouritinerary. andthechancetomeetlocals,it’shard little ‘express’ aboutit.Butforscenery,comfort luxury ofthemodern-day and Singapore byrail…buthangonaminute, nowwe’re getting together,you’llbeabletocontinuethroughThailand,politicians cangettheiract Indochina inBulgariaviaan11,460kmline. Andif toKapikule to fruition,KunminginChinawillbelinked through toIndiaandChina. Iftheoft-talked aboutbutmuch-delayedTrans-Asian comes Railway though there are planstostandardisetheentire Pakistani networktoallowtrainsrundirectly Pakistani railway, itwillchange bogies withthewide-gauge toconnect InZahedan and Kerman. isfinished–supposedlyinlate 2008.Bam andZahedan, to India. between Itwillbepossiblewhenthemissinglengthoftrack,acrossbarren deserts aboard atrainin London, oralmostanywhere inEurope, andtravel exclusively byrailalltheway After decadesoffrustrationfortrainspotters andtravellers itwillsoonbepossibletoclimb alike, TO THEORIENTBY TRAIN GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING For now,gettingtoIndiashouldn’tbetootough.Sure, abouttheexpensive we’re nottalking totherest oftheIraniannetworkviaBam trackwilllinkZahedan The new,standard-gauge İ stanbul (about36to42hours), stanbul Orient Express İ İ stanbul, stanbul, stanbul stanbul trains,whichonlyrunasfarVenice. Indeed,there is reported: touch tosuch alongtraintrip, asonereader there’sing. However, adistinctly romantic and lowtemperatures canfreeze theplumb- in winter whensnowcan blockthetracks fewerbeen in recent years. Delaysare likely concept of ‘express’, complaintshave though ings amongreaders, usually relating tothe and and aTurkish trainfromTatvan to Ankara the shores of Van Lake ineastern Turkey, TehranIranian trainbetween andVan, on p125 fortraindepartures fromTehran.) also fortripreports.www.seat61.com (See gov.tr andprices, forthelatest timetables or theTurkishrailwayswebsite atwww.tcdd. with fourberths. Checkwww.rajatrains.com 1st-classcouchettes isincomfortable seating day (about€40).Ittakes about70hours and and Tabriz iscalledthe and departed Tehran at8.15pmonThursday (IR577,300), of writing,trainsonthe2968km journeyleft ineitherdirectionruns weekly and,atthetime The trainfrom Train snowbound. neartheborderare passes frequentlytain early. one dayifyoustart from Erzurum(Turkey) toTabriz (Iran)in clear customs.It’susuallypossibletocross ing towaitfordozens of fellow passengers to not across–eitherborderyou’llavoid hav- The It takes longer moun- inwinter whenhigh İ stanbul. It’sevoked somestrongfeel- stanbul. Trans-Asia Express İ way İ stanbul at10.55pmWednes- stanbul stanbul toTehranstanbul viaAnkara ahead ofourselves. ahead Trans-Asia Express is two trains; an istwotrains;an lonelyplanet.com . It . It you canfind. ally ignored, soyoucouldjustgrab anything your newtraintheberthnumbers are usu- quality. Whenchanging fromtheferry to foritspriceand criticised train hasbeen later tripto ticket onthesame fora a newreservation for sixmonths anditispossibletomake ning toget atAnkara,theticket off isvalid ifyouarepay forthewholetripeven plan- Readers report to youneed thatalthough lonelyplanet.com or leave Iran bysea. butthere areSea, relatively few waystoenter the Persian Gulf, Gulf of OmanandCaspian Iran has2410kmof boundariesalong coastal SEA hassle; thepeopleat in travelling isstillabig toTurkmenistan change transportat allthree crossings. (see p366 headingeast.Youmust ) forthose Ashgabat,capital andSaraghs andSarakhs p346 ) linkingMashhad andtheTurkmen boxed text, p342 ), Bajgiran andHowdan(see Incheh the BorunandGyzyl-Etrekused (see west toeast,there isinconvenient andlittle- ers alongthis1206km-longfrontier. From There are three border posts opentoforeign- TURKMENISTAN smoothly aspossible. tobethebestatmaking itallgoas seem a journey. very, very interesting trip–definitely parently beingintheair).Allall,a liberated singlegirls(Valentines ap- and beingpursued bythesuddenly oflearning tosingthepoems Hafez of apartyatmosphere. Ispentthedays fetch andthewholethinghasabit beer cross theborder. Themen,of course, T-shirts andhairpinsassoonyou gers into switch fromcoatsandscarves (largely middle-class)female passen- It isquite towatch aspectacle the (and feed me!Oh,somuch food…). ments fullof peoplewantingtochat time tovisitallthedifferent compart- discovered enough Ihadnotnearly eigner onthetrain,andoncethiswas trips Ihave made. Iwastheonlyfor- This wasoneof themostenjoyable The paperwork and organisation involved The paperworkandorganisation involved İ stanbul. Food on the Turkish FoodontheTurkish stanbul. Stantours Joshua Smyth

(www.stantours.com)

and sometours. ethnicgroups. of northwest plusamore exotictour .com.au) Standardhighlightstrip, Ace StudyTours UK Pars Travel Clio Tours Catai Continental Europe Travel Passport Equitrek &NewZealand Australia operator ( p415 ). consider bookingdirect anIranian through can live withoutthatforeign tourleader, local operators onceyouget toIran.Ifyou Note thatalmostallof companiesuse these adventure theboxed tours, see text, p373 ). tours toIranfromoutsidethecountry(for reputable agencies thatoffer organised guide canbeworthwhile. convenience, having anEnglish-speaking areas visas hardto come by.Apartfromthe tour, asituationlikely tocontinueas long Many travellers visitIranonanorganised TOURS center.com/valfajr8_persian_gulf.htm. www.irantravelingdeparture see details and notthatmuch cheaper thanflying;for are notexactlyfrequent Services Bahrain. tions includingSharjah, KuwaitCityand and (p302) Bandar-e ( Lengeh Abbas p298 Bandar ) inIrantodestina- (p291), Bushehr operates car ferries from andcatamarans the Persian Gulf isValfajre-8. Valfajre-8 The mainshippingagency fortripsacross Persian Gulf aroundinNoshahr( sniffing p173 ). chism tobother. Ifyou’re stillkeen, start patience northerequisite degree of maso- most travellers have neitherthetime, we canbe. Schedules are non-existent and butthat’sabout asdefinitiveCaspian, as berthsBoats withpassenger docrossthe Sea Caspian Tailor-made toursofthenortheast. horseriding cultural tours. professional lecturers. Ace Studyprovides infrequent studytourswith The followingare someexperiencedand ( x ( 01 53688282;www.clio.fr) French operatorof GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Sea GETTING x ( (www.catai.es) ForSpanishspeakers. x 02-9913 9408; www.equitrek.com.au) 02-9913 9408;www.equitrek.com.au) 069-230882) In Frankfurt, mainlyflights 069-230882) InFrankfurt, ( ( x x 03-9500 0444,www.travelcentre 01223-835 055;study-tours.org)

405 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT Iran along the way. By taking a bus to – but abus to–but Iran along theway.Bytaking enjoy some of eastern Turkey and western more likely tobetaken apart atcustoms. bus, which isfullof traders andtherefore IR250,000 to Ankara orErzurum. embassy workers, ratherthanthe the Ankarabus,which isfullof studentsand intheknowswearit’sbetter totakeThose bus thatruns(see p124 for busdepartures). butusuallyit’sjust one offer theservice, buscompanies ern busterminals; several They leave fromboth the centralandwest- but IR300,000toAnkara,which isnearer. Tehranbus to,say, orTabriz from The easieristotake adirect long-distance Travelling bybusyouhave twooptions. Bus cross atGürbulakandBazargan. for furtherinformation.Motoristsusually be infrequent; theboxed see text ( p140 ) oneithersideandtransportcanto stay near OrumiyehinIran.There isnowhere (40km fromYüksekova, Turkey) andSero, boxed text ( p136 ) fordetails. Maku ( p136 of innearby staying theborder,though the) ismore see pleasant; cilities andregular transportoneitherside where there are hotels, moneychanging fa- at Gürbulak( Turkey) andBazargan (Iran), There main roadcrossingto/fromTurkey is TURKEY 404 Alternatively, take itmore slowlyand Buses to/fromTehranBuses costabout Foreigners canalsocrossatEsendere luxury ofthemodern-day and Singapore byrail…buthangonaminute, nowwe’re getting together,you’llbeabletocontinuethroughThailand,politicians cangettheiract Indochina inBulgariaviaan11,460kmline. Andif toKapikule to fruition,KunminginChinawillbelinked through toIndiaandChina. Iftheoft-talked aboutbutmuch-delayedTrans-Asian comes Railway though there are planstostandardisetheentire Pakistani networktoallowtrainsrundirectly Pakistani railway, itwillchange bogies withthewide-gauge toconnect InZahedan and Kerman. isfinished–supposedlyinlate 2008.Bam andZahedan, to India. between Itwillbepossiblewhenthemissinglengthoftrack,acrossbarren deserts aboard atrainin London, oralmostanywhere inEurope, andtravel exclusively byrailalltheway After decadesoffrustrationfortrainspotters andtravellers itwillsoonbepossibletoclimb alike, TO THEORIENTBY TRAIN beat goingacrossAsia bytrain.Ifyoufancyit,seewww.seat61.comtoplanyouritinerary. andthechancetomeetlocals,it’shard little ‘express’ aboutit.Butforscenery,comfort GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Land GETTING For now,gettingtoIndiashouldn’tbetootough.Sure, abouttheexpensive we’re nottalking totherest oftheIraniannetworkviaBam trackwilllinkZahedan The new,standard-gauge İ stanbul (about36to42hours), stanbul Orient Express İ İ stanbul, stanbul, stanbul stanbul trains,whichonlyrunasfarVenice. Indeed,there is reported: touch tosuch alongtraintrip, asonereader there’sing. However, adistinctly romantic and lowtemperatures canfreeze theplumb- in winter whensnowcan blockthetracks fewerbeen in recent years. Delaysare likely concept of ‘express’, complaintshave though ings amongreaders, usually relating tothe and and aTurkish trainfromTatvan to Ankara the shores of Van Lake ineastern Turkey, TehranIranian trainbetween andVan, on p125 fortraindepartures fromTehran.) also fortripreports.www.seat61.com (See gov.tr andprices, forthelatest timetables or theTurkishrailwayswebsite atwww.tcdd. with fourberths. Checkwww.rajatrains.com 1st-classcouchettes isincomfortable seating day (about€40).Ittakes about70hours and and departed Tehran at8.15pmonThursday (IR577,300), of writing,trainsonthe2968km journeyleft ineitherdirectionruns weekly and,atthetime and Tabriz iscalledthe The trainfrom Train snowbound. neartheborderare passes frequentlytain early. one dayifyoustart from Erzurum(Turkey) toTabriz (Iran)in clear customs.It’susuallypossibletocross ing towaitfordozens of fellow passengers to not across–eitherborderyou’llavoid hav- The It takes longer moun- inwinter whenhigh İ stanbul. It’sevoked somestrongfeel- stanbul. Trans-Asia Express İ way İ stanbul at10.55pmWednes- stanbul stanbul toTehranstanbul viaAnkara ahead ofourselves. ahead Trans-Asia Express is two trains; an istwotrains;an lonelyplanet.com . It . It you canfind. ally ignored, soyoucouldjustgrab anything your newtraintheberthnumbers are usu- quality. Whenchanging fromtheferry to foritspriceand criticised train hasbeen later tripto ticket onthesame fora a newreservation for sixmonths anditispossibletomake ning toget atAnkara,theticket off isvalid ifyouarepay forthewholetripeven plan- Readers report to youneed thatalthough lonelyplanet.com or leave Iran bysea. butthere areSea, relatively few waystoenter the Persian Gulf, Gulf of OmanandCaspian Iran has2410kmof boundariesalong coastal SEA hassle; thepeopleat in travelling isstillabig toTurkmenistan change transportat allthree crossings. (see p366 headingeast.Youmust ) forthose Ashgabat,capital andSaraghs andSarakhs p346 ) linkingMashhad andtheTurkmen boxed text, p342 ), Bajgiran andHowdan(see Incheh the BorunandGyzyl-Etrekused (see west toeast,there isinconvenient andlittle- ers alongthis1206km-longfrontier. From There are three border posts opentoforeign- TURKMENISTAN smoothly aspossible. tobethebestatmaking itallgoas seem a journey. very, very interesting trip–definitely parently beingintheair).Allall,a liberated singlegirls(Valentines ap- and beingpursued bythesuddenly oflearning tosingthepoems Hafez of apartyatmosphere. Ispentthedays fetch andthewholethinghasabit beer cross theborder. Themen,of course, T-shirts andhairpinsassoonyou gers into switch fromcoatsandscarves (largely middle-class)female passen- It isquite towatch aspectacle the (and feed me!Oh,somuch food…). ments fullof peoplewantingtochat time tovisitallthedifferent compart- discovered enough Ihadnotnearly eigner onthetrain,andoncethiswas trips Ihave made. Iwastheonlyfor- This wasoneof themostenjoyable The paperwork and organisation involved The paperworkandorganisation involved İ stanbul. Food on the Turkish FoodontheTurkish stanbul. Stantours Joshua Smyth

(www.stantours.com)

and sometours. of northwest ethnicgroups. of northwest plusamore exotictour .com.au) Standardhighlightstrip, Ace StudyTours UK Pars Travel Clio Tours Catai Continental Europe Travel Passport Equitrek &NewZealand Australia operator ( p415 ). consider bookingdirect anIranian through can live withoutthatforeign tourleader, local operators onceyouget toIran.Ifyou Note thatalmostallof companiesuse these adventure theboxed tours, see text, p373 ). tours toIranfromoutsidethecountry(for reputable agencies thatoffer organised guide canbeworthwhile. convenience, having anEnglish-speaking areas visas hardto come by.Apartfromthe tour, asituationlikely tocontinueas long Many travellers visitIranonanorganised TOURS center.com/valfajr8_persian_gulf.htm. www.irantravelingdeparture see details and notthatmuch cheaper thanflying;for are notexactlyfrequent Services Bahrain. tions includingSharjah, KuwaitCityand and (p302) Bandar-e ( Lengeh Abbas p298 Bandar ) inIrantodestina- (p291), Bushehr operates car ferries from andcatamarans the Persian Gulf isValfajre-8. Valfajre-8 The mainshippingagency fortripsacross Persian Gulf aroundinNoshahr( sniffing p173 ). chism tobother. Ifyou’re stillkeen, start patience northerequisite degree of maso- most travellers have neitherthetime, we canbe. Schedules are non-existent and butthat’sabout asdefinitiveCaspian, as berthsBoats withpassenger docrossthe Sea Caspian Tailor-made toursofthenortheast. horseriding cultural tours. professional lecturers. Ace Studyprovides infrequent studytourswith The followingare someexperiencedand ( x ( 01 53688282;www.clio.fr) French operatorof GETTING THERE&AWAY ••Sea GETTING x ( (www.catai.es) ForSpanishspeakers. x 02-9913 9408; www.equitrek.com.au) 02-9913 9408;www.equitrek.com.au) 069-230882) In Frankfurt, mainlyflights 069-230882) InFrankfurt, ( ( x x 03-9500 0444,www.travelcentre 01223-835 055;study-tours.org)

405 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT is veryhelpful. voyages.com) Iranspecialist witharangeoftours;Nasrin ‘stans. somecombiningnearby trips, .bestway.com) Upmarket Air fly the most routes, while Caspian Air-Air flythe mostroutes, whileCaspian thisbook. throughout Thererelevant Getting &Away sections are details Flight includedinthe the same. ter which airlineyouflythepricewillbe bythegovernment,set mat- soitdoesn’t provincial Domesticpricesare capitals. extensive network of covering flights, most roster of domesticairlinesandboastsan Iran Airisthelargest among agrowing Airlines inIran example, isjustIR245,000.Happy days! Iran are stillcheap; Tehran toShiraz, for Esfahan are gone , butdomesticairfares in The daysof from Tehran US$5flights to AIR information onholidays,see p383 . fares byabout20%.Formore usuallyrise andEidal-Fitr.Ramazan AtNoRuzbus or anypublicholiday,especiallyNoRuz, ahead ifyou’re travelling onaweekend For planesandtrainsit’sworthbooking quent, fairlypunctualandvery cheap. most formsof publictransportare fre- onhome, you’llappreciate thatservices imaginative thanwhatyou’re toat used accept thatthedrivingis…erm…more the transportsystem inIran.Onceyou Most visitors areby surprised pleasantly AROUND GETTING Silk RoadTours Expeditions Geographic Smallgroupsaccompaniedbyascholar.-horizons.com) Distant Horizons Bestway Tours&Safaris toget otherwise. avisa difficult Americans often organised tours use asit’s USA &Canada Persian Voyages Travel Carpet Magic 406 .geoex.com) Mainly bespoke toursaimedattheupperend. bespoke .geoex.com) Mainly .com) Regular package andtailor-madetours. package .com) Regular specialising inIrantours. -carpet-travel.com) Established,Iranian-ownedoperator Of theothers, IranAseman and Mahan GETTING AROUND••Air GETTING (

x ( ( x x ( 888 8817455;www.silkroadtours x 800 3331240;www.distant 01306-885 894;www.persian ( ( 01344-622 832;www.magic x x 800 7778183;www 800 6630844;www with most otheractivities inIran,isthe the nextbigtown. your bike onabusor truck andheadfor haveto take youin– might toload persuade thecaretaker atthelocalmosque –andifyoucan’t hotel youcan’tafford and findeithernowhere oronly a tostay it then. to Tehran domesticterminal…you payfor you take in Iranor toanIranAiroffice They give youabookingreference which by callinganIranAiroffice outsideIran. report it’spossibletobookdomesticflights somereadersonline bookings.However, smaller airline. Noneof theairlinesyetdo isona impossibleiftheflight nigh-on insomeplacesand Iran canbedifficult Iran’sskies. gling through stillstrug- sible, theclunkingoldTupolevs the aircrafttypeandavoid, wherever pos- any airline. Whenmakingabooking,check travel agencies, which canbookyouonto easier tovisitoneof of Iran’s thousands canbehardtofind.It’smuchline offices largesarily acrossthecountry,air- offices itleavescase ontime). hour aheadof domesticdepartures (justin it’s worthtryingtoget totheairportagood layed bymore thananhour. Despite this, all three wetookwere domesticflights de- good chance of beingdelayed.Onthistrip a whichever youstand airlineyouchoose speaking, IranAiristhemostreliable, but see For website details, p400 . Generally lines, KishAirandTaban Airhave fewer. decent map,andaphrasebook. if youare notstickingtomajor towns,a stretches,long desert campingequipment to carryplentyof water andfoodtolastthe winds–canget tiring.You’llneed seasonal stretches of road–nottomention desert andhot,tedious dodgytraffic distances, alleasy.Vast It’snot,however, hospitality. experiencefullofing afantastic selfless pedalling acrossthecountryandreport- theredeed, are usuallyoneortwotravellers like anidealcyclingdestination.And in- tively smallriskof theft meanIransounds roads,friendlypeopleandarela-Excellent BICYCLE The biggest drawback withcycling, as If youarrive inavillage orsmall town fromoutsideBooking domesticflights forIranAir,which hasunneces- Except lonelyplanet.com so bringyourown. nowhere to rent bicyclesforlongdistances, be covered atalltimes. others thatwomeninparticularmust say at handtocover upassoonyoustop; ally ontheroad,aslongyouhave clothes that it’sfinetowearcyclinggear whenactu- varying reports fromtravellers: somesay covered tostay need up.Wehave received lonelyplanet.com Similarly, phrases likeSimilarly, phrases ‘Lovely bus’are not written on thefrontorsideinEnglish. bad andAhvaz, tohave ‘Tehran– travelling forexample,Khorrama- between, destinations onabus.It’scommonforbus Species: Mahmooly orVolvo?( p408 ). OneHabitat, of classes bus–see tween Two companies,buttheydovarybe- between ing isnotallowed.Fares don’tvarymuch and,exceptonvery shorttrips,stand- seat are with yourowncushioned comfortable, routes, departures are frequent. Mostbuses competitive, fares cheap and,onbusier all over the country, sobusinessishighly (bus companies)offer hundreds of services wants togothere. More than 20 bus (orminibus),thechances are no-one In Iran,ifyoucan’tget somewhere by BUS in thePersian Gulf(see p287 ). are themainlandandsomeislands between The only places you’re likely aboat touse BOAT Spare partscanbehardtofindandthere is Don’t be confused bythenamesofDon’t beconfused the smugglers retrieved itsoonafter wemoved on. inside. Apparently theydidn’tfindwhatever had been secreted insidetheseats,asgrinning spend 45minutes openingandsearchingeverything else onthebus,aswellsniffingaround didn’t paytooclose attention toourbagsonce theyrealised wewere travellers, buttheydid everyonewe gotoffthebusand,like else,tookallourluggageto anearbytable. The officers stuff contrabandwithin.At thecheckpoint,after waitinganhourwhileotherbuseswere searched, the understandingofbusstaff,used aknife topryopentheunderneath ofseveral seatsand it later on.Then wehadtowaitanhourbefore whileacoupleofmen,clearlywith wedeparted searches. numberwritten Eachofourbagshadticket ontoit,justincasewetriedtodeny thorough andtimeconsuming. smugglers or‘illegalaliens’,before wavingthebuson.However, searchescanbemuchmore forobviousor policemanwillgetontothebusandwalkupdown,presumably looking to have tostopatcheckpointsdesignedcatchsmugglers. Insomecasesacustomsofficial If you’re travelling toorfromthePakistan orAfghan borders,orfromBandarAbbas,you’re likely CHECKPOINTS Taking toBamwewitnessedboth thereasons forandeffect thebusfromZahedan ofsuch İ taavonis stanbul’ stanbul’

fices of individualbuscompanies,though with aprolonged ‘aal’attheend. where todropyou–pronounce‘terminal’ minal-e to therelevant terminal. Tell thedriver ‘ in doubt,askatyourhotel orcharter ataxi cities there’s more than onebusterminal; if lesssobylocalbus.Insome private taxi, of townandare easytoreach byshuttleor Most busterminals are located attheedge Terminals Bus 8). Thebest ample, terminal they’llstilldirect youto,forex- taken onmore variednames,butinthe number itis.Inrecent years mosthave kat-e Ta’avoni Shomare X),orwhatever as Cooperative BusCompanyNoX(Sher- until recently theywere referred tosimply Most buscompaniesare cooperatives and Bus Companies no buspasses. always afairreflection of reality. There are types – see theboxedtypes –see text ( p408 ). going theirway.Theexceptioniswithbus and justtake whichever isthenextbus outaspecificcompanybother seeking little more, mosttravellers though don’t Hamsafar offer fora newer,better buses ‘Ta’avoni’ or‘BusNoOne’written onit). 15) andIranPeyma (often withtheword are TBTsive (Taavoni networkof services, Bus terminals are filledwiththeof- For a bit more comfort Seiro Safarand For abitmore comfortSeiro ‘ta’avoni hasht’ (yourdestination)’andhe’llknow ta’avonis, GETTING AROUND••Boat GETTING withthemostexten- (cooperative number

407 ter- TRANSPORT TRANSPORT is veryhelpful. voyages.com) Iranspecialist witharangeoftours;Nasrin Air fly the most routes, while Caspian Air-Air flythe mostroutes, whileCaspian thisbook. throughout Thererelevant Getting &Away sections are details Flight includedinthe the same. ter which airlineyouflythepricewillbe bythegovernment,set mat- soitdoesn’t provincial Domesticpricesare capitals. extensive network of covering flights, most roster of domesticairlinesandboastsan Iran Airisthelargest among agrowing Airlines inIran example, isjustIR245,000.Happy days! Iran are stillcheap; Tehran toShiraz, for Esfahan are gone , butdomesticairfares in The daysof from Tehran US$5flights to AIR information onholidays,see p383 . fares byabout20%.Formore usuallyrise andEidal-Fitr.Ramazan AtNoRuzbus or anypublicholiday,especiallyNoRuz, ahead ifyou’re travelling onaweekend For planesandtrainsit’sworthbooking quent, fairlypunctualandvery cheap. most formsof publictransportare fre- onhome, you’llappreciate thatservices imaginative thanwhatyou’re toat used accept thatthedrivingis…erm…more the transportsystem inIran.Onceyou Most visitors areby surprised pleasantly AROUND GETTING Silk RoadTours Expeditions Geographic Smallgroupsaccompaniedbyascholar.-horizons.com) Distant Horizons ‘stans. somecombiningnearby trips, .bestway.com) Upmarket Bestway Tours&Safaris toget otherwise. avisa difficult Americans often organised tours use asit’s USA &Canada Persian Voyages Travel Carpet Magic 406 .geoex.com) Mainly bespoke toursaimedattheupperend. bespoke .geoex.com) Mainly .com) Regular package andtailor-madetours. package .com) Regular specialising inIrantours. -carpet-travel.com) Established,Iranian-ownedoperator Of theothers, IranAseman and Mahan GETTING AROUND••Air GETTING (

x ( ( x x ( 888 8817455;www.silkroadtours x 800 3331240;www.distant 01306-885 894;www.persian ( ( 01344-622 832;www.magic x x 800 7778183;www 800 6630844;www it then. to Tehran domesticterminal…you payfor you take in Iranor toanIranAiroffice They give youabookingreference which by callinganIranAiroffice outsideIran. report it’spossibletobookdomesticflights somereadersonline bookings.However, smaller airline. Noneof theairlinesyetdo isona impossibleiftheflight nigh-on insomeplacesand Iran canbedifficult Iran’sskies. gling through stillstrug- sible, theclunkingoldTupolevs the aircrafttypeandavoid, wherever pos- any airline. Whenmakingabooking,check travel agencies, which canbookyouonto easier tovisitoneof of Iran’s thousands canbehardtofind.It’smuchline offices largesarily acrossthecountry,air- offices itleavescase ontime). hour aheadof domesticdepartures (justin it’s worthtryingtoget totheairportagood layed bymore thananhour. Despite this, all three wetookwere domesticflights de- good chance of beingdelayed.Onthistrip a whichever youstand airlineyouchoose speaking, IranAiristhemostreliable, but see For website details, p400 . Generally lines, KishAirandTaban Airhave fewer. with most otheractivities inIran,isthe the nextbigtown. your bike onabusor truck andheadfor haveto take youin– might toload persuade thecaretaker atthelocalmosque –andifyoucan’t hotel youcan’tafford and findeithernowhere oronly a tostay decent map,andaphrasebook. if youare notstickingtomajor towns,a stretches,long desert campingequipment to carryplentyof water andfoodtolastthe winds–canget tiring.You’llneed seasonal stretches of road–nottomention desert andhot,tedious dodgytraffic distances, alleasy.Vast It’snot,however, hospitality. experiencefullofing afantastic selfless pedalling acrossthecountryandreport- theredeed, are usuallyoneortwotravellers like anidealcyclingdestination.And in- tively smallriskof theft meanIransounds roads,friendlypeopleandarela-Excellent BICYCLE Booking domestic flights fromoutsideBooking domesticflights forIranAir,which hasunneces- Except The biggest drawback withcycling, as If youarrive inavillage orsmall town lonelyplanet.com so bringyourown. nowhere to rent bicyclesforlongdistances, be covered atalltimes. others thatwomeninparticularmust say at handtocover upassoonyoustop; ally ontheroad,aslongyouhave clothes that it’sfinetowearcyclinggear whenactu- varying reports fromtravellers: somesay covered tostay need up.Wehave received lonelyplanet.com Similarly, phrases likeSimilarly, phrases ‘Lovely bus’are not written on thefrontorsideinEnglish. bad andAhvaz, tohave ‘Tehran– travelling forexample,Khorrama- between, destinations onabus.It’scommonforbus Species: Mahmooly orVolvo?( p408 ). OneHabitat, of classes bus–see tween Two companies,buttheydovarybe- between ing isnotallowed.Fares don’tvarymuch and,exceptonvery shorttrips,stand- seat are with yourowncushioned comfortable, routes, departures are frequent. Mostbuses competitive, fares cheap and,onbusier all over the country, sobusinessishighly (bus companies)offer hundreds of services wants togothere. More than 20 bus (orminibus),thechances are no-one In Iran,ifyoucan’tget somewhere by BUS in thePersian Gulf(see p287 ). are themainlandandsomeislands between The only places you’re likely aboat touse BOAT Spare partscanbehardtofindandthere is Don’t be confused bythenamesofDon’t beconfused the smugglers retrieved itsoonafter wemoved on. inside. Apparently theydidn’tfindwhatever had been secreted insidetheseats,asgrinning spend 45minutes openingandsearchingeverything else onthebus,aswellsniffingaround didn’t paytooclose attention toourbagsonce theyrealised wewere travellers, buttheydid everyonewe gotoffthebusand,like else,tookallourluggageto anearbytable. The officers stuff contrabandwithin.At thecheckpoint,after waitinganhourwhileotherbuseswere searched, the understandingofbusstaff,used aknife topryopentheunderneath ofseveral seatsand it later on.Then wehadtowaitanhourbefore whileacoupleofmen,clearlywith wedeparted searches. numberwritten Eachofourbagshadticket ontoit,justincasewetriedtodeny thorough andtimeconsuming. smugglers or‘illegalaliens’,before wavingthebuson.However, searchescanbemuchmore forobviousor policemanwillgetontothebusandwalkupdown,presumably looking to have tostopatcheckpointsdesignedcatchsmugglers. Insomecasesacustomsofficial If you’re travelling toorfromthePakistan orAfghan borders,orfromBandarAbbas,you’re likely CHECKPOINTS Taking toBamwewitnessedboth thereasons forandeffect thebusfromZahedan ofsuch İ taavonis stanbul’ stanbul’

fices of individualbuscompanies,though with aprolonged ‘aal’attheend. where todropyou–pronounce‘terminal’ minal-e to therelevant terminal. Tell thedriver ‘ in doubt,askatyourhotel orcharter ataxi cities there’s more than onebusterminal; if lesssobylocalbus.Insome private taxi, of townandare easytoreach byshuttleor Most busterminals are located attheedge Terminals Bus 8). Thebest ample, terminal they’llstilldirect youto,forex- taken onmore variednames,butinthe number itis.Inrecent years mosthave kat-e Ta’avoni Shomare X),orwhatever as Cooperative BusCompanyNoX(Sher- until recently theywere referred tosimply Most buscompaniesare cooperatives and Bus Companies no buspasses. always afairreflection of reality. There are types – see theboxedtypes –see text ( p408 ). going theirway.Theexceptioniswithbus and justtake whichever isthenextbus outaspecificcompanybother seeking little more, mosttravellers though don’t Hamsafar offer fora newer,better buses ‘Ta’avoni’ or‘BusNoOne’written onit). 15) andIranPeyma (often withtheword are TBTsive (Taavoni networkof services, Bus terminals are filledwiththeof- For a bit more comfort Seiro Safarand For abitmore comfortSeiro ‘ta’avoni hasht’ (yourdestination)’andhe’llknow ta’avonis, GETTING AROUND••Boat GETTING withthemostexten- (cooperative number

407 ter- TRANSPORT TRANSPORT than halfwhataVolvocosts.Forexample, Mahmooly Costs place.point youtotheright –localswill best placestohailpassingbuses andjunctionsare stations the bouts, service as simpleitsounds.Roadblocks,rounda- being runover –acombinationthatisnot can shoutoutyourdestinationwithout thatyou tothepassingtraffic near enough of goingtotheterminal. Positionyourself down apassingbusontheroadinstead orKashan, toflag youmayneed as Zanjan so wecan’t’. give companies never ustheirtimetables, head: ‘We’dlike tobeablehelp,butthe minal tolduswithafrustrated shake of her working behindthedeskatoneTehran ter- desks are asthewoman basicallyuseless; ahotel.and maybeeven Theinformation facilities left-luggage policestation, office, food, andsomelarger terminals have apost or so. as sometimewithinthenext45minutes a busis‘leaving now’,‘now’canbedefined a busisabouttoleave. Whenyouhearthat your destinationbeingscreamed outwhen be directed desk,orlisten for totheright ‘Shiraz?’, ‘Esfahan?’orwherever andyou’ll aretimetables rarely inEnglish. Justask 408 If you’re leaving ajunctiontown,such Terminals alwayshave somewhere tobuy far-off Scandinavia…. onlongerjourneys,by newpredatorsbe replaced, thatcamethunderingin from particularly a wholeisindecline. By thelate 1990s, the air-conditioningeven theherd as and carefully intotheir40s,withworking groomedcurtains, hides,generouslegroomandlarge windows.colourful Andwhile someremain inrudehealth roadscape. bodies, They were notablytheircurvaceous celebrated fortheirbeautyandcomfort, an epicmigrationduringthe1960sand withintwodecadeshadcometodominate theIranian that canbetracedbacktotheMercedes familyinGermany.Herdedbysalesmen,theybegan Apart from theoddthrowback, Apart Mahmooly differences.important the are seldomseenwithoutanaccompanyingcrew ofthree Iranianmen(quempilosus).Butwhile orforagethroughremotedeserts mountainroadsinsearchofprey, knownaspassengers. They Volvo (bus Bothenjoy awiderangeofhabitats,happytoroamrelentlessly across invita Minerva). Iran’s roadsare hometotwomainspeciesofbus, the ONE HABITAT, TWOSPECIES:MAHMOOLY &VOLVO GETTING AROUND••Bus GETTING mahmooly buses usuallycostabitmore buses and Volvo coexist fairly peacefully within the bus kingdom, theydoboastsome and Volvocoexistfairlypeacefullywithinthebuskingdom, mahmooly (or ‘normal’inFarsi) busesshare acommongenestock mahmooly should point you in the right direction.should pointyouintheright incomprehensible someoneattheterminal, number, platformnumberandfare. Ifit’s parture, timeof departure, busnumber,seat the Arabicnumbers tocheck thedayof de- and lost,usuallyhelps. desperate, thenlookinglike it,plushelpless beofferedyou might Ifyou’re thebackseat. justbeforebuses departure. Alternatively, full canmagicallyappearonotherwise seats book ahead. toa daytoyourdestination,itisessential where there maybeonlyoneortwobuses will often beovernight. Insmallerplaces, trip)but longer trips(andanycross-desert nearer locationsleave hourorso, every such asHamadan andKerman, to buses 5am and1am.Inmedium-sizedtowns, about between half-hour at leastevery such asEsfahanandTehran, leave buses people don’tbother. major cities, Between in advance,exceptatNoRuzwhenmost It’s possibletobuytickets uptoa week Reservations costs IR52,000/90,000by the 1024kmtripfromTehran toKerman in this book to rise steadily. in thisbooktorise Either way,it’scheap, expectprices though costsaboutIR23,000/50,000. and Esfahan Tehranwhile the440kmjourneybetween Tickets are almostalwaysinFarsi, solearn There are often no-showsforbustrips,so mahmooly hadslowedsomuch thatitbeganto (mercedusantiquus)andthe mahmooly lonelyplanet.com /Volvo, facing awayfromthesun. ontheside If it’ssummer,trytoget aseat the policeasaprecaution againstspeeding. will stoptohave checked histachograph by to drink.Every twohours orsothedriver is normallyavailable onthebusandissafe cheap food.Ice-coldwater serving taurants than three hours you’llstopatroadsideres- which canbeahassle. Onmosttripsof more a townintheearlyhours of themorning, oftenon mostbusjourneys.Buses arrive in Don’t countonaveraging more than60km/h Journey The lonelyplanet.com to-do-and-I-don’t-speak-Farsi’ look,you yourbest‘I-don’t-know-what- the officials down yourwindow,smilenicely,andgive to stopatroadblocks.Usually ifyouwind should alwaysslowdownandget ready If youare drivingyourownvehicle, you YourOwnVehicle Bring for theshockingfigures. horizonsu nlimited.com. africa-overland.net/asia-overland, orwww. ing anoverland journeycheck outwww. the citydrivingisnot.Ifyou’re consider- Most report thecountrydrivingisgreat and Europeandthe tween Indian subcontinent. vehicles across Iran aspartof atripbe- A smallbutsteady stream of travellers take CAR &MOTORCYCLE Iranian roads can be dangerous; see Iranian roadscanbedangerous; see p98 Tehran. Weranged withaVolvowhilefellow traveller chosea works. Speedandcost are the real differences, aswasillustrated during amigrationfromShirazto Volvos, are cheapenoughyou canbuytwoforthepriceofoneVolvo seat,andtheair-con usually not thatmuch difference –save themoney’. Alas,his should considerthesepoints. Seatsin or even someexoticKorean breeds, asVolvos. Passengers unsure ofwhichherdtosaddleupwith the aweinwhichtheyare held.Inthisbook,werefer to allnewbuses,betheyVolvo,MAN, Scania less toroamwith,whileinsomeareas newerVolvosare called ‘super’,anapparent reference to andtheir engines weakwith age,are working no-longer called‘lux’,or‘super-lux’, andcostslightly species different namesdependingontheirageandlocation.Someolderbuses,air-conditioners habitat. MAN, Scania andsimilarboxy European breeds rolledin,andIraniansbegancallingthese sub- and deafeningly loudBollywoodmovies. biscuits,asteady cakes, streampassengers withboiledlollies,packaged ofZam(softdrink) though itcostalmosttwiceasmuchtodoso. Volvoherderslearntnewhuntingtechniques, luring airmore reliably,ice-cold Iranianpassengerswere soonlininguptoroamwiththeVolvoeven The firstofthesewastheVolvo. Bigger,faster andwitharespiratory system evolved tobreathe Volvo Seeing thesuccessofVolvo,other European sub-speciesbegantoappearintheIranian mahmooly buses are usually just as comfortable asthosein buses are usually justascomfortable diesel costsawhoppingIR165L(that’sdiesel let’s faceit,unbridledjoy.That’sbecause it’s likely tobethesourceof incredulity and, p25 diesel ifyouuse ). Foryou,however, Inflation,RisingPrices&You, topic (see For Iraniansthepriceof fuelis alwaysahot Parts Fuel &Spare country. automobile associationinyourhome driving licence. Get one from the national To drive aninternational inIranyouneed Licence Driving for 4WDs. symbol inthisbookhave clearance enough ing in;mostplacesmarked withaparking clearancebefore height check-sufficient plate of ensure kabab.Ofcourse, there is beforedrug smuggler, you’ve finishedyour orPakistan bya Afghanistan andbought stolen, stripped,driven acrosstheborderof the southeast,where yourvehicle be might to findahotel withsafe parkingwhenin sure Be cious customsandpoliceofficials. suspicious drugsmugglers orequallysuspi- borders tosteer clearofIraq orAfghanistan hassles. pers are inorderyoushouldn’t have any and vehicle documents,andifyourpa- you’ll have toshowyourpassport,licence will bewaved Atworst through. straight GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING mahmooly Keep tothemainroadsnearPakistan, mahmooly, took19hours, ourVolvo12½. telling us ‘there’s really

409 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT than halfwhataVolvocosts.Forexample, Mahmooly Costs place.point youtotheright –localswill best placestohailpassingbuses andjunctionsare stations the bouts, service as simpleitsounds.Roadblocks,rounda- being runover –acombinationthatisnot can shoutoutyourdestinationwithout thatyou tothepassingtraffic near enough of goingtotheterminal. Positionyourself down apassingbusontheroadinstead orKashan, toflag youmayneed as Zanjan so wecan’t’. give companies never ustheirtimetables, head: ‘We’dlike tobeablehelp,butthe minal tolduswithafrustrated shake of her working behindthedeskatoneTehran ter- desks are asthewoman basicallyuseless; ahotel.and maybeeven Theinformation facilities left-luggage policestation, office, food, andsomelarger terminals have apost or so. as sometimewithinthenext45minutes a busis‘leaving now’,‘now’canbedefined a busisabouttoleave. Whenyouhearthat your destinationbeingscreamed outwhen be directed desk,orlisten for totheright ‘Shiraz?’, ‘Esfahan?’orwherever andyou’ll aretimetables rarely inEnglish. Justask 408 If you’re leaving ajunctiontown,such Terminals alwayshave somewhere tobuy far-off Scandinavia…. onlongerjourneys,by newpredatorsbe replaced, thatcamethunderingin from particularly a wholeisindecline. By thelate 1990s, the air-conditioningeven theherd as and carefully intotheir40s,withworking groomedcurtains, hides,generouslegroomandlarge windows.colourful Andwhile someremain inrudehealth roadscape. bodies, They were notablytheircurvaceous celebrated fortheirbeautyandcomfort, an epicmigrationduringthe1960sand withintwodecadeshadcometodominate theIranian that canbetracedbacktotheMercedes familyinGermany.Herdedbysalesmen,theybegan Apart from theoddthrowback, Apart Mahmooly differences.important the are seldomseenwithoutanaccompanyingcrew ofthree Iranianmen(quempilosus).Butwhile orforagethroughremotedeserts mountainroadsinsearchofprey, knownaspassengers. They Volvo (bus Bothenjoy awiderangeofhabitats,happytoroamrelentlessly across invita Minerva). Iran’s roadsare hometotwomainspeciesofbus, the ONE HABITAT, TWOSPECIES:MAHMOOLY &VOLVO GETTING AROUND••Bus GETTING mahmooly buses usuallycostabitmore buses and Volvo coexist fairly peacefully within the bus kingdom, theydoboastsome and Volvocoexistfairlypeacefullywithinthebuskingdom, mahmooly (or ‘normal’inFarsi) busesshare acommongenestock mahmooly should point you in the right direction.should pointyouintheright incomprehensible someoneattheterminal, number, platformnumberandfare. Ifit’s parture, timeof departure, busnumber,seat the Arabicnumbers tocheck thedayof de- and lost,usuallyhelps. desperate, thenlookinglike it,plushelpless beofferedyou might Ifyou’re thebackseat. justbeforebuses departure. Alternatively, full canmagicallyappearonotherwise seats book ahead. toa daytoyourdestination,itisessential where there maybeonlyoneortwobuses will often beovernight. Insmallerplaces, trip)but longer trips(andanycross-desert nearer locationsleave hourorso, every such asHamadan andKerman, to buses 5am and1am.Inmedium-sizedtowns, about between half-hour at leastevery such asEsfahanandTehran, leave buses people don’tbother. major cities, Between in advance,exceptatNoRuzwhenmost It’s possibletobuytickets uptoa week Reservations costs IR52,000/90,000by the 1024kmtripfromTehran toKerman in this book to rise steadily. in thisbooktorise Either way,it’scheap, expectprices though costsaboutIR23,000/50,000. and Esfahan Tehranwhile the440kmjourneybetween Tickets are almostalwaysinFarsi, solearn There are often no-showsforbustrips,so mahmooly hadslowedsomuch thatitbeganto (mercedusantiquus)andthe mahmooly lonelyplanet.com /Volvo, facing awayfromthesun. ontheside If it’ssummer,trytoget aseat the policeasaprecaution againstspeeding. will stoptohave checked histachograph by to drink.Every twohours orsothedriver is normallyavailable onthebusandissafe cheap food.Ice-coldwater serving taurants than three hours you’llstopatroadsideres- which canbeahassle. Onmosttripsof more a townintheearlyhours of themorning, oftenon mostbusjourneys.Buses arrive in Don’t countonaveraging more than60km/h Journey The lonelyplanet.com to-do-and-I-don’t-speak-Farsi’ look,you yourbest‘I-don’t-know-what- the officials down yourwindow,smilenicely,andgive to stopatroadblocks.Usually ifyouwind should alwaysslowdownandget ready If youare drivingyourownvehicle, you YourOwnVehicle Bring for theshockingfigures. horizonsu nlimited.com. africa-overland.net/asia-overland, orwww. ing anoverland journeycheck outwww. the citydrivingisnot.Ifyou’re consider- Most report thecountrydrivingisgreat and Europeandthe tween Indian subcontinent. vehicles across Iran aspartof atripbe- A smallbutsteady stream of travellers take CAR &MOTORCYCLE Iranian roads can be dangerous; see Iranian roadscanbedangerous; see p98 not thatmuch difference –save themoney’. Alas,his Tehran. Weranged withaVolvowhilefellow traveller chosea works. Speedandcost are the real differences, aswasillustrated during amigrationfromShirazto Volvos, are cheapenoughyou canbuytwoforthepriceofoneVolvo seat,andtheair-con usually should considerthesepoints. Seatsin or even someexoticKorean breeds, asVolvos. Passengers unsure ofwhichherdtosaddleupwith the aweinwhichtheyare held.Inthisbook,werefer to allnewbuses,betheyVolvo,MAN, Scania less toroamwith,whileinsomeareas newerVolvosare called ‘super’,anapparent reference to andtheir engines weakwith age,are working no-longer called‘lux’,or‘super-lux’, andcostslightly species different namesdependingontheirageandlocation.Someolderbuses,air-conditioners habitat. MAN, Scania andsimilarboxy European breeds rolledin,andIraniansbegancallingthese sub- and deafeningly loudBollywoodmovies. biscuits,asteady cakes, streampassengers withboiledlollies,packaged ofZam(softdrink) though itcostalmosttwiceasmuchtodoso. Volvoherderslearntnewhuntingtechniques, luring airmore reliably,ice-cold Iranianpassengerswere soonlininguptoroamwiththeVolvoeven The firstofthesewastheVolvo. Bigger,faster andwitharespiratory system evolved tobreathe Volvo Seeing thesuccessofVolvo,other European sub-speciesbegantoappearintheIranian mahmooly buses are usually just as comfortable asthosein buses are usually justascomfortable diesel costsawhoppingIR165L(that’sdiesel let’s faceit,unbridledjoy.That’sbecause it’s likely tobethesourceof incredulity and, p25 diesel ifyouuse ). Foryou,however, Inflation,RisingPrices&You, topic (see For Iraniansthepriceof fuelis alwaysahot Parts Fuel &Spare country. automobile associationinyourhome driving licence. Get one from the national To drive aninternational inIranyouneed Licence Driving for 4WDs. symbol inthisbookhave clearance enough ing in;mostplacesmarked withaparking clearancebefore height check-sufficient plate of ensure kabab.Ofcourse, there is beforedrug smuggler, you’ve finishedyour orPakistan bya Afghanistan andbought stolen, stripped,driven acrosstheborderof the southeast,where yourvehicle be might to findahotel withsafe parkingwhenin sure Be cious customsandpoliceofficials. suspicious drugsmugglers orequallysuspi- borders tosteer clearofIraq orAfghanistan hassles. pers are inorderyoushouldn’t have any and vehicle documents,andifyourpa- you’ll have toshowyourpassport,licence will bewaved Atworst through. straight GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING mahmooly Keep tothemainroadsnearPakistan, mahmooly, took19hours, ourVolvo12½. telling us ‘there’s really

409 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT are safer. of dubiousquality.International brands ironically, Iranianmotoroilcanalsobe operations leave littleforlocals.Somewhat border, where well-organised smuggling queues intownswithin100kmorsoof a arethough, theeternal shortages andlong you wouldathome. More problematic, mileageder –sodon’texpectthesame as dirty –especiallynearthePakistan bor- fuel isdirtcheap itcanalsobejustplain ask. Readers have complainedthatwhile differentiate itfrom is usuallynothingwritten onthepumpto andthere diesel sell up. Notallstations toppedso it’sworthkeeping yourtanks zin the remote of deserts eastern Iran.But large 100kmexceptin townsatleastevery ( opposite ). Mean WhatFuelCards ForYou able; see steep hike, itremains though very reason- thepriceofever, petrolhasrecently taken a get change outof aeuro. Happy days!How- about €0.01),meaningyoucanfillupand 410 Road Distances(km) Once you’re ontheroad,you’llfind (petrol) stations canbehardtofind, (petrol)stations GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING Zanjan Zahedan Yazd Tehran Tabriz Shiraz Rasht Qazvin Orumiyeh Mashhad Khorramabad Kermanshah Kerman Hamadan Gorgan Esfahan Bushehr Bandar Abbas Ardabil Ahvaz 1040 1280 1310 1060 1770 1230 1760 1270 1080 1080 660 490 880 970 380 490 640 750 870 Ahvaz --- 1520 1930 1330 1630 2160 1610 1030 1270 270 480 380 530 930 790 670 770 590 220 --- Ardabil benzin 1660 1650 1650 2030 1380 1330 1770 1420 1730 1330 1930 620 490 740 930 960 660 Bandar Abbas --- 1520 1360 1340 1550 1650 1400 1050 1630 1230 1560 –besure to 860 970 880 580 730 300 Bushehr --- 1070 1220 1190 1040 760 560 760 370 650 660 470 840 300 440 490 Esfahan --- 1300 1440 1520 1080 1000 1320 500 530 720 570 900 920 730 400 Gorgan --- ben- 1230 1130 1660 400 230 330 610 260 190 730 340 610 950 Hamadan --- 1360 1220 1360 1740 1030 1290 1040 1640 360 890 530 570 ---

Road Distances Kerman 1420 1820 1110 blowouts fairlycommon. ofheight summer,scaldingheatmakes tyre less you’re drivingaPaykan orPride. Inthe oversay thequalityof thespare parts–un- nothavenegotiation butyoumight much shops. Thepriceforrepair workisopento be problematic. Pakistan, butgetting intoTurkey canthen get into Iran withoutagreen cardfrom organise before youarrive. It’spossibleto and agreen card,bothof which youshould Your vehicle a willneed Insurance thisguide.throughout Local drivers-cum-guides are mentioned atraveleither privately orthrough agency. ‘car rental’ here meanschartering ataxi, they canmake goodanydamage. Instead, hard foranyoneleasingacartobesure ing system for acceptingcredit cardsit’s Iran, notleast withoutafunction- because The conceptof carrental barely existsin Hire 590 420 420 580 320 950 530 590 Kermanshah --- Even have thetiniest settlements repair 1390 1560 670 860 490 590 870 670 500 880 Khorramabad --- 1070 1080 1210 1800 1500 1380 950 920 890 Mashhad --- 2270 1380 1320 800 770 590 910 310 Orumiyeh --- 1760 1050 170 180 830 150 480

Qazvin --- 1900 1000 1250 350 330 490 Rasht --- 1240 1100 1530 450 930 Shiraz --- carnet depassage 2170 1280 280 600 ---

Tabriz lonelyplanet.com 1570 320 680 Tehran --- 1000 890 Yazd --- 1890 Zahedan ---

lonelyplanet.com dangerous, andyou’lloften becompletely Unmarkeddeserts. bumps everywhere. speed Iranian drivers inthecities. inthe Camels Road Hazards telling youwhenastreet isadeadend! tothe pointofrare days)andthorough these street non-existent (quite signsvarybetween most cities,townsandvillages. Withincities, in EnglishandFarsi, includingdirections to Onintercityno lights. roadsmost signsare other vehicles crawlingalongtheroadwith and theriskof running into tractors and ofous because occasionalunmarked potholes ismoreother hand,drivingatnight danger- Road surfacesare generally excellent.Onthe Road Conditions 20L aday.Sowhatdoesthismeanifyou’re drivingyourownvehicle inIran? motorcycles were allowedtheequivalentof1Lperday,standardcars4Ladayandtaxisabout through amachinetorecord thedate andquantityofevery litre bought.At thetimeofwriting, by anambitioussystem bywhichevery vehicle ownerisissuedarationcard,whichswiped on whetherthevehicle isusedforprivate orcommercialuse. The wholesystem isunderpinned to anewrationing system, by which drivers are entitledtoaper-day quota. The quotadepends a litre –stillhalfof what foreigners mustpay.The result where isablackmarket operatesmarket elsewhere, whichyou’llprobablyneedtouseavoidrunningyourcarddry. ies, especiallyTehran, it’svery difficulttobuypetrolwithoutthecard.However, athrivingblack onourmaps.marked whohave Overlanders travelled withthissystem thatinlarger report cit- ask forthelocalNIOPDCoffice;thissystem wasintroducedafter weresearched sothey’re not N, 44°32’20.47”E)istheplacetogo. Take yourownershipdocuments. Elsewhere you’llhave to IR1000 foreachlitre youbuy(that’ssothestationgetslocalrate). guaranteed tohelpout. Iranianisgood newsisthatyou’re inIran…ifyourunoutofgas,somerandom,kind-hearted abighassle,thenthe lostseemstobethebestmethod. Ifthissoundslike station andlooking their larger ration)andeven, accordingtoonedriver, thepolicethemselves. Goingtoa much. The sellerswillbepetrolstationowners,otherdrivers (usuallytaxidrivers becauseof for betweenIR3000andIR4000alitre, except near borderswhere itcanbethree timesthat and ridiculouslylow After yearsofmulti-billiondollargovernment subsidiesandmuchdebate, Iran’sstate-regulated WHAT FUELCARDSMEANFORYOU times whatIranianshave topay.Present thecardat officeineachmajortown.Yes, DistributionCompany(usuallycalledNIOPDC) Products that’sfive can nowbuyrationcardsfor100L(IR500,000)or300L(IR1,500,000)attheNationalIranianOil In theory,withouta ration cardyoucan’tbuy Benzin (Petrol/Gasoline) outside.you’ll knowonewhenyoufinditbythelonglineoftrucksparked you canbuydieselacrossthecountryforIR165alitre. Dieselstations canbehardtofind,but cheeringnow!Pricesare fixedIf youusedieselthenstart andare torationing,so notsubject Diesel The last are annoying and both highly Iranians payIR1000perlitre forIR3000 fortheirrationedamount,andcanthenbuyextra sowhere doIgetacard?ComingfromTurkey,Okay, theNIOPDCofficeinMaku(at39°17’06.43” benzin (petrol) priceswere finallyraisedinmid2007.The istied pricehike benzin probably beheldresponsible. to make theirreport. As aforeigner, you’ll from theroaduntilpolicehave come bulance. Youshould move never thevehicle the rule is that everyone drives on the right, drivesthe ruleis thateveryone ontheright, Intheory, tobetakenis nota task lightly. Lanes? What are they?Drivingacross Iran Road Rules number – police. Ifyou’re alone,calltheemergency volved willprobably callthelocaltraffic ahead. edge of towns,sowatch forbrake lights bump. Such bumpsare speed often atthe lurches and jumpsasyoulaunch over the unaware they existuntilyourcarsuddenly GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING If you’re in anaccidenttheIranianin- . After muchinitialconfusion,foreigners benzin x stationandpayanadditional 110 forpolice, x benzin 115 foram- benzin sells

411 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT are safer. of dubiousquality.International brands ironically, Iranianmotoroilcanalsobe operations leave littleforlocals.Somewhat border, where well-organised smuggling queues intownswithin100kmorsoof a arethough, theeternal shortages andlong you wouldathome. More problematic, mileageder –sodon’texpectthesame as dirty –especiallynearthePakistan bor- fuel isdirtcheap itcanalsobejustplain ask. Readers have complainedthatwhile differentiate itfrom is usuallynothingwritten onthepumpto andthere diesel sell up. Notallstations toppedso it’sworthkeeping yourtanks zin the remote of deserts eastern Iran.But large 100kmexceptin townsatleastevery ( opposite ). Mean WhatFuelCards ForYou able; see steep hike, itremains though very reason- thepriceofever, petrolhasrecently taken a get change outof aeuro. Happy days!How- about €0.01),meaningyoucanfillupand 410 Road Distances(km) Once you’re ontheroad,you’llfind (petrol) stations canbehardtofind, (petrol)stations GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING Zanjan Zahedan Yazd Tehran Tabriz Shiraz Rasht Qazvin Orumiyeh Mashhad Khorramabad Kermanshah Kerman Hamadan Gorgan Esfahan Bushehr Bandar Abbas Ardabil Ahvaz 1040 1280 1310 1060 1770 1230 1760 1270 1080 1080 660 490 880 970 380 490 750 640 870 Ahvaz --- 1520 1930 1330 1630 2160 1610 1030 1270 270 480 380 530 930 790 670 770 590 220 --- Ardabil benzin 1660 1650 1650 1380 2030 1330 1770 1420 1730 1330 1930 620 490 740 930 960 660 Bandar Abbas --- 1520 1360 1340 1650 1550 1400 1050 1630 1230 1560 –besure to 860 880 970 580 730 300 Bushehr --- 1220 1070 1190 1040 760 560 760 370 660 650 470 840 300 440 490 Esfahan --- 1300 1440 1520 1080 1000 1320 500 530 720 570 900 920 730 400 Gorgan --- ben- 1230 1130 1660 400 230 330 610 260 190 730 340 610 950 Hamadan --- 1360 1220 1360 1740 1030 1290 1040 1640 360 890 530 570 ---

Road Distances Kerman 1420 1820 1110 blowouts fairlycommon. ofheight summer,scaldingheatmakes tyre less you’re drivingaPaykan orPride. Inthe oversay thequalityof thespare parts–un- nothavenegotiation butyoumight much shops. Thepriceforrepair workisopento be problematic. Pakistan, butgetting intoTurkey canthen get into Iran withoutagreen cardfrom organise before youarrive. It’spossibleto and agreen card,bothof which youshould Your vehicle a willneed Insurance thisguide.throughout Local drivers-cum-guides are mentioned atraveleither privately orthrough agency. ‘car rental’ here meanschartering ataxi, they canmake goodanydamage. Instead, hard foranyoneleasingacartobesure ing system for acceptingcredit cardsit’s Iran, notleast withoutafunction- because The conceptof carrental barely existsin Hire 590 420 420 580 320 950 530 590 Kermanshah --- Even have thetiniest settlements repair 1390 1560 670 860 490 590 870 670 500 880 Khorramabad --- 1070 1080 1210 1800 1500 1380 950 920 890 Mashhad --- 2270 1380 1320 800 770 590 910 310 Orumiyeh --- 1760 1050 170 180 830 150 480

Qazvin --- 1900 1000 1250 350 330 490 Rasht --- 1240 1100 1530 450 930 Shiraz --- carnet depassage 2170 1280 280 600 ---

Tabriz lonelyplanet.com 1570 320 680 Tehran --- 1000 890 Yazd --- 1890 Zahedan ---

lonelyplanet.com dangerous, andyou’lloften becompletely Unmarkeddeserts. bumpseverywhere. speed Iranian drivers in thecities. inthe Camels Road Hazards telling youwhenastreet isadeadend! tothe pointofrare days)andthorough these street non-existent (quite signsvarybetween most cities,townsandvillages. Withincities, in EnglishandFarsi, includingdirections to Onintercityno lights. roadsmost signsare other vehicles crawlingalongtheroadwith and theriskof running into tractors and ofous because occasionalunmarked potholes ismoreother hand,drivingatnight danger- Road surfacesare generally excellent.Onthe Road Conditions 20L aday.Sowhatdoesthismeanifyou’re drivingyourownvehicle inIran? motorcycles were allowedtheequivalentof1Lperday,standardcars4Ladayandtaxisabout through amachinetorecord thedate andquantityofevery litre bought.At thetimeofwriting, by anambitioussystem bywhichevery vehicle ownerisissuedarationcard,whichswiped on whetherthevehicle isusedforprivate orcommercialuse. The wholesystem isunderpinned to anewrationing system, by which drivers are entitledtoaper-day quota. The quotadepends a litre –stillhalfof what foreigners mustpay.The result where isablackmarket operatesmarket elsewhere, whichyou’llprobablyneedtouseavoidrunningyourcarddry. ies, especiallyTehran, it’svery difficulttobuypetrolwithoutthecard.However, athrivingblack onourmaps.marked whohave Overlanders travelled withthissystem thatinlarger report cit- ask forthelocalNIOPDCoffice;thissystem wasintroducedafter weresearched sothey’re not N, 44°32’20.47”E)istheplacetogo. Take yourownershipdocuments. Elsewhere you’llhave to IR1000 foreachlitre youbuy(that’ssothestationgetslocalrate). guaranteed tohelpout. Iranianisgood newsisthatyou’re inIran…ifyourunoutofgas,somerandom,kind-hearted abighassle,thenthe lostseemstobethebestmethod. Ifthissoundslike station andlooking their larger ration)andeven, accordingtoonedriver, thepolicethemselves. Goingtoa much. The sellerswillbepetrolstationowners,otherdrivers (usuallytaxidrivers becauseof for betweenIR3000andIR4000alitre, except near borderswhere itcanbethree timesthat times whatIranianshave topay.Present thecardat officeineachmajortown.Yes, DistributionCompany(usuallycalledNIOPDC) Products that’sfive can nowbuyrationcardsfor100L(IR500,000)or300L(IR1,500,000)attheNationalIranianOil and ridiculouslylow After yearsofmulti-billiondollargovernment subsidiesandmuchdebate, Iran’sstate-regulated WHAT FUELCARDSMEANFORYOU In theory,withouta ration cardyoucan’tbuy Benzin (Petrol/Gasoline) outside.you’ll knowonewhenyoufinditbythelonglineoftrucksparked you canbuydieselacrossthecountryforIR165alitre. Dieselstations canbehardtofind,but cheeringnow!Pricesare fixedIf youusedieselthenstart andare torationing,so notsubject Diesel The last are annoying and both highly Iranians payIR1000perlitre forIR3000 fortheirrationedamount,andcanthenbuyextra sowhere doIgetacard?ComingfromTurkey,Okay, theNIOPDCofficeinMaku(at39°17’06.43” benzin (petrol) priceswere finallyraisedinmid2007.The istied pricehike benzin probably beheldresponsible. to make theirreport. As aforeigner, you’ll from theroaduntilpolicehave come bulance. Youshould move never thevehicle the rule is that everyone drives on the right, drivesthe ruleis thateveryone ontheright, Intheory, tobetakenis nota task lightly. Lanes? What are they?DrivingacrossIran Road Rules number – police. Ifyou’re alone,calltheemergency volved willprobably callthelocaltraffic ahead. edge of towns,sowatch forbrake lights bump. Such bumpsare speed often atthe lurches and jumpsasyoulaunch over the unaware they existuntilyourcarsuddenly GETTING AROUND••Car&Motorcycle GETTING If you’re in anaccidenttheIranianin- . After muchinitialconfusion,foreigners benzin x stationandpayanadditional 110 forpolice, x benzin 115 foram- benzin sells

411 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT bus services. Because local buses are localbuses often Because bus services. Most Iranian towns andcities have local Bus LOCAL TRANSPORT thing smalltothankthemwith. it’snicetohavethem. Insuch acase some- we wanted it,andrefused allattempts topay they thought townbecause in atinydesert smoke, tracked even downsomerocket fuel generous; ours usfood, shared bought their Dasht-e Lut,hostdrivers willbetypically it. Andaswefoundhitching the through valley withhis12-year-old son,andloved of onetraveller whohitched the Howraman find ridesinmore remote areas. Weheard Liketality. anywhere, you’re mostlikely to for Englishpracticeoroutof simple hospi- ers willoffer foreigners afree rideinreturn which they expecttopay.Occasionallydriv- for spaceinabus,minibusorshared for taxi, waiting foralift,theyare actuallywaiting bytheroadside often peoplestanding see a novel youwill conceptinIran.Although hitch inIran. as possible. should never Women, however, help tomake theirjourneysasfastandsafe to hitch, and theadvicethatfollowsshould manypeopledochoose ous risk.However, they are a taking smallbutpotentially seri- who decidetohitch shouldunderstand that try, andwedon’trecommend it.Travellers Hitching isnever entirely safe inanycoun- HITCHING much trouble. eign drivers make itacrossIran withouttoo adept atavoiding accidents,andmostfor- that Iraniandrivers are almostunfeasibly not widelyunderstood inIran. is ‘optimumbrakingdistance’ The phrase can read thespeedometer of thecarinfront. packedso tightly thateach of therear nine can besure thatall10willformaconvoy openroadandyou deserted an otherwise around it.Take 10Iraniancardrivers and some drivers simplydrive thewrongway when unimportant atad thisseems though comingontoaroundabout, way tothetraffic with reversing downit.Intheory,yougive average nothingwrong Iraniandriver sees a one-waystreet goingthewrongway, but thiscan’tbedependedupon;facedwith 412 Hitching, asunderstood intheWest,is takeHowever, comfortintheknowledge GETTING AROUND••Hitching GETTING operational duringthelife of thisbook. which should, ( p279 (p232);the first) andEsfahan twoof are beingbuiltinMashhad ( p363 ), Shiraz Metro ( p127 ) isgrowingandsimilarsystems TheTehranslowly beingstrangledbytraffic. Metros are the great hopeforIraniancities Metro using thebackdoor. door of thebusandthenboard the driver thefront whileleaningthrough system. Womenmustpasstheirtickets to or after you get dependingonthelocal off, ticket tothedriver eitherbefore youget on discuss whentoget Youmustgive off. your are travelling asamixed to coupleandneed This segregation canbecomplicated ifyou women have tositatthebackof thebus. IR500. Private companiescostabitmore. IR100and costbetween buses on state-run terminals, before youget onthebus.Tickets booths alongmainstreets, oratlocalbus in Tehran, tickets atlittle mustbebought Shiraz andononenewprivate operator entirely understand theirreply). in Except ifyoudon’twill behappytohelp(even do alotof askingaround–mostpeople ally onlymarked inFarsi, to soyouneed private instead. taxis travellers theubiquitousshared use and you knowexactlywhere you’re going,most unless touse crowded andcanbedifficult your way. town or city, unlessthere’s aMetro going most hassle-free wayof getting arounda A shared isthequickest orprivate taxi and Taxi ask them. stop atnormalbusstopsorwherever you there isnoroomforsegregation. Minibuses anywhereand womenget aseat theycan; a ticket dependingonthedistance.Men in cashwhenyouget on–aboutIR1000 tell where you’re going.Younormallypay outto with passengers thatyoucan’tsee Quite oftenbuses. theyare socrammed frequent and desperately crowdedmini- thein- bothertryingtouse don’t even If youthink isahassle, using localbuses Minibus Small children of bothgenders andall Bus numbers anddestinationsare usu- insh’Allah (god willing),be lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com than Tehran first. cially ifyoutrythemoutsomewhere other espe- tousingshuttlewill get taxis, used (or similar).Eitherway,after awhileyou slowly beingreplaced bysmallerKiaPrides a dashof orange somewhere. are Butthese text, p414 ), often coloured orange, orwith weretaxis alwaysPaykans theboxed (see and three intheback.Untilrecently shared passengers: seat twointhefrontpassenger Theyusuallytake uptofive bus services. duplicate replacetle taxis oreven local In mosttownsandcities,shared orshut- (SHARED) TAXISHUTTLE and near majorand near side busterminals,airports trainstations, IR1000 extra. You’llusuallyfindthemout- detour, youmaybecharged IR500 or passengers atnoextracharge; foralonger They sometimesmake detours slight for tion –usuallythenameof a while youshoutyourone-word destina- hewillslowdown forananosecond seat, Ifthedriverof hasaspare hurtling traffic. tothekerbenough todashbackintheface hear youshoutyourdestination, but close forthedriveronto theroadfarenough to bystepping goingyourway.Start tle taxi one onthestreet. the of the key tousingthemislearnthenames dans appreciate exact change, so tryandkeep or make Drivers anyother obviousnoise. kheili mamnun going yourwayhe’ll stop. Shuttle travel taxis major between There arttofindingashut- isacertain When youwant toget outsimplysay yourself in a mixed compartment if you don’t specify that you want a single-sex compartment. ifyoudon’t specify thatyouwantasingle-sex yourself inamixed compartment of thewomen’sonlycarriageorsqueezinginwithmen.Andonsleepertrainsyoumightfind the opposite sexwithoutanyonegettingtooupset.OntheTehran Metrowomenhave theoption side. Despite this,often tosomeoneof it’simpossibletoarrangeandyou’llendupsittingnext inanattempt yo-yos toensureback like thatunrelated menandwomendon’tendupsideby will move arounduntilthegendermixisright. toanunrelatedto sitnext maneven ifthere’s onlyonespare seatleftonthebus,andpeople tomen,unlessthey’re towomenandmennext next couplesorfamily.Awomanisnotexpected couples mustsitseparately; menatthefrontofbus,womenback. Choosing where tositon isfraughtwithdifficulty.Oncitybuses,even marriedIranian transport IS THISSEAT FREE? (squares) andalongmainroads,so If you decide to take asharedIf youdecidetotake taxiyouwillfindpeoplehoppinginandoutofthefront and In contrast,onintercity busesandminibuses,seatingisgenerallyarrangedsothatwomensit meydans alongyourintended route. (thankyouvery much) meydans, oryoucanhail meydan . Ifhe’s mey- ally called tered togoanywhere intown; anactusu- private (usuallyyellow),canbechar- taxi viously ashared oramore taxi expensive withoutpassengers, whetherob- Any taxi PRIVATE TAXI fare. Clarifywhat youwantbysaying driver decideyouare might nowaprivate gets else outtheSimilarly, ifeveryone assumed youwanttocharter itprivately. ticularly inEsfahanandTehran, be itmight most drivers are enough. straight before youhandover yourmoney,though whatotherpassengers areand see paying fares are naturallythemostexpensive). Try andthecity(Tehran’sing onthedistance to IR5000forlongtripsinTehran, depend- range fromabout IR500fortheshortest trip get out. notes handy;you normallypaywhenyou plenty of filthyIR500andIR1000 those baste details, see see details, below ). If youget par- intoanemptyshuttle taxi, Fares, which are fixed bythegovernment, or not. He’ll soonletyou know ifhe’sinterested simply tentions clearbyleaninginandtelling him If youwanttoshare, yourin- thenmake means ‘Closeddoor?’,orperhaps‘ might askyou: ably thinkyouwanttohire itprivately. He If youhailanemptytaxithedriver willprob- NAH DARBASTE! GETTING AROUND •• Local Transport AROUND••LocalTransport GETTING (closed door)or (closed ‘Nah darbaste’, ‘service’ a baste? ‘ Dar or ‘agence’ or‘Nocloseddoor’. nah darbaste ’, whichliterally . Unlessit’sa agence? (for

413 dar ’ TRANSPORT TRANSPORT bus services. Because local buses are localbuses often Because bus services. Most Iranian towns andcities have local Bus LOCAL TRANSPORT thing smalltothankthemwith. it’snicetohavethem. Insuch acase some- we wanted it,andrefused allattempts topay they thought townbecause in atinydesert smoke, tracked even downsomerocket fuel generous; ours usfood, shared bought their Dasht-e Lut,hostdrivers willbetypically it. Andaswefoundhitching the through valley withhis12-year-old son,andloved of onetraveller whohitched the Howraman find ridesinmore remote areas. Weheard Liketality. anywhere, you’re mostlikely to for Englishpracticeoroutof simple hospi- ers willoffer foreigners afree rideinreturn which they expecttopay.Occasionallydriv- for spaceinabus,minibusorshared for taxi, waiting foralift,theyare actuallywaiting bytheroadside often peoplestanding see a novel youwill conceptinIran.Although hitch inIran. as possible. should never Women, however, help tomake theirjourneysasfastandsafe to hitch, and theadvicethatfollowsshould manypeopledochoose ous risk.However, they are a taking smallbutpotentially seri- who decidetohitch shouldunderstand that try, andwedon’trecommend it.Travellers Hitching isnever entirely safe inanycoun- HITCHING much trouble. eign drivers make itacrossIran withouttoo adept atavoiding accidents,andmostfor- that Iraniandrivers are almostunfeasibly not widelyunderstood inIran. is ‘optimumbrakingdistance’ The phrase can read thespeedometer of thecarinfront. packedso tightly thateach of therear nine can besure thatall10willformaconvoy openroadandyou deserted an otherwise around it.Take 10Iraniancardrivers and some drivers simplydrive thewrongway when unimportant atad thisseems though comingontoaroundabout, way tothetraffic with reversing downit.Intheory,yougive average nothingwrong Iraniandriver sees a one-waystreet goingthewrongway, but thiscan’tbedependedupon;facedwith 412 Hitching, asunderstood intheWest,is takeHowever, comfortintheknowledge GETTING AROUND••Hitching GETTING operational duringthelife of thisbook. which should, ( p279 (p232);thefirst) andEsfahan twoof are beingbuiltinMashhad ( p363 ), Shiraz Metro ( p127 ) isgrowingandsimilarsystems TheTehranslowly beingstrangledbytraffic. Metros are the great hopeforIraniancities Metro using thebackdoor. door of thebusandthenboard the driver thefront whileleaningthrough system. Womenmustpasstheirtickets to or after you get dependingonthelocal off, ticket tothedriver eitherbefore youget on discuss whentoget Youmustgive off. your are travelling asamixed to coupleandneed This segregation canbecomplicated ifyou women have tositatthebackof thebus. IR500. Private companiescostabitmore. IR100and costbetween buses on state-run terminals, before youget onthebus.Tickets booths alongmainstreets, oratlocalbus in Tehran, tickets atlittle mustbebought Shiraz andononenewprivate operator entirely understand theirreply). in Except ifyoudon’twill behappytohelp(even do alotof askingaround–mostpeople ally onlymarked inFarsi, to soyouneed private instead. taxis travellers theubiquitousshared use and you knowexactlywhere you’re going,most unless touse crowded andcanbedifficult your way. town or city, unlessthere’s aMetro going most hassle-free wayof getting around a A shared isthequickest orprivate taxi and Taxi ask them. stop atnormalbusstopsorwherever you there isnoroomforsegregation. Minibuses anywhereand womenget aseat theycan; a ticket dependingonthedistance.Men in cashwhenyouget on–aboutIR1000 tell where you’re going.Younormallypay outto with passengers thatyoucan’tsee Quite oftenbuses. theyare socrammed frequent and desperately crowdedmini- thein- bothertryingtouse don’t even If youthink isahassle, using localbuses Minibus Small children of bothgenders andall Bus numbers anddestinationsare usu- insh’Allah (god willing),be lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com tion –usuallythenameof a while youshoutyourone-word destina- hewillslowdown forananosecond seat, Ifthedriverof hasaspare hurtling traffic. tothekerbenough todashbackintheface hear youshoutyourdestination, but close forthedriveronto theroadfarenough to bystepping goingyourway.Start tle taxi one onthestreet. majorand near side busterminals,airports trainstations, IR1000 extra. You’llusuallyfindthemout- detour, youmaybecharged IR500 or passengers atnoextracharge; foralonger They sometimesmake detours slight for the of the key tousingthemislearnthenames dans than Tehran first. cially ifyoutrythemoutsomewhere other espe- tousingshuttlewill get taxis, used (or similar).Eitherway,after awhileyou slowly beingreplaced bysmallerKiaPrides a dashof orange somewhere. are Butthese text, p414 ), often coloured orange, orwith weretaxis alwaysPaykans theboxed (see and three intheback.Untilrecently shared passengers: seat twointhefrontpassenger Theyusuallytake uptofive bus services. duplicate replacetle taxis oreven local In mosttownsandcities,shared orshut- (SHARED) TAXISHUTTLE appreciate exact change, so tryandkeep or make Drivers anyother obviousnoise. kheili mamnun going yourwayhe’ll stop. There arttofindingashut- isacertain Shuttle travel taxis major between When youwant toget outsimplysay yourself in a mixed compartment if you don’t specify that you want a single-sex compartment. ifyoudon’t specify thatyouwantasingle-sex yourself inamixed compartment of thewomen’sonlycarriageorsqueezinginwithmen.Andonsleepertrainsyoumightfind the opposite sexwithoutanyonegettingtooupset.OntheTehran Metrowomenhave theoption side. Despite this,often tosomeoneof it’simpossibletoarrangeandyou’llendupsittingnext inanattempt yo-yos toensureback like thatunrelated menandwomendon’tendupsideby will move arounduntilthegendermixisright. toanunrelatedto sitnext maneven ifthere’s onlyonespare seatleftonthebus,andpeople tomen,unlessthey’re towomenandmennext next couplesorfamily.Awomanisnotexpected couples mustsitseparately; menatthefrontofbus,womenback. Choosing where tositon isfraughtwithdifficulty.Oncitybuses,even marriedIranian transport IS THISSEAT FREE? (squares) andalongmainroads,so If you decide to take asharedIf youdecidetotake taxiyouwillfindpeoplehoppinginandoutofthefront and In contrast,onintercity busesandminibuses,seatingisgenerallyarrangedsothatwomensit meydans alongyourintended route. (thankyouvery much) meydans, oryoucanhail meydan . Ifhe’s mey- ally called tered togoanywhere intown; anactusu- private (usuallyyellow),canbechar- taxi viously ashared oramore taxi expensive withoutpassengers, whetherob- Any taxi PRIVATE TAXI baste fare. Clarifywhat youwantbysaying driver decideyouare might nowaprivate gets else outtheSimilarly, ifeveryone assumed youwanttocharter itprivately. ticularly inEsfahanandTehran, be itmight most drivers are enough. straight before youhandover yourmoney,though whatotherpassengers areand see paying fares are naturallythemostexpensive). Try andthecity(Tehran’sing onthedistance to IR5000forlongtripsinTehran, depend- range fromabout IR500fortheshortest trip get out. notes handy;you normallypaywhenyou plenty of filthyIR500andIR1000 those details, see see details, below ). If youget par- intoanemptyshuttle taxi, Fares, which are fixed bythegovernment, or not. He’ll soonletyou know ifhe’sinterested simply tentions clearbyleaninginandtelling him If youwanttoshare, yourin- thenmake means ‘Closeddoor?’,orperhaps‘ might askyou: ably thinkyouwanttohire itprivately. He If youhailanemptytaxithedriver willprob- NAH DARBASTE! GETTING AROUND •• Local Transport AROUND••LocalTransport GETTING (closed door)or (closed ‘Nah darbaste’, ‘service’ a baste? ‘ Dar or ‘agence’ or‘Nocloseddoor’. nah darbaste ’, whichliterally . Unlessit’sa agence? (for

413 dar ’ TRANSPORT TRANSPORT tances linkinglargertances cities andtownsto areMinibuses often for shorter used dis- MINIBUS drivers, female passengers, nogroping. company ( women-only taxi p129 ) – female Demand issuch thatTehran nowhasa by dozensof drivers astheytrytohailone. thus avoiding beinghooted atorignored ifthey’rethem ataxi travelling after dark, women are toget advised someonetocall English. wrong and,possibly,adriver whospeaks be someonetocomplainifanythinggoes better car,thecomfortof knowing there will expensive wayof butyouget usingtaxis, a foraguest.Naturally,thisisthemost taxi mosaferkhaneh andanyhotel or services, run theirowntaxi of theminTehran. Someof thetophotels thesmallesttownsandhundredsin even agency office. There are agency-taxi offices you have toorderthembytelephone oratan don’t normallystoptopickuppassengers; Agency alsoknownas‘telephone’ taxis, taxis, AGENCY TAXI prices are stillpretty reasonable. butthe people inIrantotryripyouoff, Taxi drivers are probablythemostlikely 75% or80%of theoriginallyquoted price. suggests butexpecttoenduppayingabout Immediately offer about60%of whathe you wanttogo,andask simply hailthevehicle, tell thedriver where complicated deal,includingwaitingtime, 414 been soldtoaSudanesecompany. areAnd ifreports tobebelieved, thePaykan willlive oninAfrica, where linehas theproduction million Paykans onIran’sroads(more than40%ofallvehicles) they’llbearoundfordecadesyet. Still,withmorethe Iraniangovernment toshutthefactory. thantwo paidIranKhodro actually and withnocatalyticconverter, thepoisonsare even greater. Sobadthat,accordingtoreports, of leadedpetrolper100km.That isatleastdoubletheexhaustmostmoderncarspumpout, ontheenvironment.Theof itsdiabolicalimpact Paykan burns,onaverage, between12Land15L waitinglisttogetone.was atwo-year it becamesowellloved thatintheyearsbefore wasfinallystoppedin2005there production went ontodominated theroadscapemore thananyothercarsincetheModel-T Ford.Indeed, it wasfirstsoldthere inthelate 1960s. The boxy white Paykan, thevery definitionofutilitarian, vehicle ifever carIranneededwhen there ofcheap,no-frills wasone. thesort Butitwasexactly Paykan (whichmeansArrow–don’tlaugh)isareplica Hunter, ofthe1966Hillman anuninspiring For more than35yearsthePaykan wasalmosttheonlycaryou’dseeonIranianroads. The THE PERENNIALPAYKAN GETTING AROUND••Minibus GETTING But whileIraniansrespect thePaykan’s abilitytogetthejobdone–justtheyare alsoaware One reader wrote to say that lone One reader that wrotetosay (lodging house) can order a canordera (lodginghouse) ‘chand toman?’

IR500,000 –dependingon alonglistof fac- somewhere aboutIR150,000 and between for thewhole day youare lookingat probably bewaiting. nowhere. drivers Luckily,hopeful taxi will habit of depositingyouinthemiddleof riving inatown,theyhave anannoying Tehranterminal-e Rasht, orwherever. Ar- and tell thedriver youwanttogothe bus terminal. Ifindoubt,justcharter ataxi cial terminal andsometimesfromthemain full, which canmeanalongwait. andusuallyleavefortable onlywhenthey’re up. Onthedownside,they’re notatallcom- andpicking spend lesstimedroppingoff theyhavebecause fewer passengers they They are often faster thanlarger and buses toworryabout. butnotenough than buses, townsandTehran.Caspian coast,andbetween Sea along theCaspian areway. Minibuses particularlypopular no choice; justtake whatever isgoingyour alternative tothebus,butusuallythere’s surrounding villages. Sometimesthey’re an multiply itbyfour orfive. the priceperperson of tripthen acertain ask thedriver of asavari (see opposite ) for lent waytoavoid getting isto ripped off prices are opentonegotiation.Oneexcel- available forprivate hire. tosay, Needless Almost every inthecountryis single taxi PRIVATE TAXI If youprefer tohire anddriver thetaxi sometimesleaveMinibuses fromaspe- areMinibuses marginally more expensive lonelyplanet.com the usualrate. charge bythekilometre, withIR800being town, thecheaper theprice. Somedrivers to drive andwhere youare. Thesmallerthe the qualityof youplan thecar,distance tors, includingyourability asanegotiator, lonelyplanet.com depend on thelengthof thetour, mode canbearranged.Spanish or Italian Costs French, Japanese German, andsometimes notice. Guideswho speakEnglish, enough ifyougiveests. Theycanhelp withvisas tailor-made tripstosuitparticularinter- plus somethingdifferent, andcanorganise by readers. Mostoffer itineraries standard nies listed here have recommended been thrownin. Rayen, Tabriz orMashhad, orpossiblyKerman and Shiraz, andYazd, Esfahan sees: witheither beforecapital concentratingonthemust- Tehran, withaquicklookaroundthe Most organised tours andfinish in start TOURS driver in doubt,charter andtell aprivate the taxi roadthey’reever about toheaddown.If major squares atthebeginning of which- outside, therelevant busterminal, or at given thefrontseat. side. As usual,lonewomenwillnormallybe dullstretchesespecially through of country- still cheap andworthusingforquicktrips, times more than cost abitmore. plenty of Paykans around.Peugeots usually bigger Peugeot there 404s,though are still Kia Prides(ortherebadged SaipaSaba)and are daysmostsavaris to payforit.These (orallpassengers)unless apassenger agrees sengers allupisthenorm. forlonger though journeysfourpas- seat, intothefrontpassenger pected tosqueeze Sometimestwopeoplewillbeex- buses. savaris are generally than lesscomfortable isthemainadvantage because cies. Speed ally appliedtointercity versions of thespe- apart. Savari means‘shared andisusu- taxi’ townslessthanthree hourstrip between You canalmost always findasavari fora SAVARI TAXI) (SHARED The handfulof Iraniantravel compa- Savaris usuallyleave frominside,orjust As ageneral rule,savaris costaboutthree Savaris rarely leave withanemptyseat ‘savari’ andyourdestination. mahmooly buses. Thisis buses. GETTING AROUND •• Savari (Shared Taxi) AROUND••Savari GETTING feedback fromtravellers. Greatof fixed toursplusflexible,personalisedtrips. www.abgintours.com) BasedinTehran; offers widerange southern deserts. Tehran andthe andspecialisingintoursto thenortheast guidebased in Experienced .wwguides.net/g_shahdadian) chat consultations in English, German andFrench. chat consultationsinEnglish,German free online Offer lights throughculturaltomountaineering. travellers. Hasliterallydozensoftouroptions,fromhigh- sional, well-organisedoutfitdealingpurely withforeign profes- ZandBlvd,Shiraz)Highly www.key2persia.com; is owncar. Tehran-based-tehrantourist.com) andguidewith driver based inYazd. guide Young, well-organisedandconnected yahoo.com) Mohsen Hajisaeed Shahdadian Gholamreza Arash Sadeghzadeh Ali Taheri recommended.highly relevant chapters, few andthese have been around thecountry.Someare mentionedin Freelance guidescanbefoundinmostcities Agency Pars Tourist Sahra Caravan Arg-e-Jadid Eco-Tour Kalout Aftab Agency Adibian Travel ToursofPersia Cultural Abgin agencies. boxed text ( p373 ) forspecialistadventure alsothe See .lonelyplanet.com/contact. www this listashelpfulpossible;see operators iswelcomeandwillhelpuskeep agencies charge. Feedback orother onthese leader) forsignificantlylessthanforeign tour(withouttheforeignyou thesame tour tours toIran,sobookingdirect shouldgive dlers forforeign-based agencies selling pay indollars oreuros. and thecurrent exchange rate. to Expect of transport,thetypeof accommodation specialists, particularly desert tours. BasedinTehran. desert specialists, particularly andadventure-tour Eco- 612 3768;www.kalout.com) tour options; mixed reports onguides. tour options;mixed reports Ave, Tehran)296 Motahhari Largeorganisationwithlotsof knowledge ofandenthusiasmforIranianhistory. [email protected]) YoungShiraz-basedguide with deep able toarrangetoursacrossIran. province,but established agencyspecialisinginKhorasan www.adibiantours.com; 56Pasdaran Ave, Long- Mashhad) Farahani Ave, Tehran) Biggroupwithabigrangeoftours. Bldg,29QaemMaqam-e CaravanSahra .caravansahra.com; These companiesoftenThese actaslocalhan- ( x Mp p110; (Map 4443 1105,09121349345;www.iran Mp p110; (Map ( x Mp p268; (Map ( x x ( Mp p354; (Map 0913 3514460;yazdguide@ x 0917 3171652;travelling ( x x 021-8883 3583;www.atc.ir; 021-6648 8374/5,0912 021-8881 1970;www 0912 1213969;www ( x x x 0711-222 3163; 021-2235 9272; 0511-859 8151;

415 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT tances linkinglargertances cities andtownsto areMinibuses often forshorter used dis- MINIBUS drivers, female passengers, nogroping. company ( women-only taxi p129 ) – female Demand issuch thatTehran nowhasa by dozensof drivers astheytrytohailone. thus avoiding beinghooted atorignored ifthey’rethem ataxi travelling after dark, women are toget advised someonetocall English. wrong and,possibly,adriver whospeaks be someonetocomplainifanythinggoes better car,thecomfortof knowing there will expensive wayof butyouget usingtaxis, a foraguest.Naturally,thisisthemost taxi mosaferkhaneh andanyhotel or services, run theirowntaxi of theminTehran. Someof thetophotels thesmallesttownsandhundredsin even agency office. There are agency-taxi offices you have toorderthembytelephone oratan don’t normallystoptopickuppassengers; Agency alsoknownas‘telephone’ taxis, taxis, AGENCY TAXI prices are stillpretty reasonable. butthe people inIrantotryripyouoff, Taxi drivers are probablythemostlikely 75% or80%of theoriginallyquoted price. suggests butexpecttoenduppayingabout Immediately offer about60%of whathe you wanttogo,andask simply hailthevehicle, tell thedriver where complicated deal,includingwaitingtime, 414 been soldtoaSudanesecompany. areAnd ifreports tobebelieved, thePaykan willlive oninAfrica, where linehas theproduction million Paykans onIran’sroads(more than40%ofallvehicles) they’llbearoundfordecadesyet. Still,withmorethe Iraniangovernment toshutthefactory. thantwo paidIranKhodro actually and withnocatalyticconverter, thepoisonsare even greater. Sobadthat,accordingtoreports, of leadedpetrolper100km.That isatleastdoubletheexhaustmostmoderncarspumpout, ontheenvironment.Theof itsdiabolicalimpact Paykan burns,onaverage, between12Land15L waitinglisttogetone.was atwo-year it becamesowellloved thatintheyearsbefore wasfinallystoppedin2005there production went ontodominated theroadscapemore thananyothercarsincetheModel-T Ford.Indeed, it wasfirstsoldthere inthelate 1960s. The boxy white Paykan, thevery definitionofutilitarian, vehicle ifever carIranneededwhen there ofcheap,no-frills wasone. thesort Butitwasexactly Paykan (whichmeansArrow–don’tlaugh)isareplica Hunter, ofthe1966Hillman anuninspiring For more than35yearsthePaykan wasalmosttheonlycaryou’dseeonIranianroads. The THE PERENNIALPAYKAN GETTING AROUND••Minibus GETTING But whileIraniansrespect thePaykan’s abilitytogetthejobdone–justtheyare alsoaware One reader wrote to say that lone One reader that wrotetosay (lodging house) can order a canordera (lodginghouse) ‘chand toman?’

probably bewaiting. nowhere. drivers Luckily,hopeful taxi will habit of depositingyouinthemiddleof riving inatown,theyhave anannoying Tehranterminal-e Rasht, orwherever. Ar- and tell thedriver youwanttogothe bus terminal. Ifindoubt,justcharter ataxi cial terminal andsometimesfromthemain full, which canmeanalongwait. andusuallyleavefortable onlywhenthey’re up. Onthedownside,they’re notatallcom- andpicking spend lesstimedroppingoff theyhavebecause fewer passengers they They are often faster thanlarger and buses toworryabout. butnotenough than buses, townsandTehran.Caspian coast,andbetween Sea along theCaspian areway. Minibuses particularlypopular no choice; justtake whatever isgoingyour alternative tothebus,butusuallythere’s surrounding villages. Sometimesthey’re an IR500,000 –dependingon alonglistof fac- somewhere aboutIR150,000 and between for thewhole day youare lookingat multiply itbyfour orfive. the priceperperson of tripthen acertain ask thedriver of asavari (see opposite ) for lent waytoavoid getting isto ripped off prices are opentonegotiation.Oneexcel- available forprivate hire. tosay, Needless Almost every inthecountryis single taxi PRIVATE TAXI Minibuses sometimesleaveMinibuses fromaspe- areMinibuses marginally more expensive If youprefer tohire anddriver thetaxi lonelyplanet.com the usualrate. charge bythekilometre, withIR800being town, thecheaper theprice. Somedrivers to drive andwhere youare. Thesmallerthe the qualityof youplan thecar,distance tors, includingyourability asanegotiator, lonelyplanet.com depend on thelengthof thetour, mode canbearranged.Spanish or Italian Costs French, Japanese German, andsometimes notice. Guideswho speakEnglish, enough ifyougiveests. Theycanhelp withvisas tailor-made tripstosuitparticularinter- plus somethingdifferent, andcanorganise by readers. Mostoffer itineraries standard nies listed here have recommended been thrownin. Rayen, Tabriz orMashhad, orpossiblyKerman and Shiraz, andYazd, Esfahan sees: witheither beforecapital concentratingonthemust- Tehran, withaquicklookaroundthe Most organised tours andfinish in start TOURS driver in doubt,charter andtell aprivate the taxi roadthey’reever about toheaddown.If major squares atthebeginning of which- outside, therelevant busterminal, or at given thefrontseat. side. As usual,lonewomenwillnormallybe dullstretchesespecially through of country- still cheap andworthusingforquicktrips, times more than cost abitmore. plenty of Paykans around.Peugeots usually bigger Peugeot there 404s,though are still Kia Prides(ortherebadged SaipaSaba)and are daysmostsavaris to payforit.These (orallpassengers)unless apassenger agrees sengers allupisthenorm. forlonger though journeysfourpas- seat, intothefrontpassenger pected tosqueeze Sometimestwopeoplewillbeex- buses. savaris are generally than lesscomfortable isthemainadvantage because cies. Speed ally appliedtointercity versions of thespe- apart. Savari means‘shared andisusu- taxi’ townslessthanthree hourstrip between You canalmost always findasavari fora SAVARI TAXI) (SHARED The handfulof Iraniantravel compa- Savaris usuallyleave frominside,orjust As ageneral rule,savaris costaboutthree Savaris rarely leave withanemptyseat ‘savari’ andyourdestination. mahmooly buses. Thisis buses. GETTING AROUND •• Savari (Shared Taxi) AROUND••Savari GETTING feedback fromtravellers. Greatof fixed toursplusflexible,personalisedtrips. www.abgintours.com) BasedinTehran; offers widerange southern deserts. Tehran andthe andspecialisingintoursto thenortheast guidebased in Experienced .wwguides.net/g_shahdadian) chat consultations in English, German andFrench. chat consultationsinEnglish,German free online Offer lights throughculturaltomountaineering. travellers. Hasliterallydozensoftouroptions,fromhigh- sional, well-organisedoutfitdealingpurely withforeign profes- ZandBlvd,Shiraz)Highly www.key2persia.com; is owncar. Tehran-based-tehrantourist.com) andguidewith driver based inYazd. guide Young, well-organisedandconnected yahoo.com) Mohsen Hajisaeed Shahdadian Gholamreza Arash Sadeghzadeh Ali Taheri recommended.highly relevant chapters, few andthese have been around thecountry.Someare mentionedin Freelance guidescanbefoundinmostcities Agency Pars Tourist Sahra Caravan Arg-e-Jadid tours. BasedinTehran. desert specialists, particularly andadventure-tour Eco- 612 3768;www.kalout.com) Eco-Tour Kalout Aftab Agency Adibian Travel ToursofPersia Cultural Abgin agencies. boxed text ( p373 ) forspecialistadventure alsothe See .lonelyplanet.com/contact. www this listashelpfulpossible;see operators iswelcomeandwillhelpuskeep agencies charge. Feedback orother onthese leader) forsignificantlylessthanforeign tour(withouttheforeignyou thesame tour tours toIran,sobookingdirect shouldgive dlers forforeign-based agencies selling pay indollars oreuros. and thecurrent exchange rate. to Expect of transport,thetypeof accommodation tour options; mixed reports onguides. tour options;mixed reports Ave, Tehran)296 Motahhari Largeorganisationwithlotsof knowledge ofandenthusiasmforIranianhistory. [email protected]) YoungShiraz-basedguide with deep able toarrangetoursacrossIran. province,but established agencyspecialisinginKhorasan www.adibiantours.com; 56Pasdaran Ave, Long- Mashhad) Farahani Ave, Tehran) Biggroupwithabigrangeoftours. Bldg,29QaemMaqam-e CaravanSahra .caravansahra.com; These companiesoftenThese actaslocalhan- ( x Mp p110; (Map 4443 1105,09121349345;www.iran Mp p110; (Map ( x Mp p268; (Map ( x x ( Mp p354; (Map 0913 3514460;yazdguide@ x 0917 3171652;travelling ( x x 021-8883 3583;www.atc.ir; 021-6648 8374/5,0912 021-8881 1970;www 0912 1213969;www ( x x x 0711-222 3163; 021-2235 9272; 0511-859 8151;

415 TRANSPORT TRANSPORT served inyourcompartmentandaren’t too served much safer thanbuses. times greater. And,of course, trainsare isabout10 a Volvobus,thecomfortlevel andwhiletheycostabitmoredelight, than For overnight isa tripsa1st-classsleeper reasonably fastandalwayscheap.efficient, 26 years butthey’re stillfairlycomfortable, www.rajatrains.com. and prices,see the middleof For thelatest routes thenight. arrival timesforstopsenroute are often in usually departontime,butdeparture and Tabriz, Abbas Bandar andKerman. Trains toMashhad, Esfahan, least onedailyservice Thereices beginorendinthecapital. isat inIraq. toBasra, Khoramshahr network, includeAraktoKermanshah and Trains,thenationalrail byRaja posed and otherlineseitherbeingbuiltorpro- text, p404 ) stretch toopenlate 2008, isset theboxed (see toZahedan awaited Bam andMashhad Thelong- via Rasht toBafq. completed linesincludeQazvintoAstara to expandIran’srailnetwork.Recently twohistoriccities. asitlinksthese Zagros of mountainscapes the theSpartan through Shiraz, which willquite literally bore itsway Esfahanandthem isthetrackbetween First among marvels. by otherengineering of the20thcentury.Itwillsoonbejoined one of thegreat achievements engineering Passing itis andpasses, mountains through Persian GulfatBandar-e ImamKhomeini. atBandar-e Torkamanwiththe pian Sea way, builtinthe1930stoconnectCas- some excitement. of whomapproach their rare railtripswith get Iranians,many aroundIranandmeet Travelling bytrainisaninexpensive wayto TRAIN 416 © LonelyPlanetPublications On most 1st-class services mealsare On most1st-classservices The average age of carriages passenger is Tehran isthemainhubandmostserv- The lineispartof anambitiousprogram Iran’s first linewasthetrans-Iranianrail- GETTING AROUND••Train GETTING compartment. inanon-smoking You canasktobeseated bedandthemixedfortable blessingof aTV. but includesdinner,breakfast, avery com- more expensive thanother1st-classoptions The able indeed. had route, Iran’sbusiest,are very comfort- sleeper. SometrainsontheTehran toMash- wanttoaskspecificallyforasingle-sex might women bunk strokingherarminthenight; to complainof having amaninanother segregatedsexually andonereader wrote with fourorsixbunks.Theyare notall hran) the1st-class carriages have sleepers there’s space. upgrade to1stclassalongtheway,provided ment istoocrowdedforyou,youcanoften one. Ifyoudecidea2nd-classcompart- asignificantminorityhavethough only The majority of trainshave twoclasses, Classes compartment. to somethingsolid)before leaving your to lookafter yourluggage (orchaining it in theregion, butit’sworthaskingsomeone curity isbetter thaninmostothercountries car,andicedwatertaurant isavailable. Se- trainsalsohavebad. Long-distance ares- worth bookingahead. Thursday, Fridayandpublicholidays, it’s in advance. Especiallyfortrainsleaving on agencies aroundthecountryuptoamonth so youcanbooktickets andtravel atstations Train ticketing isonanintegrated system, Reservations asa about thesame in2ndclasscosts As guide,aseat arough Costs train; see www.rajatrains.com forspecifics. train; see of aVolvobus,dependingonthe classof isabout1½timestheprice 1st-class seat On overnight trains(usuallyto/fromTe- Simorgh mahmooly , forexample,is lonelyplanet.com bus,anda TRANSPORT served inyourcompartmentandaren’t too served much safer thanbuses. times greater. And,of course, trainsare isabout10 a Volvobus,thecomfortlevel andwhiletheycostabitmoredelight, than For overnight isa tripsa1st-classsleeper reasonably fastandalwayscheap.efficient, 26 years butthey’re stillfairlycomfortable, www.rajatrains.com. and prices,see the middleof For thelatest routes thenight. arrival timesforstopsenroute are often in usually departontime,butdeparture and Tabriz, Abbas Bandar andKerman. Trains toMashhad, Esfahan, least onedailyservice Thereices beginorendinthecapital. isat inIraq. toBasra, Khoramshahr network, includeAraktoKermanshah and Trains,thenationalrail byRaja posed and otherlineseitherbeingbuiltorpro- text, p404 ) stretch toopenlate 2008, isset theboxed (see toZahedan awaited Bam andMashhad Thelong- via Rasht toBafq. completed linesincludeQazvintoAstara to expandIran’srailnetwork.Recently twohistoriccities. asitlinksthese Zagros of mountainscapes the theSpartan through Shiraz, which willquite literally bore itsway Esfahanandthem isthetrackbetween First among marvels. by otherengineering of the20thcentury.Itwillsoonbejoined one of thegreat achievements engineering Passing itis andpasses, mountains through Persian GulfatBandar-e ImamKhomeini. atBandar-e Torkamanwiththe pian Sea way, builtinthe1930stoconnectCas- some excitement. of whomapproach their rare railtripswith get Iranians,many aroundIranandmeet Travelling bytrainisaninexpensive wayto TRAIN 416 © LonelyPlanetPublications On most 1st-class services mealsare On most1st-classservices The average age of carriages passenger is Tehran isthemainhubandmostserv- The lineispartof anambitiousprogram Iran’s first linewasthetrans-Iranianrail- GETTING AROUND••Train GETTING compartment. inanon-smoking You canasktobeseated bedandthemixedfortable blessingof aTV. but includesdinner,breakfast, avery com- more expensive thanother1st-classoptions The able indeed. had route, Iran’sbusiest,are very comfort- sleeper. SometrainsontheTehran toMash- wanttoaskspecificallyforasingle-sex might women bunk strokingherarminthenight; to complainof having amaninanother segregatedsexually andonereader wrote with fourorsixbunks.Theyare notall hran) the1st-class carriages have sleepers there’s space. upgrade to1stclassalongtheway,provided ment istoocrowdedforyou,youcanoften one. Ifyoudecidea2nd-classcompart- asignificantminorityhavethough only The majority of trainshave twoclasses, Classes compartment. to somethingsolid)before leaving your to lookafter yourluggage (orchaining it in theregion, butit’sworthaskingsomeone curity isbetter thaninmostothercountries car,andicedwatertaurant isavailable. Se- trainsalsohavebad. Long-distance ares- worth bookingahead. Thursday, Fridayandpublicholidays, it’s in advance. Especiallyfortrainsleaving on agencies aroundthecountryuptoamonth so youcanbooktickets andtravel atstations Train ticketing isonanintegrated system, Reservations www.rajatrains.com forspecifics. train; see of aVolvobus,dependingonthe classof isabout1½timestheprice 1st-class seat asa about thesame in2ndclasscosts As guide,aseat arough Costs On overnight trains(usuallyto/fromTe- Simorgh mahmooly , forexample,is lonelyplanet.com bus,anda © Lonely Planet Publications 417 Health four to eight weeks before departure. Ask your doctor for an International Certificate CONTENTS of Vaccination (otherwise known as the yel- low booklet), which will list all the vaccina- Before You Go 417 tions you’ve received. While yellow fever Insurance 417 is not a problem in Iran, if you’re arriving Recommended Vaccinations 417 from a country where it is a problem you Medical Checklist 418 might be asked to show proof of yellow Internet Resources 418 fever vaccination before you’re allowed in. Further Reading 418 Travellers can register with the Interna- In Transit 418 tional Association for Medical Advice to Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) 418 Travellers (IAMAT; www.iamat.org). Its Jet Lag & Motion Sickness 418 website can help travellers to find a doc- In Iran 419 tor with recognised training. Those head- Availability & Cost of Health Care 419 ing off to very remote areas may like to do Infectious Diseases 419 a first-aid course (Red Cross and St John Traveller’s Diarrhoea 420 Ambulance can help), or attend a remote Environmental Hazards 420 medicine first-aid course such as that of- Travelling With Children 421 fered by the Royal Geographical Society Women’s Health 421 (www.rgs.org).

Bring medications in their original, HEALTH Due in part to its dryness and relative iso- clearly labelled, containers. A signed and lation, your chances of getting seriously ill dated letter from your physician describing with a virus or other infectious disease in your medical conditions and medications, Iran are fairly small. The most common including generic names, is also a good reason for travellers needing medical help idea. If carrying syringes or needles, be sure is as a result of accidents – the quality of to have a physician’s letter documenting Iranian cars and, more to the point, Ira- their medical necessity. nian driving is dangerously low. If you are unfortunate enough to need a hospital, the INSURANCE good news is that Iran is home to some Find out in advance if your insurance plan of the best in the Middle East. Many doc- will make payments directly to providers tors have been trained in Europe or North or reimburse you later for overseas health America and, especially in the larger cit- expenditures (in many countries doctors ies, you shouldn’t have too much trouble expect payment in cash); it’s also worth en- finding one who speaks English. In remoter suring your travel insurance will cover repa- areas, medical facilities are more basic. triation home or to better medical facilities elsewhere. Your insurance company might be able to locate the nearest source of medi- BEFORE YOU GO cal help, but it’s probably faster to ask your hotel or, in an emergency, call your embassy A little planning before departure, particu- or consulate. Travel insurance usually covers larly for pre-existing illnesses, will save you emergency dental treatment. Not all insur- a lot of trouble later. See your dentist before ance covers emergency aeromedical evacu- a long trip; carry a spare pair of contact ation home or to a hospital in a major city, lenses and glasses (and take your optical which may be the only way to get medical prescription with you); and carry a first- attention for a serious emergency. aid kit. It’s tempting to leave it all to the last RECOMMENDED VACCINATIONS minute – don’t! Many vaccines don’t ensure The World Health Organization recom- immunity for two weeks, so visit a doctor mends that all travellers regardless of © Lonely Planet Publications 417 Health four to eight weeks before departure. Ask your doctor for an International Certificate CONTENTS of Vaccination (otherwise known as the yel- low booklet), which will list all the vaccina- Before You Go 417 tions you’ve received. While yellow fever Insurance 417 is not a problem in Iran, if you’re arriving Recommended Vaccinations 417 from a country where it is a problem you Medical Checklist 418 might be asked to show proof of yellow Internet Resources 418 fever vaccination before you’re allowed in. Further Reading 418 Travellers can register with the Interna- In Transit 418 tional Association for Medical Advice to Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) 418 Travellers (IAMAT; www.iamat.org). Its Jet Lag & Motion Sickness 418 website can help travellers to find a doc- In Iran 419 tor with recognised training. Those head- Availability & Cost of Health Care 419 ing off to very remote areas may like to do Infectious Diseases 419 a first-aid course (Red Cross and St John Traveller’s Diarrhoea 420 Ambulance can help), or attend a remote Environmental Hazards 420 medicine first-aid course such as that of- Travelling With Children 421 fered by the Royal Geographical Society Women’s Health 421 (www.rgs.org).

Bring medications in their original, HEALTH Due in part to its dryness and relative iso- clearly labelled, containers. A signed and lation, your chances of getting seriously ill dated letter from your physician describing with a virus or other infectious disease in your medical conditions and medications, Iran are fairly small. The most common including generic names, is also a good reason for travellers needing medical help idea. If carrying syringes or needles, be sure is as a result of accidents – the quality of to have a physician’s letter documenting Iranian cars and, more to the point, Ira- their medical necessity. nian driving is dangerously low. If you are unfortunate enough to need a hospital, the INSURANCE good news is that Iran is home to some Find out in advance if your insurance plan of the best in the Middle East. Many doc- will make payments directly to providers tors have been trained in Europe or North or reimburse you later for overseas health America and, especially in the larger cit- expenditures (in many countries doctors ies, you shouldn’t have too much trouble expect payment in cash); it’s also worth en- finding one who speaks English. In remoter suring your travel insurance will cover repa- areas, medical facilities are more basic. triation home or to better medical facilities elsewhere. Your insurance company might be able to locate the nearest source of medi- BEFORE YOU GO cal help, but it’s probably faster to ask your hotel or, in an emergency, call your embassy A little planning before departure, particu- or consulate. Travel insurance usually covers larly for pre-existing illnesses, will save you emergency dental treatment. Not all insur- a lot of trouble later. See your dentist before ance covers emergency aeromedical evacu- a long trip; carry a spare pair of contact ation home or to a hospital in a major city, lenses and glasses (and take your optical which may be the only way to get medical prescription with you); and carry a first- attention for a serious emergency. aid kit. It’s tempting to leave it all to the last RECOMMENDED VACCINATIONS minute – don’t! Many vaccines don’t ensure The World Health Organization recom- immunity for two weeks, so visit a doctor mends that all travellers regardless of HEALTH book, tion (www.who.int/ith) publishesasuperb the internet. The World Health Organiza- There isawealthof travel healthadviceon RESOURCES INTERNET consider packinginyourmedicalkit. Following isalistof otheritems youshould MEDICAL CHECKLIST are rare. is complete. inIranoutbreaks However, that allof yourroutinevaccinationcover to travel, take theopportunitytoensure hepatitis B. Whilemakingpreparations sles, mumps,rubellaandpolio,aswell be covered fordiphtheria,tetanus, mea- the region theyare travelling inshould 418

Thermometer to remote areas) Syringes (iftravelling andsterile needles Sun block rashes) Steroid cream or cortisone(allergic Scissors, safety pins,tweezers Pocket knife clothing, tents, andbednets Permethrin sprayfor insect –containing Oral rehydration salts (forwaterIodine tablets purification) the skin repellent insect for DEET –containing Bandages, gauze,gauzerolls gic reactions) (forhayfeverAntihistamines andaller- Anti-inflammatory drugs(egibuprofen) drugs(egloperamide) Antidiarrhoeal track) Antibiotics (iftravelling offthebeaten for cutsandabrasions Antibacterial ointment(egBactroban) Adhesive orpapertape or aspirin (Tylenol)Acetaminophen/paracetamol USA UK Canada Australia ifoneisavailable.departure, government’s travel healthwebsite before It’s usuallya good ideatoconsultyour TRAVEL HEALTH WEBSITES INTRANSIT••DeepVein Thrombosis(DVT)

(www.doh.gov.uk/traveladvice)

(www.cdc.gov/travel) International Travel andHealth

(www.travelhealth.gc.ca) (www.dfat.gov.au/travel) , and tobacco. drink plentyof fluids,andavoid alcohol (ie contractthelegmuscleswhile sitting), isometric compressions of thelegmuscles you shouldwalkaboutthecabin,perform tention. onlongflights To prevent DVT medicalat- If thishappenstoyouseek chestcause painandbreathing difficulty. a bloodclottravels tothelungs,itmay but notalwaysonjustoneside. When or painof thefoot,ankle,orcalf,usually complications. where life-threatening theymaycause thebloodvessels tothelungs,through somemaybreakuneventfully, off andtravel mostbloodclotsareThough reabsorbed The longer thegreater theflight, therisk. ofchiefly because prolonged immobility. clots forminthelegsduringplaneflights, veinDeep thrombosisoccurs whenblood DEEP VEINTHROMBOSIS(DVT) IN TRANSIT don Press). Good Health Guide (Travel Medicine Inc)and Travel Health Guide (Oxford University Press), Traveller’s Health what todoifyouget sickontheroad. informationand anddisease munisation pretrip planning,emergency first aid,im- packed informationincluding withuseful Lonely Planet’s READING FURTHER website (www.cdc.gov) isalsouseful. ControlandPreventioners forDisease country, updated dailyandfree. TheCent- travel healthrecommendations forevery mdtravelhealth.com) provides complete online atnocost.MDTravel Health (www. which annuallyandisavailable isrevised exposure and readjust tonatural sunlight meals.Uponarrival, seek and eating light try drinkingplenty of fluids(nonalcoholic) Toavoid or nausea. jetlag tigue, malaise five time zones;itresults in insomnia,fa- Jet lagis common whencrossingmore than LAG&MOTIONSICKNESS JET The chief isswelling symptomof DVT Other recommended references include Travel With Children byDr Richard Dawood by Ted Lankester (Shel- by Stuart R. Rose, MD Rose, by StuartR. lonelyplanet.com The Travellers’ International is ginger, which by. somepeopleswear isdrowsiness.Aherbalalternativeeffect is treating motionsickness.Theirmainside Bonine) are usuallythefirst choice for (Dramamine) andmeclizine(Antivert, as possible. etc)assoon your schedule (formeals,sleep lonelyplanet.com in infected areas. Thevaccine isgiven asan withthelocal population contact be inclose cination isrecommended likely for those to tracheostomy toprevent Vac- suffocation. brane formsacross thethroatrequiring a and severe sore throat.Sometimesamem- temperature a high Itcauses tory contact. Diphtheria isspread respira- close through Diphtheria DISEASES INFECTIOUS needed. whenmore helpis also advise specialised over-the-countersell medication.Theycan pharmacists canoften provide adviceand emergency treatment. dental ment. Travel insuranceusuallyonlycovers equip- B transmissionviapoorlysterilised and there isanincreased riskof hepatitis your embassyorconsulate. ask atyourhotel. Inanemergency contact nearest source of medicalhelp,otherwise your insurancemaybeabletolocate the provide. Thetravel provided assistance by thing familiesandfriendsare expected to be limited asthisissome- orrudimentary from alocalpharmacy.Nursing care may travenous tobebought fluids,mayneed Medicine, sterile andeven dressings orin- ways readily available outsidemajor cities. andwell-traineddoctors.hospitals ticular, you’llfindinternational-standard but inTehran, EsfahanandShiraz, inpar- ity of variesfrom placetoplace, hospitals news isthatcostsare negligible. Thequal- treatment.medical anddental Thegood tries sobe prepared topayforallyour rangements Iranandothercoun- between There are few,ar- ifany,reciprocal medical &COSTOFHEALTHAVAILABILITY CARE IN IRAN Antihistamines such asdimenhydrinateAntihistamines For minor illnesses such asdiarrhoea, For minorillnesses of careStandards dental are variable medicalcareBut, seriously, isnotal- IN IRAN••Availability &CostofHealthCare starts withshivering,starts fever and sweating. worth knowing thatmalaria almostalways There isvery little malariainIran.Still, it’s Malaria possible.whenever fection. Sand-fly bites should beavoided Infected dogsare alsocarriers of thein- loss. companied withanaemiaandweight life-threateninga serious fever usually ac- ing skinlumporulcer. into Itmaydevelop fly, aslowly grow- leishmaniasis cancause Spread thebite through of aninfected sand Leishmaniasis negative HIVtest. typesIranrequiresrising. Forsomevisa a venous drugusers,meanstheHIVrate is problematically, thelarge numberof intra- ofthe growinguse prostitutes and,more HIV remains mercifullyrare inIranbut HIV orsixmonths.four weeks, for atleastfive years. Itcanbegiven over willgive(hepatyrix). Acourse protection timeasthehepatitisAvaccine at thesame vaccination.) Thevaccineisgiven singly,or B vaccinationaspartof routinechildhood nation. (Many countriesnowgive hepatitis travellers shouldmake thisa routinevacci- liver, occasionallycausingliver failure. All B. the jaundice, andaffects Itcancause intercourse canalltransmit sexual hepatitis Infected and needles blood,contaminated Hepatitis B vaccine, hepatyrixorviatim. vaccines canalsobegiven asasingledose years of protection. Hepatitis Aandtyphoid months later willprovide 10 asubsequent tection foruptoayearwhilebooster 12 willgiveas aninjection:asingledose pro- vaccine (Avaxim, VAQTA, Havrix) isgiven eyes, fever andabdominalpain.Hepatitis A urine, ayellowcolourtothewhites of the delayed recovery. Symptomsincludedark prolonged cancause lethargyfatal, and itisrarely jaundiceand,although causes food (particularlyshellfish) andwater. It Hepatitis Aisspread contaminated through Hepatitis A 10 years. injection alone,orwithtetanus,andlasts

419 HEALTH HEALTH book, tion (www.who.int/ith) publishesasuperb the internet. The World Health Organiza- There isawealthof travel healthadviceon RESOURCES INTERNET consider packinginyourmedicalkit. Following isalistof otheritems youshould MEDICAL CHECKLIST are rare. is complete. inIranoutbreaks However, that allof yourroutinevaccinationcover to travel, take theopportunitytoensure hepatitis B. Whilemakingpreparations sles, mumps,rubellaandpolio,aswell be covered fordiphtheria,tetanus, mea- the region theyare travelling inshould 418

Thermometer to remote areas) Syringes (iftravelling andsterile needles Sun block rashes) Steroid cream or cortisone(allergic Scissors, safety pins,tweezers Pocket knife clothing, tents, andbednets Permethrin sprayfor insect –containing Oral rehydration salts (forwaterIodine tablets purification) the skin repellent insect for DEET –containing Bandages, gauze,gauzerolls gic reactions) (forhayfeverAntihistamines andaller- Anti-inflammatory drugs(egibuprofen) drugs(egloperamide) Antidiarrhoeal track) Antibiotics (iftravelling offthebeaten for cutsandabrasions Antibacterial ointment(egBactroban) Adhesive orpapertape or aspirin (Tylenol)Acetaminophen/paracetamol USA UK Canada Australia ifoneisavailable.departure, government’s travel healthwebsite before It’s usuallya good ideatoconsultyour TRAVEL HEALTH WEBSITES INTRANSIT••DeepVein Thrombosis(DVT)

(www.doh.gov.uk/traveladvice)

(www.cdc.gov/travel) International Travel andHealth

(www.travelhealth.gc.ca) (www.dfat.gov.au/travel) , and tobacco. drink plentyof fluids,andavoid alcohol (ie contractthelegmuscleswhile sitting), isometric compressions of thelegmuscles you shouldwalkaboutthecabin,perform tention. onlongflights To prevent DVT medicalat- If thishappenstoyouseek chestcause painandbreathing difficulty. a bloodclottravels tothelungs,itmay but notalwaysonjustoneside. When or painof thefoot,ankle,orcalf,usually complications. where life-threatening theymaycause thebloodvessels tothelungs,through somemaybreakuneventfully, off andtravel mostbloodclotsareThough reabsorbed The longer thegreater theflight, therisk. ofchiefly because prolonged immobility. clots forminthelegsduringplaneflights, veinDeep thrombosisoccurs whenblood DEEP VEINTHROMBOSIS(DVT) IN TRANSIT don Press). Good Health Guide (Travel Medicine Inc)and Travel Health Guide (Oxford University Press), Traveller’s Health what todoifyouget sickontheroad. informationand anddisease munisation pretrip planning,emergency first aid,im- packed informationincluding withuseful Lonely Planet’s READING FURTHER website (www.cdc.gov) isalsouseful. ControlandPreventioners forDisease country, updated dailyandfree. TheCent- travel healthrecommendations forevery mdtravelhealth.com) provides complete online atnocost.MDTravel Health (www. which annuallyandisavailable isrevised exposure and readjust tonatural sunlight meals.Uponarrival, seek and eating light try drinkingplenty of fluids(nonalcoholic) Toavoid or nausea. jetlag tigue, malaise five time zones;itresults in insomnia,fa- Jet lagis common whencrossingmore than LAG&MOTIONSICKNESS JET The chief isswelling symptomof DVT Other recommended references include Travel With Children byDr Richard Dawood by Ted Lankester (Shel- by Stuart R. Rose, MD Rose, by StuartR. lonelyplanet.com The Travellers’ International is ginger, which by. somepeopleswear isdrowsiness.Aherbalalternativeeffect is treating motionsickness.Theirmainside Bonine) are usuallythefirst choice for (Dramamine) andmeclizine(Antivert, as possible. etc)assoon your schedule (formeals,sleep lonelyplanet.com in infected areas. Thevaccine isgiven asan withthelocal population contact be inclose cination isrecommended likely for those to tracheostomy toprevent Vac- suffocation. brane formsacross thethroatrequiring a and severe sore throat.Sometimesamem- temperature a high Itcauses tory contact. Diphtheria isspread respira- close through Diphtheria DISEASES INFECTIOUS needed. whenmore helpis also advise specialised over-the-countersell medication.Theycan pharmacists canoften provide adviceand emergency treatment. dental ment. Travel insuranceusuallyonlycovers equip- B transmissionviapoorlysterilised and there isanincreased riskof hepatitis your embassyorconsulate. ask atyourhotel. Inanemergency contact nearest source of medicalhelp,otherwise your insurancemaybeabletolocate the provide. Thetravel provided assistance by thing familiesandfriendsare expected to be limited asthisissome- orrudimentary from alocalpharmacy.Nursing care may travenous tobebought fluids,mayneed Medicine, sterile andeven dressings orin- ways readily available outsidemajor cities. andwell-traineddoctors.hospitals ticular, you’llfindinternational-standard but inTehran, EsfahanandShiraz, inpar- ity of variesfrom placetoplace, hospitals news isthatcostsare negligible. Thequal- treatment.medical anddental Thegood tries sobe prepared topayforallyour rangements Iranandothercoun- between There are few,ar- ifany,reciprocal medical &COSTOFHEALTHAVAILABILITY CARE IN IRAN Antihistamines such asdimenhydrinateAntihistamines For minor illnesses such asdiarrhoea, For minorillnesses of careStandards dental are variable medicalcareBut, seriously, isnotal- IN IRAN••Availability &CostofHealthCare starts withshivering,starts fever and sweating. worth knowing thatmalaria almostalways There isvery little malariainIran.Still, it’s Malaria possible.whenever fection. Sand-fly bites should beavoided Infected dogsare alsocarriers of thein- loss. companied withanaemiaandweight life-threateninga serious fever usually ac- ing skinlumporulcer. into Itmaydevelop fly, aslowly grow- leishmaniasis cancause Spread thebite through of aninfected sand Leishmaniasis negative HIVtest. typesIranrequiresrising. Forsomevisa a venous drugusers,meanstheHIVrate is problematically, thelarge numberof intra- ofthe growinguse prostitutes and,more HIV remains mercifullyrare inIranbut HIV orsixmonths.four weeks, for atleastfive years. Itcanbegiven over willgive(hepatyrix). Acourse protection timeasthehepatitisAvaccine at thesame vaccination.) Thevaccineisgiven singly,or B vaccinationaspartof routinechildhood nation. (Many countriesnowgive hepatitis travellers shouldmake thisa routinevacci- liver, occasionallycausingliver failure. All B. the jaundice, andaffects Itcancause intercourse canalltransmit sexual hepatitis Infected and needles blood,contaminated Hepatitis B vaccine, hepatyrixorviatim. vaccines canalsobegiven asasingledose years of protection. Hepatitis Aandtyphoid months later willprovide 10 asubsequent tection foruptoayearwhilebooster 12 willgiveas aninjection:asingledose pro- vaccine (Avaxim, VAQTA, Havrix) isgiven eyes, fever andabdominalpain.Hepatitis A urine, ayellowcolourtothewhites of the delayed recovery. Symptomsincludedark prolonged cancause lethargyfatal, and itisrarely jaundiceand,although causes food (particularlyshellfish) andwater. It Hepatitis Aisspread contaminated through Hepatitis A 10 years. injection alone,orwithtetanus,andlasts

419 HEALTH HEALTH pregnant women or immunocompromised it’s alive vaccine itshould notbe given to only given chest inspecialised clinics.As scar atthesite of injection,andisusually against TB. asmallpermanent Itcauses gives amoderate degreeBCG of protection the bestwaytoconfirmifyou have TB. yearsor even after exposure. AnX-rayis lossorfever weight monthsclude cough, symptomscanin- asymptomatic, although withlocalpeople. TBcan being closely ormix- planningonalongstay for those the localpopulation.Itismore important likely withfor those tobemixingclosely vaccineisrecommendedproducts. BCG infectedcasionally through milkor respiratory close andoc- through contact pecially inthesoutheast.TBisspread Tuberculosis (TB)isfoundinIran,es- Tuberculosis appropriate medicalhelp. seek munity; itmerely buysyoumore timeto Vaccination notprovide does youwithim- hours orassoonpossibleafter theinjury. course of five within24 injectionsstarting have a vaccinated youwillneed notbeen injections are over needed amonth.Ifyou cine isnotavailable within24hours. Three where areliable source of post-bite vac- travellingshould those toremote areas Animal handlers shouldbevaccinated, as skin from aninfected animal,rabiesisfatal. Spread bites through orlicksonbroken Rabies weakness orparalysis. in rare potentially cases, permanentmuscle atransientfever itcancause and, though Polio maybecarriedasymptomatically,al- drop onthetongue),orasaninjection. be boosted 10years, every eitherorally(a the vaccinesgiven inchildhood andshould contaminated foodandwater. Itisoneof Generally poliomyelitis isspread through Poliomyelitis tablets. occur after youhave your finishedtaking they are notfullyeffective, andmayalso while youare preventative taking if tablets fected mosquitobite. Theillness canstart from afew daystothree after weeks thein- common. Symptomsmayoccuranywhere Muscle pains,headache andvomitingare 420 INIRAN••Traveller’sDiarrhoea cooling by coldwater andfans.The treat- ment with water or fruitjuiceorboth, and heat exhaustion consists of fluidreplace- duce pale,diluted urine. Thetreatment of water suchto drinksufficient thatyoupro- pening bythetimeyoufeel thirsty –aim and tiredness. Dehydrationisalready hap- medicalattention. pain youshouldseek fever, shaking, chills orsevere abdominal for more than 72hours, isaccompaniedby isbloody,persistsloperamide). Ifdiarrhoea agentdrug) andanantidiarrhoeal (such as anantibiotic(usuallyaquinolonetaking four orfive stoolsaday,youshouldstart treatment, having butifyoustart more than and sugar. Afewstoolsdon’trequire loose rehydration lotsof solutioncontaining salt drink plentyof fluids,preferably anoral with afragilestomach. like meals are best;whilepre-prepared dishes milk.Freshly unpasteurised tain prepared and avoid con- dairyproductsthatmight onlyfreshEat fruitsorvegetables ifcooked disinfected canhelpyouavoid diarrhoea. boiled,filteredit hasbeen orchemically where inIran,avoiding water unless tap While water is safe todrinkalmostevery- TRAVELLER’S DIARRHOEA the oralvaccineVivotifisalsoavailable. tection forthree years. Insomecountries, vaccine (typhimVi,typherix)willgive pro- (blood poisoning)mayalsooccur. Typhoid a pinkrashontheabdomen.Septicaemia faeces. Thefirst symptomisusuallyfever or byinfected contaminated has been human This is spread foodorwater through that Typhoid able inallcountries. vaccineisnotavail- individuals. TheBCG on desert trekson desert outof placeslike Yazd. especiallycareful than youusuallywould.Be you are engaginginagreater of level exercise ing Iran’soven-hot summers, particularlyif travellers willbeespeciallysusceptibledur- quate replacement of and fluidsandsalt, sweating andexcessive fluidlosswithinade- Heat exhaustionoccurs followingheavy Heat Illness ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS Symptoms includeheadache, dizziness be sure diarrhoea, If youdevelop to khoresht khoresht should beavoided byanyone lonelyplanet.com also required. replacement byintravenous dripisusually treatment. Emergency fluidandelectrolyte body withwater andfanningisanideal coolingbysprayingthe Rapid and death. lossofiour andeventually consciousness ceasing, irrationalandhyperactive behav- inbodytemperaturerise leadstosweating mechanism breaks down.Anexcessive occurs whenthebody’sheat-regulating est andfastest waytotreat dehydration. Electrolyte replacement sachets are theeasi- a littlemore tofoodsthanusual. salt table fluidsasinsouporbroth,andadding salty ment of losscomponentconsistsof thesalt lonelyplanet.com venomous snakes are not actuallyinjected holes or cracks.Half of bitten by those smaller,don’tstickyour handintoeven in Iranare microscopic. Tomake them Your chances of getting bitten byasnake Bites Snake carriers. spreading asymptomatic scabiesbetween treating withalsoneed contact toavoid pharmacies; peoplewhoyoucome into is easilytreated withlotionavailable from itchy anintensely rash.ScabiesThey cause thefingers.the skin,particularlybetween tinymites liveaccommodation. These in sheet. rid of asleep them,oruse ing mattress willhelpget withinsecticide itchy, lumpybites. Sprayingdubious-look- hostels and cheap hotels. tovery Theylead oneof thecritters?) seen ing –who’sever in toappear-ally theydopopup(asopposed occasion- too badlyfrombedbugs,though which is rarely life threatening. apainfulbite,dry climates. Theycancause tion orsimilar. stings youshouldcarryanadrenaline injec- If youhave asevere allergy orwasp tobee withasevere allergyto those (anaphylaxis). fever. vent alsospread bites. Mosquitoes dengue DEET-based repellents insect willpre- andinfected irritation cause bites. Using Mosquitoes may notcarrymalariabutcan &Stings Bites Insect Heatstroke ismuch more This serious. Scabies might alsobefoundincheapScabies might Mercifully, tosuffer seem Irandoesn’t Scorpions are frequently foundinaridor real andwaspsonlycause problems Bees condoms with you just in case. condoms withyoujustin case. to therisk of pregnancy –remember totake ing canstopthepill fromworkingandlead andvomit- some antibiotics, anddiarrhoea tern. Ifusingoralcontraceptives, remember inthemenstrualpat- tribute toanupset differentthrough timezonescanallcon- Emotional stress, exhaustionandtravelling WOMEN’S HEALTH should besought. with rabies,immediate medicalassistance any possibilitythattheanimalisinfected diately cleaned.Ifthere be thoroughly is warm-blooded, furryanimalshouldimme- of rabies.Anybite, scratch orlickfroma ofand othermammals,because therisk if youdo,children shouldavoid them, doctor aboutthis. reconstituting withboiledwater. Ask your be helpfultotake rehydration powders for mustbereplaced.fluid andsalts Itmay lostvomiting orexperiencingdiarrhoea, foodandwater.taminated Ifyourchild is dry andclean.Remembertoavoid con- The area should becleanedandthenkept break in theskinmayleadtoinfection. year old. forchildrennot suitable aged underone well before departure assomevaccinesare tions, anddiscusspossibletravel vaccines dren are uptodate withroutinevaccina- medical seek treatment. Make sure thechil- how totreat minorailmentsandwhento All travellers withchildren shouldknow TRAVELLING WITHCHILDREN orvomiting. diarrhoea thatcancause bacteria orviruses contain drink water fromrivers orlakes asthismay water, which iswidelyavailable. Donot manytravellersthough sticktobottled Tap water issafe todrinkinmostof Iran, Water that antivenin canbegiven ifnecessary. tomedicalhelpassoonpossiblesoGet apply atourniquet,orcutsuckthebite. similar toabandage over asprain.Donot a bandage over thesite, firmpressure, limb withasplint(egstick)andapply snake, thebitten donotpanic.Immobilise with poison(envenomed). Ifbitten bya You won’t see manydogsinIran,but You won’tsee In hot,moistclimates anywoundor IN IRAN••TravellingwithChildren

421 HEALTH HEALTH pregnant women or immunocompromised it’s alive vaccine itshould notbe given to only given chest inspecialised clinics.As scar atthesite of injection,andisusually against TB. asmallpermanent Itcauses gives amoderate degreeBCG of protection the bestwaytoconfirmifyou have TB. yearsor even after exposure. AnX-rayis lossorfever weight monthsclude cough, symptomscanin- asymptomatic, although withlocalpeople. TBcan being closely ormix- planningonalongstay for those the localpopulation.Itismore important likely withfor those tobemixingclosely vaccineisrecommendedproducts. BCG infectedcasionally through milkor respiratory close andoc- through contact pecially inthesoutheast.TBisspread Tuberculosis (TB)isfoundinIran,es- Tuberculosis appropriate medicalhelp. seek munity; itmerely buysyoumore timeto Vaccination notprovide does youwithim- hours orassoonpossibleafter theinjury. course of five within24 injectionsstarting have a vaccinated youwillneed notbeen injections are over needed amonth.Ifyou cine isnotavailable within24hours. Three where areliable source of post-bite vac- travellingshould those toremote areas Animal handlers shouldbevaccinated, as skin from aninfected animal,rabiesisfatal. Spread bites through orlicksonbroken Rabies weakness orparalysis. in rare potentially cases, permanentmuscle atransientfever itcancause and, though Polio maybecarriedasymptomatically,al- drop onthetongue),orasaninjection. be boosted 10years, every eitherorally(a the vaccinesgiven inchildhood andshould contaminated foodandwater. Itisoneof Generally poliomyelitis isspread through Poliomyelitis tablets. occur after youhave your finishedtaking they are notfullyeffective, andmayalso while youare preventative taking if tablets fected mosquitobite. Theillness canstart from afew daystothree after weeks thein- common. Symptomsmayoccuranywhere Muscle pains,headache andvomitingare 420 INIRAN••Traveller’sDiarrhoea pain you should seek medicalattention. pain youshouldseek fever, shaking, chills orsevere abdominal for more than 72hours, isaccompaniedby isbloody,persistsloperamide). Ifdiarrhoea agentdrug) andanantidiarrhoeal (such as anantibiotic(usuallyaquinolonetaking four orfive stoolsaday,youshouldstart treatment, having butifyoustart more than and sugar. Afewstoolsdon’trequire loose rehydration lotsof solutioncontaining salt drink plentyof fluids,preferably anoral with afragilestomach. like meals are best;whilepre-prepared dishes milk.Freshly unpasteurised tain prepared and avoid con- dairyproductsthatmight onlyfreshEat fruitsorvegetables ifcooked disinfected canhelpyouavoid diarrhoea. boiled,filteredit hasbeen orchemically where inIran,avoiding water unless tap While water is safe todrinkalmostevery- TRAVELLER’S DIARRHOEA the oralvaccineVivotifisalsoavailable. tection forthree years. Insomecountries, vaccine (typhimVi,typherix)willgive pro- (blood poisoning)mayalsooccur. Typhoid a pinkrashontheabdomen.Septicaemia faeces. Thefirst symptomisusuallyfever or byinfected contaminated has been human This is spread foodorwater through that Typhoid able inallcountries. vaccineisnotavail- individuals. TheBCG cooling by coldwater andfans.The treat- ment with water or fruitjuiceorboth, and heat exhaustion consists of fluidreplace- duce pale,diluted urine. Thetreatment of water suchto drinksufficient thatyoupro- pening bythetimeyoufeel thirsty –aim and tiredness. Dehydrationisalready hap- trekson desert outof placeslike Yazd. especiallycareful than youusuallywould.Be you are engaginginagreater of level exercise ing Iran’soven-hot summers, particularlyif travellers willbeespeciallysusceptibledur- quate replacement of and fluidsandsalt, sweating andexcessive fluidlosswithinade- Heat exhaustionoccurs followingheavy Heat Illness ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS If you develop diarrhoea, be sure diarrhoea, If youdevelop to Symptoms includeheadache, dizziness khoresht khoresht should beavoided byanyone lonelyplanet.com also required. replacement byintravenous dripisusually treatment. Emergency fluidandelectrolyte body withwater andfanningisanideal coolingbysprayingthe Rapid and death. lossofiour andeventually consciousness ceasing, irrationalandhyperactive behav- inbodytemperaturerise leadstosweating mechanism breaks down.Anexcessive occurs whenthebody’sheat-regulating est andfastest waytotreat dehydration. Electrolyte replacement sachets are theeasi- a littlemore tofoodsthanusual. salt table fluidsasinsouporbroth,andadding salty ment of losscomponentconsistsof thesalt lonelyplanet.com venomous snakes are not actuallyinjected holes or cracks.Half of bitten by those smaller,don’tstickyour handintoeven in Iranare microscopic. Tomake them Your chances of getting bitten byasnake Bites Snake carriers. spreading asymptomatic scabiesbetween treating withalsoneed contact toavoid pharmacies; peoplewhoyoucome into is easilytreated withlotionavailable from itchy anintensely rash.ScabiesThey cause thefingers.the skin,particularlybetween tinymites liveaccommodation. These in sheet. rid of asleep them,oruse ing mattress willhelpget withinsecticide itchy, lumpybites. Sprayingdubious-look- hostels and cheap hotels. tovery Theylead oneof thecritters?) seen ing –who’sever in toappear-ally theydopopup(asopposed occasion- too badlyfrombedbugs,though which is rarely life threatening. apainfulbite,dry climates. Theycancause tion orsimilar. stings youshouldcarryanadrenaline injec- If youhave asevere allergy orwasp tobee withasevere allergyto those (anaphylaxis). fever. vent alsospread bites. Mosquitoes dengue DEET-based repellents insect willpre- andinfected irritation cause bites. Using Mosquitoes may notcarrymalariabutcan &Stings Bites Insect Heatstroke ismuch more This serious. Scabies might alsobefoundincheapScabies might Mercifully, tosuffer seem Irandoesn’t Scorpions are frequently foundinaridor real andwaspsonlycause problems Bees condoms with you just in case. condoms withyoujustin case. to therisk of pregnancy –remember totake ing canstopthepill fromworkingandlead andvomit- some antibiotics, anddiarrhoea tern. Ifusingoralcontraceptives, remember inthemenstrualpat- tribute toanupset differentthrough timezonescanallcon- Emotional stress, exhaustionandtravelling WOMEN’S HEALTH should besought. with rabies,immediate medicalassistance any possibilitythattheanimalisinfected diately cleaned.Ifthere be thoroughly is warm-blooded, furryanimalshouldimme- of rabies.Anybite, scratch orlickfroma ofand othermammals,because therisk if youdo,children shouldavoid them, doctor aboutthis. reconstituting withboiledwater. Ask your be helpfultotake rehydration powders for mustbereplaced.fluid andsalts Itmay lostvomiting orexperiencingdiarrhoea, foodandwater.taminated Ifyourchild is dry andclean.Remembertoavoid con- The area should becleanedandthenkept break in theskinmayleadtoinfection. year old. forchildrennot suitable aged underone well before departure assomevaccinesare tions, anddiscusspossibletravel vaccines dren are uptodate withroutinevaccina- medical seek treatment. Make sure thechil- how totreat minorailmentsandwhento All travellers withchildren shouldknow TRAVELLING WITHCHILDREN orvomiting. diarrhoea thatcancause bacteria orviruses contain drink water fromrivers orlakes asthismay water, which iswidelyavailable. Donot manytravellersthough sticktobottled Tap water issafe todrinkinmostof Iran, Water that antivenin canbegiven ifnecessary. tomedicalhelpassoonpossiblesoGet apply atourniquet,orcutsuckthebite. similar toabandage over asprain.Donot a bandage over thesite, firmpressure, limb withasplint(egstick)andapply snake, thebitten donotpanic.Immobilise with poison(envenomed). Ifbitten bya You won’t see manydogsinIran,but You won’tsee In hot,moistclimates anywoundor IN IRAN••TravellingwithChildren

421 HEALTH HEALTH is mostlikely, when andafter 30weeks, of12 weeks pregnancy, whenmiscarriage risky timesfortravel are duringthefirst fore embarkingonyourtrip.Themost to consider. Have amedicalcheck-up be- possible butthere are things important able incities. towelsarefind inIran,butsanitary avail- Tamponsneed. are almostimpossibleto should bringanycontraceptionyouwill protected Apartfromcondomsyou sex. fective iftaken within24hours after un- 422 © LonelyPlanetPublications Travelling duringpregnancy isusually Emergency contraceptionismostef- INIRAN••Women’sHealth and postnatal care.and postnatal ance policycovers pregnancy, delivery attention whileaway.Ensure yourinsur- likely medical tobehelpfulifyouneed ofincluding details yourbloodgroup,are Taking written records of thepregnancy, major culturalandlanguage differences. citiesinIranandtherevary between are very facilities Antenatal uncomfortable. inthelaterlong-haul flights stages canbe after of 28to32weeks pregnancy, and Most airlineswillnotacceptatraveller sure andpremature delivery canoccur. bloodpres-complications such ashigh lonelyplanet.com HEALTH is mostlikely, when andafter 30weeks, of12 weeks pregnancy, whenmiscarriage risky timesfortravel are duringthefirst fore embarkingonyourtrip.Themost to consider. Have amedicalcheck-up be- possible butthere are things important able incities. towelsarefind inIran,butsanitary avail- Tamponsneed. are almostimpossibleto should bringanycontraceptionyouwill protected Apartfromcondomsyou sex. fective iftaken within24hours after un- 422 © LonelyPlanetPublications Travelling duringpregnancy isusually Emergency contraceptionismostef- INIRAN••Women’sHealth and postnatal care.and postnatal ance policycovers pregnancy, delivery attention whileaway.Ensure yourinsur- likely medical tobehelpfulifyouneed ofincluding details yourbloodgroup,are Taking written records of thepregnancy, major culturalandlanguage differences. citiesinIranandtherevary between are very facilities Antenatal uncomfortable. inthelaterlong-haul flights stages canbe after of 28to32weeks pregnancy, and Most airlineswillnotacceptatraveller sure andpremature delivery canoccur. bloodpres-complications such ashigh lonelyplanet.com © Lonely Planet Publications 423 Language your stay. You can also advance your lan- guage skills before you head off by working CONTENTS through the excellent free lessons available online at Easy Persian (www.easypersian Farsi 423 .com). Another great resource is Teach Learning the Language 423 Yourself Modern Persian (by Narguess Far- Transliteration 423 zad), consisting of a 304-page course-book Pronunciation 423 and two audio CDs. If nothing else, you Accommodation 424 should familiarise yourself with the modi- The Farsi Alphabet 424 fied Arabic aphabet used to write Farsi. The Conversation & Essentials 425 chart on p424 shows all the Farsi letters in Directions 425 their various guises (according to position Health 425 within a word), plus the nearest-sounding Emergencies 426 Latin letters used to represent them. Language Difficulties 426 Numbers 426 TRANSLITERATION Question Words 426 Transliterating from non-Roman script Shopping & Services 427 into the Roman alphabet is always a tricky Time & Dates 427 affair. Formal transliterations of Farsi are Transport 427 overly complicated in the way they repre- Travel with Children 428 sent vowels, and they do not accurately represent the spoken language. In this lan- Farsi (also often referred to as Persian) is guage guide the system used is designed to the official language of Iran. Travelling in be as simple as possible for spoken com- the country without at least a basic grasp munication, even at the expense of absolute of Farsi will prove difficult, as English accuracy. speakers are few and far between. PRONUNCIATION In general, the last syllable of a multisyllable FARSI word is stressed, unless the last vowel in the word is a short vowel. Farsi is an Indo-Iranian language and a member of the Indo-European language Vowels LANGUAGE family. While it is written in Arabic script, a as in ‘father’ which runs from right to left, the language e as in ‘bed’ itself isn’t related to Arabic at all. i as in ‘marine’ There are a number of mutually intelligi- o as in ‘mole’ ble dialects spoken in Iran. The words and u as in ‘rule’ phrases in this language guide are based on the Tehrani dialect, and reflect mostly col- Consonants loquial, everyday speech. Tehrani is consid- The letters b, d, f, j, m, n, p, sh, t and z are ered to be the standard dialect, and the one pronounced as in English. spoken by most Farsi speakers. This is dis- tinct from Classical Farsi, which is not an ch as in ‘cheese’ everyday language, but a literary form, nor- g as in ‘goose’ mally used only in books or speeches. gh/q a guttural sound like a heavy French ‘r’ pronounced at the back of the LEARNING THE LANGUAGE mouth; can appear in transliterations Lonely Planet’s compact, but comprehen- as either gh or q sive Farsi Phrasebook is a good way to get h as in ‘hot’ started and will prove invaluable during kh as the ‘ch’ in Scottish loch © Lonely Planet Publications 423 Language your stay. You can also advance your lan- guage skills before you head off by working CONTENTS through the excellent free lessons available online at Easy Persian (www.easypersian Farsi 423 .com). Another great resource is Teach Learning the Language 423 Yourself Modern Persian (by Narguess Far- Transliteration 423 zad), consisting of a 304-page course-book Pronunciation 423 and two audio CDs. If nothing else, you Accommodation 424 should familiarise yourself with the modi- The Farsi Alphabet 424 fied Arabic aphabet used to write Farsi. The Conversation & Essentials 425 chart on p424 shows all the Farsi letters in Directions 425 their various guises (according to position Health 425 within a word), plus the nearest-sounding Emergencies 426 Latin letters used to represent them. Language Difficulties 426 Numbers 426 TRANSLITERATION Question Words 426 Transliterating from non-Roman script Shopping & Services 427 into the Roman alphabet is always a tricky Time & Dates 427 affair. Formal transliterations of Farsi are Transport 427 overly complicated in the way they repre- Travel with Children 428 sent vowels, and they do not accurately represent the spoken language. In this lan- Farsi (also often referred to as Persian) is guage guide the system used is designed to the official language of Iran. Travelling in be as simple as possible for spoken com- the country without at least a basic grasp munication, even at the expense of absolute of Farsi will prove difficult, as English accuracy. speakers are few and far between. PRONUNCIATION In general, the last syllable of a multisyllable FARSI word is stressed, unless the last vowel in the word is a short vowel. Farsi is an Indo-Iranian language and a member of the Indo-European language Vowels LANGUAGE family. While it is written in Arabic script, a as in ‘father’ which runs from right to left, the language e as in ‘bed’ itself isn’t related to Arabic at all. i as in ‘marine’ There are a number of mutually intelligi- o as in ‘mole’ ble dialects spoken in Iran. The words and u as in ‘rule’ phrases in this language guide are based on the Tehrani dialect, and reflect mostly col- Consonants loquial, everyday speech. Tehrani is consid- The letters b, d, f, j, m, n, p, sh, t and z are ered to be the standard dialect, and the one pronounced as in English. spoken by most Farsi speakers. This is dis- tinct from Classical Farsi, which is not an ch as in ‘cheese’ everyday language, but a literary form, nor- g as in ‘goose’ mally used only in books or speeches. gh/q a guttural sound like a heavy French ‘r’ pronounced at the back of the LEARNING THE LANGUAGE mouth; can appear in transliterations Lonely Planet’s compact, but comprehen- as either gh or q sive Farsi Phrasebook is a good way to get h as in ‘hot’ started and will prove invaluable during kh as the ‘ch’ in Scottish loch LANGUAGE nounced astwodistinctsounds, asin‘hat’- Note: doubledconsonants arealwayspro- averyweak glottalstop,likethe ’ zh y s r l 424 alwaysasin‘leg’,never‘roll’ trilled asin‘sin’ asin‘yak’ ﻢﻟ ﺎ ﺐﻟ ﭗﻟ ﺖﻟ ﺚﻟ ﺞ ﭻ ﺢ ﺦ ﺪﻟ ﺬﻟ ﺮﻟ ﺰﻟ ﮋﻟ ﺲﻟ ﺶﻟ ﺺﻟ ﺾﻟ ﻂﻟ ﻆﻟ ﻊﻟ ﻎﻟ ﻒﻟ ﻖﻟ ﮏ ﮓ ﻞﻟ ﻦﻟ ﻮﻟ ﻪ ﯽ Final Medial Final Medial Initial asthe‘g’in‘mirage’ THE FARSI ALPHABET

FARSI ••Accommodation

oh’ orthe‘tt’inCockney ‘bottle’ sound madebetween thewords‘uh- ﻤﻟ ﺒﻟ ﭙﻟ ﺘﻟ ﺜﻟ ﻌ ﻐ ﮑ ﮕ ﻨﻟ ﻬ ﺴﻟ ﺸﻟ ﻔﻟ ﺠﻟ ﭽﻟ ﺤﻟ ﺨﻟ ﻠﻟ ﻴﻟ ﺼﻟ ﻀﻟ ﻄﻟ ﻈﻟ ﻘﻟ

ﻣ ﺑ ﭘ ﺗ ﺛ ﻋ ﻏ ﮐ ﮔ ﻧ ﻫ ﺳ ﺷ ﻓ ﺟ ﭼ ﺣ ﺧ ﻟ ﻳ ﺻ ﺿ ﻃ ﻇ ﻗ

Alone Transliteration ﺹ ﺽ ﺱ ﺵ ک گ ﻑ ﺏ پ ﺕ ﺙ ی ﻁ ﻅ ﻕ ﺝ چ ﺡ ﺥ ﻍ ﻉ ﻥ ﻝ ﺭ ﺯ ژ ﻭ ﻡ ﺩ ﺫ ﻩ ﺍ

’ r z d kh h ch j s t p b a i/y h u/w n m l g k gh/q f gh/q z t z s sh s zh z asin‘jet’ asin‘let’;thecommon sequence asin‘fact’ aglottalstop(seebelow) asin‘run’ asin‘ten’ as asin‘set’ as as as as asin‘zoo’ as asin‘kit’ short,asin‘act’,long,‘father’ asin‘dot’ asin‘pet’ asin‘bet’ asin‘get’ asin‘hot’ asin‘hot’ asin‘net’ asin‘met’ asin‘chat’ asin‘shed’ asthe‘s’in‘measure’ asin‘marine’/as‘yacht’ asthe‘ch’inScottishloch asin‘rule’/as‘wary’ arough,gutturalsound(seep423) as

shared single a...room. I’d like any Do youhave rooms available? ACCOMMODATION as inEnglish‘doll’. Allah ‘trick’ not‘battle’;thesoleexception is Pronunciation otagh khalidarin z t z z gh/q s s above above above above above above (God), inwhichthel’sareswallowed above taki moshtarak yeotaghe...mikham l + lonelyplanet.com a becomes ﻻ

two people a week one night for ...? How muchisit lonelyplanet.com I don’t like ... I don’tlike ... I like Excuse me/I’msorry. welcome. You’re you(very Thank you. Thank Please. No. Yes. Fine – andyou? you? How are Goodbye. Good evening. Good day.(noon) Good morning. Hello. Greetings. agha one olderthanyou,it’spolitetoinclude phrase inIran,thisisit! Muslim world,soifyoulearnonlyone The sameexpressionisusedthroughoutthe ing’, ‘ aleykom The all- purpose greeting inIranis CONVERSATION &ESSENTIALS window TV shower bathroom with a... We wantaroom Agha or, more likely, Agha Mohammad. Agha or,morelikely,Mohammad. first nameasatitleofrespect,egMohammad standard greetings. ning ofthefirstsentence,orafterone addressing peopleyoudon’tknowwell– ‘you’ singular,andshouldbeusedwhen Ms are theequivalentsofMr,andMrs/Miss/ Welcome. or older,andtochildrenanimals. friends andrelativesofthesamegeneration is onlygenerallyusedwhentalkingtoclose much). When addressingastranger,especially The pronoun na bale televiziyon Agha (sir)or salam mishe? good afternoon’and‘goodevening’. lotfan mikhayim ye hafte dush , whichdoesdutyfor‘goodmorn- khoda hafez khosh amadin panjere salam aleykom canbeusedbeforeorafterthe ye shab dastshuyi do nafar haletunchetore? khanom shab bekheyr sob bekheyr baraye...cheghadr khubam–shomachetoin? khahesh mikonam (kheyli) mamnum mayeotaghba... ruz bekheyr shoma bebakhshid Agha ye man ...dust nadaram man ...dustdaram dastet darnakone (madam)atthebegin- is dastet darnakone isthepoliteformof and (alsocommon Khanom e ) salam to

hospital doctor dentist chemist isthe...? Where HEALTH opposite near (to) far (from) in frontof behind there here To theright. To theleft. Go straightahead. Is itfarfromhere? youshowme Can isthe...? Where DIRECTIONS husband wife uncle aunt son daughter brother sister father mother It isGod’swill. I’m from... youfrom? are Where My nameis... What’s yourname? amu

ameh ΎϧΧ ωϮϨϤϣ ΕΎϴϧΎΧΩ o h a) (on themap)? SIGNS pesar ϭϭωϮϨϤϣ Ωϭέϭ zan inja khaleh FARSI ••Conversation&Essentials dai unja khahar pedar madar bavadar doktor shohar dandun pezeshk dokhtar darukhune Ϫϧ΍Ωήϣ ΝϭήΧ bimarestan ωϮϨϤϣ Ζϟ΍ϮΗ Ωϭέϭ samtechap ϪϧΎϧί ϪΘδΑ samterast ίΎΑ esmam...e mashallah ... koja st? ... koja st? mishe (tunaghshe)beman tuvalet mamnu’ dokhaniyat mamnu’ vorud mamnu’ baste baz khoruj vorud unazinjadure? mostaghim berin esmetunchiye? mardane zanane posht moghabele nazdik be dur az jeloye man ahle...am kojayi hastin? neshun bedin? (maternal) (paternal) (paternal) (maternal) / Toilet Prohibited No Smoking No Entry Closed Open Exit Entrance / Women Men

425 LANGUAGE LANGUAGE nounced astwodistinctsounds, asin‘hat’- Note: doubledconsonants arealwayspro- averyweak glottalstop,likethe ’ zh y s r l 424 alwaysasin‘leg’,never‘roll’ trilled asin‘sin’ asin‘yak’ ﻢﻟ ﺎ ﺐﻟ ﭗﻟ ﺖﻟ ﺚﻟ ﺞ ﭻ ﺢ ﺦ ﺪﻟ ﺬﻟ ﺮﻟ ﺰﻟ ﮋﻟ ﺲﻟ ﺶﻟ ﺺﻟ ﺾﻟ ﻂﻟ ﻆﻟ ﻊﻟ ﻎﻟ ﻒﻟ ﻖﻟ ﮏ ﮓ ﻞﻟ ﻦﻟ ﻮﻟ ﻪ ﯽ Final Medial Final Medial Initial asthe‘g’in‘mirage’ THE FARSI ALPHABET

FARSI ••Accommodation

oh’ orthe‘tt’inCockney ‘bottle’ sound madebetween thewords‘uh- ﻤﻟ ﻌ ﻐ ﺒﻟ ﭙﻟ ﺘﻟ ﺜﻟ ﺴﻟ ﺸﻟ ﻔﻟ ﮑ ﮕ ﻨﻟ ﻬ ﺼﻟ ﻀﻟ ﻄﻟ ﻈﻟ ﻘﻟ ﺠﻟ ﭽﻟ ﺤﻟ ﺨﻟ ﻠﻟ ﻴﻟ

ﻣ ﻋ ﻏ ﺑ ﭘ ﺗ ﺛ ﺳ ﺷ ﻓ ﮐ ﮔ ﻧ ﻫ ﺻ ﺿ ﻃ ﻇ ﻗ ﺟ ﭼ ﺣ ﺧ ﻟ ﻳ

Alone Transliteration ﺹ ﺽ ﺱ ﺵ ک گ ﻑ ﺏ پ ﺕ ﺙ ی ﻁ ﻅ ﻕ ﺝ چ ﺡ ﺥ ﻍ ﻉ ﻥ ﻝ ﺭ ﺯ ژ ﻭ ﻡ ﺩ ﺫ ﻩ ﺍ

’ i/y h u/w n m l g k gh/q f gh/q z t z s sh s zh z r z d kh h ch j s t p b a asin‘jet’ asin‘let’;thecommonsequence asin‘fact’ aglottalstop(seebelow) asin‘run’ as asin‘ten’ as as asin‘set’ as as asin‘zoo’ as asin‘kit’ short,asin‘act’,long,‘father’ asin‘get’ asin‘dot’ asin‘pet’ asin‘bet’ asin‘hot’ asin‘net’ asin‘hot’ asin‘met’ asin‘chat’ asin‘shed’ asthe‘s’in‘measure’ asin‘marine’/as‘yacht’ asthe‘ch’inScottishloch asin‘rule’/as‘wary’ arough,gutturalsound(seep423) as

shared single a...room. I’d like any Do youhave rooms available? ACCOMMODATION as inEnglish‘doll’. Allah ‘trick’ not‘battle’;thesoleexception is Pronunciation otagh khalidarin t gh/q z z s s z above above above above above above (God), inwhichthel’sareswallowed above taki moshtarak yeotaghe...mikham l + lonelyplanet.com a becomes ﻻ

two people a week one night for ...? How muchisit lonelyplanet.com I don’t like ... I don’tlike ... I like Excuse me/I’msorry. welcome. You’re you(very Thank you. Thank Please. No. Yes. Fine – andyou? you? How are Goodbye. Good evening. Good day.(noon) Good morning. Hello. Greetings. agha one olderthanyou,it’spolitetoinclude phrase inIran,thisisit! Muslim world,soifyoulearnonlyone The sameexpressionisusedthroughoutthe ing’, ‘ aleykom The all- purpose greeting inIranis CONVERSATION &ESSENTIALS window TV shower bathroom with a... We wantaroom Agha or, more likely, Agha Mohammad. Agha or,morelikely,Mohammad. first nameasatitleofrespect,egMohammad standard greetings. ning ofthefirstsentence,orafterone Welcome. or older,andtochildrenanimals. friends andrelativesofthesamegeneration is onlygenerallyusedwhentalkingtoclose addressing peopleyoudon’tknowwell– ‘you’ singular,andshouldbeusedwhen Ms are theequivalentsofMr,andMrs/Miss/ much). When addressingastranger,especially The pronoun na bale televiziyon Agha (sir)or salam mishe? good afternoon’and‘goodevening’. lotfan mikhayim ye hafte dush , whichdoesdutyfor‘goodmorn- khoda hafez khosh amadin panjere salam aleykom canbeusedbeforeorafterthe ye shab dastshuyi do nafar haletunchetore? khanom shab bekheyr sob bekheyr baraye...cheghadr khubam–shomachetoin? khahesh mikonam (kheyli) mamnum mayeotaghba... ruz bekheyr shoma bebakhshid Agha ye man ...dust nadaram man ...dustdaram dastet darnakone (madam)atthebegin- is dastet darnakone isthepoliteformof and (alsocommon Khanom e ) salam to

hospital doctor dentist chemist isthe...? Where HEALTH opposite near (to) far (from) in frontof behind there here To theright. To theleft. Go straightahead. Is itfarfromhere? youshowme Can isthe...? Where DIRECTIONS husband wife uncle aunt son daughter brother sister father mother It isGod’swill. I’m from... youfrom? are Where My nameis... What’s yourname?

amu ameh ΎϧΧ ωϮϨϤϣ ΕΎϴϧΎΧΩ o h a) (on themap)? SIGNS pesar ϭϭωϮϨϤϣ Ωϭέϭ zan inja khaleh FARSI ••Conversation&Essentials dai unja khahar pedar madar bavadar doktor shohar dandun pezeshk dokhtar darukhune Ϫϧ΍Ωήϣ ΝϭήΧ bimarestan ωϮϨϤϣ Ζϟ΍ϮΗ Ωϭέϭ samtechap ϪϧΎϧί ϪΘδΑ samterast ίΎΑ esmam...e mashallah ... koja st? ... koja st? mishe(tunaghshe)beman tuvalet mamnu’ dokhaniyat mamnu’ vorud mamnu’ baste baz khoruj vorud unazinjadure? mostaghim berin esmetunchiye? zanane mardane posht moghabele nazdik be dur az jeloye man ahle...am kojayi hastin? neshun bedin? (maternal) (paternal) (paternal) (maternal) / Toilet Prohibited No Smoking No Entry Closed Open Exit Entrance / Women Men

425 LANGUAGE LANGUAGE

lotfanun obenevisin itdown. Please write What does...mean? How doyousay...inFarsi? na mifahmam I don’tunderstand. mifahmam I understand. injakesiingilisibalade? speakEnglish? Does anyonehere shomaingilisibaladin? Do youspeakEnglish? LANGUAGE DIFFICULTIES bees aspirin antibiotics to... I’m allergic diabetes asthma anaemia ... I have sunblock medicine diarrhoea contraceptive condom aspirin antiseptic I’m sick. 426

... rodarfarsichetorimigin? ma’ni ye...chiye? penicillin peanuts khejalat bekesh! Shame onyou! tuvaletkojast? isthetoilet? Where begiram mikhambasefarat/konsulgarikhodamtamas myembassy/consulate. I wishtocontact the police an ambulance a doctor ...! Call Go away! Stop! Help! EMERGENCIES FARSI ••LanguageDifficulties bothering her) zanbur asperin ist! komak! kandom mariz am ... daram keremezeddaftab asperin daru ...khabarkonin! asm es-hal zeddeufunikonande

diyabet kam khuni penisilin gom sho! ye doktor antibiyutik zeddehamelegi polis o be...hassasiyatdaram (saidbyawomantoman ye ambulans badum zanini 30 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 graphic style two differentwaysdependingonthecalli- The numbersfourandsixcanbewritten written fromlefttoright(asinEnglish). Unlike Arabicwrittentext,numbersare NUMBERS What? Who? QUESTION WORDS one million 4000 3000 2000 1000 500 400 300 200 167 100 90 80 70 60 50 45 40

bistodo bistoyek si bist nuzdah hijdah hifdah shanzdah punzdah chahardah sizdah davazdah yazdah chehelopanj navad hashtad haftad shast panjah chehel sadoshasthaft punsad chaharsad sisad divist sad chahar se do hezar hezar hezar hezar

yek milyon noh hasht haft shish panj chahar se do yek sefr dah che? ki?

lonelyplanet.com ١٠٠٠ ٢٠٠٠ ٣٠٠٠ ۴٠٠٠ ۴ ٦ ١٠٠ ١۶٧ ٢٠٠ ٣٠٠ ۴٠٠ ۵٠٠ or or ١٠ ١١ ١٢ ١٣ ١٣ ١۵ ١۶ ١٧ ١٨ ١٩ ٢٠ ٢١ ٢٢ ٣٠ ۴٠ ۴٠ ۵٠ ۶٠ ٧٠ ٨٠ ٩٠ ٠ ١ ٢ ٣ ٤ ۵ ۶ ٧ ٨ ٩ many tomans?’) How? Why? Which? Where? When? lonelyplanet.com

Monday Sunday Saturday year month day pm afternoon, morning, am tonight yesterday tomorrow today What timeisit? TIME &DATES bigger smaller less more I thinkit’stoo I’m justlooking. Ilookatit? May it. I don’tlike How muchisit? tobuy... I’d like town square tourist office public toilet public telephone post office police market mosque lodging house hotel embassy consulate city centre church bank isthe...? Where SHOPPING &SERVICES I’ll take it. I’ll take expensive. ruz kam sal ziyad

emruz mah

bank

hotel yek shanbe

emshab polis do shanbe kelisa shanbe bazar masjed diruz farda unomikharam markazeshahr edareyepost sob azunkhosh amnemiyad tuvaleteumumi meydunashahr ba’dazzohr fekrmikonamunkheyligerune edareyejahangardi che ghadr? sa’atchande? mishenegali eshkonam? mosaferkhùneh ... koja st? faghatnegahmikonam telefon eumumi koja? chand toman? key? chetor? bozorgtar kuchiktar mikham ...bekharam sefarat konsulgari chera? kodam? (youcanalsosay –literally‘how bicycle motorbike 4WD car a... tohire I’d like Transport Private Does thebusstopfortoiletbreaks? How muchisitto...? I wanttogo... from? doesthe...busleave Where Could youletmeknowwhenwegetto... dar...tavaghghofdarin? Do youstopat...? inutubusbe...mire? Does thisbusgoto...? take? How longdoesthetrip 2nd class 1st class return ticket one-way ticket a.... I’d like next last first the ...bus? What timeis train plane bus boat the ...leave/arrive? What timedoes train station bus stop airport isthe...? Where Transport Public TRANSPORT Friday Thursday Wednesday Tuesday in utubusbarayedastshuyinegahmidare? be ...cheghadrmishe? mikham be...beram koja mitunamutubuse...rosavarsham? mishe vaghtibe...residimmanbegin? in mosaferatcheghadrtulmikeshe? utubus akhar avval jom’e ghayegh ba’di ghatar havapeyma se shanbe daraje yek furudgah daraje do panj shanbe istgaheutubus FARSI ••Shopping&Services chahar shanbe ... mikham utubuse...keymiyad? istgaheghatar belitedosare ... koja st? ...chesa’atiharekat beliteyesare docharkhe motorsiklet patrol mashin mikham ...kerayekonam mikone/mirese?

427 LANGUAGE LANGUAGE

lotfanun obenevisin itdown. Please write What does...mean? How doyousay...inFarsi? na mifahmam I don’tunderstand. mifahmam I understand. injakesiingilisibalade? speakEnglish? Does anyonehere shomaingilisibaladin? Do youspeakEnglish? LANGUAGE DIFFICULTIES bees aspirin antibiotics to... I’m allergic diabetes asthma anaemia ... I have sunblock medicine diarrhoea contraceptive condom aspirin antiseptic I’m sick. 426

... rodarfarsichetorimigin? ma’ni ye...chiye? penicillin peanuts khejalat bekesh! Shame onyou! tuvaletkojast? isthetoilet? Where begiram mikhambasefarat/konsulgarikhodamtamas myembassy/consulate. I wishtocontact the police an ambulance a doctor ...! Call Go away! Stop! Help! EMERGENCIES FARSI ••LanguageDifficulties bothering her) zanbur asperin ist! komak! kandom mariz am ... daram keremezeddaftab asperin daru ...khabarkonin! asm es-hal zeddeufunikonande

diyabet kam khuni penisilin gom sho! ye doktor antibiyutik zeddehamelegi polis o be...hassasiyatdaram (saidbyawomantoman ye ambulans badum zanini 30 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 graphic style two differentwaysdependingonthecalli- The numbersfourandsixcanbewritten written fromlefttoright(asinEnglish). Unlike Arabicwrittentext,numbersare NUMBERS What? Who? QUESTION WORDS one million 4000 3000 2000 1000 500 400 300 200 167 100 90 80 70 60 50 45 40

chehelopanj navad hashtad bistodo haftad bistoyek shast panjah chehel si bist nuzdah hijdah hifdah shanzdah punzdah chahardah sizdah davazdah yazdah sadoshasthaft punsad chaharsad sisad divist sad chahar se do hezar hezar hezar hezar

yek milyon noh hasht haft shish panj chahar se do yek sefr dah che? ki?

lonelyplanet.com ١٠٠٠ ٢٠٠٠ ٣٠٠٠ ۴٠٠٠ ۴ ٦ ١٠٠ ١۶٧ ٢٠٠ ٣٠٠ ۴٠٠ ۵٠٠ or or ١٠ ١١ ١٢ ١٣ ١٣ ١۵ ١۶ ١٧ ١٨ ١٩ ٢٠ ٢١ ٢٢ ٣٠ ۴٠ ۴٠ ۵٠ ۶٠ ٧٠ ٨٠ ٩٠ ٠ ١ ٢ ٣ ٤ ۵ ۶ ٧ ٨ ٩ many tomans?’) How? Why? Which? Where? When? lonelyplanet.com Monday Sunday Saturday year month day pm afternoon, morning, am tonight yesterday tomorrow today What timeisit? TIME &DATES bigger smaller less more I thinkit’stoo I’m justlooking. Ilookatit? May it. I don’tlike How muchisit? tobuy... I’d like town square tourist office public toilet public telephone post office police market mosque lodging house hotel embassy consulate city centre church bank isthe...? Where SHOPPING &SERVICES I’ll take it. I’ll take expensive. ruz kam sal ziyad

emruz mah

bank

hotel yek shanbe

emshab polis do shanbe kelisa shanbe bazar masjed diruz farda unomikharam markazeshahr edareyepost sob azunkhosh amnemiyad tuvaleteumumi meydunashahr ba’dazzohr fekrmikonam unkheyligerune edareyejahangardi che ghadr? sa’atchande? mishenegalieshkonam? mosaferkhùneh ... koja st? faghatnegahmikonam telefon eumumi koja? chand toman? chetor? key? bozorgtar kuchiktar mikham ...bekharam sefarat konsulgari chera? kodam? (youcanalsosay –literally‘how bicycle motorbike 4WD car a... tohire I’d like Transport Private Does thebusstopfortoiletbreaks? How muchisitto...? I wanttogo... from? doesthe...busleave Where Could youletmeknowwhenwegetto... dar...tavaghghofdarin? Do youstopat...? inutubusbe...mire? Does thisbusgoto...? take? How longdoesthetrip 2nd class 1st class return ticket one-way ticket a.... I’d like next last first the ...bus? What timeis train plane bus boat the ...leave/arrive? What timedoes train station bus stop airport isthe...? Where Transport Public TRANSPORT Friday Thursday Wednesday Tuesday in utubusbarayedastshuyinegahmidare? be ...cheghadrmishe? mikham be...beram koja mitunamutubuse...rosavarsham? mishe vaghtibe...residimmanbegin? in mosaferatcheghadrtulmikeshe? utubus akhar avval jom’e ghayegh ba’di ghatar havapeyma se shanbe daraje yek furudgah daraje do panj shanbe istgaheutubus FARSI ••Shopping&Services chahar shanbe ... mikham utubuse...keymiyad? istgaheghatar belitedosare ... koja st? ...chesa’atiharekat beliteyesare docharkhe motorsiklet patrol mashin mikham ...kerayekonam mikone/mirese?

427 LANGUAGE LANGUAGE downat... hasbroken car/motorbike The (I/We) needamechanic. How longcanweparkhere? unleaded (petrol) leaded petrol diesel ...litres. I’d like Please fillitup. station? aservice Where’s Is thistheroadto...? 428 © LonelyPlanetPublications mashin/mororsiklet dar...kharabshode ye mekanik(mikhaham/mikhayim) che ghadrmisheinjaparkkard? ... litrbenzinmikham lotfan bakoporkonin pomp ebenzinba’dikojast? in jaddebe...mire? FARSI ••TravelwithChildren

ma’muli

Farsi Phrasebook Also availablefromLonely Planet: gazoyil bedun esorb srle allowed? children Are stroller potty highchair disposable nappies/ children’s menu car baby-seat babychangeroom I needa... Is a/an...? there TRAVEL WITHCHILDREN I hadanaccident. benzinamtamumshode runoutofpetrol. I’ve formula man tasadofkardam diapers (infant milk)

bachche haejazedarand? man yek....lazemdaram yek....hast? kaleske lagane bachche sandaliye boland shire khoshk pushak liste ghazayebachcheha sandaliye bachche otaghe avazkardanebachche lonelyplanet.com LANGUAGE downat... hasbroken car/motorbike The (I/We) needamechanic. How longcanweparkhere? unleaded (petrol) leaded petrol diesel ...litres. I’d like Please fillitup. station? aservice Where’s Is thistheroadto...? 428 © LonelyPlanetPublications mashin/mororsiklet dar...kharabshode ye mekanik(mikhaham/mikhayim) che ghadrmisheinjaparkkard? ... litrbenzinmikham lotfan bakoporkonin pomp ebenzinba’dikojast? in jaddebe...mire? FARSI ••TravelwithChildren

ma’muli

Farsi Phrasebook Also availablefromLonely Planet: gazoyil bedun esorb srle allowed? children Are stroller potty highchair disposable nappies/ children’s menu car baby-seat babychangeroom I needa... Is a/an...? there TRAVEL WITHCHILDREN I hadanaccident. benzinamtamumshode runoutofpetrol. I’ve

formula man tasadofkardam diapers (infant milk)

bachche haejazedarand? man yek....lazemdaram yek....hast? kaleske lagane bachche sandaliye boland shire khoshk pushak liste ghazayebachcheha sandaliye bachche otaghe avazkardanebachche lonelyplanet.com © Lonely Planet Publications 429 Glossary enqelab – revolution Here, with definitions, are some unfamil- iarCONTENTS words and abbreviations. Generally the Farsi – Persian language or people Farsi words in this book are transliterations Ferdosi – one of the great Persian poets, born about AD of colloquial usage. See Language (p423 ) for 940 in Tus, near Mashhad; wrote the first epic poem, the other useful words and phrases. See also the Shahnamah (see p74 ) food glossary (p84 ) for culinary terms. fire temple – see ateshkadeh agha – sir; gentleman gabbeh – traditional rug Allah – Muslim name for God golestan – rose garden; name of poem by Sa’di aramgah – resting place; burial place; tomb gonbad – dome, domed monument or tower tomb; also arg, ark – citadel written ‘gombad’ astan-e – sanctuary; threshold ateshkadeh – a Zoroastrian fire temple where a flame Hafez – one of the great Persian poets, born in Shiraz in was always kept burning about AD 1324; see the boxed text ( p74 ) ayatollah – Shiite cleric of the highest rank, used as a title haj – pilgrimage to Mecca before the name; literally means a ‘sign or miracle of God’ halal – permitted by Islamic law; lawful to eat or drink azad – free; liberated hammam – bath, public bathhouse; bathroom azadi – freedom Hazrat-e – title used before the name of Mohammed, any other apostle of Islam or a Christian saint badgir – windtower or ventilation shaft used to catch hejab – veil; the ‘modest dress’ required of Muslim breezes and funnel them down into a building to cool it women and girls bagh – garden Hossein – the third of the 12 imams recognised by Shiites bandar – port; harbour as successors of the Prophet Mohammed (see the boxed Bandari – indigenous inhabitant of the Persian Gulf coast text, p56 ) and islands Hosseinieh – see takieh bastan – ancient; ancient history; antiquity bazar – bazaar; market place imam – ‘emam’ in Farsi; religious leader, also title of bazari – shopkeeper in the bazaar one of the 12 descendants of Mohammed who, according behesht – paradise to Shiite belief, succeeded him as religious and temporal boq’eh – mausoleum leader of the Muslims; see the boxed text ( p56 ) borj – tower Imam Reza – the eighth Shiite imam (see the boxed bozorg – big, large, great text, p353 ) burqa – a mask with tiny slits for the eyes worn by some imamzadeh – descendant of an imam; shrine or mauso- Bandari women leum of an imamzadeh insh’Allah – if God wills it caliphate – the dynasty of the successors of the Prophet istgah – station (especially train station) Mohammed as rulers of the Islamic world iwan – ‘eivan’ in Farsi; barrel-vaulted hall opening onto caravanserai – an inn or way-station for camel trains; a courtyard usually consisting of rooms arranged around a courtyard chador – literally ‘tent’; a cloak, usually black, covering Jameh Mosque – Masjed-e Jameh in Farsi; meaning all parts of a woman’s body except the hands, feet and face Congregational Mosque, sometimes mis-translated as coffeenet – internet café Friday Mosque cuneiform – ancient wedge-shaped script used in Persia kabir – great GLOSSARY dar baste – literally closed door, used in taxis to indicate kalisa – church (sometimes cathedral) you want a private hire kavir – salt desert darvazeh – gate or gateway, especially a city gate khalij – gulf; bay darya – sea khan – feudal lord, title of respect dasht – plain; plateau; desert, specifically one of sand khan-e sonnati – traditional house or gravel kuche – lane; alley © Lonely Planet Publications 429 Glossary enqelab – revolution Here, with definitions, are some unfamil- iarCONTENTS words and abbreviations. Generally the Farsi – Persian language or people Farsi words in this book are transliterations Ferdosi – one of the great Persian poets, born about AD of colloquial usage. See Language (p423 ) for 940 in Tus, near Mashhad; wrote the first epic poem, the other useful words and phrases. See also the Shahnamah (see p74 ) food glossary (p84 ) for culinary terms. fire temple – see ateshkadeh agha – sir; gentleman gabbeh – traditional rug Allah – Muslim name for God golestan – rose garden; name of poem by Sa’di aramgah – resting place; burial place; tomb gonbad – dome, domed monument or tower tomb; also arg, ark – citadel written ‘gombad’ astan-e – sanctuary; threshold ateshkadeh – a Zoroastrian fire temple where a flame Hafez – one of the great Persian poets, born in Shiraz in was always kept burning about AD 1324; see the boxed text ( p74 ) ayatollah – Shiite cleric of the highest rank, used as a title haj – pilgrimage to Mecca before the name; literally means a ‘sign or miracle of God’ halal – permitted by Islamic law; lawful to eat or drink azad – free; liberated hammam – bath, public bathhouse; bathroom azadi – freedom Hazrat-e – title used before the name of Mohammed, any other apostle of Islam or a Christian saint badgir – windtower or ventilation shaft used to catch hejab – veil; the ‘modest dress’ required of Muslim breezes and funnel them down into a building to cool it women and girls bagh – garden Hossein – the third of the 12 imams recognised by Shiites bandar – port; harbour as successors of the Prophet Mohammed (see the boxed Bandari – indigenous inhabitant of the Persian Gulf coast text, p56 ) and islands Hosseinieh – see takieh bastan – ancient; ancient history; antiquity bazar – bazaar; market place imam – ‘emam’ in Farsi; religious leader, also title of bazari – shopkeeper in the bazaar one of the 12 descendants of Mohammed who, according behesht – paradise to Shiite belief, succeeded him as religious and temporal boq’eh – mausoleum leader of the Muslims; see the boxed text ( p56 ) borj – tower Imam Reza – the eighth Shiite imam (see the boxed bozorg – big, large, great text, p353 ) burqa – a mask with tiny slits for the eyes worn by some imamzadeh – descendant of an imam; shrine or mauso- Bandari women leum of an imamzadeh insh’Allah – if God wills it caliphate – the dynasty of the successors of the Prophet istgah – station (especially train station) Mohammed as rulers of the Islamic world iwan – ‘eivan’ in Farsi; barrel-vaulted hall opening onto caravanserai – an inn or way-station for camel trains; a courtyard usually consisting of rooms arranged around a courtyard chador – literally ‘tent’; a cloak, usually black, covering Jameh Mosque – Masjed-e Jameh in Farsi; meaning all parts of a woman’s body except the hands, feet and face Congregational Mosque, sometimes mis-translated as coffeenet – internet café Friday Mosque cuneiform – ancient wedge-shaped script used in Persia kabir – great GLOSSARY dar baste – literally closed door, used in taxis to indicate kalisa – church (sometimes cathedral) you want a private hire kavir – salt desert darvazeh – gate or gateway, especially a city gate khalij – gulf; bay darya – sea khan – feudal lord, title of respect dasht – plain; plateau; desert, specifically one of sand khan-e sonnati – traditional house or gravel kuche – lane; alley GLOSSARY et (p74) text the Shiitemonthofmourning before theniche inIran,specificallytheholecutground of Mecca; mer; hisbest-knownpoemisthe andastrono- famous asapoet,mathematician,historian the above - ‘Do the right thingwithourcontent.’ the above -‘Dotheright thetermsandconditions onoursiteforalongerwayofsaying youknow,orresell it.See everyone site,mass emailitto only. Inotherwords, pleasedon’tuploadthischapterto apeer-to-peer Inreturn, wethinkit’sfair toaskyouuseitforpersonal,non-commercial purposes restricted. © LonelyPlanetPublications. iteasierforyoutouse,access tothischapterisnotdigitally Tomake Quran qar qanat qalyan qal’eh pol pik-up Persian Persia pasazh Omar Khayyam No Ruz mullah muezzin or passenger ‘mosafer’ meanstraveller cheapest, simplestkind; mosaferkhaneh Moharram minbar mihrab mehmansara mehmanpazir mehmankhaneh Jameh Masjed-e masjed markazi manar Majlis madraseh Kufic 430 © LonelyPlanetPublications vernal equinox(usuallyaround21March) from theabout7thto13thcenturies the Iranianlanguage,peopleandculture teahouses –bridge –cave GLOSSARY – foundonmanybuildingsdating ancient script – underground water channel water –underground – Iranian Parliament –Iranian – Muslim holy book holy –Muslim – old nameforIran – fortress; fortified walledvillage fortified – fortress; – utility vehiclewithacanvascover – minaret; towerofamosque intraditional – water pipe,usuallysmoked – Iranian NewYear’s Day,celebratedonthe – passage; shopping arcade shopping –passage; – titleofrespect Islamic cleric; – placeofworship mosque; Muslim – pulpit ofamosque – niche insideamosqueindicatingthedirection andnounfrequently– usedtodescribe adjective – centre; headquarters –centre; – toprayer person atmosquewhocallsMuslims – theologicalcollege school; alsoMuslim – lunarcalendar, first monthoftheMuslim – government-owned resthouse orhotel – a simple hotel simple –a – born inNeishaburabout1047and – lodging-house orhotelofthe –see –hotel Jameh Mosque Rubaïyat ; seetheboxed sometimes calleda Moharram; memorate thedeathofImamHosseinduring Iran–Iraq War orthe theIslamicRevolution during of afighterkilled accompaniment of a drumbeat; see the boxed text ( accompaniment ofadrumbeat;seetheboxed text p52 ) feats ofstrength, ofritualised alltothe aseries perform refers betweencities tolongertrips mainly inYazd, Tehran Shiraz,Kerman, andEsfahan arebefore found theIslamicconquest;todayZoroastrians cities; theyusuallyrunonsetroutes toman terminal tappeh takieh takht ta’arof shuttle taxi shahr shahid shah savari sardar Sa’di ruz the boxed text, p74 ) (see Sufiorder–thewhirlingdervishes ing theMaulavi Rumi rud, rudkhuneh rial Ramazan zurkhaneh Zoroastrianism ziggurat zarih dan yakh vakil Bustan most famousworksare the square or rectangular plan square orrectangular the monthoffasting –day – currency of Iran; equal to one-tenth ofa – currency ofIran;equaltoone-tenth – one ofthegreat Persian poets(AD1207–91);his – king; theusualtitleofPersian – monarch king; –regent – the gildedandlatticed‘cage’thatsitsoveratomb – famous poet(bornin1207)credited withfound- – throne, alsothedaybed-styletablesinteahouses (Garden of Trees); see the boxed text ( ofTrees); seetheboxed text (Garden p74 ) – town or city or –town car;localwordforashared– taxi,usually private – military governor –military tocom- – therituals building usedduring – unit ofcurrency equalto10 – ritualised politeness; see the boxed text ( politeness;seetheboxed– text ritualised p45 ) – martyr; usedasatitlebefore theforename – martyr; – hill; mound –hill; oftiersona – pyramidal templewithaseries – terminal; bus station bus –terminal; – mud-brick ice house ice –mud-brick – lunarcalendar; ninth monthintheMuslim – literally ‘houseofstrength’; agroupofmen – common form of public transport within – common formofpublictransport – ancient religion, thestatecreed – river; stream –river; Hosseinieh Golestan (Rose Garden) and (RoseGarden) lonelyplanet.com rials toman GLOSSARY et (p74) text the Shiitemonthofmourning before theniche inIran,specificallytheholecutground of Mecca; mer; hisbest-knownpoemisthe andastrono- famous asapoet,mathematician,historian the above - ‘Do the right thingwithourcontent.’ the above -‘Dotheright thetermsandconditions onoursiteforalongerwayofsaying youknow,orresell it.See everyone site,mass emailitto only. Inotherwords, pleasedon’tuploadthischapterto apeer-to-peer Inreturn, wethinkit’sfair toaskyouuseitforpersonal,non-commercial purposes restricted. © LonelyPlanetPublications. iteasierforyoutouse,access tothischapterisnotdigitally Tomake Quran qar qanat qalyan qal’eh pol pik-up Persian Persia pasazh Omar Khayyam No Ruz mullah muezzin or passenger ‘mosafer’ meanstraveller cheapest, simplestkind; mosaferkhaneh Moharram minbar mihrab mehmansara mehmanpazir mehmankhaneh Jameh Masjed-e masjed markazi manar Majlis madraseh Kufic 430 © LonelyPlanetPublications vernal equinox(usuallyaround21March) from theabout7thto13thcenturies the Iranianlanguage,peopleandculture teahouses –bridge –cave GLOSSARY – foundonmanybuildingsdating ancient script – underground water channel water –underground – Iranian Parliament –Iranian – Muslim holy book holy –Muslim – old nameforIran – fortress; fortified walledvillage fortified – fortress; – utility vehiclewithacanvascover – minaret; towerofamosque intraditional – water pipe,usuallysmoked – Iranian NewYear’s Day,celebratedonthe – passage; shopping arcade shopping –passage; – titleofrespect Islamic cleric; – placeofworship mosque; Muslim – pulpit ofamosque – niche insideamosqueindicatingthedirection andnounfrequently– usedtodescribe adjective – centre; headquarters –centre; – toprayer person atmosquewhocallsMuslims – theologicalcollege school; alsoMuslim – lunarcalendar, first monthoftheMuslim – government-owned resthouse orhotel – a simple hotel simple –a – born inNeishaburabout1047and – lodging-house orhotelofthe –see –hotel Jameh Mosque Rubaïyat ; seetheboxed accompaniment of a drumbeat; see the boxed text ( accompaniment ofadrumbeat;seetheboxed text p52 ) feats ofstrength, ofritualised alltothe aseries perform sometimes calleda Moharram; memorate thedeathofImamHosseinduring Iran–Iraq War orthe theIslamicRevolution during of afighterkilled mainly inYazd, Tehran Shiraz,Kerman, andEsfahan arebefore found theIslamicconquest;todayZoroastrians cities; theyusuallyrunonsetroutes refers betweencities tolongertrips toman terminal tappeh takieh takht ta’arof shuttle taxi shahr shahid shah savari sardar Sa’di ruz Rumi rud, rudkhuneh rial Ramazan zurkhaneh Zoroastrianism ziggurat zarih dan yakh vakil the boxed text, p74 ) (see Sufiorder–thewhirlingdervishes ing theMaulavi square or rectangular plan square orrectangular Bustan most famousworksare the the monthoffasting –day – currency of Iran; equal to one-tenth ofa – currency ofIran;equaltoone-tenth – one ofthegreat Persian poets(AD1207–91);his – king; theusualtitleofPersian – monarch king; –regent – the gildedandlatticed‘cage’thatsitsoveratomb – famous poet(bornin1207)credited withfound- – throne, alsothedaybed-styletablesinteahouses (Garden of Trees); see the boxed text ( ofTrees); seetheboxed text (Garden p74 ) – town or city or –town car;localwordforashared– taxi,usually private – military governor –military tocom- – therituals building usedduring – unit ofcurrency equalto10 – ritualised politeness; see the boxed text ( politeness;seetheboxed– text ritualised p45 ) – martyr; usedasatitlebefore theforename – martyr; – hill; mound –hill; oftiersona – pyramidal templewithaseries – terminal; bus station bus –terminal; – mud-brick ice house ice –mud-brick – lunarcalendar; ninth monthintheMuslim – literally ‘houseofstrength’; agroupofmen – common form of public transport within – common formofpublictransport – ancient religion, thestatecreed – river; stream –river; Hosseinieh Golestan (Rose Garden) and (RoseGarden) lonelyplanet.com rials toman