xEurasia Odyssey

Photos: Tabriz and NW Iran

IRAN | Tuesday, 16 Jun 2015 | Photo Gallery

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Photos: Qazvin, Ardabil, Alvaz

IRAN | Tuesday, 16 Jun 2015 | Photo Gallery

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Photos: Mt. Damavand

IRAN | Tuesday, 16 Jun 2015 | Photo Gallery

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Photos: Rey and Tehran

IRAN | Tuesday, 16 Jun 2015 | Photo Gallery

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General Impressions of Iran: Tissue Boxes, no TP

IRAN | Monday, 15 Jun 2015 | Views [631]

Tissue Boxes, but no Toilet Paper: General Impressions from a May – June 2015 Journey across Iran I wasn’t sure what to expect on my trip to Iran. Friends, family and colleagues had all expressed concern with my desire ... Read more >

A Journey Through Time: Traveling the 7 Churches Route

TURKEY | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [626]

A Journey Through Time: Traveling the Seven Churches Route The modern city of Izmir sits on ancient Symrna. The city was famous as a trade route in the ancient world and remains so today. It is my starting point for an excursion ... Read more >

Bishapur

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [458]

Bishapur It was a very long hot drive across a desert reminiscent of Gila Bend, AZ from Ahvaz to the old city of Bishapur. This city has the dual function of going down in Roman history as a place of infamy while in Iranian a place of honor.... Read more >

Na'in, Isfahan, Abyaneh, Kashan

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [767]

Na’in & the end of the Persian Journey We drove from Yazd to Isfahan via Chak Chak and Na’in. Chak Chak was a remarkable site as it is a testament to the power of nature to transform itself. I wrote about Chak Chak in the ... Read more >

Necropolis, Persepolis, Pasargadae, Caravanserai, Yazd

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [2098]

Notes from the Necropolis, Persepolis, Estakhr, and Cypress Tree Today was a fascinatingly rich day spent in the company of the spirits and remains of the greatest rulers of the Achaemenid Dynasty. We started with the Necropolis arriving ... Read more >

Susa, Haft Tappeh, Chogha Zanbil

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [770]

Susa, Haft Tappeh and Chogha Zanbil We left Kermanshah at 8am, which is a bit early for us, but we knew we had a very long drive to Ahvaz with scheduled stops in Susa, Chogha Zanbil and Shushtar. The beginning of the road was very good and ... Read more >

Hamadan, Anahita Temple - Kangavar, Biston, Tagh-e Boston

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [1082]

Hamadan is one of the oldest cities in the world. It is first mentioned in an Assyrian text from Tiglath Pilesir I, around 700 BCE, as a city built by the first Median King, but it may well be much older. It was the capital of the Median ... Read more >

Qadamgah, Mehr Temple and Takhti-e Soliemann

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [691]

Qadamgah : Amir had a friend who had a friend who was working on an Ancient Mithra temple outside of Tabriz. We connected with Saede in the foothills outside Tabriz where he showed us a wonderfully constructed beehive temple with a ca. 1 meter occulus.... Read more >

Tabriz

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [561]

Tabriz I decided to skip sitting in the car for hours today and driving to Khandovan as I’ve been to Cappadocia, and we will see Azar Shah on the way to Tahkti –el –Soliemann on Friday. I spent the day in town visiting the bazaar ... Read more >

Qazvin, Ardabil and Alvaz

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [548]

Qazvin, Ardabil and Alvaz I Ieft Tehran and Nilufer to travel for the remainder of the tour around Iran’s World Heritage sites with my new guide and driver, Amir. The drive to Qazvin took a few hours due to fairly intense traffic ... Read more >

Rey & Chak Chak: Women of the Mountains

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [553]

Rey & Chak Chak: Women of the Mountains Rey lies south of Tehran and used to be a very important site. Today hardly any Western tourists go there. In fact, in the eight years Nilufer, my guide and translator, has been doing tours, ... Read more >

Arriving in Iran & Mt. Damavand

IRAN | Sunday, 14 Jun 2015 | Views [517]

Arriving in Iran & Mt. Damavand This is my first journey to Iran and I am concerned about what I will find. Our media makes it appear that travel in this country is quite dangerous, but the positive reports from those who had ignored the ... Read more >