Shiraz
18/05/14 21:14
During the night it got quite cool in the hotel room. One always forgets that we are here at around 1’600 m altitude. So the climate is mild at this time of the year.
Miss Sanaz, our guide, picks us up at 08.00h despite some resistance from our side But it is wise since it is getting already warm when we entering this Unesco World Heritage Site. There are already some tourist groups there and you can hear their guides in many languages.
Persepolis literary meaning "city of Persians",was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BC). Persepolis is situated 70 km northeast of city of Shiraz. The earliest remains of Persepolis date from around 515 BC. It exemplifies the Achaemenid style of architecture. In its heyday Persepolis spread over 125 sq km and was the heart of an empire that spread from the Indus River to Ethiopia. Persepolis was burned to the ground during Alexander the Great’ visit in 330 BC. Since this man had a big influence on the area we travel through, you can find an article in the tab „About Asia“.
After Persepolis we have a short drive to Naqsh-e Rostam, the four tombs believed to be those of Darius II, Artaxerxes I, Darius I and Xerxes I. They are hewn out of a cliff high above the ground and remind us of the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Facing the cliff is the Bun Khanak (Central Home). This was long thought to be an Achaemenid fire tenple, but it could also have been a treasury.
After that back to the city for a delicious lunch at a very local restaurants. The Persians love their food and like to go out to restaurants to enjoy it. The cuisine of Shiraz is especially known; and it’s true. After lunch we visit Aramgah-e Sa’di, the tomb of a man who wrote extensively about gardens and roses. The surrounding garden is impressive and so is the underground fishpond. After visiting a local mosque, no tourists there, we continue to Bagh-e Eram, probably the most famous garden and a World Heritage Site. During the tour, Sanaz speaks to us quite openly. Of course they have their private parties, Of course they have satellite TV and know what’s going on in the world! Plastic surgery is big with women and many have their nose done. Also Botox is big! Yes - beauty is important everywhere!!
Back in the hotel it is time to update the webpage which takes quite a while: again so many impressions to describe today!
Historically known as Persia, Iran was one of the greatest empires of the ancient world. The region now called Iran was occupied by the Medes and the Persians in the 1500s B.C. , until the Persian king Cyrus the Great overthrew the Medes and became ruler of the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire, which reached from the Indus to the Nile at its zenith in 525 B.C. Persia fell to Alexander in 331–330 B.C. and a succession of other rulers: the Seleucids (312–302 B.C. ), the Greek-speaking Parthians (247 B.C. – A.D. 226), the Sasanians (224–c. 640), and the Arab Muslims (in 641). By the mid-800s Persia had become an international scientific and cultural center. In the 12th century it was invaded by the Mongols. The Safavid dynasty (1501–1722), under whom the dominant religion became Shiite Islam, followed, and was then replaced by the Qajar dynasty (1794–1925).
During the Qajar dynasty, the Russians and the British fought for economic control of the area, and during World War I, Iran's neutrality did not stop it from becoming a battlefield for Russian and British troops. A coup in 1921 brought Reza Kahn to power. In 1925, he became shah and changed his name to Reza Shah Pahlavi. He subsequently did much to modernize the country and abolished all foreign extraterritorial rights.
Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, fled the country in 1979 after decades of corrupt and authoritarian rule, and mounting religious and political unrest. Exiled Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to lead an Islamic revolution and formed the world's first Islamic republic the same year. An eight-year war with Iraq followed.
In June 2005, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former mayor of the capital, Tehran, and famous for his conservative approach and for rolling back reforms put in place by modernists before him was elected president. He has not been shy of confronting the West and has pushed ahead with a national nuclear program that has brought international condemnation. Today’s president is more moderate and an impact in the daily life can already been felt.
Miss Sanaz, our guide, picks us up at 08.00h despite some resistance from our side But it is wise since it is getting already warm when we entering this Unesco World Heritage Site. There are already some tourist groups there and you can hear their guides in many languages.
Persepolis literary meaning "city of Persians",was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BC). Persepolis is situated 70 km northeast of city of Shiraz. The earliest remains of Persepolis date from around 515 BC. It exemplifies the Achaemenid style of architecture. In its heyday Persepolis spread over 125 sq km and was the heart of an empire that spread from the Indus River to Ethiopia. Persepolis was burned to the ground during Alexander the Great’ visit in 330 BC. Since this man had a big influence on the area we travel through, you can find an article in the tab „About Asia“.
After Persepolis we have a short drive to Naqsh-e Rostam, the four tombs believed to be those of Darius II, Artaxerxes I, Darius I and Xerxes I. They are hewn out of a cliff high above the ground and remind us of the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Facing the cliff is the Bun Khanak (Central Home). This was long thought to be an Achaemenid fire tenple, but it could also have been a treasury.
After that back to the city for a delicious lunch at a very local restaurants. The Persians love their food and like to go out to restaurants to enjoy it. The cuisine of Shiraz is especially known; and it’s true. After lunch we visit Aramgah-e Sa’di, the tomb of a man who wrote extensively about gardens and roses. The surrounding garden is impressive and so is the underground fishpond. After visiting a local mosque, no tourists there, we continue to Bagh-e Eram, probably the most famous garden and a World Heritage Site. During the tour, Sanaz speaks to us quite openly. Of course they have their private parties, Of course they have satellite TV and know what’s going on in the world! Plastic surgery is big with women and many have their nose done. Also Botox is big! Yes - beauty is important everywhere!!
Back in the hotel it is time to update the webpage which takes quite a while: again so many impressions to describe today!
Historically known as Persia, Iran was one of the greatest empires of the ancient world. The region now called Iran was occupied by the Medes and the Persians in the 1500s B.C. , until the Persian king Cyrus the Great overthrew the Medes and became ruler of the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire, which reached from the Indus to the Nile at its zenith in 525 B.C. Persia fell to Alexander in 331–330 B.C. and a succession of other rulers: the Seleucids (312–302 B.C. ), the Greek-speaking Parthians (247 B.C. – A.D. 226), the Sasanians (224–c. 640), and the Arab Muslims (in 641). By the mid-800s Persia had become an international scientific and cultural center. In the 12th century it was invaded by the Mongols. The Safavid dynasty (1501–1722), under whom the dominant religion became Shiite Islam, followed, and was then replaced by the Qajar dynasty (1794–1925).
During the Qajar dynasty, the Russians and the British fought for economic control of the area, and during World War I, Iran's neutrality did not stop it from becoming a battlefield for Russian and British troops. A coup in 1921 brought Reza Kahn to power. In 1925, he became shah and changed his name to Reza Shah Pahlavi. He subsequently did much to modernize the country and abolished all foreign extraterritorial rights.
Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, fled the country in 1979 after decades of corrupt and authoritarian rule, and mounting religious and political unrest. Exiled Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to lead an Islamic revolution and formed the world's first Islamic republic the same year. An eight-year war with Iraq followed.
In June 2005, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former mayor of the capital, Tehran, and famous for his conservative approach and for rolling back reforms put in place by modernists before him was elected president. He has not been shy of confronting the West and has pushed ahead with a national nuclear program that has brought international condemnation. Today’s president is more moderate and an impact in the daily life can already been felt.
TransAsia 2014