Dearly beloved;
When last we left our intrepid traveler, he was in Shiraz, in the middle of a religious festival where, out of respect, the cars do not use their horns.
He took pictures of some young women who told him, “We love you.” He had thistles for dinner. (I assume that he meant artichokes; but, I don’t know for sure what he meant – which is often the case.)
Some of Fatima’s family joined The Tour. Moochers?
Neil met a group of five young women (± 30 years old) who all spoke English well. They had come to Shiraz to get away from their husbands. They talked about changes in society. This sounds exactly like what the guide Fatima wanted to avoid.
According to the Tour pamphlet: on day 11, Neil visited the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Persepolis; on day 12, the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Pasargadea; on day 13, Ateskadeh Eternal Flame (lit since 470); on day 14, the city of Yadz (UNESCO’s second-most-historic-city in the world).
Or, as Neil summarized, “We have had long days at a bunch of archeological sites.” Who says Americans aren’t articulate?
In this western region of Iran, the women do not wear head covering. I hope that Ahmedinejad doesn’t find out!
While driving in the countryside, Neil saw lots of goats and sheep. The goats were frightened buy the van full of Americans and try to climb the trees as the van passed by.
The conversation with Neil was short because he was using Fatima’s cell phone. That suggests some sort of détente between the two of them. (Or, maybe she is getting tired of pushing the stone uphill. Or, maybe the other tourists are even worse at talking with Iranians about politics and religion. Who knows?)
Whatever, Neil’s having fun trying to pet the feral cats.
-Steve
Leave a Reply