Hello
all :)
Note: We
apologize for the extended absence from this blog, but various forces kept us
away from creating any new posts. Work and school can sometimes be overwhelming
but none the less, S took a recent trip to the Middle East, the experience of
which we thought we would share with you all!
I recently had the opportunity to visit one of my closest friends from college, an Iranian- American who is currently residing in Tehran, Iran. Speaking from personal experience, I am the first of friends and family to ever visit a Muslim country and even though I love traveling and seeing new things, this trip was definitely an experience like no other. There’s a variety of
cultural stereotypes that come to you when you’re about to embark on such a journey but
I feel that taking a trip to a country that’s completely different from
anywhere you’ve ever been before allows you to absorb a variety of influences and learn things about yourself that you wouldn’t be able to learn
under other circumstances.
I’m
sure that anyone who ever wanted to go to Iran or another country that
requires a visa has had to go through the tiring process of figuring out how
the visa thing works. When trying to get a visa to Iran, it becomes a little
more difficult, because the bureaucracy is really bad. None the less, there are
various sites that explain how to get the best visa for your type of trip
(tourist, Visa Upon Arrival etc.) and I can say that reading through these
websites was very helpful. Even though Iran does not have many tourists, there
are a lot of people that are interested in experiencing the culture and history
of this wonderful country, so do your research and figure out the best way to get there!
There
are a few airlines that fly to Iran; the cheapest one (at least for when you’re
traveling from Greece) was Turkish airlines. The connecting flight was at Istanbul
and that’s where I quickly changed my clothes into what I was planning to wear
for entering Iran. Being a foreign woman, you want to take into consideration
that this is a Muslim country you’re visiting, but also remember that you are
just that: a foreigner. And Iranians (authorities and civilians alike) are well
aware of that. Meaning that, as long as you dress modestly, you can pretty much
wear whatever you want. And yes, you need to wear a headscarf if you’re a
woman, but honestly, it’s not that big of a deal. Some might consider it a sign of oppression towards women, but there is a cultural, social and historical background that you need to take into consideration before passing judgement. It's just a different culture :)
Tehran, the capital of Iran,
is a very fashionable place and women dress beautifully. I saw girls and
young women dressing the exact same way I do back home in Greece with the
exception that they wore head scarfs. So, what does “dressing modestly” mean
for a foreigner visiting a country where “modesty” means something completely
different? It’s true that there are rules for modesty for both men and women in
Iran, but the responsibility for dressing appropriately falls mostly on the
women. There are so many “rules” you can read about concerning how to dress
when visiting Iran but here’s my experience: jeans, a shirt, and a cardigan
that buttons at the front or a knee-length long-sleeve shirt which you can wear over
your regular clothes and under your coat (if you have one) is the best option. I wouldn’t recommend
dresses or leggings, it’s better and more comfortable to wear pants. No shorts, or short sleeves (even in the summer). Honestly,
as long as your clothes are loose and they don’t show off your curves, you’re
fine. You can wear whatever colors suit you,
paint your nails and wear as much make up as you want – you’re in the capital
of Iran and, like I said before, there are a lot of fashionable people there.
If you’re
still not sure as to what to wear, you can always buy a manto, which is what
most women wear over their clothes. I borrowed one from my friend, but for my
next visit, I think I want one of my own.
One thing to keep in mind is that you can be fashionable in Iran, if it's important to you.
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I actually really liked this one..
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Tehran
is a huge city with beautiful museums, parks, coffee shops and restaurants to
see and I must say, I am in love with Persian cuisine. There’s a particular
dish made with rice and cherries which I fell in love with. A bread called
barbari is now my favorite thing in the world. Also, everything is very affordable in Iran –
at least with the Euro and the Dollar. Another thing I fell in love with in
Tehran were the mosques. I wasn’t able to go into one on this visit, but the
exterior architecture was absolutely breath taking.
Here are some pictures to give you an idea of the things you can see in Tehran.
The walls on some of the buildings are decorated with murals, dedicated to great leaders, martyrs and the like.
Here are some pictures of a beautiful mosque...
And this is the bread I mentioned earlier, called barbari. You really need to try this when you're in Iran.
Some pictures from a lovely park near where my friend works
The park had statues with the names of the animals the statue depicted, like this one
This is a statue of Hafez, a famous Iranian poet.
And this is the Water and Fire Park in Tehran. There's a fire what water show going on at nighttime, but unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend it.
And just a couple of pictures from a museum I visited :)
Things
to keep in mind:
-
✓ Public transportation
(buses and subway) has separate sections for men and women. If you’re a woman
and there’s no space in the women’s sections, you can go to the male section,
but men can’t do the same.
-
✓ People drive like raging
psychopaths in Tehran. Seriously. Just be careful when you’re crossing streets.
My friend and I were joking that you can tell who is not from Iran by the way
they’re crossing the street: if there’s someone holding him and carefully
helping him cross the street, chances are he’s not from around there.
✓ Not many people speak English, especially cab drivers. They
understand it, but they don’t speak it. By the end of my visit, I could
actually speak very basic Persian from interacting with people all the
time and listening to my friend, her boyfriend and their friends.
Everyone’s very friendly and tries to help out as much as they can.
Hospitality
and respect is a big deal to Iranians which is something I could relate
to, and it's very comforting when you're a foreigner.
-
✓Alcohol is illegal in Iran.
-
✓There’s a variety of
different cabs to choose from. If you’re a tourist, I would stick to the yellow
of green ones that actually look like cabs, because, honestly, I couldn’t tell
the difference between the other types and civilian cars.
-
✓Visit the bazaars. It’s a
lovely experience and you get to see/buy some really cool stuff.
✓It’s nothing like the
media make it out to be…
*S
p.s If anyone is interested in further information on how to acquire a visa, what to do in Tehran, or if you have any other questions please post them in the comment section below! We will be more than happy to answer them :)
