Changing of plans by force

Turkmenistan will have to wait…

To obtain the visa for Uzbekistan I needed a letter of recommendation from my embassy in Iran, So I went to the embassy of Spain to ask for a letter of recommendation (As Argentinian I also needed a letter of invitation to the country – and I didn’t have it).

After fighting with some taxi drivers I finally arrived at the embassy of Spain, I was the only person there so I told the receptionist that I wanted a letter of recommendation, She was Iranian but knew some Spanish, she asked me if I was going by bike, I said no, she asked me where I was going and I said Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. She called the secretary of the Consul and like 1 hour later she came to tell me off. She said that Afghanistan and Pakistan are dangerous countries, I looked at her a bit confused and said, I don’t want to go to those countries I want to go to Uzbekistan and  I have to cross Turkmenistan, and she answered Turkmenistan and all the “-tans” are dangerous, I am not giving you a letter of recommendation, and she gave me 3 pages to read about Iran neighbouring countries.

I found "kun" aguero in Tehran :)

The pages didn't mention Turkmenistan at all, but I guess it was a bad day for the lady and she didn't want me to go there (My accent is not Spanish, so I guess she was even more upset that a foreigner was making use of their sacred embassy). She asked me for my passport and left. Later, she called the receptionist and she asked me how I was getting to Uzbekistan so I said by bus...she asked again, I said by bus, she asked the third time and I said plane and she was happy.

The secretary returned with a paper saying that I am not going to Turkmenistan, they also wrote a letter to the embassy of Turkmenistan in which they asked them not to give me a visa because they were not going to be responsible of me.

Kandovan

They gave me my letter, I signed a paper, I went to the embassy of Uzbekistan and 7 days later I got my visa. I am so frustrated that I am not going to Turkmenistan, one of the closest and most mysterious countries in the world, but I will say this again... there is a reason for everything.

I said goodbye to my Iranian family and Turkey received me for some days before crossing to Ukraine and Moldova. There were many Iranians telling me not to go to Ukraine as it is a dangerous country... I smiled and left.

I will return to you Iran... I will return...

Looking at Kandovan from the mountains

Iranian facts (things that I found interesting)

Things that you didn’t know about Iran… (all the things were told to me by Iranians or I saw them happening, I am so sorry if you disagree but these were written according to my experiences)

• Boyfriend and girlfriend are not allowed to be together in public (no exception)
• You can marry your girlfriend for a short time (many couples do that in order to be able to be together in public)

  

  The New Modern Mosque

  

  People playing at night

  
  
• Men are allowed to marry many women, women are allowed to marry only one man.
• Women must wear hijab all the time in front of men. (I guess they take it away when they go to sleep).
• Alcoholic drinks are forbidden

  

  The Capital at night

  
  
  
  
  

  

  Nothing to fear...kids playing at night

• This is the Islamic Republic of Iran, therefore if you were born in a Muslim family you should be a Muslim.
• As they have to be Muslim, they say they are Muslim…by name, but the reality is that society is very secular here and many people don’t believe in Islam.
• If a Muslim converts into Christianity, he/she must be killed.

  

  Typical Ramadan food (it is similar to something in Argentina)

  
  

  

  I converted somebody in a "Gaucho"

• There is “freedom” of belief but not of spreading your ideas (unless you are Muslim)
• There are Jewish Iranians
• There are Christians in Iran that gather in their churches (official churches such as the Armenian Orthodox church)

  

  Armenian Orthodox Church in Tehran

  
  
  
  
  
  
• If you ask many of the young girls in the street if they want to wear hijab… they will say no.
• Not all Iranians are Persian, there are Azeri, Turkmen, Kurdish and Arab people(and there might be more races that I haven’t heard of)
• Bahrain was part of Iran but it got its independence some years ago.

  

  The Veil helps men no to have desires...

  
  

  

  Freedom Square (Azadi) they told me this is the most Ironic Monument here

• The south of Iran wants to be independent (Arab majority)
• Vasectomy is forbidden
• Men have to wear long trousers all the time, the only exception is when they go to the beach.
• Satellites are forbidden, though most of the houses have one that they use to watch western channels.
• Many websites are forbidden (facebook, youtube, and thousands of others), but if you buy a cheap software in the streets you can filter your computer and use it for whatever you want.

  

  Iman Khomeini Airport

  
  

  

  Park at 1 am in the morning

  
  

  

  The Army of my enemies...

• ATM machines only receive Iranian cards.
• An average salary is between USD 225 and USD 300.
• Iranians don’t need visa for some countries, such as Venezuela and Ecuador.
• They are very hospitable.
• Boys have to be 2 years in the army, it is obligatory. They cannot leave the country until they complete their military service (they cannot be passport holders).

  

  My Iranian family

  
  
  
• Farsi use the same alphabet as Arabic but they are totally different (It is like Spanish and English, they use the same alphabet but they are different)
• There are no terrorists’ attacks in Iran, you don’t see destroyed houses or buildings.
• The average people don’t have any problem with the US or Israel, most of them say that is a stupid political thing, though you find people that are anti-Israel and anti-US.

  

  Anti Israel sign in the metro

• Women don’t wear burka here, women can study, work, drive, go shopping alone, go to the beach alone, etc.
• Women cannot smoke in public, but men can!
• There is a special police department; they patrol the streets looking at the way of dressing of the people. They can put you in prison if you are a girl and they think your dress is too short or your trousers to tight. These “fashion police officers” (gashte Ershad) help you to go to heaven teaching you the good way.



Crazy traffic in Tehran

• The weekend days are Thursday and Friday. They work from Sunday to Wednesday. 

  

  This reminds me of Jujuy
  

  
  

  
  



Non Alcoholic beer

Confessions of a guy from Jujuy in Iran

Before I started my trip, I said that I was going to be at least 10 days in Iran (mainly because of what happened last year when I couldn't get the visa to come). I am happy to say that it’s been 14 days already, and I am not sure how long more I am going to stay here as my plans are changing every day.

My beloved rucksack is again with me :)

The Second thing I said before coming to Iran is that after Iran I will go to Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and maybe the other “tan-s” (yep, that includes Afghanistan). At the same time I said I wasn’t sure about Tajikistan and that maybe I was going to leave Kazakhstan for another occasion (it’s the 9^th biggest country in the world after Argentina and I needed to apply for a difficult visa). Well, today I checked on the internet and I discovered that Argentina and Kazakhstan signed a free-visa agreement until July next year… and that is tempting.

Tabriz

The third thing I said is that I might spend most of my time in Iran and if I have time I would go to the other countries. I am not sure of what can happen tomorrow…

The fourth thing… I never mentioned that I wanted to go to China in this trip… but I discovered that Iran is the dreamland for visas, the Chinese visa only takes 4 days to be granted and it’s cheaper than in many other countries AND they only ask you to fill in a form, 2 pictures and the money, no reasons of why you want to go or what you are going to do or where you are going to stay… and that is tempting.

carpets in Tabriz (they are really expensive)

The fifth thing I said is that my trip finishes in Ukraine, so I was planning to fly from Bishkek or Tashkent to Kiev, but after the Malaysian Airlines plane shot down… I guess that is not a good idea now… Russia wasn’t in my plans until the plane situation, but now I guess I should have to go to Russia to go by land to Ukraine.

The sixth thing… Mongolia wasn’t in my plans as I needed visa… well, I read that they started a testing visa-free regime and guess what? Argentina is in the list! And that is tempting…

Tabriz

The seventh thing… Everything has its time on earth, even my trips. I was accused by certain guy that I am obsessed by traveling and that I don’t care about anything else, and that I don’t care about anybody rather than me (if you are curious reading my things – yes, I am talking about you and I am waiting for your apologies). He told that to me in a raised tone of voice while I know he is obsessed by his motorbike and his things and he doesn’t give a thing for anybody rather than his family and the things he likes and believes. If he knew me a bit better, he would have known that I decided early this year that this trip is my last big trip. (It doesn’t mean that I am not going to travel anymore, it just means that this is the last trip traveling alone for a long time and in my style of traveling)

But leaving that guy behind I just want to say that my trips come to an end. I am seriously thinking to change all my plans and instead of going to the “tans” and traveling from there to Ukraine, I might go to Iraq and then Turkey and there catch a cheap flight to Ukraine. (I read that some Turkish airlines have suspended their flights to Ukraine).

Life changes, and sometimes too fast, but the things that exist are allowed to be by Somebody Greater. Even the bad things that happen don’t escape from His hands.

Thanks for reading…

Stories from Iran 7 stories for 8 days

It has been 7 days since I arrived at Iran, I am very well and enjoying the more than 45 degrees Centigrade everyday, and now I can update my blog (I will explain it later why I didn't do it before). I arrived at Iran early morning after a whole day traveling from Melksham to Chippenham, from Chippenham to Heathrow, from Heathrow to Luton, from Luton to Istanbul and finally from Istanbul to Tehran, the capital of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

Jujuy - Argentina in Iran

Story 1: But I think this was a special flight, 2 days before my flight I was bitten by a dog, who left 34 wholes in my hands and arms, and I know some of them will be forever in my body. I was a bit worried that I wouldn't be able to go, actually I was told that if the infections worsen and the reach my shoulders, then they would have to cut my arms, so it was better to stay in England, but my tickets were already there... so as a good disobedient guy I decided to go anyway, even though I couldn't move on of the fingers in my left hand (the one where you use the wedding ring - is that a signal of something?)

Day 0

5 days later

Story 2: In the plane an Iranian man decided to smoke, so... this was the first time in my life where I heard the alarms and the cabin crew moving, I was waiting for a bigger show, but it wasn't really like that, the only thing to highlight was that the captain called the "criminal who smoked in the bathroom" to tell him off.

Patriotic Iran

One of the many mosques here

Story 3: It's Ramadan time in all the Islamic countries, that means that people fast since till the sun comes up until the sun goes down. They need to sin less than in other times of the year and they should be better. This time also calls them to reflect on how they are living their lives as Muslims. So the first 3 days I stayed in a house with 2 practising Muslims, and I really wanted to try Ramadan, so for 2 days I fought with my hunger and ate my first meal at 8.45 pm and my last meal at 4am, I didn't drink water either. Anyway... I think this is too much for me and on the third day after walking a heavy sun and a high temperature (+45 C) I decided to drink water... and I didn't feel guilty, but it made me think about my Muslims friends. Some of them don't practice it, and they have to eat and drink hiding, I did the same, why? because if the police finds me eating and drinking in public I can spend 1 or 2 nights in jail.

My first hosts and another guy from Isfahan

Chili Iranian Crisps

"Breakfast at 4 am"

Story 4: Taxi drivers! my worst nightmare in Iran! Even since the beginning when I arrived at the airport, they wanted to ask me more money until an honest guy appeared and took me for the right price, it seems that being a foreigner means that I am sleeping in 5 stars hotels, going everywhere by taxis and eating sushi and caviar. If there is an Iranian taxi driver... I am sorry, I am not rich! On another occasion they wanted me to pay 100.000 rials for a trip that costs 15.000. They call me "friend", I would love to know how to say...no, you are not my friend you just want my money, but I guess my Farsi is not that advanced yet. Another taxi story, I asked 2 girls in the street to help me to find an address, they said it was far and therefore I should take a taxi, so they stopped one and they asked for the price, we arranged one price, then the driver couldn't find the address and I arrived late at one of the embassies and I lost my chance to finish my papers because of him, but he wanted more money because it took him a lot of time to find the street... a police officer came and I explained the situation and he ordered the taxi driver to go away :) I have many more, I guess I should write a post only about taxi drivers.

taxis and more taxis

Perfect Roads in Tehran

Story 4: My Argentinian Iranian family. A guy invited me to his house to watch the World Cup Final match, I accepted but I asked him also if I could stay at his house as the match was going to finish very late (around 3 am in the morning here), and he accepted, I left my first house and went there, and because I twisted my ankle I took a taxi and guess what? the taxi driver changed the arranged fee because I was carrying a bag... so he asked me more money... I don't like Iranian taxis!!!! The good thing about that day is that as soon as I arrived at their house I met people I felt I've known for ages! As soon as I enter I knew my family wasn't a typical Muslim family but I will not enter in details here :) My hosts were twins and they were with their cousin and the father who went to their house because he wanted to meet me. We shouted the goal of Higuan that was offside, and we cheered Romero, Mascherano, Messi, and it really moved me to see the girl of the house crying because Argentina lost... and I wasn't alone... I was allowed to cry (THANKS ARGENTINA FOR YOUR FOOTBALL - YOU ARE THE REAL CHAMPIONS!)

Story 5: I look middle eastern I know that, I remember when I was in Armenia people there thought I was Iranian, when I was in Georgia people there thought I was Turkish, when I was in Turkey people there thought I was Kurdish, and when I went to Iraq, I was a westernised Iraqi walking with shorts and Argentinian shirt. In Iran is the same, sometimes people talk to me in the street in Farsi, and I have to say I don't understand in order that they will realise I am not from there. (sometimes they think I am Turkish or Kurdish). This might have an explanation but it's just a thought of a friend of mine in Turkey... I don't know if you know, but once upon a time...Southern Spain used to be Islamic Spain, and my Spanish family comes from Southern Spain, whoever who knew my father with beard might remember that he looked like a Taliban. I asked him and other relatives about our past, but they told me that the register books were burned in Spain, so we don't know where we come from, my Turkish friend opened my eyes to this theory.  

a map to help you understand Islamic Spain

Story 6: "Everything that has to do with fun is forbidden in Iran", that was the phrase another host told me most of the time, I met him in another city called Rasht. This city is known as sin city, where most of the people are non-religious, but they have to say they are, because it is the law. My new host took me to a restaurant where he arranged a guy to play Persian music for me, then we went to his house and talked about many things. It is because of him that I can write here, he gave me a filter to use in Iran so I can log in facebook and in blogger, and many other millions of millions of websites! He also took me to the Caspian Sea and just to let you know, the beaches are divided in male and female, and they don't mix unless they are married. Surprisingly, people let us enter in a part where families were enjoying the sea, I just need to remind you that women have to wear hijab all the times, it is law, so even if they want to swim they have to wear it. The police is patrolling the beach to see that everybody is behaving and not eating, so near us the made a sound because a lady was touching the face of a man, and then they came to tell us to move away because there was a woman near us.

The separated section

The Caspian sea

A lady swimming with her hijab

A whale in the Caspian Sea :)

Story 7: Iran is a safe country to visit, nothing to do with what we think in our minds. I have felt very safe these 7 days, I only struggle with taxi drivers... but I struggle with them all over the world. I went to the Argentinian embassy to ask for letters of recommendation and the Consul wanted to see me! That was the first time in my life that I met a Consul, we chatted and he told me that there is another Argentinian living in Iran... and he is the priest of the Armenian Church in Tehran, so I may pay him a visit soon, Iran has Persian, Turkmen, Azerbaijani and Kurdish people living here. The Consul also told me that Iran is the safest country in the region and they can face any terrorist attack as the army is well prepared to do so, that is why there haven't been attacks here for a long time. Everything is controlled, yes, even the terrorists. I will risk to say, Iran is even safer than some parts of Buenos Aires or Paris. Freedom is monitored and controlled. There is freedom of religion until a point, there are Jewish Iranians and they have a place in the Parliament by law, there are Armenian Orthodox Christians and they have a place in the Parliament by law, but at the same time, if a Muslim becomes a Christian there is a law that says that they must be put to death. But the Consul told me something else, the worst thing in Iran is to be an atheist, at least Christians believe in something, but an atheist denies also Allah, so that can be penalised. 

Story 8 (extra): Vasectomy is prohibited in Iran, the President asked people some time ago to have children, so now Vasectomy is penalised as well. Iranian people in the street always want to help, I have asked so many of them for help to fins streets, and some of them only know how to read Persian so they don't understand even my numbers, but they always ask other people for help to help me. A police officer gave me his phone credit card so I could make a call from a public phone and he said, "when you finish, look for me, don't worry if you use all", another man paid my shared taxi as the driver didn't have change, one girl even thought she didn't speak English or Spanish took me to a place I needed to go, even knowing that it is forbidden to be with foreigners. 2 girls walk with me for 20 minutes to take me to another place. Another invited me to show me the city. Hospitality is written HOSPITALITY here.

at least I know it's lemon!

bazaar