Esfahan nesf-e jahan. Esfahan is half the world. That’s the old adage you’ll hear thrown around within minutes of entering Iran’s cultural hub–the treasure-filled, but surprisingly modernized city of Esfahan. Like Samarkand in Uzbekistan, Esfahan is more than a historic city, it is a commercial hub and one of the largest cities in the country. …
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Six Things to See in Shiraz
Many people, myself included, associate the name ‘Shiraz‘ with the wine. I think of vineyards and rolling hills. I guess I think of a Persian Tuscany. That’s not too accurate. Shiraz is no Tuscany, it is its own place. It is a place of poets, a lush oasis in the desert, and a thriving city …
The Ruins of Persepolis
Few places capture the imagination quite like Persepolis. Known as ‘Parsa’ to the Achaemenid Persians who built it, the city is known to the West by its Greek name, which means ‘City of Persians’. Creative, those Greeks. Founded around 518 B.C. by Darius I (whom we saw buried at the Naqsh-e Rostam necropolis) and constructed over the …
The Necropolis of Naqsh-e Rostam
Over 3000 years ago, the Middle East was experiencing a time of change. The Elamite and Assyrian empires were on the decline, and several Aryan tribes ventured down from what is now Russia, drawn by the prospect of new territory. These groups were the Medes, the Parthians, and the Persians. After a period of subjegation to the …
Six Things to See in Samarkand
The Crossroads of Cultures. The popular nickname for Samarkand is an apt one; the city is a storied Silk Road hub held in awe by travelers and dreamers alike, known for its bustling bazaars, towering minarets, and magnificent architecture. The former capital of Timur the Lame–who was known to the West as Tamerlane–Samarkand is a …
A Walk Around Khiva
I almost didn’t go to Khiva. Deviating from my planned Bukhara to Samarkand route to the tiny, northern desert oasis meant enduring a 10 hour shared taxi ride from Bukhara and a 14 hour overnight train onwards to Samarkand. It wasn’t until I read ‘A Carpet Ride to Khiva’ by Christopher Alexander that I decided to …
Ten Things to See in Bukhara
For centuries, Bukhara was a critical hub on the fabled Silk Road. Controlled by the Russians, the Bukharan Emirate, the Timurids, the Sogdians, and even the Mongols; it has long been caught up in the ebb and flow of power in Central Asia. Fortunately, many architectural legacies of its past have been preserved and/or restored, …
Bukhara: Mosques, Madrasahs, and Minarets
After my ridiculous taxi trip to Bukhara from the border between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, I took a little time and enjoyed a delicious breakfast at my B&B, Rustam and Zukhra. Afterwards, I felt surprisingly awake–enough to head out and start exploring the city in lieu of collapsing onto my bed. The sights started almost immediately …
The Fortress of Hissar
After spending a week in Dushanbe doing nothing but eating, relaxing, and generally being a lazy bum–something I figured I deserved after my scary brush with altitude sickness–I felt a burning desire to get outside the city and explore. Luckily, the small town of Hissar lies just to the west of Dushanbe. Nothing special as far as …
Gyeongbokgung: the Royal Palace
A population of over 25 million people, a history stretching back over 2,000 years, one of the technological capitals of the world; Seoul is big in nearly every way imaginable. Gyeongbokgung (경복궁), one of the premier historical attractions in the city, is no exception. The 14th century royal palace grounds have a wall encompassing them. Beyond the …