Hello everyone
Today we are heading to Iran
I'm going to tell you guys about my two-month Iran trip with many photos and videos
Before I start,there are some details that I would like to mention
Important issues,actually
Since Iran is governed by Sharia, while I'm telling you about Iran---
there are going to be some points that should be touched on, willingly or not.
So please,do not consider those points that are related to religion-
Sharia,Islam or the people living there.
I only tell you about what I have experienced
At the end of the video,I will make a critic about Iran but--
I am telling this again, I am not dealing with anyone's beliefs
So, what I am about to tell you are not about Islam,Sharia or religion.
Iran does not ask for visa from Turkey,so it's pretty easy to travel
I have made a 1000-day trip and travelled in Latin America about 2 years.
And I have directly gone to Mehsed city of Iran from Argentina.
So I never had to deal with visa,even if you travel from Turkey,it's totally OK.You don't need a visa.
In general we can say Iran is cheaper than Turkey.
Travelling is cheap, living is cheap
So I'm not going to declare the prices of places I have been in
All you should know is, Iran is slightly cheap according to Turkey.
Another point I want to clarify,it's mostly wrong-known
People don't speak Arabic in Iran.
Iranian's langauge is Persian, and Iranian people are not Arab.
They are Iranian, or Persian you might say. But not Arab.
To be honest,they are a little stricken due to this wrong-known situation
Since I specify the issue, we can start.
First I flied to Qatar from Argentina,and then the Meshed city
I've found Omid on CoachSurfing
Omid is Afghan-origin and lives in Iran
He said they would host me
And I was intended to go Afghanistan after Iran
That was the reason to go Iran actually
But then it turned out Iran is so beautiful---
there are many places to travel and see
So I have travelled in Iran for 2 months.
Now, I got off the plane and on my way to Omid's house.
I'm at home,we are eating,the one on the middle is Omid
Behzat on the left
Behruz sorry,Behruz means ''beautiful day''
Everything is OK.
It's 3pm,this is where I'll sleep
The guys were pretty cool, I was lucky
They hosted me in that house for a week.(thanks to them)
On the next days they had me walk around
I even met their relatives
Next day Behruz said ''I'll take you around'' in Mehsed,to some important places
We went to Imam Reza Shrine,which is the most important structure of Mehsed
Because the %90-95 of Iranian people are Shitte
Official numbers say so
So it's so extremely precious for them to go there.
just like Muslims value the Qabe,they value this place.
First we went to Shrine,which is arounded by a really showy mosque
Some parts are gold-plated, there are huge mirrors on the walls and ceilings
Very fancy and nice
We've seen it but to be honest,--
everytime I go to see different and important mosques in different places,
I expect to get excited and feel different when I enter it
but I didn't really feel such a thing,it was like an ordinary mosque to me
We spent like half an hour inside, fooled around
Then Behruz said that he would take me to a place that's not so well-known
He took me to the down of the mosque
We went down the stairs and how should I say--
There was a place, almost in the size of a basketball-field
The ceiling is low, there are white marble stones on the ground
A few women reading Quran sitting on small chairs
Behruz gave someone some money and showed a spot
and a woman started to read Quran there
Obviously I couldn't really figure out what was happening--
Meanwhile we are walking around
He said ''there are dead people below--
this is a graveyard,my grandfather's is also here--
so I'm having him read Quran
I was like ''But we are walking on them,now you are saying there are dead bodies below us?''
He said yes
And it turned out they are not even one by one, they're arranged in three layers.
It's kind of unusual to us,I mean we do not walk on graves.
But seems like they do,there are no other path to walk anyway
Later on he explained to me, apparently being buried there is not that simple
You have to give money for it,starts from 30.000$ in average.
the price of being buried in there.
If you want to being buried closer to Imam Reza's tomb--
Then the amount increases to around 100.000$
Since many people want to be buried in there,--
It got full so they started to bury them in layers
They switched to some kind of bunk-system
Even though it seemed pretty strange to me
I respect their beliefs and sights.
I asked about the money that gathered
He said they use the money to care and evolve the mosque up there
using for spendings of the mosque
Or it's used as a source for other projects in Iran.
We went off the mosque and kept traveling the city
Behruz had a car so he took me to everywhere
Something caught my attention while we were wandering on streets
There are paintings and pictures of the martyrs.
Also the Shrine is there,so it feels like the all city is mourning.
There are many women wearing chador
Compared to other cities of Iran, there are too many women in black in Meshed.
In that sense the city is not that active,
But my friends who I met there said--
''Mershed is one of the most religious cities of Iran but still--
You can find anything you're looking for,everything is being done here.''
The next day, the other friend invited me to his relatives' house
He said ''we are going to have a family meal,and I know you like these cultures so you are welcome to come.''
I took it
After noon,we headed to the relatives' house
There were about 10 person at home, 5-6 youngs, a few middle aged and a 80-year old grandma
See, I went into the house,said ''Selamun Aleykum''
When I saw the grandma standing up and welcoming me---
I bend to kiss her hand and put my forehead( its a tradition to show respect to old people)
They immediately stepped in,panicking
Like ''Hey what are you doing? It wont happen,you are a man and she is a woman--
you cannot touch her,its forbidden
I was like ''Oh my,she is 80 what do I do with her?''
I mean I am used to it,when I see an old person I would like to kiss their hand
It's the most usual thing for us
But I guess I was distracted and careless
So there have been a small fuss,
We got a bit nervous
Then we sat down, things got warm up(thankfully)
The food  has been served, they ordered Kebab
There were also other dishes, we enjoyed our food and chatted
Then they served tea,just as the Turks love to drink tea, so the Iranians love it.
and they are great tea-drinkers
At that time, one of the boys brought a music set
they set up the music set and said'' It's time for dance!''
I was surprised, but I thought ''okay,I guess they're just having fun''
It's daytime but okay.
The boy turned the music on and started to dance
then it was time for the other man,--
then our Behzat started to dance with them
By the way there were women too.
There were on the other side of the room,they were just sitting and watching dancing men
Then I thought, each guy stands and starts to dance  in turn
So I said to myself ''Okay obviously it's gonna be my turn soon''
A little later Behzat came and wanted me to dance with them insistently
I was like ''No,no what's with the dance?'' and turned him down
He insisted and insisted and said ''Come on you show us some dance styles from Turkey''
I resisted more and said''No man I don't dance,for God's sake don't push me''
By the way everyone's laughing and clapping to have me stand and dance
A really weird atmosphere
It felt like,, you know in weddings,there are some people that try so hard to make you dance
I was still resisting, ''No,Behzat it's impossible,I wont''
But no, they were determined,they pulled me and took me to the center of the room
I objected again, said ''No way,I cannot dance''
But they didn't seem like give up,
Then I came up with an idea--
and I said ''In my place,it's not really standard to dance man to man--
we dance as a man and a woman,opposite of each other--
if one of the women in there comes and dances with me-
then OK I will dance too.
When I said that they were like ''no way,its impossible for you and a woman to dance together--
we don't do that here,its not happening man''
So I got out of it :D
Then I sat and watched them dance
When I'd gone to Iran,it was Nowruz time(which is the Iranian New Year)-
And they have a tradition called Haft-Sin
Which means 7 things that starts with the letter ''sin''
could be a dish, a plant or fruits, vegatables etc.
You can see these 7 things in a spesific place of a banks,in the entering of a shopping mall--
at the living rooms of houses, they put these 7 things on a big table
These 7 things might include..for example a vegatable sprout--
which has a meaning, it symbolizes ''rebirth''
garlic symbolizes ''health''
apple symbolizes ''beauty''
sumac symbolizes ''sunrise''
vinegar symbolizes ''old age and patient''
and silverberry symbolizes ''love''
also coin(money) represents ''abundance''
besides these, there are some other things that's been added in time
like wheat dessert,which symbolizes ''welfare''
then fishes, I've seen goldfishes in many places
So it can be varied
I've even seen a mirror by Quran
and they strongly value this tradition
If you go there in the Nowruz time,  you can see the traces of this routine everywhere
This is being done so that the new year brings luck
At nights, we were chatting in our guys' apartment with Omid and Behzat
They were telling me about Iran,Afghanistan--
I was telling about my trips
Omid said''You have photo projects mostly contains women,--
There are women in Kesm Island with masks on their faces,maybe you'll interested''
In fact my aim was to go to Afghanistan from Meshed
I did a little research on Google--
Photos of women wearing masks really made me wonder
I asked if there was a airport
He said yes there is
We arranged a flight with Iran Airways right away
One day later, I directly went to Kesm Island from Meshed
See, I've landed in Kesm Island but I had no idea about where to go or what to do next
Due to international banking system is not used in Iran--
the websites that provides you to make a reservation in hotels are mostly unavailable
Therefore it's not really possible to book your hotel online
Only way to find a hotel is to go there and look for one by asking people
So when I landed I saw a young couple at the airport
I approached them a little, they also were speaking English
I explained them the situation and asked if they have any info about where to stay
They said that they were going to a hostel and I can go with them
We went out, took a cab and went 5-10 kilometers together
We arrived at the hostel by passing through some desert-like places
The hostel's owner was around 30, who recently built the place with his wife and they were also running the hostel
The place was nice and clean, I got a room and settled
The island literally lives the desert climate
On the summer, the temperature can increase to 60 degrees.
Even though it was not summer when I was there but it was still pretty hot, the weather was overwhelming at daytimes
After a little resting, we rented a car with the couple--
and we went to see the famous canyon in the island
There are so many places to visit in that sense, the canyon is only one of them
It reminds of the Grand Canyon in the US just a bit.
Except for it's not majestic as much as Grand Canyon
It's structure is different
There are also several small beaches around the island that you can go and swim if you will.
But obviously, in Iran the beach tourism won't really be your first intention.
If you ever go near the Kesm Island, and if you have the time--
the Canyon would be a good choice to visit
Later then, I told about my situation to the owner of the hostel,Ramin
I said that I'm here in order to see and photograph the women in masks--
and asked if he knows anyone who will allow me to take their photos
I can help them too if needed, I said
Then he asked his wife, they asked around a little
then they found a few person
Initially, we've made an appointment with Amine who is 40.
They called her and said ''we're going to be in this place at that hour, you can come and have your photo taken''
So we went the place they stated,which is Amine's house--
Amine and her husband Abdullah was there waiting for us
I was gone there with Ramin by motorcycle, we said hi to each other
We chatted a little, we understood each other more or less, as possible
Then I expressed myself,said ''see,I travel the world and take photos of women in different countries--
However it was not a piece of cake to get Abdullah's permission
Anywise, I think he noticed what a decent boy I am, so he allowed me :)
See, yes I took photos of women but I also have another project
after I take a photo, I say ''you are so beautiful'' in their langauge--
and I take the second photo.
So I kind of document their reactions in this way.
then I combine these two photos together and it something really nice comes up.
So while I was taking Amine's photo, I needed to say her ''you are so beautiful'' in Persian but Abdullah was near us
Only it's real risky for me to say such a thing in that environment.
I mean something could happen to me, Abdullah might gets so pissed
Meantime I saw Abdullah chatting with a friend of his,laughing, they turned their back to us
I quickly used the opportunity and said her ''you are so beautiful'' and took the second photo
I successfully caught the effect that I wanted to.
After I was done taking photos outside, Abdullah insistently invited us in.
We went inside, had a cup of tea
I also took Abdullah and Amine's photos together
It was a very productive time for me.
Later that, we've found Fatima who is 45.
She came to the place where the hostel was, by making a delicacy
I took her photos as well.
She was wearing a beautiful red dress
and in my opinion, she was quite photogenic :)
About the masks, probably you are wondering why they are wearing it,
if is it a tradition, or does it have religion-related reasons-
does it have anything with the Islam
I've tried to find answers to these questions when I was there--
there are not much about it on the Internet,
so I'm just gonna tell you what I've heard and witnessed in Iran
Somehow, a tradition has occured there
Some of the masks are very thin, maybe 2 santimeters thick
When a woman gets married, she starts to wear that mask the day she gets married
Not only she has to wear the mask when she's out of her house--
but also when she is at home but a stranger man comes in.
The size of the mask gets larger in every 10 years.
For example, when she is 18 the mask is very thin,--
by the age of 20 it gets a little thicker,
then in every 10 years,it gets larger
And the reason they're wearing it, caused by half tradition and half religious beliefs.
This is what I figured out.
Neither strictly traditions, nor strictly religious beliefs.
In fact, what's in my head is--
because of the fact that they live in a desert-climate place
formerly, it might be invented for women to protect their faces
Particularly desert storms are really rough, I've experienced one before--
the sand goes into all over your body.
or maybe it was used to avoid from sun
Frankly I interpret the event this way
Next  day, we went out to wander the streets of the village with Ramin
Meanwhile, I saw nana Zeynep who is 70.
She was entirely dressed black , had a black and very thick mask on her face
Of course I got excited, I showed her to Ramin, asked that how we can get her photo
Lucky me, appearently he knew her, said hello
We had a little chat
See,Ramin explained my project to her but it was not easy to get the permission,again
Anways I'll cut it short,  through some big effort, we finally got the permission
But she said '' no shooting outside, come inside and take the photos on the yard''
As you can imagine, I was so thrilled to find someone just like I was seeking for
and I was about to take her picture
so we passed to the yard, I put her to a place where the lighting was good
and took a few pictures of her--
only, the way she looks at the camera was so firm and sharp that made me a little scared.
but on the other side, I wanted it so much to say her ''you are so beautiful''
because I was extra curious about how she's gonna react
finally I thought to myself ''no guts no glory'' and said her ''you are so beautiful''
She probably had a little smile under her mask, I could say that by looking her eyes
There is nothing else that shows she smiles but the eyes owing to mask
So I got the photos that I wanted, we thanked her a lot,--
and we left, but later then, I wanted to get her mask by convincing her
I asked Ramin for it, he went to Zeynep to ask for taking her mask--
when he came back he said ''no, she won't give away the mask''
I said ''okay then, if she won't thats fine''
Next day while I was wandering at the village,Ramin came by and said '' I have a surprise for you''
I saw him took the mask from Zeynep
I asked ''how did you?''
He said ''she wanted to give you''
Now I have her mask, Zeynep's mask
About why I wanted to take it from her,
When I'm going to make a photograph exhibition in the future,
I will put the mask near by Zeynep's photos
therefore it means a lot to me
such a unusual thing
they just wear it like this
There was a wedding in the neighborhood
Ramin asked me if I wanted to go
I said ''okay,lets go''
We hopped on to the motorcycle and went to the wedding area
Of course women and men's rooms was seperate,
men can't go to the place where the women are
but since the wedding was outside, there were also few women where the men were.
They have some varied dance styles, first they came to the area by walking,  looked like a battalion,
then old men started to dance as they sang.
It was not much relevant with our weddings, a totally different culture
then I went near by the place where the women were,
they were sounded really loud and interesting
I guess they were having so much fun, but also lamented betweentimes.
but obviously I couldn't get in, they said it's not possible for me to go in
that wedding was a different experience for me
Following my trip to the Kesm Island, I visited Minab city which is just opposite of it
I went there to see the ancient bazaar that only opens once a week
A historical bazaar
I went to see it but unfortunately they removed it from the city center and--
transported it to a land that's uptown
Imagine an empty and barren land, which people spread things on and sell them
It wasn't a well environment, there wasn't a photographic atmosphere
I couldn't find what I was hoping for there, so I stayed in Minhab for 1 night and went to Kerman next day
The most iconic and signficant place in Kerman is the ''Bem Castle''(Arg-e Bem)
The castle is 1800 years old, and they were people live in there until 200 years ago
so there was life there
However in 2003, an earthquake has caused the castle to collapse--
it got majorly damaged
But later than they started to restore the place,
but unfortunately everything looks so artificial,
most of the place doesn't felt like a historical castle
the castle is known as the biggest castle that made of adobe--
it's the most spesific feature about the castle
Because of it's made by adobe, it couldn't survive for centuries.
On the next day, I went to the city center
There are beautiful historical roadhouses(han)
You can find whatever you are looking for, there are carpets,jewelleries are sold
While I was visiting the roadhouses, I heard a music sound from a distance
I found where it was coming from and went into the place
It was like a restaurant except it was not,
I couldn't be sure what that place was
I went down the stairs, they were doing live-music
They've transformed an old hamam ( some kind of bath-house) to a tea-home
they have a tea-home culture in Iran, and I go in and drink a cup of tea when I saw one
really enjoyable hangouts
there was good music,the place was beautiful and the ambiance was really good
great for taking photos and also so cheerful
I found a spot and sitted right away
I checked around, everyone was smoking nargile(hookah)
I normally don't smoke, maybe nargile in special occasions but very rare
but the aura in the environment was so good that I ordered a nargile too
But still,nargile is bad for your health :D
They were playing so well,  therefore I gave tip to them--
as I was giving the tip,he asked me where am I from
I said ''Im from Turkey''
and he said'' Oh great,the next song is for you then''
(a turkish song called ''mavi mavi'')
I had so much fun that day, it was so pleasent to sit there, drink tea and enjoy the place
I feel like I don't have to travel non-stop, sometimes it's all right to take a break in nice places like that
I do this a lot in my trips, when I come across to a location that I enjoy, I can spend the whole day there.
that day was one of them,and it was really good.
After I ended my Kerman trip, I went to the historical Meymand village
''We are at the historical Meymand village in Iran--
this village is 3000 years old least.
What's very important about this place is--
people who lived here on their time, built houses into the mountains by carving them out.
now we are going towards to the home I've been staying for 2 days
The walls are black because of the fire is lit in this stove
so it's sourced by the smoke
I've been sleeping in here for 2 days knowing that other people slept here 3000 years ago from now.
According to the known, this place is at least 2500-3000 years old-
however some archaeologists also have stated that it could be 8000-12000 years old
The place is that ancient.
You just saw where I stayed, I've slept there 3 days in total--
at my first night there, I'm not gonna lie, I frightened a little bit
the whole room was ultra dark, I turned on the light and slept that way.
Because you see, the cave's doors are strangely small
some doors' heights are barely reaches my waist--
so they're about 1 meters.
that's why there is a story that says--
''In reality, these caves are not made by human beings''
I don't usually believe these things but I also can't stop thinking--
if it were the humans,why would they build the door only 1 meters height?
So you just keep exaggerating and overthinking in your head-
and these thoughts may not let you sleep in peace at your first night
But in fact, after the first night, I slept so well for the other 2 nights
The place was so quiet, actually I don't remember ever being in such a quiet place
It was so silent that I was able to hear my own heart-beat in bed
That kind of silentness
Briefly, I've had really interesting 3 days in there.
There are 400 houses and 250 rooms at total in the village
Most of the houses are owned
Few are running the houses as hostels.Just like the one I've stayed.
There are a several location to visit and see in the village--
There is an old hamam,a school,a mosque, and a fire-temple that left from the Zarathustra
However there aren't too many people left in the village,
there was just a several old person.
the youngs have migrated to the cities
The caves are thousands of years old but-
unfortunately there are no people to chat and ask about the past
When I've first came to the village, I've settled and gone outside to look around--
I saw a woman who is 40-50 meters far from me, she called me near her with hand gestures--
I went by her and I said ''Selamun Aleykum''
She surprised when I said that, asked me where I was from
I said ''Im Turkish, I came from Turkey''
Her son came by at that time,he was around 12 and speaking a little English
They invited me in
There was 4 women at the house, one of them is around 70
and the little boy.
I hesitated at first,because there was no man with them
They said ''No problem come in''
I came in
It turned out they don't actually live there, the house has remained from the 70-year old grandma's father.
And they sometimes come to the village from the city for have a picnic
They asked me to join them for the meal
If you've been watching my videos, then you know that if there is food,I'm in :)
I pretty much eat anything.
You should eat when you find food :)
''We're about to have 'Eşkene' soup--
I met this family when I got to the village this morning
I'm going to be with them day long
we also have hand-made bread''
They are laughing at me because I'm eating it as a soup--
and they are eating it like this.By putting bread within.
In fact I should fit in with their way.
Here,I did just like them :)
That dish was really delicious, but besides that--
It was very nice of them to invite me for the meal. They asked me to sit with them on the table, we had a nice chat--
This is really precious,guys.
I have really hard times in my trips sometimes--
I mean,believe me, most of the Iranians don't even know this Meymand village is exist
So it's complicated and difficult to go and travel this kind of places,
But you see, when they invite you to their table--
it is worth all the trouble and the difficulties.
the meaning of that dish,the chat and the kindness,worths it all.
you cannot measure it with money.
then they said ''Let's wander in the village, we were already gonna walk around , you come with us''
We wandered around the village, apparently the grandma was a teacher in the city--
they were very decent and qualified people
after our little trip, we went back to their cave for a tea
I saw our 70(maybe 80) years old grandma Ziba smoking something...bad.
I better don't say what it was.
I baffled, and asked :''whoa,what's she doing?''
they said ''well,she smokes it and we can't do anything about it''
then I asked to Ziba through her grandchild
I said ''It's detrimental for your health,why do you use it?''
''It's good for my headache'' she said,finding excuses.
By the way she was insisting me try it too
I didn't took it at first,said ''I don't even smoke cigarette''
but she persisted so much, said ''try it, you should try it''
whatever, this is enough mentioning about these subject--
otherwise the video might get troubled :D
Just know that, what she smokes is very common specially in that region of Iran--
It can be found in any place and any home.
At that night,they returned back to city, and I was all by myself again
Before they left, they gave me hand-made bread and food to eat
They took care of me so much that I dont know how to describe it
Iranian's hospitatily are truly admirable.
On the next day,I was hanging arond again, so that maybe I'd run across something interesting
and for taking some photos
That day I met Abdullah,who came from another city with his family
We talked a little
When they realized that I was foreigner, they got even more friendly.
He said 'we're going to have a picnic,come with us''
When I heard about the food I said ''okay I'll come''
You know me, if there is food, I'm in :D
They spread the cover on the ground, we sat together and had a nice picnic
Chatted, drank tea,had a good time
that day was pretty cool as well
Later that, I passed to the city ''Yezd''
Yezd is one of the most beautiful cities and it's certainly worth to be seen
Above all, the very narrow streets, the old structures--
that make you feel as if you are in the times that are 2000-3000 years ago-
The city is 3000 years old in the first place.
I was really impressed by Yedz, I loved it there.
Formerly, the reason they've built the streets so narrow is--
to affect less from the very hot weather.
Owing to it can be very hot there in summer, obviously they've found a solution that partly can help.
There were also ''wind chimneys'' called ''Badgir'' on the top of the houses
I've seen them many times,including other cities
Air flow is provided through these chimneys so you can get slightly cool air
They still use the 'Badgir'' at the present time.
Anoter subject, if you have an interest on Mazdaism--
there are temples and places of worship belong to Zarathustra in Yezd and it's surroundings
there are also living Zarathustra people
I've been there and took photos,videos
But if I start to tell about it, this video would be so long--
because the subject is wide
Just keep this in mind, if you are interested in with this topic--
Yezd is a good center of Mazdaism.
Later then, I went to the Shiraz, which I think is the most beautiful city of Iran
Shiraz is a modern city, furthermore they have maintained the old city center.
For instance, when you go to the old city center you feel as if you are in the historical times--
because of the narrow streets and houses which made of adobe, just like in Yedz.
I really enjoyed visiting Shiraz
It's also admirable for them to be able to protect their history this well.
There are dozens of places to visit in Shiraz,
if you want to see them all,you need at least 7-10 days
So I started with the most famous ones,
Nasir Ol-Mulk Mosque was really nice.
The mosque has built by the order of Hassan Ali Nasir al-Molk in 1876-1888.
and the  architects of the mosque are Muhammed Hasan and Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi
What makes the place so special is--
The  mosque starts to live by the sunrise.
In the moment the very first sunlights impacts to the windows of the mosque,
the colors on the stained glass creats a riot of colors inside of the mosque.
it's impossible not to be impressed by the view.
When I think of the mosques that are made nowadays--
there are no other options but to esteem to the architectural of a 120-years old mosque.
So it was one of the most beautiful mosques I've ever seen
after I was done taking photos and videos in the mosque, I left and started to wander the city.
There were road-houses again, which pretty much everyting is sold
similar to our Spice Bazaar in İstanbul
It's enjoyable to browse around
On the next day, I went to see the Persepolis Antique City
It reminds a lot the Efes Antique City in Turkey
It's supposed the construction of the city has began in 500 B.C.
and the construction has last for 150 years.
It was used as a palace and an area for the ceremonies
It took about 3 hours to travel all of the antique city
Iranians has praised this place too much, however I was not impressed that much.
I had a great expectation before I went there, but I can say that--
I think our Efes Antique City is better than it.
After I left there, I went to Nakş-ı Rüstem,where the tombs of the 4 great kings were located.
There's made 4 graveyards into the mountains by carving them in the old times
These gigantic sized cavities and graveyards were fascinating as much as Persepolis in my point of view.
In fact, I think I loved it more than Persepolis.
Speaking of which, I should mention about something--
In Iran, women are real beautiful--
But the women in Shiraz have completely different beauties.
Don't get me wrong, I'm just telling what I saw :)
One day I went to a cafe to eat something--
all the tables were full
so I saw 2 pretty girls sitting on a table, I said ''may I sit here?''
they said ''yes,sure''
then we started to chat
so we became friends,next day 2 other friends of them joined us
I traveled around in Shiraz with 4 girls with me,I took their photos
You may wonder why I'm telling you this--
most of you might be thinking like ''Iran's governed by Sharia, so it's forbidden for men and women to meet in a cafe--
or they cannot walk around together''
But there is no such a thing in Shiraz.
in most cities of Iran,there is no such a thing,actually.
There may be some(not many) regions where have solid rules and that are conservative
I'll talk about these at the end of the video, but like I said-
Shiraz is a city with beautiful women :)
Now let's come up to the Qasqhai Turks.
When I was in Shiraz, I heard that some people were speaking a kind of Turkish,
Then I learned, apparently there were Qashqai Turks living there,
I've heard about it before but I didn't know they were in the center of Shiraz
So visited their village, they hosted me in their home
I've also shared a video about it, you can click from the right corner and watch it
I ended my Shiraz trip and went to Isfahan,
but I am emphasizing Shiraz again and again, it is definitely one of the fantastic cities of Iran.
Okay lets keep going, I passed to Isfahan, but I was acting so slow and I had to get faster, therefore I didn't stay in Isfahan so long
I visited the famous Si-O-Se Pol Bridge in the city center,
the Vank Cathedral,
Imam Square,which is the world's 2.biggest square
and the bazaars around, then I left Isfahan
But if you are going to travel to Iran, you should give out to this city at least 3-4 days,maybe a week if you're interested in history.
It's a loaded city in that sense.
unfortunately I couldn't stay there long but don't do what I did.
Then I visited the city ''Varzaneh''
I went there to see ''women in white''
and what's strange is most of the people I met in Iran are not familiar with the subject--
they don't know such a place in Iran where the women wear white
After I settled to my hostel, I went out to a bazaar that only sets up once a week
more than half of the women was wearing white
this is why this place called ''The Ghost City'' by some people.
I'm assuming that the reason they're wearing white is the hot weather
because of the desert climate, they wear white to decrease the impacts of the sun
there are also some women wearing black too but as you know, the color black sucks the sunlights
What I was very surprised about Varzaneh is---
some women came to me and said: ''why you don't take my picture?''
While I was taking the photos of the bazaar, they passed right opposite of the camera and
said '' why don't you take our photos?'' and wanted me to take their photos as well.
I was like ''Is this a joke?''
I mean usually it's hard to take pictures of women--
but here,veiled women were willingly asking for me to take their photos.
Verzaneh was really cool about it
Later day, we went to see a camel race with the owner of my hostel
I was a little surprised when I saw the area--
because hundreds of people, sitting on the sands in the middle of the desert,
waiting for the camels to come.
The camels are running and they are going to reach the finish line-which is where they wait.
Honestly I felt bad for the camels because they had to run in that hot weather
But what do I do, nothing can be done.
I took many photos and videos on that area
It was interesting, I've experienced a camel-race too.
Next day I went to a couple of houses and photopraphed women weaving carpet
Every house I was a guest to welcomed me so well
I learned that for a big size hand made carpet, they make effort for almost 2 years.
and when it's done, they sell it about 2000$.
the store-owner who buys the carpets sells them to 5000$.
Then I passed to the village ''Abayaneh''
This is a nice and small place
however it's quite touristic.
people who lives here are wealthy
By the way with ''touristic'' I don't mean outsiders,  it was mostly local tourists,
I saw a few Europeans too but for the most part, the tourists were from Iran.
What I saw was generally local people.
We wandered around with the owners of my hostel,
They took me to an ancient Zarathustra temple
then we took a break in a tea-house, it was a nice tea house
Something caught my attention on the streets,
there were black holes near the doors
I asked my friend what it's about--
he said:''Since the lock system isn't found in the past, they had these wooden keys and the mechanizms that fits with the keys--
so the people used to reach their hands into the holes and put the keys there in order to open their doors''
and each keys are different than each other.
But nowadays they use this system only for the barns, because they have normal lock-systems in their houses now.
There were also doors that have two knobs on,
while one of them is for female guests,the other is for the male guests.
Then I went to Tehran
Tehran is a typical capital, concrete structurares are all over, traffic is bad
I couldn't like Tehran too much
There was a few locations to visit and see but since I traveled Iran for so long and so detailed, I was running out of time.
So I couldn't spent much time in Tehran, I stayed there for a few days and went back to Mehsed, where I started my trip
I got my visa for Afghanistan in Meshed, and went to Herāt(Afghanistan) by highway.
Now it's time to criticize my 2 months Iran trip
I'll interpret what I've experienced back there
First, yes,women are required to wear a headscarf--
but by a head scarf, I don't mean a very tight cover,
A scarf that slightly covers their head is perfectly convenient.
For instance you go there from Turkey, when you land to the airport in Iran, you should get a scarf--
and it's okay to just slightly cover your head.
besides this, women are also required to wear long sleeves, mini skirts and etc. are also not okay.
in some regions, couples are not allowed to wander holding hands, or sitting in a cafe together unless they're married
in these regions only men goes to the cafes anyway.
But in big cities such as Shiraz,Yedz,Isfahan,Tehran--
they have normal cafes and restaurants like we have, where the women and men can be present together
it's totally fine
in Iran, women are incredibly powerful, they have a great confident
Somehow, I felt this in my trip and I'm amazed by their strength
Sometimes the media can mislead us about Iran,
we can get the wrong knowledge
So don't consider the women in Iran as if they are always in the back stage,
I saw them work, I saw them being a part of the life in every way.
You may find it strange but they seem very free about anything
To give an example, they are able to go out at 10pm on their own freely in Shiraz
I mean obviously this is the most natural thing, however what we hear from the media is not that.
this is why I'm telling you.
I truly respect to their power.
About the youngs, everyone I've met was very well-educated
They are aware of what's going on in the world,
Almost all of them went to the collage,
When I go to the villages, kids that are 12 can speak English--
Not so well but still, they can have a conversation, even some speak better than me
Sometimes they get shy to speak, they say''I'cant speak English'' whereas they can
Regarding to education, Iran is pretty succesful at it.
But there are bad sides as well--
some of the youngs that I met,specially boys,
desire to leave the country somehow.
Initially I couldn't understand the reason they want to leave,
but once you spent 1-2 months in the country, the oppresive side of the system kind of starts to trouble you.
I've traveled for 2 months, but believe me--
if I was asked to stay 2 more months, I couldn't.
Because the pressure bothers you in some way and you don't want to stay long.
Iran is good for traveling but it's a little challenging to live there.
There was a man that I met,who was atheist
He was a programmer, working in a office
He was really intelligent
He told me'' I'm an atheist and we are governed by Sharia''
I asked ''Whats the difficulty about it?''
An imam(priest for Islam) comes to their office and make them do namaz(worship) everyday
and he had to participate the worship, otherwise they'd fire him eventually
I asked ''You are an atheist,how did you do namaz?''
He said ''What could I do, during the namaz I was singing in my head and trying to look like doing the namaz''
So there are issues like that as well.
Another subject, they love Turkish'
I've heard from other travelers, that it's easy to travel in Iran for us, that they like us
I felt different when I experienced it my own.
After I've seen Iran, I started to like Iran and Iranians even more.
Generally there are 2 cases that I don't like about there
One of them is taxi drivers
The worst taxi drivers I've ever run acrossed were in Iran
Except the ones that do their job decently, my words are not for them
But know that, if you are going to use taxi in Iran you should be really careful,
you should bargain before you take it,
it can be very troubled
The other thing is, they have a tradition called ''Taarruf''
Let me try to explain what is it
For instance let's say you met someone,
you went for a meal with him,
at the end of the meal, he offers to pay for the bill
and you think that  ''he is offering to pay for it due to his hospitality''
but actually he only says that because of the ''taarruf''
you say ''no, I can pay for myself'' and he says:''okay then you pay it''
but man you just said that you would pay...so this is confusing.
like when you met someone and they invite you to their home,
you cannot be sure if they really want you to come, maybe they are just being polite.
sometimes they say things they don't really mean becuase of the ''Taarruf'' and it's impossible to understand
To recognize it, you have to live there long enough to understand the difference
By the way this has nothing to do with their hospitality,
this is just their routine.
Sometimes even in taxi, the driver says: ''You are a tourist,I won't take money from you''
you say ''no take it'' and he takes it right away
A weird routine that I don't like
If you are considering going to Iran, don't think twice, you should go and see there
Put all your prejudices aside.
I was so amazed by Iran,it has many places that should be seen
except if you are looking for beach tourism, you can't find it in Iran
But it will definitely will satisfy you.
''Moral police'' is exist in Iran, maybe you've heard of them,
It used to be common in old times actually,they are not really active in the present
They used to wander around the streets as civilians,when they saw a man and a woman holding hands,
they used to go by and ask for their identities.If they are not married,they'd get a fine.
but like I said, this does not occur at the present.
it used to be so common but it has ended in time.
I am told that satellite dish is banned in the country, however there is one in every home, you can see it everywhere
I mean the bans are not really strict
Women are allowed to drive and you can she them everywhere, there are many women in traffic
But women are forbidden to sing as solo in public places
strangely they are allowed to sing in chorus
I really don't understand the logic
My friends whom I stayed with told me that
concerts are made in Iran but it's also forbidden to jump around and dance--
you have to sit in a chair and just listen to it.
women and men sit seperately as you can imagine.
Another misunderstanding about Iran is--
the house parties.
You've probably heard of it, it is said that wild things happen in that house parties,
about sex and much more inappropriate things
these are also not real.
I've been in a home party in Iran myself,
We just gathered in a house, both men and women
what they do is mostly watch a movie, turn on the music and dance--
smoking nargile or cigarette,
they are having these parties because they are not allowed to do this outside
and it's called ''house party''
So don't think of crazy stuff when you heard the word ''House Party''
Of course there are those that takes it to the very next levels
My friends also told me that kind of parties are occur too.
But it's only a small part of the whole thing.
So I would like to correct the misunderstanding.
Another thing I realized about Iran, a lot of aeasthetic surgeries are done there,
You constantly see people with a bandage on their noses, who clearly had a surgery
It doesn't matter if it's a woman or a man.
I was so surprised by it
It is said that there are too many Turkish-origin people in the country but I don't know the exact numbers
The Iran Goverment signifies that %95 of the public are Shias.
But the Sunnis that I met claim that the rate is not %95, its almost %50.
But I am not sure which is the fact.
The most important thing I've figured out in my Iran trip was that:
A belief can't forced to be loved.
It's crystal clear.
Iran is proof to that.
I've met many atheists, I've stayed at their home,
the pressure of the system bothers people so much that causes them become estranged to religion.
during my 2 months trip,I've never saw someone that gets more committed to his religion thanks to the regime
Therefore, a belief,a religion and this kind of things shouldn't forced to be loved.
It's impossible to accomplish that and Iran is the proof.
See you on my next videos :)
çeviri: Süreyya Doğan
