8/8/2014 0 Comments Svends new blog no 4 is published on Svends blog page on the menu bar for all the Danish reading people!!Svends new blog no 4 is published on Svends blog page on the menu bar for all the Danish reading people!!
0 Comments
FEELING VERY UNLOVED!!
After funding our youngest little cherubs entire 6 month stay in Denmark, including 3weeks in France skiing, a sailing course and kite surfing, he flies to Portugal (to get some sun) a few days before we arrive for Denmark's 4 week heat wave of 26 to 33 degrees everyday. THEN Svend seems to have enjoyed our 100day trip so much he proposes a little hike through France and Spain. ie the 850km camino de Santiago walk. Anyone who knows me, knows I'm not a keen hiker at the best of times, so Svend thanks but no thanks. SO...... I fly to England where my lovely mum and sister can be relied on to meet me and spend time with me. Svend flies to the south of France to start his walk with his brother in law. AND Nathan starts his inter rail trip, not sure where to, yesterday was to Granada , but today it's Valencia, let's see where he goes. But I did get a PROMISE he would see us in September but needs to go to Octoberfest in Munich on the 18th Sept. Never mind we know he'll be in Canberra for the next 5 years so enjoy fun times now. Xxxxxx 30/7/2014 0 Comments A heat wave hits DenmarkA heat wave hits Denmark.
I'm just catching up with my blog, finalising our Silk Road trip and waiting for my solo flight to England. We have had 24 days of amazing weather in Denmark almost unheard of in this region. It's also the first time in 22 years we have been here without our boys. Where have all those years gone. Most Danes were on 3 weeks holiday, there is a universal shut down at this time and fortunately it coincided with good weather. So everyone is in a good mood, lots of friends to visit at holiday houses, wonderful fresh food and also the naughty food that you only have to look at to put a few kgs on the hips, bum and waist. We were ready for this as we had lost a few kgs on our travels. Svend weighed 69.6kg on arrival in Denmark. Flowers were in bloom, fields were ready for harvesting and the strawberries were still in season. Everyone was at the beach and I commented numerous times that there was no one on the streets anywhere. No wonder the refugees reckon Denmark could take a lot more people. Also I had never really realised just how RURAL Denmark actually was, we drove top to bottom, sided to side and it was just country. I reckon it's just one big farm. We visited lots and lots of family and friends, and I managed to tick all my requests. Hot dogs, strawberries, herrings, smoked fish, pastries, snaps, new potatoes, the list goes on and on. We also visited lots of Denmark's tourist attractions, quaint villages where the roofs are coveted in living grass or straw, sand dunes encroaching on buildings near cliffs, cliff walks, traditional Danish houses in traditional colours of red roofs, white windows and yellow walls, beautiful to see en masse, old churches, wooden doorways, drive along beaches, church spires with majestic views, harbour side towns, etc etc. our visit to Copenhagen was a highlight as Pia our lovely friend gas been living there and had her favourite local things to do. Everyone cycles around even the city which is a great way to travel but we were treated to 3 days on a special chariot bike, with Pia and I bring cycled around by Svend. No helmets required. We also did a couple of walking tours that were run by very enthusiastic guides and we learned a lot. So now the time has come to leave Denmark and continue with the next stage of our trip. England and France here we come. Our final flight.
So arrival in Istanbul equated with the end of our Silk Road travel. It was also a shock to the system to be amongst so MANY tourists, with the usual hustle and bustle and manic ness that comes with being in a popular travel destination. Quite unique for us the last few months. Hotels galore, transport systems, fabulous food and of course European prices. We saw all the must see sights but we were unconsciously at the end of this trip and on our way home to Denmark. So a flight was booked to hamburg, and we filled the next few days with visits to great mosques, bazaars and a lovely island that you can only cycle or take horse carts around. So on the day of our departure we planned to take the trams and ferries to the airport with our president travel card, meaning we had no more local cash. Unfortunately getting on the ferry our card was 5 cents short for some reason so we couldn't get through a turn style and we had no money and it was too early to go to an exchange office. Fortunately a lovely man swiped his travel card for us and we were on our way. This guy turned out to be an Iraqi refugee waiting in Turkey to be given permission to join his brother in Melbourne, of course after finding out where we were from he wondered if we could send a letter of recommendation to the consulate to speed up his application. I'm not sure he believed us when we said we couldn't help him, but he was very nice regardless. So after the ferry ride we realised we still needed a bus to the airport and of course we had no cash for the bus and again so facilities to change money, so on the bus Svend held up a us$10 note and asked if anyone could change for us. One young man fortunately was happy to give us the local equivalent and we were all happy. I chuckle to imagine some foreigners getting on a bus in sydney with the wrong currency and getting the same service. So we were finally on our way & our great friend Flemming was happy to pick us up in Germany. We were delighted to be welcomed with such wonderful weather and unbeknown to us st that time it would continue for another 3 weeks. 19/7/2014 0 Comments No water!! No vasectomies!No water!! No vasectomies!
In the 1970,s Iran's population was about 34 million people, but after the revolution people were encouraged to have more children, resulting in the average family size in the 1980,s of 6 children with many having 9 or more. This resulted in the population rocketing to nearly 80 million people wow!!! In the lady few years people have realised it's very costly to bring up a family and most have opted for about 2 children , however just recently the owners that be have decreed the population must increase again for the young people to support this ageing population!!! So just two weeks ago a law was it in place that made having a vasectomy could result in 5 years inprisonment. What are they thinking this will be disaster out for a country with do many problems to overcome. Not least their water problem which is dire for a country which is mostly desert. Yazd in the middle used to have ground water but so much has been used the water table has fallen over the last 10 years by 100m to 200m below ground. So now The water that used to fill The river in Esfahan, 800km away is used to pipe water to yazd. So now the river is completely dry. But still with all the bridges on place, and there doesn't se to be a plan in place to conserve water, no water saving devices, just a mild awareness that something needs to be done. 19/7/2014 0 Comments The absent bridegroomThe absent bridegroom.
Maybe the most jaw dropping story we heard was on our last bus journey to Istanbul, and it made us realise how different we all are in the world. How things we think are bizarre are just commonplace in other parts of the world. So... After a few hours on our 35 hr bus trip the other passengers started to talk to us, at the various breaks we had, tea, prayers, bus washing etc etc There was a young happy couple in front of us that approached us. After the preliminaries we found out more about them. They were from a different ethnic group in Iran the Kurdish, who have their own customs and I believe are looked down a little by the Persians as a little bit inferior!!!! The young man already dressed a little different as his trousers were massively pleated around the waist and of a culturally different style. We found out she was divorced with a daughter who was 16, married last year and was pregnant and just about to have the baby. She told us her daughter had to get married to get away from her ex husbands new wife, the step mother. Ok..... Then we were told our lady was now married to another man from Iran who lived in Germany. Ok..... And she was on her way to meet him, after arriving in Istanbul the young man with her ( who turned out to be her re husbands nephew. Or chaperone) was helping her get to Germany , it became obvious she wasn't going back to Iran as she had said goodbye to everyone in her family including her daughter. Ok...... Now the good bits.!!!!!( which we got to know over the course of the journey) she had actually been married for two years but hadn't seen her husband, we thought since then, NO..... They had NEVER met only on Internet & Skype .... Ok..... Now the really really good bit.... She showed me the wedding photos, families including her new husbands parents and all his brothers. But no bridegroom, one picture had the happy bride.... She was holding a framed photo of him...... YES they got married without him even being there !!!!!! All over the Internet and skype. Is this legal !!!!! Amazing. The photos were also quite unique as she was looking very modern but the rest of the family looked like they were from another world, looking like it was taken last century, with their Kurdish traditional clothing,looking very old fashioned, really really amazing. 11/7/2014 0 Comments People we meetPeople we meet.
We really have to mention the wonderful people we have met on the way and also travelled with. All have made an impression on us and enriched our travel experiences, whether fellow travellers or local people. There was the family we met in Beijing from USA, he was American but she was Vietnamese and were taking her parents back to Vietnam for the first time since leaving in 1984. An important trip. The english 19yr old twins Tom and sophie on a gap year travelling china and other parts. So worldly for people so young. American Melissa we met in Dunhuang and several other places in China. She'd been an au pair in Beijing but it hadn't quite worked out as she'd planned. Steven from Hong Kong and Mr Hong we shared a trip to the Pakistani border with. Lots of backpackers in Gulnaris guest house in Tashkent waiting for visas just like us!! The lovely Aussie Julia we met in Arslanbob, and was sick as a dog with a cold. She was travelling for several months in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The (previous) Eastern Germans we met with interesting views on previous soviet regimes. Christian started my photo odyssey with wild flowers of Kyrgyzstan. Along with US Lindsay and German Alex who was very interested in coming to Australia. We met in Arkit. The adorable Rosie and Jo. 70 year old back packing couple who were almost on their honeymoon. So nice to see a couple so happy and caring with each other. We found them on the side of the road hiking up to Lake Sary Chelek and shared several lifts from then on, including the spectacular 8 hr trip from Arkit to Bishkek through several mountain passes. The wonderful Kevin (Kudusbek) and his mother from Fergana who gave us a room for the night. Lots of travellers from Osh guest house that we shared a few days with. Especially john Jay the skiing Coloradan who shared the 4wd (and lovely driver Solly boy) with us through the Pamir mountains for several days. Various homestay families that we stayed overnight with. Also hotel staff the we got to know. As well as lots of taxi, truck and car drivers, also a particularly memorable oil tanker driver. And so many Iranians that I have already written about, they were so kind, helpful and hospitable that they are the best ambassadors for future change to their problematic country. We can only hope for their future, and hope things can change in their life time. 11/7/2014 0 Comments More pet hatesMore pet hates
Head scarves on 42 degrees days. Having to share my water bottle around in the taxi with all passengers and driver. The Nokia ring tone on mobile phones. Sharing food from a central point on the table and triple dipping +++++ times into every bowl with fingers and licked on spoons and forks. Sorry if I sound finicky. Being charged tourist price for entries which in Iran is 10 times the price locals pay. And $50 in a hotel room in Turkmenistan that locals pay $20 for. Then it comes with no top sheet, broken furniture , no toilet seat or lid on cistern ( soviet hotels they are bad.....) Constant eating (cracking) of sun flower seeds, really annoying when you tune into it!! Mass tourism Europe scale. It's mega compared to where we've just been and so many people. 8/7/2014 2 Comments Latest news from sydneyLatest news from sydney
Nathan finished his sports college. Can now speak Danish but needs to practise and flew off to Portugal. Running with the bulls in Pamplona and having a good time travelling. Wonder where he gets that from. Aden just completed 2 weeks at flight school in Tamworth passed flight training assessments with 10.5 hrs of flying and is eligible for recommendation for helicopter piloting. To be advised by the end of the year. Anja progressing through the rounds of The Voice Australia gorgeous as ever. Ane Marie took the art of face painting to a whole new level by painting Marks face completely black and sending him out in public. Bored or experimenting!!! Lovely ladies and mothers group STILL lunching and wining and dining. All our Danish and english family and friends heading off on summer holidays abroad ( probably because their weather is around 15 degrees. ) The world cup and Wimbledon rolls on with predictable teams and players. 8/7/2014 0 Comments Through the eyes of a refugee.Through the eyes of a refugee.
So the bus actually took 36 hours with us being dropped off in the centre of Istanbul at 3am Turkey time!! One of the Iranians knew a nearby hotel so a few of us trudged after him, all a little weary. I had a strange feeling of how it would be to be Iranian leaving for the first time to a huge modern city with sky high prices that and a totally different world. My eyes were wide after all the primitive places we have come from, and I'm used to it all, it must be a huge shock to arrive here. They earn $200 a MONTH and cheap hotels in Istanbul cost $70. No wonder there are so many people on the streets and destitute. Scary stuff seeing it through their eyes when we were in a group. Svend found a place and a Kurdish couple came with us, figuring out we had a better deal. 8/7/2014 0 Comments Leaving IranLeaving Iran
It has always been our plan to catch the once a week train from Tehran/ Tabriz to Istanbul. However we haven't been able to book tickets, and perhaps misunderstandings at travel agencies. So after trying several times we finally realised the tickets were all sold and we would not be leaving Iran on The Trans Asian Express, that takes 70 hours to travel the 2000km. Wed been quite looking forward to having 3 days on a first class sleeping train journey just relaxing and reflecting. SO what do we do now,?? We needed to hit Istanbul to complete our Silk Road odyssey, so we are now on a 30 hour bus trip heading that way. We want to get back to Denmark for the summer and we will travel Turkey and the surrounding countries of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia at some other point in the future. The weather is hot and being on the road seeing so much in 95 days can saturate your brain. ANYWAY. We were booked on the 8.30pm bus with a taxi pick up at 7.30pm from the office. At 8.45pm we were still waiting. Not a good start then the taxi took us out to the free way to intercept the bus on the slipway!!!! So finally we were on our way on a sleeper bus ( our first) BUT after 15 minutes we pulled in to fill The bus up with 8c/ litre diesel which took a long time. Off we went THEN we had the obligatory 1hour meal/ prayer stop( this happens even if it's a 4 hr trip) THEN around midnight the bus was stopped for a total police check, where all passports were checked and random luggage was looked at. Off we went again until we hit border crossings at 3am, and this ended up taking 2 1/2 hours. Svend and I were the first through but the Iranians were checked more thoroughly. I was asked if I had carpet in my bag, of course, how could you go to Iran and not buy something. We'd just spent the afternoon at the bazaar buying some pieces. Mine are smallish and folded up in the back pack. Apparently it's illegal to bring carpet into Turkey, woops. I was asked to unpack my bag then he changed his mind and let me pass. So by 5.30am we are on our way again and the sun is just coming up, not much use for the sleeper seat!!! Then at 9am yet smother stop, this is where we noticed the Iranian drivers emptying their diesel from their tanks into containers and the Turkish drivers filling it by jerry cans into their trucks. Svend then investigated and found that diesel in Turkey is now $2.20 / litre instead of the 8c the Iranians were paying, no wonder the drivers were selling their stash. Our bus didn't because we still had 1000km to go. Amazing price difference!!! 7/7/2014 0 Comments CarpetsCarpets.
I must commend Svend on completing an afternoon doing what he hates most. Shopping in the Tabriz bazaar. Bunnings hardware warehouse he can do all day every day but souvenir and bazaar shopping he has a 15 minute attention span which is about 3 hours and 45 minutes less than mine. BUT as it was our last day I was determined to complete the mission of buying some carpet or kilim item from Iran. ( I didn't know at this point it was illegal to bring any into Turkey. ) I've been very restrained the last 90 days and hadn't bought anything, mainly because I didn't want to carry more weight, but with limited journeys left and being told Iranian carpets are the best and cheaper than else where, now was the time. I wanted something that I could hang rather than use on the floor, so with the help of our young friend Sahand we navigated the huge alley ways of the bazaar and found roughly what I wanted. Unfortunately the traders bombard you with piles of carpets and pieces and you only have to look side ways at one then they are doing a deal with you on something you didn't really want. Normally this is all done around cups of tea, but unfortunately because of Ramadan we had to go dry. I felt so overwhelmed I had to leave and could easily have given up on the quest. But after a lunch break we went back into battle. We found what we liked and i left Svend to do what he is good at. He was a good match for the traders with them being surprised and commenting on his skill and talking. They'd never seen or heard anyone like him before. (It's a confirmed world wide phenomenon ) They actually asked if he was a carpet trader!!!! Not sure if that was good or not.!! Deals were done and finalised eventually after a few standoffs and now I've got the job to carry a few extra kilos in my pack. Punishment indeed. Now in Istanbul we are having a little look (and surprising the traders here with telling them we already have Iranian carpets, they leave us alone then) and we can see prices are way more expensive. So hopefully we did a good deal and hopefully we like them when we get home!!!! Sanctions, it's all about a street sign. Bobby sands st British embassy Tehran.
Following on from the British visa story I have to share this little gem, that I actually didn't believe but I CAN TELL YOU IS ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. Around the time of the Iranian revolution in the 70's Britain was also having problems with the IRA in Ireland, and some of the imprisoned activists (terrorists/ IRA bombers) were on hunger strike. One of them was called Bobby Sands and he eventually died. When the revolution happened in Tehran and there was strong anti British sentiment abounding the revolutionist renamed all the streets. This also involved the street that the British embassy is on and they officially changed its name to Babbysandz st. The Brits were not too amused ( actually they were REALLY REALLY pissed off about it!!!) but couldn't do anything about the new street signage so instead blocked up their old entrance and gates and made a new entrance into the Complex around the corner so their official address was no longer Babbysandz st but Ferdozi st. Apparently the Brits have been asking the Iranian government to change this name ever since to no avail. So hearing all this and not really believing it I went on a quest. The embassy is still there but had been closed for years however just last week it was announced to would be opening soon and a small staff are starting the ball rolling. When we got there it had big signs Closed but there were guards everywhere and after circumnavigating the walls I eventually found the offending street signs and of course took photos. Of course 2 minutes later a guard stopped and questioned me and made sure I wasn't taking photos of the embassy, but was ok about the sign. I did get a little nervous then as I was on my own whilst Svend rested with our luggage. So my deduction is that the sanctions have nothing to do with the nuclear facilities but rather just a VERY annoying street name. !! The British embassy I must say fared better than the us embassy that was completely taken over as the head quarters of the revolutionary leaders but I didn't go there to check. from wikipaedia:
British and blonde, unique in Iran.
Whilst I have pretty much been the only blonde travelling around here, it hadn't dawned on me that there were no British or USA citizens travelling, until I had a conversation with a fellow traveller. Brits and USA passport holders are subject to stricter visa entries due to the sanctions and interest in the nuclear facilities. They haven't got useable consulates so have to go to Dublin to get visas which cost nearly $300 plus the added expense of flights and accommodation. And if granted can only travel here in organised tour groups with a guide at all times. So because I'm on an Aussie passport I can travel independently, which was brilliant. Anyone planning to come here, you don't need a guide, it's easy to get around by hitching, buses or taxis and accommodation is easy to find!! 7/7/2014 0 Comments A beer each nightA beer each night.
When we travel and after a hard days work!!! We like to finish with a beer normally in the court yard or garden of where we stay or a near by cafe. Despite us travelling in predominately Muslim countries this has always been readily available. In Iran it was no different except that the beer was 0% alcohol and often peach, pineapple or lemon flavoured so we can say our little ritual has continued all the way through, and even better no head aches!!! Actually we have often been offered real alcohol from various people, who seemed to have a stash somewhere or could get us some ( Iranian misconceptions of Australians needing a drink!! Are we so stereo typed??? ) but we decided not to take up the offer. A little alcohol free time doesn't hurt anyone. 7/7/2014 0 Comments Iraq newsIraq news.
You may have heard that there is a bit of trouble happening out here with our Iraqi neighbours. We haven't heard very much about it just a snippet on tv which we didn't understand, and a few friends worrying about us. What we do know is a radical extreme group who originate in Syria have bought a load of fighters from Nigeria and stormed Musel a town not too far from Iran, 200km from Tabriz our last town before we leave Iran . And now the Iraqi government want the USA to help them & Russia is lending some jet fighters to them. The Iranians don't seem overly concerned but they can pull up a large army quickly if required. Every male over 18 has to do 21months military service before they are 55. If they don't they don't get a certificate letting them get certain jobs or travel out of the country. You can postpone service by studying or various reasons. The young people don't like it because it puts their lives on hold for so long. 5/7/2014 1 Comment Misconceptions about Iran.Misconceptions about Iran.
Before I came to Iran I had, like many (most westerners) many uneducated perceptions about what Iran was like, and now I feel very embarrassed that I was actually so ignorant. most of what I thought I knew was based on the few media reports that I have read. So if you are very knowledgeable about this region please forgive me. Iran and Iraq are very different they don't even share the same language. Iranians speak Farsi and Iraqis speak Arabic. Iran is not a dangerous place to be or travel. There is very little crime, no alcohol related violence, crime or drink driving, or drug related crime and they are not allowed guns!! Compare that to America. !!!!! Most Iranians are not extreme Muslims. Just like in our world we are mostly christened then never go to church it's the same with them. Iranians are allowed to leave Iran. They are just limited to visa restrictions from where they want to go, and if they have the military service certificate. They are not cut off from the rest of the world media wise. They mostly have satellite tv ( even though they are not supposed to ) they can access face book and other social media sites with VPNS. They watch all new movies on DVDs (pirated of course as copy write restrictions can't be applied here) Normal Iranians don't want to build a nuclear bomb. The nuclear facility at Natanz is just on the free way and easily seen but heavily guarded. There doesn't seem to be much police or military presence in every day life. They like tourists and travellers. Not once have we had negative vibes. People call out "welcome to Iran" from cArs and in the street. People are so friendly and pick you up in cars, take you home, show you around, invite you for dinner and stays in their homes all the time. They are really welcoming. Roads are fantastic. The transport system is great. Modem long distance buses. Punctual departures. Speed limitations. Food very good. Especially the home cooking. The ice-cream Is wonderful. No one wears the Muslim caps. You rarely hear the call to prayers from the mosques. Even in the most religious towns we were treated well at the mosques, almost with bemusement and once I got used to the stares (of curiosity) I forgot about the scarfs and chadors. A lot of Iranians speak english, and a lot study overseas. Most Iranians have a university degree, hence most are over qualified for their jobs. People (men and women) retire after 30 years of working and have a pension. International sanctions are really hurting the country. Foreign companies are not allowed to trade or partner here. This means no money coming into the country. Hence no real development in technology and very frustrating for the younger people. And countries that do trade ie china or Turkey use it for their own advantage. Restricted goods are still available iPhones. Samsung tv's you can probably get everything here but brought in via china and turkey and no warranties. Some of the towns and cities could be anywhere in our world, you would never be able to pick where you were if you were suddenly transported here. We haven't seem any camels. Oil and petrol very cheap. 8c a litre for diesel. 30c litre for petrol. Very cheap to travel and stay here, especially with changing US dollars on black market we get nearly 30% more. We can't use credit cards or ATMS here only cash so we have had to carry what we need from home. 5/7/2014 0 Comments Iran and our travel.Iran and our travel.
Now about to leave Iran we can reflect on our last few weeks here. What a great experience and after my first couple of days if culture shock I adapted to life as a tourist here. We travelled to all the main attractions and ancient cities and sites. Seeing the religious centres of Mashhad and Qom ( where the Mullahs and ayatollahs are educated) and marvelling at the Mecca like shrines and buildings. (Iranians tried to discourage us from Going there but we thoroughly enjoyed the surreal experience, and me adorning the chador cloak ). We travelled to the desert towns and enjoyed yazd Shiraz Esfahan, with mosques and bazaars. Staying at Yazd and Kashan in old traditional homes was a hi light. And we especially loved the really unique mud brick and cave villages built into the hillsides at Abyaneh, Masuleh and Kandovan. We visited the towns on the Caspian Sea leaving the heat and desert behind, to enjoy tea and rice plantations and the greenery and lush hillsides, along with the cooler temperature. We have enjoyed hitch hiking around the country where we rarely waited longer than a minute before we were picked up. Our rides varied from families to religious Mullahs, to 3 mums on a girls weekend away. And a special mention to our 3 special young people who picked up Svend one afternoon, returned to the hotel to collect me. Took us sight seeing to gardens, changed their own own holiday plans and stayed overnight in Kashan so that they could drive us to Qom, see the holy shrine then took us to Tehran, drove us around, had dinner in an old bazaar cafe with heaps of atmosphere, and insisted we stay at their place. A wonderful time had by us all. Ironically 5 days later in another town 5 hours from Tehran we had been dropped at a park by the 3 mums and we were buying icecream when we were suddenly greeted by Sahand one of the group. When he spotted us, he had rang his parents and said I'm bringing some people home to stay and have dinner. His parents were do hospitable and we had a wonderful meal. Real memories to treasure. so Sahand, Sahid and Feruseh(??speling) many thanks for a special time. Sahand went on to help us find bus tickets for Istanbul and guided us around the 7km of covered alleys and domes of the world heritage ancient carpet bazaar where we ended up buying a rug and a silk piece that he had shown us earlier in the day. So beyond all the ancient sites we've seen it is probably the people we met in Iran that really made the visit so memorable. I can absolutely recommend a trip there for people who want something a little different and who wish to be pleasantly surprised. 5/7/2014 0 Comments RamadanRamadan.
Just as we get used to life in Iran, it all changed for Ramadan. For 40 days Iranians (Muslims) can not eat between sunrise and sunset. In reality not all observe this but on the streets no one eats in front of others during this time, but at home it is different. What this means for us is that we are not offered to come and drink tea with shop keepers all the time as before. Restaurants are closed until 9pm but other food sellers are open and love us as we are the only ones they have a chance of selling to. We are well tolerated as we stick out as foreigners and not treated adversely. I'm not sure how well people endure Ramadan in the heat but it must be quite stressful as they can't even drink water, hence all exercise is minimised. It has been very interesting being in a country where it is practised to such an extent. We survived our first car crash..
I no sooner finished blogging about how much better the drivers were here, than we ended up having a very near miss. We were driving into Shiraz after a long delayed flight from Mashhad and caught a share taxi. Crazy driver taking chances in overtaking where there wasn't any space. At one point he tried to overtake a small truck on the inside, but the truck pretty much was driving on the separation lines and moving further over to us squeezing us up against a concrete wall on our left, at 100km per hr. Needless to say we were forced straight onto the wall as we tried to miss the fish tailing trucks back end, with the car scraping along the wall at high speed for what seemed like an eternity. Svend was quick enough to pull in his arm. Amazingly the truck and taxi just carried on and took us to our destination, where the damage was surveyed, and astonishingly there was very little to see. Wow. 24/6/2014 0 Comments Iranian toilets, no paper needed!!Iranian toilets, no paper needed!!
You may have noticed I haven't mentioned the toilets for a while. I think I just got used to them. Iranian ones are however different in one particular way, the toilets themselves are either squat or western? But where our toilet paper holder would be is a plumbed in hose with nozzle attachment. No need for in depth description on usage just let your imagination run with it. I'm yet to build up courage to try and I'm sorry to admit that after leaving our hotels I may have blocked up a toilet or two with habitual paper usage. 24/6/2014 0 Comments Where was Hussein's wife???Where was Hussein's wife???
The astute amongst you will have realised that I haven't mentioned Hussein's wife, well that is in deed a story to be told. Driving to his house he said his wife was in Germany, so naturally we thought she was on holiday. At his house we met his two lovely children Fatuallah boy of 13 and Delluram girl of 10. And during our stay the story of their lives were related to us. Hussein was 48 and had lived in Germany and studied there for 20 years. After this time his mother thought he should marry an Iranian wife so he came back to Iran was introduced to a girl known to the family but about 16 years younger than him. They met for two weeks then agreed to marry, with about 500 people to the wedding. After 2 years living in Iran the girls parents urged him to take the girl back to Germany, which he did and 3 children were born, and he had a taxi business working long hours and paying nearly all his earnings in rent and to live. After his mother died they decided to return to Iran and live in his mothers house, essentially having a better life with no rent and he could work in a more stimulating job. After a couple of years something must have happened but we don't know what and he says neither does he, but HER parents in particular her father organised to take a trip to Tehran where they secretly organised for her to get a German passport along with her small 3 year old girl who was a German citizen, at the German embassy and travel documents, then they just simply disappeared with the help of her sister who was a travel agent ( she got us tickets to fly to Shiraz). SO she left her husband and two older kids and he's had no contact since. WOW. This was all a few years ago and it probably wasn't a nice time but it seems he has sporadic contact with her mother and sister but the young boy said his grandfather wouldn't see his father. Amazingly we all had dinner together and unknowingly I was asking questions about the sisters wedding last year and had her sister come to that. NO. Of course not. Hussein keeps contact for his kids sake and knows the sister was taking photos that night of he kids to send to his wife. The kids I feel sorry for and interestingly the boy makes every effort to keep speaking German and watches German satellite tv, and his dream is to play soccer for Germany one day. I have a feeling he wants to make sure he can speak German to his mum, or if she comes to get him he can still speak it. Although he says it's better in Iran!! So that's the story of Hussein's wife, a real life version of the book/ film 'Not without my daughter.' It's probably quite common only we don't know it. What a sacrifice, she can't come back to Iran or her parents or sister and has left her kids. WOW!!!! Dangerous taxi passengers, no just ordinary people.
So just for a change Svend and I were in a taxi in Shiraz Iran with two other passengers. The driver asked as usual " where you from". And Svend replied correctly "I'm from Denmark, Helens from England but we live in Australia ". I normally just say Australia as everyone knows and seems to like Aussies. We then went onto ask the driver and passengers where they were from. The driver was from Iran, one passenger was from Pakistan and the last one from Afghanistan. We couldn't fit an Iraqi in!!!!! 23/6/2014 0 Comments Svends new blogJust to let those Danes amongst us know that there is a new blog on svends page. Happy reading 23/6/2014 0 Comments World Cup feverWorld Cup fever.
Yes of course we are managing to see the World Cup. It's on tv at night all over Iran do far.. People keep telling us how well Australia did against holland, we did see the last few minutes, no shame there. As did Iran last night until extra time, how disappointing. Looks like the Aussies and Iranians will be on the same plane home with the England team!! |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
August 2014
Categories |