Kathy to Hilary, May 3, 1971, Tehran to Isfahan, Iran Dear Hilary,
The Adventure, Isfahan and Shiraz
April 26-30
April 26th was a Monday and as fair a Monday as any but a few could wish. The Traveler didn’t wake up any earlier than usual--the normal 5:30 was sufficient. The duffel bag was standing filled with things that wouldn’t be needed or used but Madame insisted. Besides getting dressed, there really wasn’t anything that remained to be done. After a rather complicated procedure she arrived at TAS. The bus was waiting there with exactly two occupants. “Gee, it’s huge,” were the first words everyone said when they walked on the bus--an ordinary American school bus. She had a seat to herself.
After half an hour of waiting all 24 people arrived and the bus set off--and immediately nearly fell into the jube. After an hour we were still in Tehran, but in another 15 minutes we were stone-free. It was a lively group and many jokes were cracked, cards played, lunches eaten.
An overloaded truck at a rest stop. ![]() 
A ruined caravanserai. ![]() 
She just sat and looked through the window and thought deep thoughts. The scenery was rocky and mountainous though broken by intermittant plains. We reached Qom, the holy city, and took pictures and bought greasy cookies.
Qom is where the cemeteries are. It’s a holy city and where they train all the mullahs. ![]() 
Qom from the bus. ![]() 
Then, after two rest stops--ISFAHAN!!!!
The Shah Abbas mosque. Shah Abbas lived during the time of Queen Elizabeth I. ![]() 
The dome of the Shah Abbas mosque 
The iwan of the Shah Abass mosque 
Shah Abbas’s palace and the Isfahan bazaar. You would like to shop at the bazaar! 
Chehel Setoon. Twenty pillars are reflected in the water, and 20 are on the structure. 40 is a lucky number. Setoon means pillar. Chehel means forty. 
Chehel Setoon interior 
The shaking minarets. They wouldn’t let anyone climb inside this time. 
The Sheikh Lu’tfallah mosque. The pool is where Shah Abbas once had a polo field. 
The mosque again. 
It took a while to find the hotel, which was a budget-price dump. She shared her room with two seniors. We ate supper in a hotel and I found 7 hairs in my chelo kebab--for which I won a Wilted Daisy award in the school newspaper after the trip:
“As a result of the field trip to Shiraz and Isfahan many daisies have been earned by our cultured travellers. Kathy Talley got hers for finding a three inch long hair (the longest found on the trip) in her chelo kebab, which she had been heartily enjoying.”
The view from our hotel room. The hotel Tus. 
We had a good time.
Vicki and Debbie were fun roomates. 
Debbie gets dressed. 
11:40:55 AM 
|
