Iran

In the spring of 2006, I traveled to Iran with my then 4-year-old daughter. (3/23 - 4/02)

Isfahan

Imam Square in Isfahan, Iran. A square plaza surrounded by Islamic facilities and shops. It is best to wander around it in the morning, afternoon, and night.

Caravanserai

A caravanserai converted into a hotel in Isfahan, Iran. It is a cultural asset in its entirety.

Mosque Ceiling

Six shots of mosque ceilings. Rather than just looking up, the best way to enjoy a mosque is to lie down on your back.
For mosque ceilings in Samarkand (Uzbekistan), please click here.

Bam Citadel

In the spring of 2006, I traveled to southeastern Iran. My destination was the "Bam Citadel," a site that collapsed in an earthquake at the end of 2003. The photo above is a picture I took of a poster that was posted at my destination. The top shows it before the earthquake, and the bottom shows it after. Since the buildings were originally made of hardened mud, it looked as if they had returned to their original mud state due to the earthquake. It is currently registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site in danger, and restoration has finally begun. In the towns and villages around the ruins, old buildings with the same structure as the ruins suffered similar damage, though the newer houses did not suffer as much.
Now, since Bam is a small town, it does not have an airport. If you are using a plane, there are two airport options: "Zahedan," which is close to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, or "Kerman," which is closer to central Iran. From either one, it takes about 3 to 4 hours by bus. You will choose which airport to use based on your travel route and flight schedule. I flew from "Mashhad," a holy city for Shia Islam, to "Zahedan." I immediately moved to the bus terminal and headed straight to "Bam" by bus. I stayed one night in Bam, and from there, I took a shared taxi to "Kerman."

Now, I will talk about the local security situation at that time, as far as I experienced it. It has been over 10 years since then, but I think some points have not changed much.
Generally speaking, Iran is a safe country. It is wealthier than many Japanese people imagine. People are well-dressed, and everyone is very kind to travelers. The roads are well-maintained, and since there are no traffic jams like in Japan, travel is smooth. My impression is that Iran is a very easy country to travel in.
However, the border areas with Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan seem to be the exception. When I said I was going to "Bam via Zahedan," the locals gave me various pieces of advice. They said, "The border area is dangerous," "You should take another route," and "Be very careful." I went anyway, but since it was during the day, nothing happened in particular, except for the fact that there were many checkpoints while I was on the bus. I heard later that in the town of "Zahedan," you can sometimes hear gunshots at night.
The route from India through Pakistan into Iran has long been a classic course for backpackers. I have heard that the current situation is more dangerous inside Pakistan than inside Iran. Travelers taking that route should be very careful.
By the way, it is not news when a dog bites a person, but it is news when a person bites a dog. If you consider that this incident is rare enough to be news, there is no need to be intimidated. Iran is a wonderful place. That is all for this slightly old, niche information.

◇　　　　　　◇　　　　　　◇

　　　　　~ Islamic Countries ~
　　　　　　　　　　　　┌ ▷ Iran
▽ Beautiful Islamic Architecture!　┼ ▷ Uzbekistan
　　　　　　　　　　　　└ ▷ Agra (India)
　　　　　　　　　　　　┌ ▷ Yemen
▽ Middle East Photo Collection Summer 1990　　  ┼ ▷ Jordan
　　　　　　　　　　　　└ ▷ Palestine

▷ Hopping between luxury hotels in Dubai