iran

Welcome to Iran, where are you from?” was the greeting from almost everyone we met, usually followed by a request for a photo both of us and of Disco. It was a privilege to be able to feel so welcome in a country painted so poorly by Western media. Rising international tensions led to us employing a local guide Reza to accompany us. Thankfully bringing his entire Andre Rieu collection with him. We had a terrific time exploring this vast country and it joins China and Russia in being a country we’d like to explore more. The architecture is simply mind-blowing. Esfahan and Shiraz were highlights, Tehran was chaotic I had to keep my eyes closed whilst Disco negotiated the traffic. Check out the photos for more of a flavour. Speaking of which the food got better here – mostly as a result of Reza’s wife’s fantastic home cooking. Delicious kebabs and buttery saffron rice are the restaurant staples - in fact generally the only thing on the menu. Limited immigration means there’s no other international cuisines apart from the odd takeaway pizza and burgers. I don’t want to see another kebab for the next 12 months.