First Impressions
I got in Tehran Mehrabad Airport 3:30am, after what seemed like three days on the plan. Seating in the middle section on the flight crossing the Atlantic to Amsterdam and then from there (KLM is the worst airline as far as punctuality, a 2 hour delay in addition to a 6 hour wait at the beginning cost me all my smokes). Waited 20 minutes to get my pass stamped and then another 30 minutes to get my stuff and then walked the inspections without the any fuss I was expecting the same treatment that I got in Kansas City Airport, opening of the luggage's and wrinkling of shirts and breaking couple of the gifts I brought for old friends!
Anyhow, my parents and an old friend from the High School days were waiting for me and it was really crowded, and a lot of cabbies, both airport cabs which are more expensive and the irregular ones that have it as their second job, so they can make ends meet.
(I will not mention any name until I'm sure that it will not be hazardous, my senses and knowledge of the place from 10 Years ago tells me not to but of otherwise is the case I will edit and put names and contacts to the labels. Until then Old friend means a person I knew before I left and new friend the reverse).
Got home and after my parents went to sleep I started chatting with Old Friend #1 (O.F#1) about the old times and the developments of the current times. He told me that he got the sixth place in Konkor ( the Dreaded University exam that impacts to the greatest degree the path of you life from when you are 18 until death) in field of mathematics and went on to focused on sciences, got his masters and really eager to be able to focus on his research and promote his field of science. He decided to start a Foundation (Bonyad) to grant scholarship and seek out founding for research, but was told that the only Foundations allowed under current laws are Religious ones (neither public ones and not private ones) that have defined religious or political purpose. He went on to explain that the government is actively discouraging the scientific thinking and production. We talked some more and I became rather shocked (and hopeful) to see that he has turned to a non-religious person, as I remember him to be a unpretentious religious dude when we were in high school (not governmental religious but religious nonetheless).
Anyhow, it was around 10 am that I took a shower and head out with him, I wasn't tired at all anymore and wanted to walk around a my old hang outs, bit and my friend wanted to go home an sleep.
We called a cab and head out. I sat in the front which was a bad mistake since in Tehran the traffic rules, and signs and signals are either for amusement of the drivers, suggestions to which rules to break or in best case, recommendations as valuable and effective as the having a third party in U.S. After dodging a near death experience I got out of the cab in Vanak roundabout (approx Mid-northwest) and felt like the best driver that ever lived. And started to walk about, there is construction spree in Tehran unmatched anywhere else in the world and in this city there are 22 districts and every district has about 10-15 neighborhoods and the this conglomeration of human dwelling hold about 12 million people and serves as a testament to what happens when in the 300 year history there is not a single attempt to plan the growth of the city. Tehran is a bustling place and people are hassled no longer which both makes ma happy and worries me a bit. I walk down the Vali-ye-Asre (the 12th shia Emam) street which is one of the main streets of Tehran (name before the Revolution: Pahlavi [family name of the king] after the Revolution: Mossadeq) went toward my first Cinema which burnt down (or maybe as O.F#1 said was burned down) apparently the city of Tehran has a plane to build a complex in its place and the plan has been in pipelines for about 9 years and they have gotten as far as digging a whole in the ground and putting wooden boards around the place. The thing about countries like Iran is since there is no independent press and because every one strongly dislikes policies, there are no end to the rumors and conspiracy theories. EVERY single paper has a connection to a person in the system.
Anyhow I walked down toward the Tehran University main campus. Its 5 days after the 9th year anniversary of the biggest disturbances since the revolution and I want to see the atmosphere around there. But before that I need a drink, I stop by a small refreshment shop, and as soon as entering the little shop, sensed that I walked in a bad time a married 50 something year old Haji (a real Moslem who has gone to Mecca) had picked up a 20 something prostitute and I think they were in the negotiation part of the deal when I entered. I finished my drink with out tasting it, this kind of events are enough to turn your stomach for a while.
I got out and went toward the University passing the heavily guarded Ministry of State (Interior Ministry) and then passed my High School. This little part of Tehran has a street named Italy (don't know why, but we have a Argentine Roundabout too) I was born in a hospital that is about 5 or six blocks away from the old American Embassy during the hostage crisis. The Embassy is about 2 blocks away from the University and the hospital about 2 blocks west of my High school. Its perhaps one of the most historic parts of Tehran in the last 35 years and people like me go to school here walk the streets and are ignorant or unable to understand the true nature of the events that unfolded her
I get to Tehran Uni, and at the entrance there is a police guard (quit normal in a lot of countries [Sorbonne for example has the same process] but when I was here no one did it) who is checking I.D. so I walk toward the bookstores on the street in front of the main entrance and check out the titles. There are all kinds of books here except books that deal with current history of Iran, from Hillary Clinton's memoirs (that political prostitute) to Da vinci Code and books on fortune telling (which maybe useful in some political circles of Iran abroad)
I've been walking for a good 6 hours, I'm tired and every breath of air is stinging my lungs a sun is making my brain melt, I decide to call it a day its 5pm and I go to bed.
I left of three other things from my first day;
1- Mosque Construction
2- I saw a Satirical movie (Cease Fire) which dealt with the husband and wife relations in Iran, Won you would like it
3- Peoples reaction to me, and me and my camera
I'll post some pics soon as I can up load them since I brutally murdered my Laptop its rather difficult.
I'm paying 13000 rials for a pack of Cigs, 12000 for a movie, 9000 for a coffee and Iranian money is kinda like Italian Lire, lot of 000s, meaning exactly that, zero. but comparatively I feel like being robbed In Rials! The rial is so devalued that around 40 years ago, people dropped one zero and call it Toman. Now a days 1000 Tomans are called one Toman, who needs a central bank devaluation action when people do it on their own.
laters people,
keep checking the blog
Anyhow, my parents and an old friend from the High School days were waiting for me and it was really crowded, and a lot of cabbies, both airport cabs which are more expensive and the irregular ones that have it as their second job, so they can make ends meet.
(I will not mention any name until I'm sure that it will not be hazardous, my senses and knowledge of the place from 10 Years ago tells me not to but of otherwise is the case I will edit and put names and contacts to the labels. Until then Old friend means a person I knew before I left and new friend the reverse).
Got home and after my parents went to sleep I started chatting with Old Friend #1 (O.F#1) about the old times and the developments of the current times. He told me that he got the sixth place in Konkor ( the Dreaded University exam that impacts to the greatest degree the path of you life from when you are 18 until death) in field of mathematics and went on to focused on sciences, got his masters and really eager to be able to focus on his research and promote his field of science. He decided to start a Foundation (Bonyad) to grant scholarship and seek out founding for research, but was told that the only Foundations allowed under current laws are Religious ones (neither public ones and not private ones) that have defined religious or political purpose. He went on to explain that the government is actively discouraging the scientific thinking and production. We talked some more and I became rather shocked (and hopeful) to see that he has turned to a non-religious person, as I remember him to be a unpretentious religious dude when we were in high school (not governmental religious but religious nonetheless).
Anyhow, it was around 10 am that I took a shower and head out with him, I wasn't tired at all anymore and wanted to walk around a my old hang outs, bit and my friend wanted to go home an sleep.
We called a cab and head out. I sat in the front which was a bad mistake since in Tehran the traffic rules, and signs and signals are either for amusement of the drivers, suggestions to which rules to break or in best case, recommendations as valuable and effective as the having a third party in U.S. After dodging a near death experience I got out of the cab in Vanak roundabout (approx Mid-northwest) and felt like the best driver that ever lived. And started to walk about, there is construction spree in Tehran unmatched anywhere else in the world and in this city there are 22 districts and every district has about 10-15 neighborhoods and the this conglomeration of human dwelling hold about 12 million people and serves as a testament to what happens when in the 300 year history there is not a single attempt to plan the growth of the city. Tehran is a bustling place and people are hassled no longer which both makes ma happy and worries me a bit. I walk down the Vali-ye-Asre (the 12th shia Emam) street which is one of the main streets of Tehran (name before the Revolution: Pahlavi [family name of the king] after the Revolution: Mossadeq) went toward my first Cinema which burnt down (or maybe as O.F#1 said was burned down) apparently the city of Tehran has a plane to build a complex in its place and the plan has been in pipelines for about 9 years and they have gotten as far as digging a whole in the ground and putting wooden boards around the place. The thing about countries like Iran is since there is no independent press and because every one strongly dislikes policies, there are no end to the rumors and conspiracy theories. EVERY single paper has a connection to a person in the system.
Anyhow I walked down toward the Tehran University main campus. Its 5 days after the 9th year anniversary of the biggest disturbances since the revolution and I want to see the atmosphere around there. But before that I need a drink, I stop by a small refreshment shop, and as soon as entering the little shop, sensed that I walked in a bad time a married 50 something year old Haji (a real Moslem who has gone to Mecca) had picked up a 20 something prostitute and I think they were in the negotiation part of the deal when I entered. I finished my drink with out tasting it, this kind of events are enough to turn your stomach for a while.
I got out and went toward the University passing the heavily guarded Ministry of State (Interior Ministry) and then passed my High School. This little part of Tehran has a street named Italy (don't know why, but we have a Argentine Roundabout too) I was born in a hospital that is about 5 or six blocks away from the old American Embassy during the hostage crisis. The Embassy is about 2 blocks away from the University and the hospital about 2 blocks west of my High school. Its perhaps one of the most historic parts of Tehran in the last 35 years and people like me go to school here walk the streets and are ignorant or unable to understand the true nature of the events that unfolded her
I get to Tehran Uni, and at the entrance there is a police guard (quit normal in a lot of countries [Sorbonne for example has the same process] but when I was here no one did it) who is checking I.D. so I walk toward the bookstores on the street in front of the main entrance and check out the titles. There are all kinds of books here except books that deal with current history of Iran, from Hillary Clinton's memoirs (that political prostitute) to Da vinci Code and books on fortune telling (which maybe useful in some political circles of Iran abroad)
I've been walking for a good 6 hours, I'm tired and every breath of air is stinging my lungs a sun is making my brain melt, I decide to call it a day its 5pm and I go to bed.
I left of three other things from my first day;
1- Mosque Construction
2- I saw a Satirical movie (Cease Fire) which dealt with the husband and wife relations in Iran, Won you would like it
3- Peoples reaction to me, and me and my camera
I'll post some pics soon as I can up load them since I brutally murdered my Laptop its rather difficult.
I'm paying 13000 rials for a pack of Cigs, 12000 for a movie, 9000 for a coffee and Iranian money is kinda like Italian Lire, lot of 000s, meaning exactly that, zero. but comparatively I feel like being robbed In Rials! The rial is so devalued that around 40 years ago, people dropped one zero and call it Toman. Now a days 1000 Tomans are called one Toman, who needs a central bank devaluation action when people do it on their own.
laters people,
keep checking the blog
posted by The Hopeful Cynic at 3:49 AM
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