My ideal would have been to wake up at 7 as at 7:30 breakfast was available. But as I had signed off at 22:30 yesterday, maybe 5:30 is all I can get. At least day 071 was uploaded before breakfast. The other guests arriving early, where two guys from the Netherlands (just guessing, they way speaking at low voice), but they looked so grumpy that I didn’t try to get in contact. An elder Chinese at least greeted when coming in, but then was occupied with her mobile phone. An Iranian woman came with the lift several times (the hotel has two (2!) floors and the lift is slow) to bring big portions to the room and then more and more Iranians dropped in but they didn’t even take notice of others. This was no problem for me as I had planned to make a sightseeing tour in the morning before it becomes too hot for a bad tourist like me. Yesterday, the manager had given me a map with sights and marked some special ones
and when I before had said “planned” I mean that:
I used kommot, connected those sights to a round trip, send it to the Garmin thing (it worked at the first try!)
and started walking with the GPS in my hand.
First of all, I want to say that not only the main roads but all roads I came through, were clean.
I came to the old Ali Gholi Khan bath, now a museum. It was closed and a man coming out told me it would open in 15min.
Meanwhile I made a walk through the small bazar nearby, also most shops closed, I saw some man doing their handcrafts.
Then I came to a small park. Nearly all parks I had seen so far in Iran, also in smaller towns, have those metal fitness machines. Here, for the first time I found something to make pull-ups and tried my best. Last time, in Burgas, I still could do 14, now it was 7. Enough reason for slight panic, how can that end? (In the next park, I tried again, this time it was 10). The interesting thing is that parallel to loss of power, fitness or agility, the motivation to do something for it decreases. I know that aging is inevitable, but I wonder to which is degree it is self-made by more and more giving up.
Back to Isfahan…
I skipped the old bath and went on along a big street with mosque Olmahdi (the sign said “masque”)
and then a small street with another mosque.
in the same building like the mosque is a studio
There, I found a sign to “Dehdashti historical house” and first wondered to find only a closed entrance looking like others.
But it would have been a beautiful old house
Going on I saw also houses in the making and wondered about that framework construction and the bricks with their holes to the outside.
Next building by chance laying on the route was the library of Isfahan, big enough!
Then it was time for the big Imam mosque.
In Vienna, when a church is under renovation I always feel pity with those who scaffold those high towers and roofs. But a dome of a mosque for sure is a big challenge, too.
And then I came to the big central square with Lotfollah mosque and Ali Qapu palace,
Here, I inserted a postcard for my dear garden-neighbour, Frau Wolf. I wonder when it arrives in Vienna!
Lotfollah mosque
First, after in vain trying to improve that pic, I wanted to abondon it. But then I liked that daring black sunshade
neighboured by the big bazar. In many shops you can see people working with metal, but I only made a video of a man working and as it was something different to all other shops, I took pictures of the Ostrich egg painting woman.
For Arash, my last host in Iran I know by Nader, I bought gaz that, if it is original, should contain gaz-angebin plants, growing near Isfahan, but for producing more and cheaper also is replaced by potatoes. I hope the difference is noticeable ?
After that square I should cross the bazar. I walked therein for a while finding no way in the given direction and decided to use the nearest exit to get new orientation – and found myself again at the big square. Later I crossed another part of that big bazar
(With parking nearby)
more successfully and came to the Hakim mosque.
After 9km walking, seeing several mosques, beautiful streets, many shops and myriads of crested wooden, metallic and ceramic objects I bought some pears as I remembered that Isfahan is famous for them. After eating, I think it was more likely Shiraz, I will try pears there again!