|
|
TRAVEL BLOG ENTRY
|
|
Arrival from Tabriz is on an afternoon bus. I had intended stopping off in Zanjan to visit Soltaniyeh and continuing on to Qazvin. What I was told was a three hour bus turned into five hours, so it was 17:30 by the time I hit Zanjan. Even though I was starved, it was a beautiful evening and I wanted to visit Soltaniyeh. As usual there were no shortage of taxi's around the bus when it stopped, so I chartered one for the 30 minute journey.
The Ojeitu Mauseloum stood out on the horizon like a lake in a desert. It almost seemed too tall for it's size. At 48m, it's dome is the tallest brick dome in the world. It was originally earmarked by the Mongol Sultan Ojeitu Khodabandeh as the holy site for the Shiite religion, to contain the ramains of Imam Ali, son in law of Prophet Mohammed. Before it was built, he turned his back on Shiite and joined the enemy, the Sunni's, and earmarked the mauseloum as his burial place.
Built in the 14th century, it really has stood the test of time and invasions. The internal is fully scaffolded and under restoration. Strolling around the covered external terrace on the upper level, it is obvious that the Mongols brought many of their crafts people from the east. The decoration is un-Persian. The domed ceilings filled with patterns and brick walls with enough decoration to bring them to life.
The taxi driver seemed happy to stroll about with me, when I thought he was coming in with me to make sure I didn't stay too long. It was his first time to visit, and at every turn there was a beaming smile on his face. As I was about to leave, he even lead me to parts we hadn't visited.
Back in Zanjan I was ready to fall with hunger. I headed for the fabulous Karavansara Sangi restaurant, a restored caravanseri that served as a lodge along the silk road. After finding a hotel, I was stopped when on the strol for internet. I meet Ali and he invites me to join him and his wife for food. I am stuffed, but they are anxious I come with them. He was about my age and spoke perfect English. I joined them for their supper and and after headed back with them to their apartment. After thrashing out the problems of the world, we arranged to meet up the next day, as Friday is his day off work.
We headed off for the mountains, as he called it. The taxi took us up the road to the side of the hill just outside town and stopped. We walked back down while he was concered that we stay on the road so he could keep his shoes clean. We reached a pond ('lake') and he wanted to see if he could go in the boat that was obviously out with a diving club for the day. The sun was burning him....... hard work at times! Before getting the bus to Rasht, we visited an old laundry house from the 1920's. A water channel extends like a running track around the domed hall and is well preserved for visitors.
previous travel blog entry
Would you like to comment or ask a question?
Sign up for a free account, or sign in (if you're already a member).