boiled over , excited by Tehran , a city of many districts .
Official posters and electronic displays hailing “ Down with USA and Israel ” were commonplace . President Trump characterised on billboards as a Hitler-styled fool . Hardly surprising as his ‘ ban ’ on all Muslins entering the USA has not been well received .
Often asked if the word Triumph on the side of my petrol tank was pronounced Trump . Triumph motorcycles are not available in Iran , I pronounced the name for them with a French accent so as to sound quite different from Trump .
Aydin and I took the Metro , with its male / female segregated carriages , to north Tehran . Another mosque . The multi-roomed Imāmzādeh Sāleh mausoleum , with its inside covered in a mirror mosaic , reflecting light but not of your own image , took my breath away .
" I am allowed to call it ‘ bling ’," laughed Aydin . I wondered if he had become aware of the use of the word outside Iran , and thought this was an exceptional example of ' bad ' taste .
An exceptional guide , and board member of the Iran Tourist Guide Association , Aydin was quick to point out he wasn ' t religious .
Here at Tajrish Square is an ancient bazaar , not for tourists , ( there are almost none anyway ), still very much a place where locals buy their food and household items .
Next stop , the centre of the country ; Isfahan .
The capital of Isfahan Province , 340 kilometres south of Tehran . A central square ( rectangle ), that once used to be a Polo field . The square
is described as ‘ half the world ’ as so much is going on .
I was again left breathless . This time the ‘ Friday Mosque ’. The blue tile adorned building includes a most perfectly formed acoustic dome . Clap and it softly echoes 24 times .
Exquisite tile patterns match many of the local carpets for sale . I understand they still debate whether carpet weavers copied the mosque , or vice-versa . In any event , the carpets have 70 silk stitches per centimetre to match the pattern .
Here there is also a female only mosque , a palace , a lake , and thousands of people enjoying picnics , games , and each other ’ s company . A fabulous atmosphere !
My imagination had long since
TRAVERSE 52