Kashan, Iran--tea and conversation in a mosque

Tabatabei house, Kashan

We spent last night at a charming guest house in Kashan, about halfway between Esfahan and Tehran.  It was the childhood home of the owner, who has renovated the mansion into an 18 room guest house.  The rooms are cramped, but the courtyard is beautiful.

pool and courtyard of Tabatabei house

After breakfast, we went to visit one of Kashan's other old mansions, this one, a huge villa, the Tabatabei House.  It's stained glass windows and carved plaster walls are stunning.  In fact, a film crew was setting up to use the house for an Iranian movie.  Kashan was a major crossroads during the Silk Road days when merchants from across Asia and the Middle East exchanged goods over very long distances traversed by camel caravans.  The Kashan merchants would invite their business partners to stay with them after the dealing was done--or perhaps even before if they wanted to improve their deal for the goods they wanted.

stained glass windows in reception room of Tabatabei house

These houses had public and private areas, with the public areas being quite gorgeous and the private ones, rather plain.  Men used the public areas; women, the private ones.  Both areas had courtyards with trees, pools and flowers, but the area where the owner sealed his agreement with the traveling merchant was much more elegant.

tea and conversation at a mosque

Nearby, we visited a small mosque with the shrine of an important imam.  The caretaker invited us to have tea.  Soon several other men wandered in and we all sat on the floor drinking tea, munching cookies, and talking about the world.  They wanted to know if we thought Iran is powerful and if Trump would start a war with N. Korea.  They hoped that Iran and the US would someday be friends--a sentiment everyone we've talked to has expressed.  It just continued the warmth with which we've been welcomed in Iran.  And another wonderful opportunity to have a conversation with Iranians who are curious about Americans, eager to understand our point of view and have us know theirs, and to make sure we feel welcomed in their country.

7-year-old's waving goodbye

In the beautiful Fin Garden, built originally about 600 years ago, there were 2 groups of schoolgirls visiting.  While the 7-year-old's played in the water and learned about conservation, the 11-year-olds lined up to take selfies with me, a strange apparition with gray hair poking out from a scarf in sharp contrast to the chadors most women wear here and to their school uniforms and hijabs (head scarves).
The garden has a hamam (bathhouse) where one of the country's most important leaders was murdered by slitting his wrists.  According to the story, he knew he was about to be murdered and did not resist, so became a martyr.  Not that he hadn't done his own assassinations of his rivals and foes.

hamam in the Fin Garden

Continuing on to Tehran, we stopped in Qom, the center of Shi'a learning and theology in  the world.  Teachers, scholars and students come here from all over the globe to study and teach.  We visited the
Fatima Masumeh Shrine, a holy spot for Shi'as.  A lovely woman came to meet us to guide us through the shrine, draping me in a chador before we could enter the first courtyard.  She explained the importance of Fatima and some of the key points of Shi'a Islam.

Fatima Masumeh Shrine, Qom

Now, we are at the airport hotel awaiting our flight to Frankfurt and on home to Colorado.  An incredible trip where we saw and learned so much.  We'll be putting together an itinerary for bringing groups here in the next 2 years, assuming relations between our 2 countries don't get worse.  And, I'll add a couple of blogs about what to wear (particularly for women), pointers about traveling in Iran, and the Iranian economy.