My Travel Diaries of
Iran
Summary
Currency: toman/rial
Capital: Tehran
Drink like a local: Tea, self-made sprits, wines and beers
Special facts:
- As soon as you enter the country you will immediately experience the Ta’arof. The Persians are incredibly polite, they let a friend go first, pay the bill… it is polite to refuse an offer at least three times before you can accept it. Conversely, it is almost a race to see who will pay the bill or hold the door first. This can be very exhausting.
- Iran is suffering from extreme inflation. Iranians themselves only use “Toman” to calculate their money. This is the same as “Rial“, only with one less zero.
- Due to the sanctions, it is not possible to withdraw money from VISA or Mastercard credit cards in Iran.
- An Iranian once told me “the ban on alcohol has created the country with the largest alcohol producers“. There seems to be something in that – most Iranians I meet have their own production of wine, beer or something stronger.
- Iranians are incredibly hospitable. Whether I’m offered a few nuts on the street or dinner and a room for one or more nights – these invitations are genuine!
- Due to the bad press, there are hardly any Western tourists in Iran. The locals are all the more pleased when they see a traveler from the West. Despite the sanctions, the Iranians are very friendly towards the West and also towards Israel. The anger of the population is directed primarily against the government.
- Iranians are particularly fond of Germany. We meet many young people who speak German very well because they are coming to Germany to study. Studies in mechanical engineering are very popular.
- Unfortunately, many uneducated, young Iranians in Germany still see the country of the Nazis – and think it’s a good thing. I often hear “I love Hitler”, which, surprisingly, I don’t take very positively from the boys. I’ve even been proudly shown the occasional imperial eagle tattoo.
- The poets Hafiz, Saadi, Firdausi and many others are still greatly revered by the Persian population and their tombs are more likely to be visited than those of the imams or the martyrs praised by the Islamic regime. Many present a book by Hafiz instead of the Koran at the New Year celebrations.
- While the rest of the Islamic world is largely Sunni, there are Shiites in Iran. The biggest difference is that believers in Iran worship eleven imams who were great prophets. They are still waiting for the twelfth imam. Nobody wanted to believe that I was that!
- Iran is about three times the size of Germany and has about the same number of inhabitants.
Language
The Persian language Farsi seems to Europeans like another form of Arabic. But that is wrong. Farsi is a completely different language, and due to its history and the influence of Islam, it has some Arabic words in its vocabulary. Surprisingly, it also contains some French words, as the French also had a lot of influence on Persia in the 19th century.
The grammar is surprisingly simple and free of irregularities. The Iranians also confirmed that my pronunciation of Persian is very good – the language sounds very similar to German.
- Hello – سلام (salom)
- Are you well? – حال شما چطور است؟ (to khubi?)
- Thank you – متشکرم (merci)
- Thank you (traditional) – با تشکر (mamnoon)
- Bye – خداحافظ (khodafez)
- Cheers! – به سلامتی (be salamaty)
- Wimp – سوسو (sousou, people from Tehran)
- Excuse me – بهانه (bebakhshid)
- Darling – عزیزم (azizam)
- Beautiful – خوب (khoshgel)
- That is expensive – که گران است (in geroon ast)
- Golden penis – آلت تناسلی طلایی (dodool tala)
My Lesson:
No country can compete with the hospitality of the Iranians
Travel Diaries
Iran is an incredible country. The Orient, Persia, the Silk Road, the desert, colorful bazaars, hospitable people – all of that is true. Mullahs, Ayatollahs, a strict regime, conflicts with Israel and the USA, compulsory headscarves for women, bans on alcohol and dancing… that too is true.
Das Land ist zerrissen zwischen einer totalitären Regierung und einer Jugend, die nach Freiheit strebt, zwischen konservativen Moslems und Künstlern, Dichtern und Denkern. In kaum einem Land nutzen Menschen jeden Tag, den sie am Leben sind, so wie der Menschen im Iran.
