Exploring Tehran

I was feeling lazy and jaded and didn’t want to go anywhere.  It was my third visit to the Iranian capital and the only thing I wanted to see (for the third time) were the National Jewelry Treasury but unfortunately it was closed today.

Reluctantly, I headed out at 1000 to explore the neighbourhood sights which included the Den of Espionage, located in the former US Embassy.  Once I got going, all the things I had in mind before come flooding back and I was once again motivated.

At the den, a free guide talked to us about the hostage crisis and showed us the various equipment from the embassy (communications, encryption/decryption, counterfeiting, shredders).  We were shown publications of secret documents that had been found on site; some had been painstakingly reassembled from shredded material.

The den visit finished with a video which explained the entire US-Iran relationship but with roles reversed. In that reversed role, everything seems unthinkable but in its true state, the world seems to happily believe that Iran is an ogre.

Their propaganda continues to stay that Iran hasn’t attacked any country in the last 300 years whereas the USA has made attacks and interventions.

I metro’ed the area where I stayed last, at the Naderi Hotel.  It doesn’t seemed to have changed.  It was opposite Bobby Sands Street, named after the Provisional Irish Repubican Army member considered a terrorist by the British.  Rather ironically, the street is just outside the British Embassy!

I wandered to Manouchehri Street which had plenty of antique shops previously.  Disappointingly there were only a few this time.  Many have seemingly been replaced by more pedestrian and contemporary goods.

I metro’ed back to my area and took short detour to the building bearing a modified and vilified star-and-stripes.  I was ready for a much-needed rest.

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In the evening, I headed out around 1730 by metro for Tabiat Bridge, an architectural masterpiece joining  two parks separated by the motorway.  Having skipped lunch, I was hungry but held off eating; not that there was anything available.

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I wandered from the metro through the park to get to the opposite side.  I had my heart set on eating some traditional Persian food at a restaurant called Khoone. As the restaurants in that building didn’t open till 2000, I wandered some more and had a snack to stave off my hunger.

Returning to the Khoone at 2000, I was disappointed that the place was closed and gutted inside.  I returned by metro and made do with a good toasted chicken roll for dinner.