Tehran

Friday and Saturday were spent in Tehran with the camp kids. We left Qum at 5am and made our way to the shrine of Imam Khumayni. After a breakfast stop (where the choice of food was coco pops or jumbo coco pops!), we arrived at the shrine of the leader of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. The shrine's office had organised a 'wreath laying' ceremony. While we were getting ready to go in, a crowd of Iranians gathered to watch, as we were entering through the door used by VIPs. I think the girls were taken aback by how much pride the country has in Imam Khumayni, and that stopped them from giggling too much.

We then visited the Behishte Zehra graveyard where the martyrs from the Iraq-Iran war are buried, as well as others who had contributed to the development of the Islamic Republic. Had to rush a bit here (didn't help that the girls were dawdling like old women!), as our next stop was the Friday prayer at Tehran University.

Friday prayer at the university is top security. The streets nearby are closed off and no cameras, phones or bags are allowed in. We were given VIP front row seats, which made the Tehranis very curious to know who we were. I used the chance to practise my Farsi to talk to the ladies sitting near me... although I haven't started formal classes yet, I think my vocabulary is getting better! Some of the girls were given prayer beads and other small gifts as presents from the Iranian ladies.

Neither the girls nor the boys dawdled to the next stop - a chel0 kebab and juje kebab stop! (lamb and chicken kebabs with rice). There was a partial solar eclipse happening too.... so we prayed the prayer in a park altogether.

After this, the younger and older camps separated - the older camp went to visit the Savak prison museum. Apparently, both groups were taken last year, but the plan was changed this year as many of the younger children were scared by the torture apparatus. Instead, we went to visit one of the Shah's palaces. The palaces have been preserved as a reminder of the extravagant lifestyle of this one family, while the rest of the country lived in poverty. I will post some pics up as soon as i have access to high speed Internet! The next stop was supposed to be the house of Imam Khumayni, for the children to compare how the 2 leaders lived. Imam Khumayni lived in a small house in a street so small that mini buses cannot drive all the way up. Unfortunately though, the kids were tired and so we made our way to the musafirkhana (youth hostel type thing, but not for youths only).

We had heard that the place had just been renovated. Didn't see much renovation though! The beds were hard (not sure you could even call them beds) and the bathrooms were a bit nasty. I also saw lizards in the reception area (didn't point them out to the girls!). Luckily it was only for 1 night. The next morning, we made another 5 am start (again, not appreciated by the kids!) We made our way to the Darband mountains. Most of us were not prepared for the walk - I had been told there were ski lifts to take you to the top - but at 6am on a working day, they were not walking. The walk up the mountain was very refreshing. There are many cafes and restaurants on the mountain, and people, as well as making their livelihood from feeding tourists, also live on the mountain. We saw many stray dogs, as well as ducks and donkeys (used to transport goods to the businesses). The volunteers found a cafe which was big enough for all of us (and was open!) This was the first time that I had eaten breakfast with the camp girls as I usually meet them at their first class or the first visit. We ordered 6 omelets between 17 and actually had left overs! The boys on the other hand ordered 22 omelets between 15 people!!

After the climb down, the volunteers tried to arrange a visit to Imam Khumayni's house, but were unable to secure a visit. Instead we took them to the graves of Shaykh Saduq (one of the early scholars of Shia'ism) and Rajabali Khayat (about whom the book 'Elixir of Love' is about. The shrines of the Holy Imam's children was not too far ( in the city of Rey), where we made our next stop. The Husband and the other volunteers left us to go and pick up some lunch. They trekked across the city to pick up the same Hardees burgers that we had on our last Tehran trip. Unfortunately for the volunteers and for us, it took them 2 hours to make the round trip as there were 4 accidents on the way :-(

By this point, I was completely shattered.... we boarded the bus to make our way back to Qum and I fell asleep most of the way! The kids enjoyed the trip, although I think most of them were glad to be back 'home' to Qum!