Iran…Through The Funnel
Iran is the second in our series – “…Through the Funnel”. You can read our first one about Turkey here.It is a way for us to share 12 aspects that stood out to us in our experience of the country and its people. Did we miss something that stood out to you in Iran? #1 And the […]
Nomadic Life with the Bakhtiari
Squinting through my sleepy eyelids, a huge snow-capped mountain range appears out of the corner, glimmering white between the shadow of my dark eyelashes. We have arrived in the Khourang. The previous day in Tehran, our wonderful hosts at Cenesta (Iranian Centre for Sustainable Development) had asked us whether we would like to join another […]
The Silk Road Herb Salad
Since we’ve been on the road we have shared some of the recipes that we have learnt on the way, the ones where we have cooked with people happy to open their homes and kitchens to us, a foray into local food along our journey. We realise however that we have not shared the bulk […]
Dispatch from a Foreign Woman Loose in Iran
“Whatever you choose, however many roads you travel, I hope that you choose not to be a lady. I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women.” — Nora Ephron […]
Taking Stock: 100 Days on the Road
Around every three days I wonder if all this is really happening. We have been on the road for 100 days. 100 days at home would have involved about 14 weekends, 258 Skype calls for work, 8 Parvis St.Gilles market visits, 32 supermarket drop-ins, countless dinners with friends, 98 salads, on average 2 birthday parties […]
Early Summer Green Rice from Tehran
“Tehran is the third most beautiful capital in the world!” promised our friend Muhammed. Mmm I think that is slightly debatable…with its mad traffic and consequentially high air pollution, this congested city has not managed to squeeze its way into my top three places in Iran, but our stay there definitely rated highly due to […]
Welcome to Iran
“Welcome to Iran!” the man in the white and black Adidas tracksuit waves and grins at us from the front row of the van. We are about 5 minutes into our dolmuş ride from Dogubeyazit and still about 30 km from the Iranian border, but Feri cannot contain his enthusiasm. This former member of the […]
Turkey…Through the Funnel
This is the first in our series – “…Through the Funnel”. It is a way for us to share 12 aspects that stood out to us in our experience of the country and its people. Most aspects will be things we consistently observed along the way and either found amusing, enlightening or cross cutting throughout the region. […]
Chasing Mount Ararat
“My grandfather would always request that my father bring back bags of sugar from his travels, but then proceed to lock them up in a cabinet and never consumed the sugar himself. When I asked why, he would say, ‘the sugar is only for the guests’…this, is Kurdish hospitality.” Bilal recounts. Moving towards the […]
The Lakes of Tatvan
The road from Mardin to Tatvan is a prime example of the diversity in Turkey’s landscape. Travelling through the country, it feels more like 5 countries in one, there are stunning turquoise beaches of the Aegean coast to the west, the nougat ice cream scoop rock formations of Capadoccia in the centre, huge crystal salt […]
