Saturday August 16, 2014, 145 miles (233 km) – Total so far: 4,756 miles (7,654 km)
Saturday August 16, 2014 3 days, 145 miles It was nice to be in a hotel but I have to admit I really do enjoy the camping part of Iran. Jocelyn often mentions that she has wanted to camp more on this trip and we are finally doing that. We haven’t used the rain cover yet and the sleeping has been great with the fresh breezes, moon, and stars. Camping is very popular in Iran and unlike the states it can be done in any park or roadside piece of grass. There is never anyone who says to move. And of course it is all free. I have to admit that the hassles of some hotels were wearing me down.
Jocelyn has been having a rear brake issue so we stopped at a bike shop on the way out of town. We lucked out because this shop is owned by a professional cyclist, Farhad Salehian, who sells and services bikes between racings. He worked on the brakes plus did a lube job and a few other things so I brought in my bike for a checkup too. Our bells were rusted and not working well so he replaced them with a smaller different type. During this time many of his friends dropped by and we had a good time discussing our trip with them. When it was time to go he touched his chest with his hand, a typical way of saying from the heart, and said my gift. We received a servicing free of charge.
After a few hours of trying to cycle out of town on a strong headwind we discussed our options and decided to load the bikes and drive to Katalehkhour Cave about 100 miles south. This world famous cave is known as one of the most beautiful and spacious caves in the world with its four levels and 30 km that have been surveyed. This cave was formed during the Jurassic Period and was just discovered in 1951. Presently 2.5 km of the cave are open to the public. Since we didn’t exit the cave until 9 pm we decided to camp here for the night and I was once again so surprised that we could camp in front of the cave.
The next morning we drove back to Zanjan, unloaded our bikes and continued east. The wind wasn’t as strong as yesterday so we had a great ride and traveled through many small towns until deciding to camp at another roadside park. It was Friday, the Iranian day off, so it was crowded with families picnicking. The Iranian workweek consists of one day off, Fridays, with all other 6 days worked. It certainly is different here with Saturdays and Sundays in full work force. The shops and business are open late too. While we were sleeping in our tent families were still arriving after midnight to picnic and play like it was noon.
We continued towards Tehran and met Hamid of Faridad Pars Arya Tours (www.fpaTours.com) while eating lunch alongside the road. He cycled with us to the city of Karaj, about an hour’s drive to Tehran, where we are staying with the owner of FPA Tours, Ali and his family. Our driver Afshin is his son. We were also very warmly welcomed by members of a local bicycling club. In the evening we were served a wonderful delicious Iranian dinner prepared by Ali’s wife and daughter. Just the local homemade vegetable soup and lettuce salad along was great but there was also delicious chicken and rice. Hamid, who lived 25 years in the states, presented us homemade American chocolate chip cookies made by his wife. We also indulged in a chocolate cake. What a great time with new friends.
Before dinner we visited a local dentist as Jocelyn has been complaining about a tooth pain while brushing and flossing. The dentist’s office was packed on this Saturday evening. We were finally seen after 8 pm and she had excellent care as an examination was performed and x-rays taken. It appears that there is a beginning of a small cavity on one of the molars and we agreed nothing needed to be done yet. Once again the generosity of the Iranian people was apparent when the doctor tapped his chest and said “no charge.”
After dinner we discussed out upcoming trip options with Ali and his team. Now that we are in Iran most of our other “Stan” country visa dates will not line up. There are several options available to exit Iran and enter Turkmenistan and try and change some of the countries’ visa dates which alone can be tedious and costly. Out Tajikistan visa dates line up pretty well with our Iran exit date and this would require a Iranian visa extension which is fairly inexpensive and easy. Our plan now is to fly from eastern city of Mashhad, Iran to Dushanbe, Tajikistan and bypass Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as it is a lot cheaper this way.
So the adventure continues exploring and making lots of new friends in Iran and once again making a route change. But then if everything was set it wouldn’t be an adventure. At this point change comes naturally to us and that is a good thing.
