FOR's Friendship Delegation to Iran: December 2005
Report One: The Best Place To Be ...
We have arrived in Iran and we are safe and sound. We expected the cold weather of winter and instead we’ve found warmth and sunshine.
We didn’t know how Iranians would react to a group from the USA. However we have received warm welcomes from people in Tehran and Shiraz.
A group picture at Persepolis, Shiraz
On our first day in Tehran, we visited the Museum of Archeology and Islamic Art. The museum was divided into two sections, one dealing with the pre-Islamic era and the other the Islamic period. In the museum, we learned about the different eras of Persian culture.
Our national guide is Pejman, who lived in North Carolina when he was young and moved to Iran when he was 11, right after the revolution. He is an excellent guide with knowledge of the history and current situation in Iran that has wowed us all. In addition to excellent guiding, our culinary expectations have been surpassed. Each meal brings new and exciting dishes and we are only saddened that our stomachs cannot hold more.
The FOR delegation enjoyes the hospitality of their Iranian hosts
Wherever we have gone, people have been surprised to encounter a group from the United States and are very glad to meet us. Although we have not received one uniform message about Iranians' ideas regarding their country, all are happy that we are here to learn the history, meet the people and appreciate Persian culture. We ended the day with a flight from Tehran to Shiraz and a much deserved rest.
Upon our arrival at the airport in Shiraz, the tour agency representative who arranged for our hotel and local travel gave a little speech before we boarded the bus. He said he had lived in the United States and was treated kindly by Americans, so he wanted us to feel welcome. "Tell your friends how welcome they will be if they come here,” he remarked.
Tourism in Iran is down and for people involved in tourism, like elsewhere in the Middle East, making a living comes before the disagreements of national leaders. However, the agency representative's comments carried an additional message - a message that there is a desire for conversation between the Axis of Evil and the Great Satan.
The following day we traveled to Persepolis, the famous ruins of Darius the Great that date back to 518 BCE and the Achaemenid Empire. Persepolis is one of Iran’s three U.N.-designated world heritage sites. After a wonderful tour of the area, we traveled to the tombs of Saadi and Hafez, two of Persia’s greatest poets who are much loved by the entire country. Both tombs were not only exquisite, but filled with lots of people.
Pejman explained to us that the tomb and surrounding garden of Hafez is a place where young people gather to socialize. Pejman recited Hafez to us in Farsi and in English and we got a glimpse of the romance and ecstasy that accompanies these heart-stirring Sufi poets. It was a great place for all of us to fall into informal conversations with Iranians and learn about their opinions on a variety of topics.
Mary Huessy said, “At the Tomb of Hafez, I got into a conversation with two 18-year-old students, Mina and Leila. They wanted to make sure I felt welcome in Shiraz - they were very excited to have Americans visit. They are under the impression that Americans are 'rather strict,' meaning they are hard working and 'unromantic,' unlike Iranians, who are warm and romantic. But they were impressed by the friendliness of our group. They would love to be able to visit and to host Americans.”
Our final stop was Pejman’s surprise. We visited the Mausoleum of Shah-e Cheragh, dedicated to the brother of the eighth Shia Imam. Although non-Muslims are usually unable to enter these holy sites, Pejman knew the caretaker who agreed to let us in.
FOR Executive Director Pat Clark (second from right) and delegate Kendra Froshman (left), with their newly-found Iranian friends at their Tehran hotel
Kendra Froshman writes, “Once we entered the mausoleum, there was a communal gasp. The interior was covered with segmented mirrors which reflected the light on the inside of the building so that all the walls and ceilings shimmered and glittered.
Some of us sat down to take it all in while others walked around the building admiring the interior and the intricate Koranic script. Some of our women delegates fell into a conversation with a few women who had come to pray.
When one woman heard that we were from America, she asked, “Which do you like better, America or Iran?” I was at a loss as to a reply. I just shook my head and slowly responded that I didn’t know. She answered her own question: ‘The best place to be is where your heart is happy.’
And the answer made so much sense. As we are meeting new people and engaging in these fledgling relationships, I am constantly asking myself: "How can we support each other's happiness when our two nations may some day be at war?". And to think that this is only the beginning of our journey!
