Today, I woke up eager to get to my first destination, Persepolis. Persepolis was founded by Darius the Great in 518 B.C. It was built to be the capital of the Persian Empire and is located in Shiraz. This grand city took over a century to make. It was visualized as a show place. This means that it was a center for receptions and ceremonial festivities. The life of Persepolis was only two centuries long, for in 331 B.C. Alexander the Great looted and burned it to the ground. Now, only the pillars that held the roof up remain along with some of the artwork. It was said that Alexander carried away all of the treasures on 20,000 mules and 5,000 camels. While I was walking about the ruins of Persepolis, it was interesting how well some of the artwork had stayed in tact over the centuries.

Day 2: Tomb of Hafez

Since I felt like going to see some tombs, today I went to the tomb of Hafez. Hafez was a very famous poet and still is today for people who love Persian poetry. He was educated by some of the leading scholars in Shiraz, his hometown. People say that he really loved his hometown. In fact, he loved his hometown so much, that he refused generous invitations inside and outside of Iran. When I looked at his marble tombstone, I saw that some of his poems were engraved there. I also saw that the creators of his tomb put in gardens and pools to make the environment more peaceful. In 1935, eight stone columns were put around his tombstone in the shape of an octagon. It was interesting to visit his tomb, because the gardens had many exotic plants and I was able to sit around the pools, drink tea, and reflect on his poetry.

Day 3: Tomb of Saadi

After I had been to the tomb of Hafez, I was in the mood to go to another tomb that belonged to a poet. I chose the tomb of Saadi. Like Hafez, Saadi was another famous Iranian poet. When he was just a child, his father died. When he grew up and finished college, he traveled through India and central Asia. While he was traveling, he got captured and was made to labor on a stronghold in Tripoli. Throughout his life, he had two principle works. One of them expressed Muslim virtues while the other was about his travels. His tomb was built in the shape of an octagon. His tomb is unique for a couple of reasons. A pool was made for people to throw coins in to make wishes and all the walls of his tombs were inscribed with his work. It was interesting to see how long or how short his poems were and what they meant.

Day 4: Tomb of Ferdosi

Having learned all of this information on poets and their tombs, I wondered what a writer's tomb would be like, so I went to the tomb of Ferdosi. Ferdosi was born in 940 A.D. near a town called Toos. His greatest work was the ShahNameh or Book of Kings. The Book of Kings was basically about the history of Iran. It took him more than twenty- five years to write it. I found out that the original brick structure of his tomb had been ruined and parts of the tomb were rebuilt in 1926. The construction on his tomb stopped in 1934 during the1000 year anniversary of his death. People say that the tomb lies over his exact place of death. It was interesting to me to see his style of writing.

Day 5: Sio-Seh Pole Bridge

After viewing three tombs, I had a yearning to see a famous bridge, so I went to the Sio-Seh Pole Bridge or the bridge of thirty-three arches. It was originally called the Allahverdikhan Pole after the architect who built it. This famous bridge was built in 1600. It was made so that it would be 300 meters long. This bridge was made as a kind of lovers point. This means that men and women would dress nicely to meet each other on this bridge and take a walk. Today it is still used for these purposes and it is also a major tourist attraction. I found it interesting to walk across this bridge, because I could see and touch the arches. The arches are also supposed to light up at night which gives the bridge an eye-catching glow.

Day 6: Naghshe Jahan Square

Today I went to Naghshe Jahan Square. Naghshe Jahan Square is one of the biggest, most beautiful squares in the world. It is 512 meters long and 160 meters wide, which actually makes it a rectangle. It was constructed in the sixteenth century to express Isfahan's majesty. It was made during the reign of shah Abbas. Like most other monuments in Isfahan, the main color and material of the square is blue tiles. I heard that if you want to see the whole square, it would take a few days since it is so big. It used to be much smaller than it is today, because now there are new buildings and more room. It was interesting to roam around the square and to go to the museum.

Day 7: Ali Qapu Palace

To end my trip, I decided to visit a palace, so I picked Ali Qapu Palace. Ali Qapu means the high gate in Turkish, which suits the palace, because it is seven stories high. This palace belonged to the Safavid period and was used for the greeting of ambassadors and envoys from other countries. The Safavid ruler was said to have watched polo games from the upper galleries of the palace. Back in the Safavid period, the largest rooms were used only for royal banquets. When I went inside, I found many amazing paintings. The room with the most impressive artwork was the music room. The music room was where most of the art was and where there were shapes of vases carved into the walls. This palace was very interesting to visit because of the amazing artwork on the ceilings and walls throughout the rooms.

Food

In Iran, there are many different kinds of food. Almost all cooking is based on rice. The people of Iran will eat rice plain, with yoghurt, or covered with special sauces. Chelo kebab is the most popular food and is also the national food. It is basically two skewers of marinated lamb served with onions, tomatoes, and of course, rice. For a better taste, Iranians broil it over charcoal. Bread and fruits are also very popular and are being constantly consumed. Bread is eaten on an almost daily basis for breakfast. Iranians eat bread with cheese made from the milk of a sheep and tea to start off their day.

Clothing

Iranian men usually wear loose trousers for clothing. They also wear long or short-sleeved shirts and can only wear shorts for swimming or playing an official sport. Women must wear Islamic dress when they leave their houses to go out anywhere. This Islamic dress consists of black chadors with thick tights. Women can also wear socks instead of tights. When women are at home, they are allowed to wear whatever they want. The women usually get uncomfortably hot when wearing a chador in hot weather. Rich Iranian women can afford to wear the latest fashions.

Sports

Iranians love watching and playing sports. The two most commonly watched and played sports are soccer and wrestling. Private companies usually sponsor the soccer teams. The soccer season goes from October to June and games are played on Thursdays and Fridays. Up to 100,000 people will try to get into a stadium to see one of the games. Before 2000, only men could go to the games, now women can too. Wrestling takes place in a zur khoneh which means “house of strength”. Iranian wrestling is a combination of wrestling and gymnastics and is taken very seriously. There is also camel and horse racing, but gambling on these sports is now prohibited.

New Year (Noruz)

The most important Iranian holiday is Noruz or the New Year. It starts on the first day of spring, which is March 21 and goes on for thirteen days. As a symbol of renewal, lentils and wheat are grown and houses are thoroughly cleaned. People also jump over fires to cleanse their souls and get rid of bad luck. This is called Charshanbeh Souri. Iranians also set up a new year's table with seven symbolic foods. This is called a Haft Seen. On the first twelve days, relatives go to each others houses and give children gifts, usually money. The thirteenth day is bad luck, so people throw their lentils and barley into a river or lake. They then have a family picnic to end the celebrations.