Taking it easy today;-)
Trip Start
Jul 20, 2010
1
28
45
Trip End
Sep 16, 2010
Mashad, Iran
Saturday, August 21, 2010
After a very relaxing morning just organizing suitcases and taking long showers, my aunt and i decided to just stay in the room until the tour at 2pm, for a change. We had lunch at the hotel; since its ramadhan not all restaurants open; i found out that Pilgrims that come to Imam Reza are not obligated to fast at all...hmmm interesting. Checked out, met with the group, piled our bags in the van and headed to the Imam Reza mosque and maulsoleum to spend the majority of the day there until our train to Esfahan.
The wow-factor hit me immediatly when i entered!! it's a huge complex as big as the Kabbah, it might even be bigger! the complex houses many courtyards done in different eras, a historical museum, a mirrored mausoleum of Imam Reza that was one of the most facinating halls i've been in. A school or madrash for young boys and men, a restaurant that feeds people for free daily, a clinic with top notch equipment, and much more that i stopped listening to the guide and tried to take all in. I was in aww as i walked around the complex and took pictures with my iphone (cameras arent allowed, so i had to sneak my phone in, sorry for the quality). The intricute details of all the tiles, the crystal chandeliers that were hanging in the huge nitches facing Makkah, and the inlaid marble in each room....it was breathtaking! it was like walking in a proper islamic city....i can feel the vibe bouncing off the pilgrims.
Next on the agenda was the mausoleum of the first shah Nader of Iran, it was more of a chronological history museum of the years he reigned. It consists of 2 halls for preseneting work and objects dated back to the end of Safavid era, Afsharid reign and so on. he was often called "the Napoleon of Iran" as he created an empire that stretched out from Northern India to the Caucasus mountains.
Off to the station, we've got a train to catch at 7pm to Esfahan!
