FROM ASSASSINS TO BLUE TILED MOSQUES

In our way to Teheran we decided to pay a visit to Alamut, land of the assassins...

Surrounded by the snowed peaks of the Alborz range you can find numerous castles situated in strategic points, like Gazor Khan castle dating from the time when the Mongol empire use to rule this part of the world.

Some roads, nowadays hardly travelled by locals, where busy with merchants travelling the silk road, selling their goods in some of the castles and that's when the assassins (that means, those who smoke hashish) used to strike their victims... Luckily for us just a quiet place with stunning views and relaxed friendly locals.

After two days enjoying the impressive views from Gazor Khan castle, it is time to head towards Teheran and find out if we can manage to get the "precious" Turkmenistan visa.

The Capital welcomed us with over 18 million people and probably with the same amount of cars racing in the streets, not caring about pedestrians, traffic lights or driving backwards when there are plenty cars coming in your direction... just using the horn as their excuse for everything and to let you know that they are coming.

Fighting against the horribly busy traffic early morning, we arrived to the Turkmenistan's embassy just on time to find out the we will have to wait to Mashad to get our visa trammited.

Not willing to get killed by a car or the pollution we jumped into a night train to Isfahan escaping the crazy city.

Once the capital of the Shah kingdom, Isfahan is probably one of those magic places hard to forget.

Inspiring architecture and crafwork are to be seen everywhere, especially in the famous Imam Square with its palaces and stunning Mosques with their blue tiled domes and facades. You can just travel back in time imagining the amount of skill and work that would take to build such impressive buildings, or when you get lost in the bazaar and hear the hammering of the craftsmen that invite to have a tea while they explain how the do their jobs.

Is not a secret that the biggest treasure of this city is its people which will stop you in the streets by their curiosity and will offer you their house, their food and their time even when you are a completely stranger for them.

Friday is the big praying day for them an luckily for us we are welcomed to experience the ceremony called Moharram where they whip themselves with metal chains to commemorate the death of the last of the twelve Imams.

Iranian New year, or Noruz is coming and everything is getting ready to receive the more than 3 million visitors expected, so for us is time to keep heading south to Yazd and Shiraz before finding a place to stay become nearly impossible..