Publisher's Synopsis
This illustrated book covers two trips to Esfahan; one in 1999 and the next in 2010.
In 1999, the writer visited Iran for the first time. His trip took him to Esfahan and Shiraz, with side trips to Abyaneh and Kashan. In 2010, he returned to Esfahan.
At the time, he was working in Dubai and was fascinated by the larger neighbour across the (variously named) Persian or Arabian Gulf.
Apart from the physical proximity of Iran, it had exercised a strong influence on the history and growth of Dubai and many of the Dubai locals could trace their origins back to Iran and some of the families of the biggest businessmen in Dubai were of Iranian origin. One of the first hospitals in Dubai had been built by the Iranians and the settlement at the mouth of the Creek, known as Bastakia, upon which Dubai's trading reputation had been founded, had been named after an area of Iran. In the media, however, this connection was played down and the name Bastakia had recently been changed Al Fahidi to cast more light on the parallel and equally prominent Arabian heritage. The Persian or Iranian connection merited closer investigation.
Iran had been a kind of pariah state in the eyes of the Western Media since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 and its tourist industry had suffered as Diplomatic contacts had been broken with the West. This was exactly the kind of place that the writer and his companions were drawn to.
In 1999, there had been signs of change and optimism and it seemed a good time to visit. It was still three years before George W. Bush's speech, which nominated and promoted Iran as a member of the exclusive "Axis of Evil" club, which, with wishful thinking, may have helped the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2005 and the further deterioration in relations over the following eight years.
No country and its people deserve such blanket and unquestioning vilification. Persia/Iran had contributed so much to world culture and there was a treasure trove of discoveries to be made and meetings with great people ahead.
