Thank you for your support, loyalty and amazing comments that kept us company through more than a year of backpacking. We’ll save you the mushy speech — I kind of already did that — but if you’re keen to follow along on our next journey as we conquer San Diego, find jobs, discover delicious food, beautiful hikes and Southern Californian culture, then be sure to check out my new blog, my SoCal*d life.

Happy travels!

My last stop in Iran was Esfahan, often referred to as ‘Esfahan nesf-e jahan’ (Esfahan is half the world), is the number one tourist destination in Iran thanks to its beautiful Persian gardens, huge bazaars, massive UNESCO-listed central square and numerous artisanal handicrafts. In Esfahan, you’re constantly surrounded by the arts — painting, pottery, calligraphy, metalworking and architecture. My favorite thing to do every time I’ve visited here is to watch artisans make their beautiful handicrafts, things like the famous Persian carpets, engraved metal plates and enamel working. Needless to say, if you’re a tourist in Iran, Esfahan is the place for souvenirs.

But for me, Esfahan isn’t just about cool crafts; it’s also where my parents are from and where many of my relatives still live. At this point in my trip, I met up with my mom, who up until this time had been holding down the fort in Esfahan while I backpacked through Iran. One of my sisters also made the trip out from New York, so it was a nice change of pace to end my many days of solo travels with some family and familiar faces. We shopped, lounged around in my parents’ condo and ate, which was maybe the best part of it all. As good as the food had been throughout the entire 15-month-trip, nothing compares to mom’s homecooked meals.

Take a look at Esfahan and my last days in Iran.

Naqsh-e Jahan Square (“pattern of the world”) is where polo, which was actually founded in Persia, was played hundreds of years ago but is now just used as a park area surrounded by bazaars and mosques.

One of a few 400-year-old bridges in Esfahan. When I went the river was unfortunately dry.

View from my parent’s condo in Esfahan.

As it always happens, I was having a little too much fun catching up with my family to remember to take a lot of photos. But I did manage to get one snap of my two uncles in their factory. There are six brothers on my dad’s side, and all of them have storefronts on the same street. I went to each of their shops and drank tea with each before ending my trip.

Mud-brick houses and narrow, ancient streets make up the beautiful, sand-colored city that is Yazd. And within these winding lanes is a city rich in history, one that’s frequented by foreigners and locals alike. Yazd is believed to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of the world and is home to the largest population of Zoroastrians, people who follow Iran’s indigenous religion, which was in place prior to the arrival of Islam. Plus, where else in the world can you see a fire that’s been burning for 1,500 years? (Hint: It’s found in Yazd and is called the Ateshkadeh, or fire temple.) I’d never get tired of wandering and getting lost in those streets — the architecture, the people, the smells of home-cooked food coming from the old homes. When it comes to Yazd, pictures definitely speak louder than words. Take a look.

The fire temple known as Ateshkadeh.The 1,500 year old Eternal Flame.

The hotels are sometimes just as much of a sight to see as the ancient stuff. Former mansions, these hotels are beautifully decorated, like the one below, which happens to be the most famous one in Yazd. I didn’t stay here, but I did take a few snaps.

The courtyard in a different, similarly stunning hotel.

In the old town, a local man weaves a silk blanket.

On my last night in Yazd, I played ping-pong against the hotel receptionist and some Japanese tourists.

 **We’re currently enjoying the end of 2012 with my family in Oklahoma before we move to San Diego in January. Here, I get back to my last few posts about my six-week backpacking trip through Iran.**

One of my major goals in blogging about Iran is to show our readers the real Iran — the one not depicted in the news and the one so few are familiar with. I mean, would you have ever guessed early traces of wine came from Shiraz? And that Iran is home to a poetic, laid-back city like Shiraz? Well, my open love letter to Shiraz continues now. Here, I share with you the nine places — ones with history, culture and stunning nature — that everyone should know.

Aramgah-e Hafez or Tomb of Hafez. Look at the books in an Iranian’s home and you’ll almost always find a book of Hafez’s poems. Hafez, who lived from 1325-1389, is one of Iran’s most beloved poets, who frequently penned verses of the mystical nature. His tomb, an octagonal structure with a beautiful tiled ceiling, is a pilgrimage site for many.

My friend introduced me to this man who spends a lot of time at the tomb. He loves Hafez, but funnily enough, he told me hasn’t read much of Hafez’s works. He relies instead on the spiritual connection and force he gains when he holds the books.

Aramgah-e- Shah-e Cheragh. This mosque is set in a beautiful courtyard that’s a perfect place to just “take it all in,” but the real draw is the retina-blinding mirror tile work inside. I challenge you to find a glitzier holy site.

Qalat. This ancient village located 45 minutes from Shiraz is a popular weekend getaway for Shirazis and for good reason thanks to mountains, waterfalls, pomegranate trees and hiking trails all to be enjoyed while sipping exotic teas, drinking sharbats (sweet herbal drinks with health benefits) and smoking hookah.  I mean, it doesn’t get much better than barbecuing kebabs next to a waterfall. There are even a couple of small modern art galleries!

A piece from one of the galleries.

Citadel of Karim Khan. This picture doesn’t really do the citadel of ruler Karim Khan justice, but trust me when I say it’s huge. It was built in the mid 1700s and features a lovely courtyard with a pool and fruit trees inside.

Tomb of Cyrus.  Cyrus the Great, considered one of the greatest leaders in Persian history, was the father of the Persian empire when it was established 2,500 years ago. His 30-year-rule established the Iran that stands today, and his tomb can be seen in nearby Pasargadae which was the first capital of the Persian empire.

Bathhouse. You can either take a shower yourself or have one of the workers scrub you down and give you a massage. It’s less homoerotic than you think! It’s actually a traditional bathhouse where the massages are more in the vein of painful and muscle-wrenching than relaxing. I couldn’t snap a lot of photos at this place — I’m sure you understand and also, not sure you’d want to see that anyway — but I did manage to get a shot of my guy.

Persepolis. If you haven’t heard of Persepolis, well…shame on your world history teacher. The ancient city, dubbed a UNESCO World Heritage Site, dates back to 500BC and is filled with spectacular relics from the grand Achaemenid Empire that rival the more commonly known sites of ancient Egypt. What you can see now are remnants of the once glorious palace and the bass reliefs, which are still in quite good condition.

Rock tombs at Naqsh-e Rostam. Another relic from the Achaemenid Empire in Persepolis, the grand rock tombs, which allegedly house four great kings (only three are pictured below). It’s a beautiful site made all the more grand by its setting on a high cliff.

Zurkhaneh or house of strength.  This 3,000-year-old  exercise is, as Lonely Planet calls it, “a mix of sport, theater and religion.” As a leader pounds on a drum while reciting verses from the Persian epic, the Shahnameh, men stand in a circle, performing various feats of strength. Back in the day, when the zurkhaneh was frequented to prep for battles, weights would be covered in spikes; the equipment is a little less austere these days. You can usually watch for free, as it’s open to the public, and while local women aren’t often seen there, Western women are welcomed.

Since real time blogging is near impossible during travels, I’m going to go ahead and interrupt Eaman’s lovely stream of Iran posts to give you an update on what’s next for us because newsflash: Eaman got back last Thursday! And bigger newflash: We’re moving to California in the new year! Yep, our vague notion back in 2011 of moving to San Diego has become a reality. And we’re road-tripping all the way there from the East Coast!

First let’s start with what’s been going on. As you know, I’ve been home for six weeks, during which time I’ve reacquainted myself with my parents’ comfy leather sofa, read, watched TV, frequented Target, got all my doctors appointments in check and caught up with the friends and family I missed so dearly. (Lucky for me I was even here when one of my closest friends got engaged.)

Last Thursday, I headed to JFK airport to welcome Eaman home and during our last few days in Manhattan, we indulged at all our favorite restaurants (Shake Shack, ChikaLicious, L’asso and Habana oh my!), held our stomachs in food-coma agony, saw our friends, danced a Saturday night away, Sunday brunch-ed and said goodbye to that great, great city. In 2011, I ran away from New York; in 2012, I walked away with some sadness. No place like New York, that’s for sure.

On Monday, we traded skyscrapers for suburbs and hung out with my parents in New Jersey for the rest of the week. This Sunday, we’re packing up a rental car with all my necessary possessions and driving to Nashville, where we’ll be staying with Eaman’s aunt and cousins for two nights — a perfect midway stop before we make our way to Oklahoma to spend the holidays with Eaman’s family. We’re going to Thunder basketball games, having a belated traditional Thanksgiving dinner and buying a car, a necessary evil now that we’re moving California. A bit crazy to think we’ll be car owners. So grown-up!

We’re then road-tripping again (in our new car!) to San Diego probably some time during the first week of January. No, we don’t have jobs awaiting us. No, we don’t have an apartment lined up. No, we don’t have a ton of friends there. And actually, neither of us has family out there either. We just loved San Diego during a short trip in 2010 and its sunny impact on us hasn’t faded since. We love the weather, landscapes, healthy lifestyle, fresh food, people, pace of life, road trip possibilities and smaller-city feel. Honolulu was also a very real possibility, but after being away for more than a year, we didn’t want to be away from the mainland U.S. yet again. Plus, I’m not sure expensive Honolulu would be kind to our skinny wallets right now. (That said, we’re missing our Hawaii ohana like crazy.)

In any case, we’re excited to just go for it, try something new and keep our explorer spirits alive in new territory. San Diego, here we come!

And guess what? I loved the blogging thing so much that I’ll be chronicling this next chapter on a new, soon-to-be-announced blog. Check back here for details.

Thanks for continuously following us on our journey. Hope you’ll join us for the next one!

Wine, poetry, music, art galleries and parties — the makings of great cities like New York, Paris, Rome, Buenos Aires…and Shiraz, Iran? Yes, Iran’s most progressive, liberal city is host to all these things and more. (Some of the world’s earliest traces of vino were found in Iran, and Shiraz was the wine capital of Iran before the government outlawed alcohol nearly 30 years ago.) Thanks to the people I met, the culture they shared with me and the ancient sights that I saw, my intended four-day visit in the central Iranian city turned into a nine-day extravaganza. And actually, one post isn’t enough to cover everything I did. Here, I’ll focus on the friends who gave me great company — much needed since this was when I began to hit a bit of a wall — the parties they took me to and the food that filled my belly.

I’ve mentioned in passing how hospitable of a country Iran is, and if you don’t believe me, just check out the Lonely Planet Iran, which lists “Meet the People” as #1 on its list of top 16 experiences. Travelers are always stunned when they realize how little money they spend while traveling through Iran; it’s because locals constantly invite them to tea, meals and even into their homes to sleep. Of course the point isn’t to score free food and accommodation; the point is that Iranians can be so welcoming that they’ll invite you into their inner circles to make you feel at home and show you the real Iran.

Shiraz was no exception. I once again Couchsurfed — for two nights with this family who prepared a lavish meal for me…

Their son also took me to lunch at a traditional hotel.

…and seven days with a new friend whom I met indirectly through Couchsurfing. (While Couchsurfing in Hamadan, my host also hosted a Swiss traveler, who told me about this guy in Shiraz.) I was initially supposed to stay with him for two nights, but we got along so well that I actually canceled my bus twice to extend my stay. Thankfully, my friend was more than happy to have me. Over the course of the week, he shared some of his poetry with me, played the piano and guitar and took me to two mehmoonis, or parties. Yes, Iranians party! It was there that I met tons of other young locals, mostly musicians. We’d dance, smoke hookah, play music and eat, eat, eat.

They dressed me up like an old Iranian woman.

But it wouldn’t be backpacking if I weren’t sometimes left to my own devices to explore. So on another day, I took myself to Shiraz’s Bazar-e-Vakil, one of the best and most famous of the city’s many ancient markets. It houses more than 200 stores, which sell everything from carpets and clothes to spices and handicrafts.

This sweet shopkeeper asked me to print out a copy of this picture and bring it to him the next time I’m in Iran so he can hang it in his store.

Fruit shakes are wildly popular in Iran. Banana and milk shakes are found all over (below, center), but the carrot juice-ice cream concoction (second photo below), which I found just outside the bazar is particular to Shiraz. I wasn’t going to try it until my friend told me it was surprisingly tasty. He was right.

Next up, the ancient sites, modern art museums and Persian bathhouses that filled up the rest of my time in Shiraz.

Zanjan, known for its fantastic bazaar, knife-grinders and tea houses was the next stop on my journey through Iran. Zanjan was the first place I crashed at someone’s home in Iran — found through Couchsurfing — and got to sample some homecooking. From Zanjan, I visited nearby Oljeitu Mausoleum built for a sultan 600 years ago. In case you’re keeping track, at 80 feet in diameter and 160 feet high it’s the world’s tallest brick dome.

My hosts in Zanjan cooked Indian food for me one night since I had just traveled in India and they had lived there for many years.

Grand Oljeitu Mausoleum
One of many beautiful tea houses. As I mentioned, tea is like its own religion in Iran. This particular tea house is 400 years old.

From Zanjan, I made my way to Hamadan, which was once one of the ancient world’s greatest cities and is believed to be approximately 3,000 years old. It was tops on my itinerary for a lot of reasons. Not only were there a lot of cool historic sights, but the city itself is also beautiful and surrounded by snow-capped mountains. As has been the constant theme in Iran, I also made some good friends there who worked at a hip coffee shop, which became my hang-out spot when I just wanted to chill.

Hamadan

Original 3,000 year old walls of Hamadan

Had a multi-religion day and visited a 200-year-old church, Judaism’s Ester’s tomb and a golden mosque.

Also visited 2,500-year-old Ganjnameh — two cuneiform rock carvings from former Persian kings Xerxes and Darius to the Zoroastrian (Iran’s original religion before Islam came) god Ahura Mazda thanking him for making them very good kings.
Hooka’d it up and had some tea and nabat (sugar crystals) with my new friends after our visit to the Ganjnameh.

Barista friend and his delicious coffee ice cream drink concoction

Visited a friend’s bakery and had some fluffy, tasty komaj, a famous pastry in Hamadan.

Found wisdom in the park

Colonial building in Rasht’s city center

Made two super cool friends in Rasht. The guy offered to take me to Masuleh village (more info on that below) even though he’s been probably a thousand times.

Friends took me out one night to the Caspian Sea for some hookah and food. The guy in the green button-down is a writer, and gave me some of his and his friends’ books as a gift so I can practice reading in Farsi which is a bit slow-going at the moment.

Made another friend in the bazaar who spoke with me about life and told me something that I’ll never forget: “You’re not truly happy in life until you make someone else happy.”

The bazaar in Rasht is quite lively and fun to walk through. It’s also where I found an amazing deal on some great knock-off Adidas shoes.

Masuleh Village is a stunning, 1,000-year-old village in the mountains one hour outside of Rasht. No cars or motorbikes are allowed to enter the village or even able to due to the narrow streets, but what was even cooler is that the roof of one house forms the yard of the house above.

Enjoyed a hookah at a cafe overlooking the green mountains

Super tasty coal-fire baked bread

Guy barbequing some kebabs with a beautiful background

Assortment of really tangy dried fruit

“Kolooche,” a fluffy pastry with a sweet walnut paste filling

Last, but definitely not least, I spotted a cute baby in the village

Since I’ve been home, a lot of my friends have been asking me what Eaman and I did in our spare time for entertainment during our trip. (Does eating count as entertainment? It does to us.) We rarely had TV, and even when we did, we were less than thrilled to watch The Big Bang Theory (in Argentina), soaps (in India) or wildly histrionic love-song music videos (all of Asia). We did have WiFi almost everywhere, so yes, a lot of my free time was (happily) spent blogging and, when he managed to pry the iPad from my blogging fingers, Eaman caught up on the news.

But during most of our down time, we were reading — and not just guidebooks. Reading fiction and nonfiction, short stories and memoirs, magazines and newspapers. It was such a nice change of pace to dig into some literature during those long bus rides and before bed, a treat I rarely got to partake in in New York because I was usually too exhausted by bedtime.

Here, a rundown of what we read*, what we thought and, sometimes, what we learned. The list may stack up as short or long, depending on your own proclivity for reading, but keep in mind, blogging (and the laborious photo editing that comes with it) took up a lot of time, and Eaman was busy reading his issues of Entrepreneur magazine cover to cover.

That said, let’s share! (I took a lot of reading inspiration from fantastic travel blogger Jodi of Legal Nomads fame. She has a really stellar two-part post on her favorite on-the-road reads.)

Shantaram. Most travelers have read this one. Yes, author Gregory David Roberts, who based much of the events in the book on his actual life, goes a tad overboard with the sweeping adjectives and a bit off the deep end towards the finale, but he still paints a beautiful and poetic portrait of India. I dare you not to be moved.

The Glass Castle. In this memoir, Jeannette Walls weaves a personal tale about her radical, nonconformist parents, her family’s struggles to simply live and her efforts to break free from their shackles. As awful as her parents sound at times — especially her dad — you still love them in a weird way, which I think is a testament to Walls’ writing. It’s a quick, fascinating read that’s sometimes so crazy, you’ll have to remind yourself it’s a true story.

How Did You Get This Number? There are beloved snarky female writers like Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling, and then there are snarky-just-to-be-snarky female writers like Whitney Cummings. Thankfully, Sloane Crosley and her sharp and hilarious stories, in which she travels through Portugal and encounters a bear in Alaska, fall in the former category. She’s smart, talented and a great role model for funny prose.

Travel as a Political Act. I got this book for Eaman as a gift while we were in Hawaii. In it, travel wiz Rick Steves breaks down barriers and preconceived notions about so-called dangerous countries. He emphasizes how travel can expand our minds and challenges antiquated notions. We heartily co-sign!

Little Bee. This isn’t an earth-shattering work of fiction, but it is a simple, sometimes sweet, sometimes terrifying tale about an African girl and English couple. I shouldn’t say much about the plot since it’ll ruin the story, so I’ll leave you all in suspense!

The Help. The only thing I think of when I think back to my time reading The Help is Eaman vomiting. We were in Cusco, Peru, and he had just contracted salmonella poisoning. I wasn’t feeling too hot either, but he was in bad, bad shape, so while he was wretching in our 8-person hostel room’s ensuite bathroom, I was getting lost in the world of the South, slavery and Minny Jackson. I know the tendency is to sneer at these books of mass popularity, especially when said books are then turned into glitzy Hollywood movies, but I thought it was a really fun read with a great pace to keep me going in that awful hostel dorm room.

Catfish and Mandala: A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam. I loved this book by Andrew X. Pham, and not just because it seemed romantic to be reading about Vietnam while in Vietnam. (I know! I’m so clever!) The story, in which Pham travels through his native country by bicycle, is equal parts sad and uplifting, and I felt a little extra something for this memoir, probably because I can empathize with the duality of having roots in one country and an upbringing in another.

The 48 Laws of Power. Considering my pitiful lack of business prowess, this is an Eaman read for sure. It’s all about strategy, business, negotiation and enemies. He loved it, and so did the airport workers at LAX who saw him toting the heavy book, which he had borrowed from our Panama friend Mike, and made it a point to tell him just how much they loved it.

The Geography of Bliss. I used to be a fiction reader exclusively. But as I traveled, in the absence of a job, smart New Yorkers or instant access to The New York Times, I quickly realized it’s a good idea to educate myself beyond the admittedly wonderful conversations we had with other travelers. This nonfiction work by Eric Weiner was a perfect choice, as he explores the levels of happiness in various countries. It fed my travel bug and taught me a thing or two. For example, I now want to go to Bhutan — apparently the happiest place in the world — very badly.

The Hunger Games. I finished Suzanne Collins’ trilogy  well before we left last September and am a huge fan girl. So, during the trip, I constantly badgered nonfiction-loving Eaman to read it, and I finally won my battle when he downloaded it to the Kindle midway through the trip. He read only the first installation, but I beg you, read it all!

Eleven Minutes. Alchemist author Paulo Coelho narrates the tale of a Brazilian prostitute trying to create a new life in Geneva, Switzerland. I found it a bit tedious, and at times, like I was reading a romance novel. Not a huge fan.

Various books on Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism and their histories. I’m not sure you’re looking to read this stuff, but they were all a bit textbook-y and served a specific purpose for us. We were doing some soul-searching, figuring out where our own spiritual sides lie and what the road ahead looks like for a Hindu-Muslim couple. We also wanted to learn more about Buddhism after such extensive travel through SE Asia. As I said before, what we learned is that there’s a lot more same in this world — religion included — than different.

Siddhartha. Along the lines of religious material, we read Hermann Hesse’s classic about a Nepali man’s spiritual journey during the Buddha era. Or rather, Eaman did. I could barely get through it. Though now that I’ve experienced Vipassana, I’m curious to take another stab at it.

The Best Women’s Travel Writing 2011: True Stories from Around the World. This compilation of travel essays comes out with a new edition each year, but this particular volume had stories from India, Costa Rica and Korea among other locales. Reading these pieces was a wonderful way to rev up my travel engine when fatigue began to settle in.

The Lonely Polygamist. I loved morning meetings at my old workplace, and I distinctly remembered that when this book by Brady Udall came out, the staff was abuzz. After reading his novel about a tired, slacking, confused polygamist husband and his circus of a family, I totally get it. Out of all the books I read on the road, this one had me hooked with the greatest intensity. The story is simultaneously sad and mesmerizing.

Iranian Rappers and Persian Porn Stars: A Hitchhiker’s Adventures in the New Iran. Eaman read this book by Jamie Maslin and loved it. In the memoir, Maslin talks about traversing the Silk Road route and winding up stranded in Iran, but much to his surprise — and perhaps a lot of people’s — he’s embraced by the locals, who take him under their wings — and show him Iran’s underground party scene.

*We opted to read mostly on our Kindle and iPad to save valuable backpack space.

Chay, or tea, is a religion in Iran. And if I had to pick a capital for tea in Iran it would definitely be the picturesque city of Lahijan in Gilan province, where the first successful attempt at cultivating tea took place in 1900 thanks to the Iranian consul to India sneaking in 4,000 tea plants to Lahijan from India.

Chay is such an important part of socializing that in Iran, when you’re in someone’s home, office or carpet shop, you’ll definitely get a piping hot glass of it. But get ready for more than just one cup. Most Iranians will typically drink at least four cups of tea per day — with breakfast, after lunch, after the afternoon nap and after dinner — and in a very particular way. The unspoken rule is to drink the tea black with a bowl of ghand (sugar cubes). The ghand is usually placed in the front or side of your mouth before sipping the tea. (Your dentist may not recommend this!)

Magical floating teapot and cup in a Lahijan park.

I bought two bags of organic, top-of-the-line tea for the equivalent of $1.50.

Lahijan’s beautiful city center.

I did a hike up the mountain pictured above (and realized I’m definitely out of shape). Here was my view.

But it’s not just about tea. Besides Lahijan’s lush green landscape, the entire Gilan province is known for the local, garlic-heavy, vegetarian-friendly cuisine. Dishes here typically incorporate fruit, nuts, olives, garlic and vegetables like eggplant and broad beans. It’s flavorful and healthy.

The gentleman below, 29, owns two side-by-side snack/nut stores in the bazaar. After trying to buy a bag of walnuts from him he noticed from my accent that I wasn’t a native Iranian and immediately invited me into his store for some friendly conversation, tea and free samplings of the pistachios, nuts, and eight types of walnuts he sells. Needless to say, that ended up being my lunch! (This was my first major experience with the amazing hospitality in Iran, but I’ll dedicate a full post to the locals’ generosity soon.)

Later that night I finally got to sample the awesome Gilani food. This picture doesn’t do the food justice, but let’s just say after that meal, I was ready to die and (hopefully) go to heaven.

OK, I caved in one night and had a pizza, too. I mean, look at it! I was using the WiFi at a pizzeria and couldn’t resist when I saw everyone eating this gooey goodness. But technically, I did eat Iranian food, because it’s believed that 2,500 years ago when Persian soldiers went to fight the Romans, for dinner, they cooked bread on their shields over fire and topped it with paneer (cheese) and dates. Apparently, the Romans then copied this and put their twist on it!

Next up, the friendly city of Rast and the stunning 800-year-old Masuleh village.