In the first part, I discussed our visit to Tehran, Mashhad and Yazd, and in this second and last part, I discuss our visits to Hormuz Island, Qeshm, and Shiraz.

Hormuz Island

After a fantastic stay in Yazd, we took an overnight train to Bandar Abbas, which is a large city and port close to Hormuz Strait, and from there, took the first ferry to Hormuz Island, which took around 45 minutes. The ferries are a bit old, but the terminal was modern and clean, and we had no issues with the ride. Purchasing tickets in advance was not really necessary.

I have to confess that before this trip, I had not heard of the tiny Hormuz Island. But when I was researching Qeshm, I discovered how beautiful Hormuz Island is, and decided to visit. Many people do a day trip to Hormuz from Qeshm, but that would have been a long and rushed day. So instead, we decided to spend three nights there so we have enough time. I’m glad we did since that allowed us to experience the island a lot more intimately.

Hormuz Island stands out for its stunning geological features, showcasing vibrant rock and salt formations, and it is quite distinct from the nearby Qeshm Island. Apart from the tourists interested in the natural attractions, the island is also quite popular with many young Iranian hippies. It seems that a more relaxed vibe in Hormuz Island (and Qeshm too) has made it a safe haven for the younger generation. Along with the note of people watching, we also enjoyed walking around the harbor in the evenings, where many locals and tourists alike mingle. In the evenings, local women set up carpets by the road, offering a chance to taste local cuisine and engage in conversations about their lives. This interaction was a definite highlight of our trip.

A bit about the travel logistics: Finding a good place to stay in Hormuz Island wasn’t easy, as there are not that many hotels and accommodations readily available. We rented an apartment through “Jabama” website, which was ok, but there were not that many great options in general. The most common mode of transportation on the island is tuk-tuk. We hired one for a few hours a day ($10 for 3-4 hours), giving us a tour of the island. That allowed us to set our own pace, and visit our desired places on two different days. We also had amazing seafood while we were there. The most famous dish there is called “Qelye-Mahi” - I have no idea what it means - which is a fish stew served with rice. Overall, I highly recommend visiting Hormuz Island, not as a day trip, but as a destination on its own.

Qeshm

We took a ferry from Hormuz Island to Qeshm, which took around 45 minutes. The ferries were not that regular, and they told us that the schedule depended on the number of tourists on a given day. Qeshm is the largest island in the Persian Gulf shaped like a whale - long and thin. Many people come over there for shopping due to the abundance of contraband goods.

We spent 5 days in Qeshm, splitting our time into two different ecolodges, since we could not find only one due to the long holiday surge in demand. Ecolodges are mostly old houses turned into guesthouses. They are great options for living in what resembles local housing, meeting other people, and getting advice from the hosts which can often help arrange tours, if needed. Both of our accommodations were located in the middle of the island, which I think is a better option if your main goal is sightseeing. If you’re into shopping, it’s best to stay on the east side of the island.

We found a good and reliable driver through our first host and got chauffeured around for $25/day, which was a great deal for us since renting a car would have been much more expensive and troublesome. We visited some of the geological sites of the island like the Valley of Stars and Chahkooh Canyon, as well as Hara Mangrove Forest, and the town of Bandar-e-Laft. We also spent some time on the beaches there, letting our son play around to his heart’s content. We also saw many turtles close to the beach, especially where the fishermen unloaded their catch. We even helped one get off a fixed beach net!

Our visit to Qeshm was quite laid-back. We savored the sunny weather, the sea, and the friendliness of the people. Qeshm is definitely on our “come back to” list!

Persepolis

After a fantastic time in the Persian Gulf islands, we flew from Qeshm to Shiraz and then took a cab to Persepolis, or as it is called in Persian, Takhte Jamshid (meaning Throne of Jamshid). Persepolis is located 60 km north of Shiraz, so to have enough time to visit it along with other archeological sites around it, we spent two nights there in Hotel Apadana adjacent to Persepolis.

Persepolis is arguably Iran’s most famous tourist destination and, in my opinion, one of the wonders of the ancient world, was constructed around 2500 years ago as the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire. Sacked and burned by Alexander some 200 years later, the abandonment of Persepolis and the surrounding city of “Parse” led to the deterioration of this magnificent palace complex over time. After only a few hundred years, the inscriptions on the walls, mainly in three ancient languages written in cuneiform, became unreadable as the writing system was forgotten, so no one could understand what this place was. Over the years, many legends sprung up about what it was, and even its Persian name, Takhte Jamshid, is a misnomer since people thought it was the palace of the mythological king, Jamshid, hence the naming (hilariously, some people come there looking for the throne of Jamshid!).

Interestingly, there was not much further manmade destruction occurred since its abandonment, mostly since Alexander sacked all its riches, and there was no significant population living around it for over 2,000 years, so no major recycling of its materials happened. But that didn’t mean people didn’t know about it. In fact, there are wall carvings from different periods done by kings and other notable visitors on its walls, indicating that they revered this place for various reasons. It wasn’t until the early 1600s that European visitors identified the ruins as the Persepolis, as was known to Greeks, leading to increased interest and unfortunately, some thefts by unscrupulous individuals, now adorning famous museums around the world. In the early 20th century, American archaeologists from the University of Chicago, supervised by the government, unearthed much of what we see today, revealing well-preserved bas-reliefs like those in the Apadana Palace, protected by centuries under soil from theft, vandalism, and the elements.

Persepolis is comprised of several palaces atop a flattened rocky platform some 20 meters above the ground. The platform is adorned with straight stone walls and two staircases to reach the top. The function of Persepolis is not fully known, but most speculate that it was a seasonal palace to celebrate Nowruz, the most important holiday of ancient Persia and even today. There are bas-reliefs at the bottom of Apadana Palace depicting emissaries from 20+ nations under the rule of the Achaemenid “King of Kings”, bringing offerings from their region. Most speculate that these offerings were to the king himself, making Persepolis more of a political capital. But I hypothesize (and our guide agreed) that the main purpose of Persepolis might have been more of a religious center - think a temple complex - than a political one. Here is why: 1) In almost all cuneiform carvings, the god is profusely praised, and not the king. In fact, in many of them, the king himself is praising the god. 2) The buildings in Persepolis do not seem like true palaces with living quarters befitting a king. 3) Similar structures in the ancient world like the Acropolis in Athens were also mostly used as temples. Having said that, I’m not a historian nor an archeologist, so my hypothesis is not backed by much research. Just food for thought, if you visit Persepolis!

Another fascinating and unique fact about Persepolis is that it was built as a truly multinational place, as evidenced by 1) presenting all nations under the empire in different scenes as equals (in the bas-reliefs of Apadana Palace, none of the emissaries are shown as subjugated, for example, and instead, they are depicted hand-in-hand with the Persian or Medean guides), and 2) all the messages are carved in three different languages side-by-side, showing the significance of giving value to various languages of the time. This is truly fascinating, and I don’t know of any other place in the ancient world that has had this kind of emphasis. We also know - from the clay tablets in cuneiform discovered in archeological excavations - that the people who built Persepolis were all salaried, as there are detailed explanations of their pay, typically in food and goods. We even know that some of the supervisors were women, and not only they were leading a group of men, but also they had maternity leave! How cool is that?

Back to our experience of Persepolis. For my wife and I, this was the second visit to Persepolis, the first one being when we were kids. I didn’t recall much from my first visit, but I knew that this time around, we needed more time. Initially, we wanted to only visit Persepolis in one full morning, but we ended up going there one late afternoon - which was great for photography - and then the next whole day for the sole purpose of soaking in the history and marveling at the details. We hired a guide for 4 hours, and this was great since he was very knowledgeable, provided much-needed explanations, and answered our burning questions, though at times, like many other Ancient-Iran aficionados, he had an overly nationalistic tone and bias - which I do not appreciate - but it was easy to filter those out. We also rented a VR headset - an Oculus device - for an hour, which showed the reimagined version of what the place could have been in certain stations. This was an excellent use of VR, and I wish other archaeological sites provide that.

Our son, however, did not enjoy the visit as much, since we wanted to focus on our guide, but he of course did not care a bit. He is simply too young to enjoy such an extended visit, and he wants our full attention. But on the other hand, he walked and played around a lot, so when we got back, he went to sleep soon after. A few more tips about visiting with a baby/toddler: 1) you cannot bring a stroller along, so plan accordingly, 2) bring plenty of water with you, since there are no water fountains, and the cafeteria on the premises surprisingly did not have bottled water.

Despite arguably being the largest palace complex of ancient times with impeccable remains, Persepolis is not on the radar of many international tourists. In fact, we only saw a handful of non-Iranian tourists during our two-day visit. That is truly a shame. I just hope that the situation gets better so that more tourists would come and visit this ancient wonder. On another note, if you plan to visit Persepolis, I suggest visiting it in the low season, like December. The weather was perfect, and there were not that many national tourists. In fact, we had the whole complex to ourselves earlier in the morning, which was amazing.

On our last day, we checked out Naqsh-e Rostam, known for being the burial place of four Achaemenid kings, including Darius the Great and Xerxes I. Ancient Persians, who followed Zoroastrianism, had unique burial customs. Unlike the Tower of Silence in Yazd, where the deceased are exposed to birds to deal with, royal figures like kings were entombed in the mountains. Carved high into cliffs, each tomb boasts detailed architectural designs. Notably, the facades show scenes of the king receiving blessings from a god, surrounded by rows of smaller figures presenting tributes, along with soldiers and officials. The entrance leads to a central chamber with a sarcophagus where the king is laid to rest. There are also a few large Sasanid bas-reliefs depicting historical scenes, most notably of Shapour I’s triumph over two Roman emperors, Philip the Arab and Valerian, with the latter being captured and imprisoned during a battle. Another notable monument is “Ka’ba-ye Zartosht”, which is a cube-shaped tower built in the 5th century BC, whose function is not really known.

Shiraz

After 2 nights in Persepolis, we took a cab to Shiraz, checking in at the 5-star Zandiyeh Hotel. We normally don’t stay in such hotels, but since it was a super bang for bucks ($60/night), we decided to try it out. As I said in Part 1, Iran is one of the cheapest countries for international tourists (not for the poor Iranians themselves), so it is a perfect place to try out some luxury without breaking the bank. Our stay at Hotel Zandiyeh in Shiraz was fantastic. The room, service, and breakfast were top-notch. We also enjoyed the luxurious pool and spa center. Highly recommended!

It is not far off to say that Shiraz is the city of dreams in Iran. It is the birthplace and resting place of a couple of the most renowned Persian poets, Hafez and Sadi, whose love for Shiraz was sprinkled in their poems, and for good reasons. Shiraz enjoys good weather all year around, is surrounded by fertile lands, and its spring is exemplary in Iran. People of Shiraz also have a soft and lovable accent, which adds to its charm. Shiraz is full of gardens, and we did visit a few of them, though December is not the best time for the visit (April is the most beautiful month in Shiraz). Having been the capital of Persia before Tehran, Shiraz boasts quite a few historical sites, mostly going back to Zandiyeh time, like Bazar-e Vakil, Masjed-e Vakil, Hamam-e Vakil, and one of the most beautiful mosques in the world, Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque.

The Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque, also known as the Pink Mosque, is an Instagram hotspot these days. Many tourists, especially females, visit to take selfies in “patterned chadors” under the rays of sunlight filtered through colorful stained glass windows. I’ve said it before, and I say it again, Instagram has destroyed the travel experience, as wherever you go, people want to replicate the very damn photo they have seen on Instagram, so they can too instagram it. There you see flocks of people doing the same photo over and over (talking about you Santorini!). Of course, I did not want to do such selfies myself, but I have to admit, I couldn’t resist taking some shots of the girls in the foreground! I arrived at 8 AM, and it turned out to be a fantastic experience. The mosque is stunning on its own, but the morning light adds a surreal touch. Early timing meant fewer crowds and optimal photography conditions with softer, more oblique light resulting in longer more diffuse colorful rays of light.

After 4 days in Shiraz, we took an overnight train to Tehran, where we spent 10 days with the family, before departing for Bangkok. I have to say that Europe and Iran had been just the appetizer for our round-the-world trip, as those are familiar grounds for us, but the main course is going to be Southeast Asia, which is totally new to us! We are going to spend an extended period of time there, visiting quite a few places. Stay tuned!