Espen's travel journal

Tilicho Tal - The highest lake in the world

2008-06-04T16:35:00.004+02:00

The amazing Taj Mahal

2008-06-04T15:52:00.004+02:00

The Taj Mahal is definitively one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen. The white marble surface shines brightly. I found the design of the building and the surrounding mosques to be very Persian inspired.

Had a long but wonderful day in Agra together with four Americans who stayed at the same little hotel as me. Amanda, Greg, Megan, Susie and I went to see the Taj Mahal and the Fatehpur Sikri.

Annapurna Circuit Trek

2008-05-09T10:02:00.013+02:00

The Annapurna mountains is part of the Himalaya and consists of various peaks over 7000m. It includes two of the highest mountains in the world; Dhaulagiri, being the 7th highest in the world, at 8167 m and Annapurna I at 8091 m. You can see an overview map here.

The trek normally takes 16-18 days. I spent 19 days due to two days of resting, two days being sick and two days taking a side-trip to Tilicho Tal, the highest lake in the world. It was the best trip I have ever done. Fantastic landscape, impressive mountains, welcoming people and lovely villages.

Day 1 - Pokhara to Bahundanda 1310m

Took the bus early in the morning from Pokhara after saying goodbye to a sleepy Line. Bumpy road and narrow seats made it very uncomfortable. The bus arrived in Beshishar at 11am and I decided to take a jeep further to Bhulebhule. It was cheating not to be walking but I wanted to get up at high altitude as soon as possible. Something I do regret in retrospect because the first and last part of the trek was the most enjoyable except for Tilicho Tal. Met Jamie, a Welsh lad, on the bus and we started the trek together.

Started off below 1000m so it was quite warm as we walked through small villages with lodges and tea-houses. It seemed with the services offered it would be an easy trek. Reached Bahundanda at the top of a hill and checked out the available accommodation. We considered the Hotel Mountain View at the very top and with as the name suggests a view. We ended up at the smallest lodge and it was well worth the change. A small family house with three rooms. First they said 100 rupees but after we said we considered one of their competitors they soon dropped their price to free. Most lodges have cheap prices for the room but serve relatively expensive food. For dinner we had Daal Bhat which is the staple Nepali fare and consists of rice, potato-curry and lenses soup.

Day 2 - Bahundanda to Chamje 1430m

Walking all day takes a lot of energy and last night I was in bed before 9pm. Woke up at 6.30am and had a good size portion of oat porridge served by the very nice lady at the lodge. A perfect start before taking a slow walk towards Syanje across the river a bit further up the valley. It is here the road ends and some people take the jeep all the way up here. A bit more going upwards at this point of the trek and I really started to regret having a huge backpack with lots of clothes. Hopefully it will be worth it at the top where it could be quite cold. Not many tourists around. Maybe because it is the close to the end of the season with the monsoon just around the corner. We ended up meeting all the same people along the path and in Chamje the hotel we found got quite full after a couple of hours. In addition to me and Jamie there were two dutch ladies and their guide & porter, two Australian girls who lived in the glorious city of Brisbane and a nice young American couple. Scored a free room here as well. All the other guests have gone to bed and I'm still up chatting to the guide and porter. I slept an hour after my nice hot shower. Not all hotels have warm water but this place has solar power to heat up the water. Other places it is possible to get a bucket with water heated by firewood but the night before I had a cold shower because I don't want to use up the firewood to these poor people. In addition I purify the water with Iodine tables instead of buying bottled water which has to be carried up by porters. The food I buy is rice or potatoes with vegetables, so it is all locally grown.

Day 3 - Chamje to Danaque

Going up from Chamje to Tal the landscapes changes from a narrow green valley with compact little stoned pawed villages to a wide sandy valley. Ended up in Danaque and went to bed early as a had a slight headache and could still feel the cold that had me staying 12 days in Kathmandu.

Day 4 - Danaque to Keleku 2730m

Woke up late at 8am as I had no alarm clock. Wanted to take it easy today to recover my strength. Everyone had left the hotel when I woke up. Did an easy walk as I promised myself and a little up the hill I met Tom & Duncan who had planned an easy day as well so we ended up going in the same pace together. This area is not only different in the landscape but also the people are different. This is a Buddhist area and many Tibetan people live here. In fact many parts of the Annapurna and especially the Mustang area north of it is considered to be more Tibetan than Tibet itself due to the Chinese influence there. As we arrived in Chame I again met most of the other people I previously encountered on the trek. It was a rather large village and so I continued to the next village was very small. I prefer to stay in small lodges in small villages. Being in the mountain is all about peace and quiet so I tend to avoid the big popular lodges. Also as Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world I think staying in small family lodges with people who cannot afford to build a big lodge is a great way of helping these people. Tom and Duncan got up their pace and went further to the next village. A small family of four women lived in the small lodge I stayed in. I was the only guest and I was invited into the kitchen for my Daal Bhat while they were eating momo's - sort of like a Chinese dumpling. On of the young girls were at the stove while the mom was making the momo dough. I'm glad the firewood based stove had a chimney for the smoke to get out as many poor Nepalis just let the smoke free in the kitchen as with a campfire. Thus a common problem is all the smoke they breathe. The food ended up being very good and I also sampled a momo which was great along with an extremely spicy homemade chilly sauce. We chatted about prices in Norway and if the girl were married or not. Both of the girls, 19 and 27, had boyfriends. One who lived in Kathmandu and the other in the next village. But they both thought they were too young to get married.

Day 5 - Keleku to Ghyaru 3670m

My pace was a lot better today and nobody passed me. Went as far as Pisang for lunch and had decided to start on the upper route to Manang after the food. Which I would soon regret when an hour later would be situated at the bottom of a very steep climb up to Ghyaru. Going to Manang there are two options. Most people take the easy lower route down in the valley but the upper route consist of two old Tibetan villages and some of the best views on the trek. So it was an easy choice but I can assure you it was not an easy walk up there. Probably three hundred meters going up very steep to Ghyaru which I could see on the top of the hill. Went very slowly and had plenty of short breaks. It took me an hour up there and it was definitively worth it. Great views to Annapurna II, 7937m, and Annapurna III, 7555m. And the next morning would be ever better with crisp clear morning views. Ghyaru is an old village from the middle ages and all the inhabitants originate from Tibet. The tree line is below the village so it gets more wind in addition to the colder temperature as it lays at 3670m. On the way up I considered bringing out my gore-tex but thought it was too soon on my trek to take such a step. Only two lodges in the village and Yak Ru Mount View is the largest and a very typical mountain lodge with a fireplace in the middle of the lodge. The building is the first lodge I encountered on my trek which is made of bricks instead of wood. Had a delicious Tibetan bread and some local thick noodles for dinner.

Day 6 - Ghyaru to Manang

Woke up really early at 5.30am just as the sun was getting it firsts touch of the top of the Annapurna II. Amazing view from my bed. Getting out of my sleeping bag I realize quickly that this place is a lot colder than places earlier on the trek. Had to put on my synthetic long underwear, fleece-sweater and my thick woolen sweater. Continued to enjoy the great view while having oat porridge for breakfast. When I finished I could hear some familiar electronic music and thought it would come from the room of the French couple who were also staying at the lodge. I soon recognize the tune by Gotan Project and surprisingly the music is not from that room but the shred on the side where the owner and his wife sleeps. The door is open and I see a big Jamaican flag with a marijuana plant printed on it. Had a chat to him and he said he was a bit lazy today as he had too much too drink the night before.

Filled my water bottle and went to the next village and forgot to refill my bottle there. Stupid of me as the walk to Manang, the largest village on this side of the trek, was a bit longer than planned. So I was very thirsty when I arrived at 1pm in Manang surviving with 1 liter of water since 8am. As I got into the village some crazy runners started to appear and it was a marathon in the Himalaya! Definitely a big village - they even have three cinemas! The one we chose had a TV and seats with yak fur. Saw 'seven years in Tibet' and while the movie wasn't all that the yak fur seat experience at 3500m was great. Halfway through the movie the power went out and the owner had to get out and start his generator so we could see the rest.

Day 7 to 10 - Manang

Planned to stay two nights in Manang at 3500m. To avoid altitude sickness it is recommend to spend two nights at this altitude before ascending slowly. My one day of rest turned into four as my I started to vomit the second night. The toilet was outside my room and I woke up at 2am and felt I needed to take a visit to the toilet. I did and went back to sleep. Two hours later I woke up feeling nauseous and thought it would be wise to get to the toilet. Got up and felt that I should get there really quickly. Ran through the door and got there just in time to feel my dinner coming up. Felt bad the next morning but had enough energy to get out and find some oat porridge. Met Jamie outside my hotel on the way back and he asked how I was. I mumbled 'not so good' while walking quickly with my eyes fixed to the ground towards the toilet. Went to see the doctor at the Himalayan Rescue Service. Was told just to drink lots of water and wait before I took Antibiotics if it got worse. As I was pretty sure of before I went there they assured me that it was just normal diarrhea and not altitude sickness. Spent the rest of the day in bed and finished listening to 1984 from my iPod. The last day here I was not sick but used it for recovery. Wanted to see another movie but the cinema owner did not want to put it on just for me - too expensive for him. So I started walking down the street and I see someone who look familiar. And I can see the guy looked and me and thought the same. It was Pierre a French guy I met on the ferry from Bandar-e Abbas in Iran to Dubai. I knew he was in Nepal but it was nevertheless a big surprise to see him in Himalayas at 3500m! I talked to him about my plan the next day about going to Tilicho Tal, the highest lake in the world, and he seemed interested but he was trekking with a French couple and the guy was sick.

Day 11 - Manang to Tilicho Base Camp

Walked slowly towards Khangasar and noticed someone who walked 300 m behind me. After a while I stopped for some water and notice it was Pierre who had changed his mind and was coming to Tilico Tal as well! Since I been sick I planned just to stop in a lodge halfway but we ended up going all the way to the base camp lodge together. We were a bit unsure at first since I heard the path to Tilicho Tal was dangerous. It was also written on the signpost in Khangasar. But that was not enough to stop as and we started walking. After five hours we approached a landslide area which from a distance looked very dangerous indeed. A steep path went along halfway up the hill and it was all sand and small rocks. When we came closer it was not that bad, in fact it was quite easy. Only had to run a few places where the path was very loose and the rocks created small landslides as we walked. Stayed the night at Tilico Tal Base Camp Hotel. No electricity or hot water.

Day 12 - Tilicho Tal to Tilicho Peak Hotel

Woke up around 6am to see the first clouds so far on the trek. And at the worst time as we were getting up to the lake today. Started walking an hour later from the lodge at 4150m. Within three hours we would reach Tilicho Tal, the highest lake in the world, at 4920 m. Started easy and after about fifteen minutes we saw a deer. Or what we for two days thought was a deer until someone told us it actually was a blue sheep! Let me tell you that this animal is neither blue or looks like a sheep! It looks like a small deer crossed with a goat. It is snow leopards favorite meal so we were looking out for them but did not see any. This part is the best place for spotting snow leopards. In fact two days earlier two guys saw one just outside the Tilicho Peak Hotel. Lucky guys as it is a very rare sight (BBC spent six months trying to film a snow leopard while making the excellent Planet Earth documentary). Further on this one deer joined a big group of deers, maybe 15-20 altogether. Going up the steep hill to the lake was very tiresome. I began to feel the altitude and got minor headaches. Ascending 800m in less than three hours is a lot. When we reached the top of the hill we had to walk through snow for about 30 minutes before we reached the lake. The lake was all frozen and quite large. It was a great sight. A huge frozen lake in an all white landscape and with three enormous peaks - all over 7000m - very near. In fact if we walked 3-400 m towards the mountain it would go straight up from there. This is one of the very few places on earth where it is possible to walk without mountaineering gear and be so high up and close to such high mountains. It was very windy up there though. Had my gore-tex on and I was still cold. Mostly due to my own fault forgetting to zip up my fleece which I had underneath. Did not spent a lot of time there.

Day 13 - Tilicho Peak Hotel to Yak Kharka

Took a shortcut to Yak Kharka so we did not need to go back to Manang. My eyes are normally very sensitive and today I could really feel the sun or maybe it was the effect of the snow at Tilicho Tal. When I got to Yak Kharka I had to stay inside my room to avoid the sun.

Day 14 - Yak Kharka to Thorong-La High Camp

Had breakfast before six and headed out as soon as possible to avoid most of the sunlight. Reached Thorung-Phedi base camp at 9am and had a long lunch before taking the short hour walk up to the Thorong-La High Camp lodge.

Day 15 - Thorong-La to Jharkot

A long day walk from high camp over the Thorong-La. The highest pass in the world at 5400m. It was a bit windy and I thought it was cold but one crazy Canadian guy was wearing shorts.

Day 16 - Jharkot to Marpha

Went pass by Muktinath which I did not like and ended up in Jharkot. A very nice village. The temperature is a bit more comfortable now so I have no more need for my warm clothes. The Jar Choedhe Rigdrol Phuntsog Ling Sakya Monastery in Jharkot also has a medicine hall and school for poor children. I had a quick tour and ended up chatting with the Tibetian doctor. Told him I had some clothes I wanted to donate and they were very grateful to receive it. As a thanks he made me some Tibetian medicine for my cold which I still had after three weeks. After the visit to the monastery I went to see an archery competition. All the local guys were doing their best to impress the girls and to prove their skills over their mates. The Tibetian doctor also had a go but I would say it would be best for him to stick to his healing herbs.

Day 17 - Marpha to Tatopani

Marpha was an excellent place to stay as they have amazing apple crumble. Or anything with apple I should say: apple pie, apple juice, apple brandy and so on.

Marpha to Tatopani is usually a two-day walk. I did it in one day and paid for it. I was so tired when I reached Tatopani in the dark at 7pm. Or 'you looked like a wreck' as on British guy told me when I met him again while rafting the next week. My feet were starting to form blisters which I had to attend to by sticking a hole in them with a needle. I looked so bad that the hotel gave me a room with all the Nepali porters. Which I did not mind as it was cheap.

Day 18 - Tatopani to Gorepani

First rain on the trek. At around noon it started pouring down just when I sat down for lunch.

Day 19 - Gorepani to Pokhara

Maoist demonstration

2008-04-12T14:12:00.003+02:00

The election was yesterday and it was peaceful. Today I rented a mountain bike and by chance I went by the vote-counting office. Outside the building a bunch of Maoist were holding a demonstration. Some police were present but the demonstration was peaceful since they are expected to get very good results, or maybe even win, the election. I saw about a dozen other demonstrations, either small parades or a truck with people going pass. Most were Maoist.

A nice day in Kathmandu

2008-04-12T13:14:00.005+02:00

Today turned out to be a magnificent day. Woke up before the birds at 6.30 am! Alana, a nice Australian girl I met the night before wanted to use her last day visiting the monkey temple in the outskirts of Kathmandu. At the time in the morning there were just two other tourists there but it was crowded with local Buddhist. Some steep stairs took up us to the top of the hill where the monkey temple was located. Candles were lit around the temple and people had brought gifts to the gods, mostly food. In a small house which was open on the entire side towards the temple people were singing songs. A guy with a 'hanky panky' bag enjoyed the morning concert.

Back in Thamel awaited a breakfast for my hungry stomach. Afterwards a took a quick goodbye with Alana and deiced ed to rent a mountain-bike. Put it in gear and went through the easy traffic. After a while I found my destination, Patan, a city which now basically is a suburb of Kathmandu. After seeing some temple sights I had a rest and some water while a young Nepali guy approached me and started chatting. Turned out he was a first-year student in hotel management and had the day of because of new-year celebrations. His name was Ohm and was also out with his mountain bike so we decided to take a bicycle trip up to Gaiwana, a botanical garden an hour or so from Patan.

It was a tough ride for me since I still hadn't recovered from my cold. Never got to see the botanical garden but we did have a great lunch with Nepali chicken dumplings called momo's. I payed the bill without any objections or even a thank you from Ohm. Back down in Patan he even wanted some tips. It's a poor country and maybe I should have given him some money but if he wants tips he should get a job as a guide and then ask for tips.

On the ride back to Kathmandu my hands and my ass was hurting like hell but I did manage to make it back to the guest house. On the way I encountered a Maoist demonstration outside the vote-counting office. The election was the day before and the demonstration was very peaceful since it was expected a win for the Maoist.

The night was equally enjoyable. Met Line, a Norwegian girl I met together with her friend Birte in Tehran, who arrived here after three days going through Indian bureaucracy in Delhi. A few beers and an easy win for Liverpool was a good way to end the day.

Kathmandu - sick in backpacker heaven

2008-04-09T11:45:00.003+02:00

Arriving in Hindu/Buddhist Kathmandu is quite a nice change after three months in the Islamic middle east. The traffic is a lot more relaxing..motorbikes slowly go forward at bicycle speed waiting for pedestrians to cross the street. Which is quite a big change from the small streets of the old city of Damascus where cars would speed with an arms length room on each side and expect pedestrians to move away or be moved to the hospital. Freedom set by the religion is also quite an obvious change. While in the middle east girls are forced to cover themselves here in Nepal here you will find a sign saying 'no local friends in the room please' above your door in the hostel. Which unfortunately suggests prostitution is a bit more of a problem here. I am staying in a nice and friendly place called Holyland Guesthouse for 250 rupees (less than $4). A clean room with bathroom right in the middle of Thamel which basically is backpacker heaven. This area is full of hostels, internet cafes, restaurants, bars and shops selling hippie-style clothes. And of course heaps of trekking companies and shops selling trekking gear. Something I will do as soon as I am feeling better than I am doing at the moment. Before doing the Annapurna circle, a two-week trek, I will observe a hopefully peaceful election process and spend some time with Line who is arriving from Goa to extend her in Indian visa. Line has been driving with her friend Birte from Oslo through Europe, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Iran and Pakistan to get to India. Read their blog and you will soon find out that these crazy girls have done crazy things in crazy places.

Sharjah to Kathmandu

2008-04-08T09:24:00.002+02:00

Two weeks in Syria was enough. Damascus and Aleppo is two fantastic old cities but a stomach infection and a hospitality that feels quite less welcoming than Iran I am delighted to get out of the middle east. Both mentioned cities have mostly typical middle eastern characteristics but also include old parts as well as christian/jewish suburbs with churches and indecently dressed girls with voluptuous bodies. But you could also find trendy streets with cool cafes and western looking people. But there as well as everywhere else you will find excessive use of hair gel among the guys. The attitude from these guys towards women was also something else I did not like about this country. While in Iran I could accompany one of the nice girls i met there, here in Syria me and the wonderful Lachlyn could hear Arabic remarks as walking past someone. And I bet it was a hundred times worse when she was walking alone.

Air Arabia makes it easy to move cheaply around in this region, and they even have a flight to Kathmandu! With a stopover in Sharjah, a UAE state, though. Spent one night in a youth hostel after a long search in a taxi for the hostel together with a Japanese guy with the great name Hiro. Also an English guy was staying at the hostel who lived four months in Norway, running a shop and living in Gronland (a suburb in Oslo). He left as he did not find the Norwegian drinking culture much cultivated and also he said it was hard to meet and get to know Norwegian people. He had to goto bars to meet people even though he despised alcohol and drunk people. Marijuana on the other hand..

Hotel Beit Wakil, Aleppo, Syria

2008-04-02T13:27:00.003+02:00

Value: 5/5
Room: 4/5
Service: 5/5
Location: 5/5
Price: $87
Visit website

Beautiful hotel located in a narrow street in the nice jewish quarter of Aleppo. Probably the most romantic hotel in Syria so be sure you have someone to share your bed with. There is an open courtyard with a fountain. The foyer has very high celings and a nice dome.

Food is good but the restaurant is very touristic. You might find more locals at Sissi restaurant across the alley. I had their famous cherry kebab which to my surprise, I don't like sweet dinners, was very tasty.

Service is very friendly and good.

Hostel Green Star, Aleppo, Syria

2008-04-02T12:56:00.004+02:00

Value: 3/5
Room: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Location: 4/5
Price: 300 ($6) syrian pounds for dormitory.

Cheap hostel near the clock tower where most of the cheap hotels/hostels are located. Short walk to the citadel, souqs, the jewish quarter and the modern part where you can find some hot girls.

Bed is comfortable enough but the sink in the room and the bathroom is not very clean. The place is quite dark. TV and a rooftop terrace on the top floor. Not bad considering the price.

Very friendly staff who speaks a little english. For more important inqueries you can go to the Sheraton which is just outside. According to wikitravel they also have a nice breakfast for 600 syrian pounds if you want something else than naan and cheese. For breakfast I can recommend a cafe in the main square in the jewish quarter. For 100 syrian pounds you get jam, ham, cheese, olives, chocolate spread with naan.

Sheraton Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai

2008-04-01T19:36:00.000+02:00

Value: 3/5
Room: 3/5
Service: 3/5
Location: 4/5
Visit website

Wanted a nice hotel on the beach after two months of hostels in Iran. Being a SPG-member I usually end up at a Starwood-property which is really a habit I must end. The good thing, bizarrely enough, was the price. It was very expensive but nevertheless it was a lot cheaper than the other beach side hotels on Jumeirah beach.

The hotel is quite old and it shows. Just looking from the outside you can tell as the hotel is about a third of the size of hotels nearby. I guess Starwood will make it up by opening the grand new Westin further down the beach.

The room was spacious enough but the bathroom needed some renovations.

Service was semi-professional but lacked enthusiasm and the welcome was far from as friendly as in a cheap hostel in Iran. Late checkout was very problematic. I asked late in the night and they told me no. Still they managed to call me up at 9am to tell me the exact same thing. Great way to wake up when hangover..

I am 99% sure I forgot my mobile phone charger in the room but when calling the next day housekeeping said they had not found it. I am very sceptical.

The beach was nice though and almost made it worth the stay.

Will not recommend this hotel and will not stay there on my next visit to Dubai.

Aleppo

2008-04-01T18:24:00.003+02:00

Aleppo is a beautiful old city with a really cool citadel. Stayed one night in the romantic Hotel Beit Waki.

Walked around the citadel and became very popular with my blonde hair, even more so than in Iran. Turned a corner and three girls faced me all giving out a long loud 'wooooow'.

Photos from Damascus

2008-03-29T17:33:00.008+01:00

See more photos from Damascus.

Tehran tips

2008-03-26T15:46:00.006+01:00

Drinks
As in coffee, juice and tea. Best cafe is Entracte Cafe on Jomhuri Ave. Owned by award-winning Iranian actor Leila Hatami, which also happens to be very nice. On Fridays they serve up a really nice brunch between 11am and 2pm. It includes sausages, normal bread and brie! Fantastic. Also amazing is the traditional Iranian tea.
If you want trendy places try Gandhi Shopping center or one of the shopping centers a bit north of Vanak Square.

Eat
Kebabs are everywhere. Pizza is crap. If you want something else you can go for a very good curry and decent sushi at Monsoon in Gandhi shopping center on Gandhi Avenue. A good and very cheap traditional restaurant is located 200 m north of Valiasr Square. Another one but a bit more expensive but very good service is the one located on Ferdosi Square.

Sleep
All hostels and budget hotels are around Amir Kabir street which is not a very nice area with no options for going out at night. Firouzeh hotel has the most amazin guy in the reception he makes it worth staying there and in that area. Alternatively try Hotel Naderi just 10 mins from there on Jomhuri Avenue. A cheap hotel further north would be nice but there are none.

Sights
Really not that much interesting to see in Tehran and the city itself is really quite ugly. The parks are nice though, I recommend Park Mellat north of Vanak Square or Park-e Shar if you are staying in a hostel on Amir Kabir and want to escape the traffic.

Transportation
Take savarris (shared taxis) whenever you can. It is cheaper and you will meet more locals as well. They operate from square to square. Going from Imam Khomeini square all the way north to Tajrish square is 7.000 rials. The same distance by normal taxi is about 60.000 rials. The metro works good but has a rather limited network. If you are taking a bus somewhere try to take it from Arjentine bus station instead of the one in the south as it is in a nicer area. For the one in the south you can just take a metro so it is easy to get to.

Firouzeh Hotel - Tehran, Iran

2008-03-26T15:18:00.002+01:00

Value rating: Five stars.
Price: 140.000 rials (14 dollar) for a single room with shower. Toilets are shared. Breakfast included.
Address: Amir Kabir Street. Take metro or shared taxi to Imam Khomeini Square.
Website: http://www.firouzehhotel.com/

Located in a grubby but safe area filled with different kinds of car parts shops. There are also many other cheap hotels and hostels nearby but you do not see many backpackers.

The shared toilets and rooms are very clean. Rooms are small.

The legendary Mr. Mousavi in the reception is what makes this hotel worth staying at. Location is crap, price is not the best but the service and knowledge of Mr. Mousavi is better than the five-star hotels I have stayed at.

Photos from Iran

2008-03-26T14:56:00.005+01:00

See more photos from Iran.

Dinner and a show

2008-03-23T09:27:00.005+01:00

My friend Charlotte has become sick and busy studying so I am pretty much left to myself here in Dubai. Asked the concierge to recommend a good Indian restaurant nearby and he pointed in the direction of the Seashell hotel. Inside there were two other guests and seven waiters. I order a curry and out of the kitchen comes eight fantastic looking Asian girls in robes. I wondered whether to ask if their were on the menu as well but as the area around here has a lot of prostitutes the waiter would probably not get my joke and turn up with the girls instead. After being served the curry, without rice which I have to make a new order for, just as I chew the first bite the Asian girls walks outside of a room into what is now a stage on the other side of the room. An Indian guy with a microphone starts singing and the girls now dressed in very revealing tight dresses dances around on stage. After two months in Iran this is both heaven and torture at the same time. I was assigned a table in the back and later in the evening I see why. The other tables fill up with Indians throwing cards on the stage, not sure if it is business cards or some sort of tips to the girl. Also some local Arabian guys occupy two tables. They are obviously frequent visitors, flirting with the girls and being served a reserved bottle of vodka. After three beer it's time to get out. This is too much for a guy who have only looked at girls in chador for two months.

The future by night

2008-03-18T13:38:00.008+01:00

I have seen the future. A taxi ride in Dubai by night. Development is above extensive and these Arabs are trying to run the world from this place. It might seem like a beach and shopping destination but this is becoming a hub for many important industries. Internet city, knowledge village, media city are all filled with big offices of international companies.

Arrived around seven pm after taking the slowest catamaran in the world from Bandar-e Abbas in Iran to the port in Dubai. Met a fascinating French guy named Pierre who is travelling and performing for children in schools in different countries. His show was about a young australian aboriginal who goes out to explore the world to learn about music. In each continent he discovers a new instrument. Pierre plays guitar and the children sings along and dances. The story teaches the kids about different cultures as well as taking care of the planet. I hope Pierre gets as far as Australia so he can do his performance in a school with aboriginal kids.

Being a five-star backpacker I am staying at the Sheraton on Jumeirah beach. Just for two nights before my friend Charlotte arrives. She goes to university here and I will stay with her. The beach is nice but I must say I disagree with the number of stars the hotel brag about. Will post a review later.

Relaxing at Jumeirah Beach Hotel in front of the Burj Al Arab.

What to do in Dubai? Beach and shopping off course. The morning was spent hangover on the beach. Four beers was more than enough to make my head spin after over two months in Iran. In the afternoon I went to the mall of the emirates which I think is the largest shopping center outside America. Going back later to buy a nice shirt from Zara so I can dress to impress tonight. They even have an indoor ski slope there and I will probably go snowboarding there.

US sanctions on Iran - don't run out of money

2008-03-17T18:37:00.000+01:00

With 240,000 rials ($24) in my pocket I was in Tehran and on my way to Dubai in three days. After going in a car that turned out not be a taxi but instead having an idiot for driver who kept smiling, shouting 'dollars, dollars' and driving the wrong way to the train station, I came too late for my train to Yazd. I was lucky to get a seat on the train to Bandar-e Abbas for the next day but it cost me 100,000 rials. So three days and 140,000 rials to live for. That is one night in the cheapest hotel in Tehran. Obviously I had to count on creativity and luck to survive until Dubai as international credit cards do not work in Iran due to international (US) banking sanctions. I slept at the train station until about 6am when a irritated Iranian women shook by legs trying to get my seat as the transit hall now have become full of waiting passengers. I was grumpy and sleepy so I just went back to sleep. Did the same when someone from the train station did the same about an hour later. I was probably the talk of the hall. Those rude foreigners. Probably American I guess their bet was. After waking up in a sleeping bag with two hundred people around me I had to wait about eight hours before my train left. I bought some bread (naan) and jam for the ride, which became not so very delicious after a 21 hour train-ride.

The next day around noon the train finally arrived in Bandar-e Abbas. I still had my rials and was ready to find a cheap hostel. I knew the town was quite expensive by Iranian standards but finding a hostel turned out to be harder than I feared. They were either full, too expensive or catering only for Iranians (oh, the discrimination). Finally me and Rene, a dutch guy I met on the train who was taking the same boat to Dubai, found some beds in a hostel run by a very nice Kurdish family. An added bonus was the cute daughter. For 20,000 rials (2 dollars) I got a bed on the roof with sheets that was last washed some time before the revolution.

I was so tired and was considering sleeping in a mosque so I really didn't care about anything except that the fact that I had a bed to sleep in. With a cheap dinner at the hostel I finally had 50,000 rials left when leaving Iran.

Snowboarding in Dizin

2008-02-07T14:02:00.003+01:00

If you want to visit Dizin have a look at DizinSnowboard.com which includes information about accommodation, transportation and other stuff about snowboarding/skiing in Dizin, Iran.

5 am, a good long time before my usual awakening. But to get cheap transport it is necessary. The plan is to go to Dizin by minibus for 100.000 rials. At 5.20 am a red minibus stops outside my hotel and a friendly guide welcomes me. The bus is within the next hour filled up with Iranians throughout Tehran. During the day I become friends with half of them, among them a particularly charming girl. Snowboard and ski pass puts me back 300.000 rials. The place is fantastic. The last part of the bus ride shows what is coming. High mountains and a lonely sun on the sky. Ab avalanche blocked the road for fifteen minutes and we wait in the bus after a long que of four wheel drives. Rich Iranians go to Dizin to have fun and show of in a liberal environment. They all have the latest style of ski clothes and they all hang out outside the restaurant to show it off. The que for the ski lift is quite long but they all just go to the restaurant and drink tea, the slopes are not crowded at all. The police are in the slopes though, but they spend most of their time trying not to fall down and ignore the liberal Iranian girls showing an indecent amount of hair.

I was planning to go back with the minibus but luckily the hotel manages to find me a room. In the night it turns out that I am far from the only tourist there, in fact there are heaps of Scandinavians. Relatively speaking of course, this is iran and so far I have only seen forty tourists in total. 75% of them here in Dizin.

Tehran

2008-01-15T19:40:00.001+01:00

The cleaning guy at Mashhad Hostel, a young iranian with some sort of brain damage, the grubby Amir Kabir street and a the sight of a broken lock for my backpack after spending the day on the streets of Tehran made me move to Hotel Naderi on Jomhuri Avenue. The price is nearly tripled but even though the hotel is only a short ten minute stroll from the hostel it is in a better area with some restaurants and tea-houses. Gave Razieh, the Iranian girl I met on the train, a call and I will be meeting up with her, Marcy, her twin-sister, and the two Italian guys from the train later. We have dinner and she continue her rant about the government. Politics and religion do not belong together she says. People are tired of all the rules from the government. Women must wear hijab to cover their hair, they are not allowed to divorce without consent from their husband, alcohol is not allowed, are some of the restrictions that make the western world attract young, liberal and educated Iranians. This month the government has banned live music from traditional resturants. Razieh says that to deny a child candy will only result in a enormous need for it. Drugs, especially heroin, is a big problem in Iran. And parties in private with alcohol is rumordly a lot wilder than going out to a bar for a drink in Norway.

First day in Tehran

2008-01-15T16:49:00.005+01:00

Approaching a new big city is always confusing. Tehran has 14 million inhabitants and like other cities in developing countries it lacks a main shopping road where it is easy to start exploring the city.

Arrived Sunday morning at around 5 am - twelve hours after schedule. After even more waiting (voluntary) at the train station me and two others from the train decides to leave for the hostel. Morgutz from Austria and Gork from Japan were heading to Imam Khomeini square to find a cheap hostel. Gork is 39 and has travelled extensively in Asia, south Europe and north Africa the last twenty years. He did not want to comment on how he financed his travels but frequent trips to Afghanistan seems to be the source of income. Our first mission is to haggle down to an acceptable price for the short taxi ride. 70 000 rials they wanted. About 7 dollars. An unheard of amount for three backpackers on a budget. Especially for Gork who already was marching down towards the bus station. And it turned out to be a significant cheaper alternative. We payed 2 000 rials for ten bus tickets.

The hostel resided in a particularly uncharming street. For a guy from west-bamble (redneck) it would probably be heaven as Volvo-Allah himself had designed the street. Hundreds of little shops selling tyres, batteries, engines and everything else a car requires to get from A to B. Stinking diesel-oil. Women are almost totally absent. The first impressions of the hostels were OK though and one night in a dorm room (three beds) had the price of 40 000 rials (4 dollars). For breakfast a little bakery 50 m down the street served fresh naan. The only non car-related shop around for about 500 m. The naan is fantastic. Costing 1500 rials for a long brad about the same thickness of a indian naan that you get in restaurants, but the taste is sweeter and sesame seeds is sprinkled on the top. Incredible taste when fresh but not so nice after an hour or so. Naan with strawberry jam became me breakfast of choice the first few days. Not that there were much choice though.

Train from Istanbul to Tehran - Day 2

2008-01-12T12:51:00.002+01:00

The Turkish train makes a final stop on the edge of lake Van. A waiting ferry will take us over to Van in the very east of Turkey. In Van an Iranian train will wait and we will continue the journey to Tehran. Or should have been waiting I might say. From Istanbul the train has been delayed a couple of hours. The ferry takes about four hours across lake Van. But on the other side there is no train. Neither is there a heater on the ferry. It is January and if there was a thermometer in sight I would look away. With a wool hat, jacket and to pairs of thick woolen socks I wait in nearly five hours on the ferry. Luckily the enthusiastic salesman in the coffee shop sells cheap toast. The taste reminds me of grandiosa (a famous/infamous Norwegian frozen pizza). My new Iranian friend warns me of the taste and that probably describes what foreigners think of the most sold dish in Norway. I do not mind but what I do mind is getting the toast and various other stuff out of my body. I have off course forgot to buy toilet paper even though it was on my list. The squat toilet has none. Luckily I manage to keep it in. But unfortunately for the passengers within smelling distance not all is kept in. The shopkeeper yells out: 'toast! chocolate ottoman!'. The five hour wait makes it a good day at the office for him.

Eventually the Iranian train arrives and I find a couchette that I share with two Italians and a German guy.

Train from Istanbul to Tehran - Day 1

2008-01-11T12:37:00.004+01:00

A knock on the door awakes me. One of the cleaning staff wants to empty the trash. I notice the train has stopped in the middle of nowhere. Just as the man is finished emptying the bin I hear loud footsteps. One by one camouflage dressed men walk past my couchette. Fifteen in total. They carry a backpack and hold a machine gun across their chest. One of them has a sleeping pad on this backpack. Perhaps a luxury that one is lucky to have for the hard night sleep ahead. Or maybe the sergeant's way of showing that with higher responsibility comes higher comfort.

The landscape begins to change from small valleys to minor mountains. There is no more snow here than near Istanbul but it seems and feels colder. Snow crystals blinks in the grass and occasional trees we pass in the valleys.

Train from Istanbul to Tehran

2008-01-10T12:12:00.007+01:00

From the center of Istanbul a scenic ferry ride over to Haydarpasa takes me to the train station. The building is old and reside by the ocean. The boat costs 1,30 lira ($1) and goes across the Bosporus strait to the asian side of Istanbul. Being a very sensible person I arrive early. Very early. The train is scheduled to depart at 11 pm and my watch tells me I have three hours to kill. The waiting room is full and for a short period I have the pleasure of occupying a seat next to an old fat man who looks like a beggar. Even the locals reacts badly to the man and the train officials approach him after a while. Turns out he has a valid ticket, three teeth's and apparently a good mood.

The train ride makes the slow Porsgrunn - Larvik journey with NSB to seem like a Japanese super train. The distance is vast but is far from the only reason for the train to spend over three days on the journey from Istanbul to Tehran.

Seems I have experienced a taste of the Iranian hospitality. A cute and social Iranian girl was curious why I wanted to travel to Iran. She was quick to criticize the government and told me she has immigrated to Turkey. Rozieh gave me her phone number promised to show me around in Tehran.

Leaving Norway and entering the world

2008-01-08T00:01:00.001+01:00

An open wound after an infection on the back, two hours sleep after many hours cleaning the apartment, and a very nice get-together with good friends a couple of nights before; I was far from ready for the journey that I have planned for many months. The winter had finally found its way to Oslo and my cancellation insurance was creeping out from the back of my head. The descending flight to Istanbul changed it all. The good feeling somehow spread out in my body. Unknown from what reason; the weather was cloudy, the landscape boring and the view was out towards car repair shops and highways.

Istanbul seems to be the perfect place to start. An exciting and authentic mix of cultures at the end of two continents with all their legacy. The narrow streets to the hotel is a labyrinth just a short 60 m stroll from the crowdy main street.

A suite the size of my apartment back in Oslo was probably a bit too luxurious for a backpacker but yet a wise choice when my open wound requires me too sleep on my stomach and I need a clean bathroom and big mirror for changing the band-aid. Misafir Suites is an excellent place for escaping the noise and relaxing after a busy day in Istanbul. The friendly personal service makes me glad I choose this place over a normal boring 5-star hotel.

The infamous Turkish sales pitches in the street and limited Norwegian greetings from restaurant owners is thankfully not present. My choice of area in this bustling city was well-planned. Beyoglu is just across the river from the main tourist area where the blue mosque and the backpacker hostels occupy small alleys behind the Four Seasons. The Beyoglu area and the surrounding Cihangir area has been modernized the last years and now ex-pats and artists have moved in. I am looking forward to exploring the area tomorrow. Currently only the main shopping street is added to my list of explored territories.

Sitting alone in a pub with loud music and filled with talkative locals. I am a bit worried of becoming lonely on this trip. Quasi-friendly persons on the street who wants me to eat in some restaurant only makes the feeling of loneliness growing. As does my scepticism towards strangers. It is not easy finding good people in a new city where everything is unknown.