I cannot recall visiting any\u00a0country\u00a0in any part of the world\u00a0where the people are more welcoming\u00a0than in Iran.\u00a0This might sound like a big statement but it\u2019s true. Within my first 24 hours in\u00a0Tehran I was invited to play table tennis, asked where I was from on numerous occasions and frequently\u00a0stopped\u00a0with a smile, an out-stretched hand\u00a0and a thickly accented and sincere, \u201cyou are welcome in Iran\u201d. I had heard that the people were friendly but now I can confirm this is\u00a0so\u00a0very true and a key part of what makes travel to Iran so rewarding.<\/p>\n
Tehran\u00a0is\u00a0a thriving metropolis.\u00a0The Tehran population is around\u00a010 million people with another 2 million coming in to work each day.\u00a0I\u2019m told\u00a0the city is most famous for two things \u2013 pollution and chaotic traffic \u2013 but don\u2019t let this put you off. It\u2019s a gem of a city for travelers with so many things to see and do \u2026 way too many to list here so I\u2019m not even going to try!<\/p>\n
Nestled against the lower slopes of the towering snow-capped Alborz mountains, Tehran is in fact Iran\u2019s most secular and liberal city but nonetheless, I was expecting it to be ultra-religious, a little backwards and perhaps even scary. This is certainly what our media\u00a0will have us think while a certain US president would\u00a0also\u00a0have us believe the place is full of terrorists but this could not be further from the truth. Apart from the head\u00a0coverings which\u00a0all women must wear in public, Tehran\u00a0could be any other modern cosmopolitan city with its shops, caf\u00e9s, fast food outlets and international brands everywhere you look \u2026 but in this case, all set against more than 250 years of fascinating Iranian history.<\/p>\n
The city is clearly divided into two. The north could be\u00a0Toorak\u00a0or\u00a0Woollahra with beautiful streets lined with trees and expensive houses and apartments.\u00a0And I mean really, really expensive \u2013 our guide tells us some of the apartments have lifts for the cars so the owners can get into their car on their own level! The south of the city is closer to what I expected but certainly not down and out.\u00a0Tehran is not immediately the country\u2019s most inviting city but those who tour Iran and take a closer look will be well rewarded.<\/p>\n