With a comfortable
VIP bus we drove from Yazd to Isfahan. A taxi to the hotel. A cheerful young
girl without a headscarf (until she hit the street later) welcomed us. It was a
kind of hostel around a beautiful courtyard. And for us it was the base to view
one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
Isfahan
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| Isfahan Nagh-e-Jahan square |
The Nagh-e-Jahan square is immense. With 150 by 500m it is
the second largest in the world. Surrounded by double arcades, two fabulous
mosques and a palace. With footpaths and lawns. And in the evening hundreds,
thousands of people gather. The stone benches and the lawns were almost
completely full. With the darkness in the sultry evening, it was wonderfully
relaxed. Groups of women and children formed the majority. They took out rugs,
thermos jugs and gas stoves - having a picnic was taken to a higher art here.
Under the full moon, surrounded by the façades where each arch was lit, it was Arabian Nights live. The weekend mood
made the people even more open to greetings, waving, laughing and welcoming us.
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| Isfahan Great Abbassi Mosque |
The Great Abbassi Mosque, the largest of the two on the
square, stood out because of the overwhelming amount of blue tiles and blue
mosaic. Halfway through the construction they switched from mosaic to painted
tiles, because it went faster. Not only the large alcoves are blue, but also
the entire span of the courtyard and a number of niches. Abstract, geometric
and fantasy figures interspersed with Koran texts and the occasional scene with
animals. A lot of marble has also been used. Several parts of the mosque were
being renovated, including the largest niche and the dome which were scaffolded.
In a workshop we could see how with a real size mold of 1 / 16th
"part" of the dome, the tiles were re-drawn and copied before they
were replaced.
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| Isfahan Khajou bridge |
The Khajou bridge again was incredibly beautiful. 350 years
old. The lower base was a dam, then granite pillars and waterways with stairs,
then brick pillars under which people were standing in the shade. A man was
singing. The upper part of the bridge had raised sides that again formed gates
where people were sitting in the shade. Everyone was cheerful and friendly. The
only dissonant was that the river was dry, which is almost always the case in
recent years. The water is diverted to elsewhere.
Paterns and dimensions
The mosques could be overwhelmingly large, but never
pompous. Because of the perfect proportions in the dimensions they always
seemed serene and soothing. The surfaces consisted of abstract patterns that
overlapped, intertwined, repeated themselves, varied, coalesced with the arches
and domes, expanding or shrinking where necessary. Breathtaking mosaic that you
could look at endlessly.
If only Escher or Gaudí had seen this ... In fact, Escher did
see this in Andalucía, and then became the draftsman we know today. Gaudí
studied Persian architecture and Islamic art mainly from books, during his
training.
Ladies and dress codes
In recent years there has been a wave of relaxation of the
dress code. Especially in fashionable Isfahan you could tell. The long overcoat
was by no means always over the knee, was by no means always black, was
sometimes open or fitted, and sometimes even almost transparent. Also blouses
were sometimes tight, colorful and playful. The headscarves were often worn way
back and there was a lot of hair showing. Usually straight black, but also
bleached and wavy. Occasionally it hung loose down the back. Jeans were
sometimes pretty tight, but always to the ankle. Some women were exuberant with
rouge all over their face, bright red
lipstick, and especially the eyes, eyelashes and jet-black eyebrows received a
lot of attention.
Not only the more modern dressed ladies were keen to flirt a
bit. My blue eyes, long hair and radiant smile :) attracted the ladies'
interest, and they showed that openly.
If you do not know that women in Iran are legally
disadvantaged, you may get the impression that they are equal. They are fully
present in the streets and behave in a self-confident and self-assured manner.
They are on average higher educated than men and sometimes they are the main
breadwinner in a family. In any case their position is better than in any of
the surrounding countries.
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