Michelle May

Click here for the 1st installment of my 10 week travel series on Tehran Bureau.

Thank you Tehran Bureau!

Week 1:  Zahedan

Week 2:  Bam

Week 3:  Bicycling across Iran

Week 4:  Kurdistan Part I

Week 5:  Kurdistan Part II

Week 6:  Sufi Dervish Ceremony

Tags: Ardabil, Backpacking, Bam, Bam earthquake, Female solo travel, Iran, Iran election, Iran travel, Kurdish, Kurdistan, Kurds, multimedia, Sanandaj, Tehran, TehranBureau, Travel, Zabol, Zahedan, Zurkhaneh.

As many of you know often when I travel I do so by way of couchsurfing, meaning that I sign on to stay with complete strangers in an effort for cultural exchange and understanding.  This past summer couchsurfing invited me to give a talk at a bookstore about what it is like to be a traveler in Iran.  That talk is finally happening on Tuesday October 20th at 7PM at Get Lost Books at 825 Market Street in San Francisco.  I hope you can come.  Love, Meshel

Tags: Iran, slide show, talk.

Just came across a few great images of Iran from my 1st trip there in 2007.  That visit was pre-website/blog…  spent a month hitch-hiking & taking public buses around the country- often staying with people I met in the street or on public transport.  May be one of the last places on earth where you can do that?  I want to do a reality show where I hitch across Iran with no $ yet live like a queen with the loveliest of people- it is the reality, in fact- I already did it- you can do it too, you know… well wait for it to quiet down, InSh’Allah. 

Tags: 2007, hospitality, Iran, summer.

Can somebody please photoshop the hair out of my eyes in this photo?

I just returned to the US after a long eventful summer, and finally have the time & space to really think about it all.   I have been looking through all the little scribbles i wrote on the road- would love to start sharing some of that here with you.  I will start at the beginning then- in Tehran.  I wrote a brief jounal like run down of the week rite after i left there.  It may not be the most interesting or clever stuff you’ve read but maybe it will illustrate the vacilation that week between feeling elation/inspired & feeling paranoia/fear (for good reason!).  No matter- here it is (note identity & details have been changed & personal stories have been omitted, for obvious reasons):

After nearly 24 hours of travel, my plane touched down at the Imam Khomeini International airport on a tuesday morning.  I did not have access to news when i was in transit so I was not aware that the first protesters had been killed- at Tehran University and at Azari Square.   The other story was that I did not even have a visa to enter into Iran- i was hoping for a visa on arrival (VOA) which is sometimes given to people of certian countries- ie: Ireland, but this was even just a rumor.  The Persian man I sat next to on the plane thought that i was crazy to risk coming without a visa.   Sleep deprived and dehydrated, this man’s words caused me to re-think what I had just done with regret.  Uniformed revolutionary guards flanked the gates as we disembarked from the plane.  I wondered to myself if they would end up re-escorting me back on the plane once immigration saw I did not have a visa.

To my relief there was a visa on arrival desk, where several foreigners were lined up at.  Most foreigners wore business suits and carried folders contacting documents.   “Your letter of invitation please” the officer asked.  I made a face that said: “Oops…Whaaaa?”  The man smiled, handed me a brief form to fill out, and told me pay the bank a 50 euro fee.  He kept my passport and said he would call my name when the visa was ready.  Perhaps because I was the only female in the group, the immigration officer called my name quickly.  I showed him the receipt from the bank, and he handed me my passport back with a 15 day visa on arrival in it : )  Another immigration officer quickly thumbed through my passport, examining all three Iranian visas in my passport, smiling.  He stamped my passport, and then I gathered my luggage.  Friends awaited me.  “Were you surprised they let me in?” I asked.  “No” they explained, “there is nothing to worry about.”   Phewww… We stopped for a tea and cake.  Everything seemed normal- - like my two prior visits to Iran.  It felt great to be back- and at that moment I was happy that I made the decision to go there.  The man on the plane was overreacting I thought.

My friends spoke of the rallies leading up to the election and the resulting protests after the results were announced.   “You are witnessing history” one zealous acquaintance said.   To see a country I loved so much be so mobilized, was the main reason why I dropped everything to come to Iran this week.  Later that evening, at my first protest I realized that the hope was genuine but any real governmental change was not likely.  Predictably, what I saw and heard on the ground in Tehran was far different from the chatter online back in California.  During the protest it was made clear to me that I was not to take photos and that if I did participate I could be considered a “terrorist” which would have unknown consequences.  Although I was not able to document the protest, I was an observer- not a participant..  People of all walks of life clad in green and black marched silently and peacefully, in respect for the seven protesters killed the night before.   Their bravery to go out despite the prior night’s killings was striking.  They beckoned me to join them.  The friend i was with who was also not allowed to protest, encouraged me to join then.  There was literally a sea of people- in black, in green- silent- no matter which street you went down.  It felt like we walked forever trying to get ot of the demonstration.  I knew that people were unhappy with their government, but I never thought I would see them stand up to the regime as they now were.  On the edges of the protest grumpy looking Basij observed, clearly outnumbered.  They snapped photos and video of people, presumably to find out the identity with intents to intimidate protesters.  My friend taught me how to spot a Basiji.  I found them to be ugly.  

I hailed a taxi back to where I was staying.  My taxi driver had someone translate his apologies- he said that Iranians are, in reality, very good, hospitable people, but the government is “very bad.”  Little did he know he was preaching to the choir.  He told of how his son was badly beaten by the Basij the night before.  He was a very kind person- he removed a green velvet pouch carrying a prayer stone that was hanging from his air conditioning controls and gave it to me as a gift.   (I had that pouch with me when the Basij took me- they scolded me about it and wanted to know exactly who gave it to me.  I was not telling!)   That night the friend I had planned to stay with told me that he felt it was not okay for me to stay with him since it is technically against the law for unmarried, unrelated men & women to be alone- moreless stay in the same apartment. 

I went to a hotel instead- my 1st time in Iran since my very 1st visit in 2007.   Several members of the foreign press also stayed at the hotel I went to.  I had heard that all foreign press licenses were revoked earlier that day, so it was likely the government was keeping watch on internet and phone activity at the hotel.  The phones were definitely tapped.  Not reassuring to me.   My friends and I began to speak in code, as a genuine paranoia began to seep in.  The internet at the hotel was unusually slow.  As I waited 30 minutes for my email to unsuccessfully load a gentleman approached me asking if I was a journalist.  The immunity I normally received as a foreigner in Iran in the past seemed to not apply this visit.  Once back in my room I was kept company by a chorus of “Allahu Akbar” – God is Great, and Death to the Dictator, which were screamed by children, men and women from their rooftops.   My friends had told me earlier that the shouting on rooftops was the safest form of protest- but even then Basij did storm some homes and kill people on their rooftops.  Honestly, when i first heard the chorus of Allahu Akbars it was a bit spooky… it felt like i was eavesdropping on someone else’s personal matters.  It felt highly intimate and desperate- like seeing someone cry but unable to console them or really do anything for them. 

The next day I checked out of the hotel.   A friend of a friend came to take me to a spare apartment he had for me to stay in.  Surprisingly my friend had a wireless connection much faster than I had experienced so far.  I spent the day with another traveler who had been in hiding there- we read western news from 7000 miles away to catch up with what was happening on the ground just blocks from us.  Grainy images of the Basij using iron rods to pry the gates open at Tehran University only to murder people deeply disturbed me, and sent my heart pounding.   

After several hours I decided to venture out for food.  I was uneasy, but as soon as I hit the street the unsolicited smile of a mullah, a juice maker’s quirky enthusiasm for carrot juice, and a smiling mom and daughter holding my hand as I crossed a busy intersection momentarily reassured me that everything was going to be okay.  I was again in the Iran I had experienced before, not the strange place I had read about the past 24 hours.  Maybe, I thought, the slowing of the internet is a good thing, for sanity’s sake?  Still, the abundance of injured people walking around, the fact that mobile phones were cut after four o’clock, and my inability to phone internationally reminded me of the increasing strangle hold. 

Thursday at lunch in Valiasr square well dressed families, and stylish couples ate copious amounts of kebabs and rice at tables with crisp white tablecloths.  Things appeared deceptively normal.  Afterwards, in my taxi it seemed as if every passenger in every car heading towards Imam Khomeini square wore green ribbons around their wrist, with raised victory/peace signs out the window.  It was incredibly positive and hopeful- it felt safe because of the sheer number of people.  I again went to protest that night, & marched.  Moussavi made an appearance with his wife.  People of all age ranges and social classes marched in silence towards Engelab “revolution” square.  It was a movement unlike any i have ever experienced in my life.  I was struck that people were actually defying potential death in order to be there.  There was no way not to be moved by this.  It was the biggest demonstration since Monday’s protest at Azari.  People shouted the location for Saturday’s protest- the movement felt unstoppable.  Once I made it home that night, the otherwise fast internet was cut completely.  I felt isolated- different than at the demonstration.

Friday is a day of rest in the Muslim world.  No protests were planned that day- the 1st time in a week- and the city appeared finally able to relax a bit- at least for the morning.  The Ayatollah Khomeini was giving the Friday prayer at Tehran University, which attracted plenty of Ahmadinejad fans who were paid & bussed in from other locations.  I tried to get away from what was going on by heading to one of the more peaceful spots I know of in Tehran-the Shah’s former Palace.   on my way there I had never seen the streets of Tehran so empty before.  My taxi driver was silent as the Supreme Leader’s voice spoke out of the radio.   There was a heavy military presence of riot police, regular police, and Basij on the streets.   Speakers were set up around the palace airing the Supreme Leader’s speech.  Someone translated parts of it for me “he’s saying that the protests must stop- the vandalism must stop.  If people continue to protest then they have no protection.” 

I walked towards Ferdosi square afterwards where hundreds of Ahmadinejad fans poured out of Taleghani street.  They carried giant Iranian flags, and some had posters of Ahmadinejad’s face that took up the entire back side of their cars.  Riot police lined up around the British Embassy.  I met another tourist who was of Iranian descent.  She spoke of her activism and showed me her eyelashes which had burned off from tear gas at protests.   We made our way to the former US Embassy, now called the “US Den of Espionage” home of the Sepha (IRGC), a branch of the military.  We viewed government propaganda signs outside their headquarters, with quotes such as  “The United States is the most hated nation on the World” painted in colorful Farsi and English.  It was in the same vein as Ahmadinejad’s statement a week earlier that Iran was the “most stable country in the world.”  The tourist and I took a taxi up to Vanak square where we crawled up to the top of a white marble maze that is in the center of the square.   I remembered how many people sat atop this structure Tuesday night.  From that vantage point it again felt that things could again change.  After several minutes uniformed police approached us, “are you starting a revolution?”  My new friend explained that we were not.  ”The place where you are sitting is the revolution spot.”  My friend let him know that I was an American tourist.  The officers then changed their tone advising her to take me to a park down the street for one of the best views of Tehran.  We spoke of hope as we walked away- oblivious to the change of tone the next day…..

more soon…

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Is it just me or are you not a bit suspicious about the motives around all the current news coverage of Iran in America?  Of course, it was personal mission for the past three years to have more coverage of the “real people” of Iran, rather than all the stale sterotypes that were left in our subconscious since 1979.  In June i felt elated to see the entire world seeing images of modern Iranians- the Iranians who i also met traveling there who dislike some of their leaders, and want moderate reform.  It was inpsiring to see people in my country actually care & give a damn about a nation and people who i hold so dear.  However, now if you look at a news site such as CNN and go to their middle east section 90% of what you see is about Iran- horrible things that stand out in headlines.  But there are also other countries in the world who do just as atrocious, if not more atrocious things- why are those stores not told?  Is it because we do business with them &/or even SPONSOR it?

As the summer wore on I was forced to get out of my Iran bubble- I traveled to other countries of the Middle East & saw that as expected, they too have been unfairly misrepresented.  My summer ended by seeing a family i care very much for be illegally evicted from their home in an act which the international community - including the United States- deplored.  Why then was there virtually no coverage of this in US media?  I am left to believe that it is in some lobby group’s interests to further this vilification of Iran (with all due respect to those in Iran) while irresponsibly ignoring what goes on on other countries. 

Why are some stories covered by the media & then others not? 

I have nothing but love & support or the regular everyday people of Iran, but  I am a bit worried about the repercusions of all the media coverage.  Some people in this world want to launch war on Iran - that will do nothing to truly help Iranian’s cause- just as we have seen in other nations.  I will be blunt in saying that i think the continued choice coverage of Iran is just the beating the drums of war.  If this coverage was truly only out of concern for fellow mankind & justice we would be hearing these same stories about other nations where the injustice is even more severe- and at times in places where we actually have and currently do fund such acts.  I am not saying we should not be following what happens in Iran- i am saying that we should also fairly present what happens in other places.

Let me end by saying:  I have grown tired of the double standard in our mainstream media- I am tired of certain stories of some races being ignored.  I am tired of people who are so close-minded that they do not look at people as human beings and instead only look at their race or religion- with an inherit unstated assumption that some people’s lives are more valuable than others.  This in fact has nothing to do with religion- it is just politics, greed & overt racism.  Don’t be fooled by both the formal media & the entertainment you have been exposed to your whole life.  Try to keep an open mind.  Try to get out & see these things/places/people for yourself & then give me your opinon… 

Tags: Iran, media bias, protests.

As the dust has settled i am seeing things more clearly- things that i did not trust myself to make any judgements on a few months ago.  Just like anything in life, people’s reactions & criticisms of often say more about them & their hang ups, than anything valid about you.  Friends who have divorced have told me this, and i never quite had anything very contraversial to apply that to, until this past summer in Iran.  Yes, being forcibly stopped, surrounded & abducted by 10 Basiji men is intimidating but it is *certainly* not the worst thing on earth.. But i was a bit surprised when a few close male friends (seperately) told me that i was making a big deal of nothing.  I definitely do not think it was a big deal compared to what others were going through but that does not mean that it still was not scary and did not deeply affect me- as it would others who are not used to living under those circumstances.  In talking to more friends about it now (I was pretty isolated after it happened) I see that it was normal to be scared.. & even a tiny bit traumatized.  Again- *certainly not* the worst thing that could happen but when you are alone in a foreign land, no one knows where you are, and you are a female with all men, it can be scary- especially given how unpredictable things were at the time & the fact that the Basiji certainly were to be feared.  

Five days after the abduction one of my male friends- whose opinion i highly valued- sat me down & gave me a talking to after i had trouble eating, sleeping & producing work in reaction to what happened.  In an annoyed manner, he told me that he also had a traumatic experience in Iran once: his car was broken into & his passport was stolen.  And that he had to get over it & move on & that i needed to stop sulking, and get over it too.  Maybe he just wanted to cheer me up- but the demeanor which he did this in suggested annoyance more than empathy.  He said that what happend to me & what happend to him were “the same thing” … hmmmm.. I get the moving on part, but a car break in- losing your things vs. being scared for your life/safety are not the same thing.  I could not believe what i was hearing.  I really was not trusting myself when he said that to me, so i just kept quiet…   

I met up with another male acquaintance from home, about a month after that.  Granted i do not really trust this person’s opinion much - he often seems to get great joy from pointing out people’s fauts.  Do not quote me on this- but within 15 minutes of seeing him, he went on to say “How on earth could you be so stupid to get your self in that situation?” and “On the one TV interview you had this grin, like ‘yeah i know i’m a bad ass.’”   actually this is sort of a noncomment/nonsurprise given the source, rite?!  Still, I pressed him about this & after a few beers (& possibly some superego getting him in check) he said that naysyers may just be jealous b/c they secretly wish they were out doing that sort of thing….

Just this weekend a close male friend questioned me- asking me why the thought that the Basij may kill me crossed my mind while that had me captive (uh, b/c they just abducted me- and they had killed others… and i was under allot of stress… errr—)- he went on to say that was foolish & that many people would simply brush the experience off (yes, i know–) and that i am “not a very hearty person” because it scared me so much.  I know that too- but….. but… but….  That said, he spent all summer in Ibiza on a news fast….

What is my point?  i guess to get some of this off my chest.  Most of my friends have been supportive & I am sure that this is these people’s way of showing support.. but i just wonder why a few *male* friends interpret what happened in this way.  No females have.  I am left thinking perhaps it is a macho thing- is it because i did not spend the summer at the mall putting on makeup?  Is it b/c they spent all summer get man-cials while drinking soy lattes when really they wished they were crossing the sahara atop a cargo truck?  i don’t know… but no matter, i hope there is some therapeutic benefit of airing my dirty laundry here in cyberspace. 

Tags: abduction, Iran protests.

Hi, Have not blogged in a long time for probably obvious reasons- while in Iran i knew that was a no-go.  In Lebanon & Syria I did not want anyone there to be able to track me or know where I was- call me paranoid ; )  I feel i have to address a few questions that have been raised following what happened in Iran:

1. What happend to me is NOTHING compared to what the Iranian people live with- especially now. 

2.  I have been to Iran three times- the past three years my focus has been on fostering understanding between the everyday people of America & the everyday people of Iran (not our governments- i am not a politician).  Having everyday people understand eachother when we have few opportunities for real life ineraction is a massive undertaking, that of course i know i am not able to single-handedly tackle-but- as I wrote here long ago- this is just my tiny meagre contribtion to that.   Iran is a very different place than what was portrayed in the media the past few decades (since June that is changing).. I wanted to let everyday Americans know the truth about Iranians-since they are truly hospitable kind people- quite different from what we saw in teh media.  I have written about this before, been interviewed by journalists in the past, and have also spoken at events such as the Axis Of Friendhsip festival in 2008 regarding my hopes.  I did not go to Iran in June as a novice who was ”swept up” in the “trendiness” of the green wave.  I have many friends there -some of who are like family- I like to see them- they mean alot to me.  I wanted to be with my friends there during what potentially could have been a positive time.  No one predicted the situation to deteriorate as quickly as it did.  No matter, the real reason i was abudcted by the Basij is because they & the government do not want ANY foreign eyes there to witness the atrocities happening.  They were trying to intimidate & scare ousiders to leave.  They saw me read CNN- a news site that their government has conveniently deemed ”terrorist trouble maker.”  it really had far less to do with teh interaction i had wit the undercover Basiji & more to do with their zero tolerance policy that started the day before (ironic since i was trying to read CNN to find out just what was said at the Ayatollah’s prayer- and what did it mean- for me- a foreign tourist, ie: should i leave?).

3.  When you see a brief clip of a much longer interview focusing on the fear I felt when abducted I know it may appear naive & foolish- to trust someone in Iran.  Fact is human beings make decisions based on what they have been conditioned and actually experienced in life.  Would I let a stanger hail a taxi for me in Moscow?  No.  Would I agree with negative comments about the government in say China?  No.  Would I walk home in the dark a half mile from my own apartment in San Francisco?  No.  However In Iran- by all means yes.  In my past experiences in Iran the vast majority of people there verbally bash their government- all the time.  In hindsite i see that it was a hyper sensitive time and i could have exercised more caution- but lesson learned.   Unfortunately now i think there wil be many more secret police.  Don’t feel sorry for the tourist- feel sorry for the everyday ppl who have too live there under such renewed oppression of all divergent thought & idea.

4. I am now in Jordan- I let a young man (stranger) hail a taxi for me yesterday.  In this part of the world hospitality is unparalelled- much different than in a western nation.  As i have said here on my blog over the years- I find Iran to be THE most hospitable and one of the safest nations I have ever  visited.  The custom there is “the guest is next to God.”  We stand so much to learn from this.  I am sorry if it seems naive - because in reality it is not.  if you are paranoid- you are the one who misses out.  I and many others travel b/c we like to experience something different from our own culture.  I do not travel with my guard up in places which have proven that they could be trusted- this was literally the 1st time i have ever been stung by trusting too much in the middle east.  Granted, i now have adjusted how I travel and have been far more cautious.  I am sure I am missing out on positive experiences with people as as result, but it is just where I am at in my head right now.  Fact is most of the world is a very friendly place with good people- a small minority of people are bad eggs.  The bastard Basiji who got me was just that- a minority in a nation of good people.   The only way to truly know that and trust this though is to get out & experience it.

Peace,

Michelle

Tags: ABC, abduction, CNN, elections, Iran, media.

On 6/20/2009 I was abducted by a militia group, the Basij, in Tehran.  They thought I was a spy.  Here are some CNN & ABC links:

I blogged about Tehran for CNN

CNN news artticle about my abduction & detainment

CNN Live interview with me on June 24, 2009

ABC interview segment & link:

Good Morning America segment 6/21/2009

ABC news article that quotes me

Tags: ABC, abduction, Basij, CNN, elections, Iran, kidnapping, media.

above: last photo I snapped as a “free woman” (without police escort) in Zahedan, Iran

At 6AM Mr. Akbar & I flagged down a bus from Bam to Zahedan.  Even though I was never alone in Bam (due to security reasons, see: kidnapped Japanese tourist story below), i was told by Mr. Akbar that the bus may be my best bet in getting to Zahedan “safely” (whatever that means).  He said if i went by share taxi or regular taxi i had more risk of being stopped by drug smugglers, though they are normally not out much during the day (another point in my favor). 

When i got on the bus i noticed that it was like stepping into another country- it was full of skinny men in baggy white salwar kameez’s; hints of Pakistan were everywhere.  THere were also a few urban-Tehrani types- most noteably the girl infront of me who had 2 black-ish eyes- she was using tissue to clean the clogged blood coming out of her nostrils, she wore a large bandage over a metal strip holding her new nose job in place (the nose job is a bit of a a rite of passage to rich or aspringing modern Tehranis who also wear alot of make up/use alot of hair gel, etc-).  This site reminded me that in fact, i am still in Iran, alrite! 

Pakistani music playing, it made me want to continue on east to Pakistan and eventually to India where thinsg are more colorful & free, relatively speaking.  It all seemed well & good and a bit like a trip down memory lane.  I thought to myself, rather than being a scary trip through drug territory as folks described, it seemed like a nice relaxing journey.  I looked out the window and watched the desert landscape turn from a lunar jagged reddish-brown to a flat tan color.   At times there were decaying carcasses of cow or camel, the desert looking like it was slowly swallowing the body.  As the wind blew in the window it felt like opening an over door full of intense wind- it made my eyes sore & i had to wear glasses for that reason alone. 

Thinigs change when we started making many stops. Too many.  For starters, a scrawny police officer came on with a few convicts who were handcuffed to one another.  THey wore baggy salwar kameezes as an accessory to their handcuffs.  Aside from the fact that they are scary convicts another downside of our new passengers was that they smelled really bad.  The police escorted them to the back, everyone staring at them nonstop for at least a half an hour.  I thought that was wierd, that the police use public transport here to transport prisoners.  Especially since there is just one of his & more of them.  Maybe he needs us?  What was wierder was that a few kilometers further a new-looking pickup truck full of turbaned men- some wrapping their faces entirely - only eyes showing- stopped us and put an entire truckload of gasoline under the bus.  They then shot off on some crude dirl track back into the mountains.  We carried on with our new cargo- but the fumes of gasoline were so strong that many passengers started throwing up.  Seeing everyone throw up made me want to throw up but i didn’t.  I started to think to myself- what was Mr. Akbar thinking that the bus was safer?!!!!   I need to call him.  After about 30 kilometers and a dozen police checkpoints a bunch of bandit looking gentlemen again flew out of nowhere from the mountains in pickup trucks- different colored turbans, big billowy beards of white and jet black- and face coverings.  THey stopped us, and i thought:  Oh God, what now?  hopefully, not wanting any hostages for playing their game with the government.  We were lucky, they just wanted the gasoline we had picked up 30 K earlier.  Good thing, the pungent gasoline fumes also went away.  THey rode off again, into some crags in the mountains.  Who knows who these people are, but they make me damn curious.  I wish i could shrink myself down, and ride along to see just what life is like with all these desert pirates.  As we rode further young boys covered head to toe in gasoline were walking home from “work” I imagined.  I bet they do not make much, relatively speaking, from the trade.  According to a friend in Kerman, what costs the equivalent of 10 cents (gasoline) here can be sold for 18 times that amount in Pakistan at least (not sure the price in Afghanistan, but i am sure it is less than the gov’t subsidized stuff here).  What is most interesting is that the police were with us the whole time, and never seemed phased by this.  THey say where we are, Baluchistan, is a lawless land so i guess they choose their battles focusing mroe on the much more lucrative opium-trade.  It definitely appears to be more out in the open here, and less hidden than it was in Kurdistan near Iraq. 

Moving on, no one was feeling very good with the convicts on our bus.  Everyone on the bus was pretty petite but if it came down to it i think we could have taken them if they made a break for it or tried to hold anyone hostage.  I imagined i was not the only one thinking this.  In my mind, i was a bit more concerned about what to do once in the city since i knew i was suporsed to be with police escort- i decided my best bet was to befriend the folks who had the nose-jobbed friend/family member since that as what i was most familiar with.  I approached them and thought they did not speak any English, with hand-motions they made it clear that i was to go with them & not any dodgy taxi drivers.   Their male friend who called himself Alex picked us up & the only words of English anyone uttered to me were “Zahedan- Danger.” With hand motions they described that their friend once had a big nose &  using a cutting motion they showed that now her nose is smaller.  I tried to explain with handmotions that i find strong, or big- if you will- noses are much more attractive to me, but i do not think it worked.  They dropped me off at my hotel & we took a family photo.  Since that time i have not gone anywhere in Zahedan without the mandatory police escort for foreigners. More on that later….

Tags: Baluchestan, Iran, Zahedan.

I left the mountainous Northwest of the country- headed to the Caspian sea which was lush- a lushness which hypnotizes any living being after only seeing brown, red and grey for so long… THe green was fluorescent, lighting up paddy fields- just like the ones i love in SE Asia.  Odd to see it here in Iran- what seems odder is that the ever-present Black Chador cloaked every female i saw- a stark contrast with the vibrant sultry green.  After that I took a PLANE (yep!) to the Southeast of the country- where i am now- to explore the “Wild East.”  Yee-ha!  A month ago- or even a week ago- i thought i would not come here.  Forget Kurdistan, this is the region everyone really fears- everyone warns you about.  It is definitely a lawless part of Iran where whafts of Opium smoke fill the bazars, dodgy exotic looking bearded men hang out talking about who knows what, and camels have addiction issues… and well, i guess that’s it…  So, there is reason for the caution & fear- as you could guess: this is where the drug runners operate!  Opium.  Well, it is not just that it is smuggled here b/c that goes on in alot of places– the issue is the government and the smugglers play a little game and this is area is the battleground, so to speak.  It goes like this: the police confiscate opium from the smugglers, and then the dealers then kidnap people to get the $ they lost in confiscated drug back.   I do not believe they have ever killed people- at least not foreigners (am i rationalizing?)  When i was at the Irish embassy several weeks ago, the Ambassador told me about this- Apparently one Japansese man was taken right infront of the Bam Citadel (major tourist attraction, well is used to be till the quake of 03).  He was kidnapped there about a year ago, and he just was released now.  The kidnappers demanded the same amount of $ of their confiscated drugs- a figure in the millions.  Before that a Belgian couple was also kidnapped- but i have to say they were driving a  car late at night in Baluchestan-which i think it is common knowledge not to do that- do not go out after dark b/c that is when the drug-runners take over the streets.  So they were taken but for 2 months- and word on the street is that the woman was freed after 2 days due to the fact that she is a woman (another point in my favor).  I have been told that in Bam and beyond i will be escorted by the police.  So as i travel every say, 10 kilometers, i will be handed from one police station to the next- they follow me in a car.  I have seen a friend’s video of this- the police followed him lights blazing, guns drawn & everything.  He said seeing this beautiful land & meeting the kind people out this was well worth the hassle of the escort.  Some people tell me it is probably safer on the public bus (strength in numbers) but that i should try very hard to fit in, which may be hard.  I bought a new black chador today & must admit, i like the relief from attention it gives me (had a harmless stalker on a motorbike earlier- that was enough to set me straight and put me into the black.. Oh no!!! i am doing what i said i would not!!).  i think that i will in fact be fine b/c i will make all movements by car/bus in the morning, with police escort,  not taking many photos or sticking out as a tourist.  I will be home in my hotel by 4PM each nite (no fun!).  It is only about a week that i will be out there- so not to worry.  Others have done it & percentage wise i do think i could much easier be killed by a crazy driver in Tehran or a shooting in San Francisco, than meeting my maker here.  A new friend here told me yesterday:  “Michelle, God is paying alot of attention to YOU- YOU are not about to become one of these statistics.”  That said,  I can still hear you thinking/saying/shouting:  Michelle, why the hell are you doing this?  aren’t there several other places you could see safely in Iran?   Well, for starters- this area is one of the final frontiers & of course, i find that very interesting & appealing.  Also, you must understand that I had my heart set on going to Afghanistan before i came to Iran- but then there was a US military raid in the town of Herat where i planned to go.   Like everyone- I am scared shiteless of the Taleban- they are the real deal, so now no way to Afghanistan… Still, i am left with this real thirst for a flavor more exotic, a society a less modern than other parts of Iran- these flavors however can be found here.  This region is just another one of the strong influences that make up this country, but sadly it gets swept under the rug due to a few bad eggs & isolated incidents.  ANyhoo, so enough of my explanations to you (i am on vacation- what the…), suffice it to say i will be able to fill you in on lots more about the recovering city of Bam, the Opium trade, gasoline smuggling (here too!), & the situation with Afghan refugees as i work my way from Bam to Zahedan, up to Zabol & then north along the Afghan border (by bus) till finally I head a bit west to the the very normal Iranian (see: super safe & travelled) city of Mashhad.  I hope to do that all within a week- will keep you posted every step of the way that i can.  As long as there is internet at my hotel you know i will certainly have the time to update you ; )  Love yas…..      XOXOXOOX

Tags: Iran.