Salmiya

Kashan at the border of Iran’s Dasht-e Kavir, is a very relaxed city in Central Iran. It harbors one of Iran’s (and in fact the world’s) oldest settlements at Tappeh-ye Seyalk . There are tree alleys which invite for extended walks through the city. Fin garden is one of Irans finest parks, a real imagination of paradise (a Persian word). Main activities of business and communication are done, as usual in Iran, in the bazaar. Its beautiful domed roof is rather famous and was built in the Qajar period. Here, ancient caravanserais and mosques, old and new goods, and the famous Kashan carpets can be discovered. The old Sultan Mir Ahmed Hamam is now a relaxing tea house. Kashan’s main attractions are a number of renovated mansions from the Qajar period in the 19th century. These traditional houses are hidden behind high mud-brick walls and not visible from the streets at all. They were the home of wealthy merchants and carpet dealers. Iran seems to spend a lot of money and effort to preserv...

When I recently watched again the BBC production Around the World in 80 Treasures , I stumbled over the remark by Dan Cruickshank about the tapestry copy of Pablo Picasso's Guernica in the United Nations building in New York City. When Collin Powell and John Negroponte delivered (now it is clear to everyone) their lies about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction in a press conference on February 5, 2003, the picture was veiled with a large blue curtain. Guernica from 1937, which is an epoch-making reminder of the horrors of war (we recall that German and Italian fascists, in what was called Operation Rügen, killed, in several raids, hundreds of innocents), should not interfere with media coverage when war had been declared on the Iraqi people. http://www.slate.com/id/2078242/

The "Most Wanted Man" in Iran, Abdol Malik Rigi, had temporarily been mentioned in Iran's PRESSTV news network as possibly being involved in the Shiraz blast yesterday. The explosion, which killed at least eleven, might in fact be an accident. In a rare interview broadcast in July last year, the outlaw, drug trafficker and leader of the terrorist organization Jundullah confirms that he is not supported by CIA but by Balochis living in Sweden. Interesting in any case. http://www.hd.net/iran.html

When writing about my visit at Kashan’s Tappeh-ye Seyalk in 2005 , I have to stress that most of the treasures excavated there in the 1930s found their way to The Louvre, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The British Museum. Sadly, some even went to private collections. Some years ago, a similar looting took place in Shahr-e-Sookhte near Jiroft, well before scientific excavations could start at the site in 2001. When visiting Tehran’s National Museum in November last year, I saw only a replica of the stele with Hammurabi’s (1728-1686 BC) Code. The original is on display at The Louvre. I am afraid that most of the treasures of the Cradle of Civilization, i.e., Iran, Iraq, can be seen in the museums of the West nowadays. These days the fall of Baghdad marks its 5th Anniversary. Among some very negative impressions was the looting of Iraq’s National Museum while US troops didn‘t do too much to prevent it. According to Gen Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, ...

Before I traveled to Abyaneh and Natanz , and then further to Esfahan , I visited, for a couple of days, Kashan, another 100 kilometers south of Qom . It is the first oasis along the old Qom-Kerman road, a small desert city at the border to the Great Desert. It has been home of ancient settlements since at least the 5th Millennium BC. Legend has it that the Three Wise Men, who were in fact Zoroastrian Magis, set out from here to follow a star announcing the birth of the New King of the Jews, the baby Jesus in Bethlehem. (But how did the bones arrive in Cologne’s Dome then?) Kashan is very famous for rose water which is made here from the beautiful flowers blooming at the fringes of Dasht-e Kavir. On the southern outskirts of the city an amazing ziggurat is located which might be older than those in Mesopotamia. It is what is now called Tappeh-ye Seyalk, a famous destination for archaeologists , and tourists, as well. It might well have been the starting point of any Persian civilizatio...

We have not forgotten that presidential candidate Senator John McCain "was just trying to add a little humor to the event" , as his spokesman Kevin McLaughlin told news agencies later. It was about one year ago at Murrels Inlet VFW Hall in South Carolina , and McCain was asked when he thought the US Military might "send an air mail message to Tehran." In view of the recent mix-up by the Senator of Al-Qaeda and Iran, when touring the Middle East showing his competencies and when responding to General David Petraeus' testimony about the current situation in Iraq to the Congress , we are still rather concerned about his further actions once the American people have elected him their next President.

When I posted my pictures from Yemen last month, I got a new understanding for the importance of towers in human culture and civilization. The ancient, multi-storey buildings in even the smallest villages in Yemen , nestling in hillsides of the harsh, mountainous landscape, are a perfect example of how human civilization mingles with Nature. But now let's have a look on the new developments in the oil-rich countries of the 21st century. The tallest building in the world is, for some time already, the construction site of Dubai’s Burj. So far, the site looks a bit chaotic and the Burj itself can best be overlooked from the air. The Burj has definitely been ugly but is now beautifying quickly. Computer-generated rendering of the final building shows a metallically glistening needle. It is said that its antenna will peak 818 meters, when finished. That will be at some time during next year. But there are also rumors that it will reach 950 meters! While the gulf emirates, and Dubai al...