National Museum of Iran

Today, I was sort of recovering from last night which was pretty nice. There was a party and Mina and her younger sister, Moshgone, came. There was a fair bit more merriment than you would expect to have. :-) Good mix of multilingual French, Persians, a Norwegian, and a Canadian.

Went for a jog down Valiasr Ave. and into Park E Mellat. Found a place to do some pullups which was nice. Even noticed a lady that had full on head coverage and was running in the park. I had to pick up the pace because I did not want her to pass me in the park! But my hat goes off to her for running like that.

Mina called and offered to help look at carpets later in the day. Went back to the penthouse(:-)) for a shower and to get ready to go out. Planned to go see the National Museum of Iran.

Went to see the National Museum, mostly it is pottery, ancient pieces, etc. Some pieces that were returned from Persepolis which is in Shiraz. Interestingly, I saw a piece that was a copy of the original that is in the Louvre. The French were nice enough to give the Iranians a copy of the piece while they kept the original in France. :-)

Upstairs there is the Museum of the Islamic period. Not too big with Islamic art pieces, weapons, ceramics, etc.

After we walked over to the Malek National Museum, just to see it from the outside. It is only open from Sunday to Wednesday, so I won't have a chance to see it. I took some photos from the outside(The above photo was taken there).

Got a call from Mina to meet about some carpets. The driver and I went to a coffee shop where we had a Turkish coffee and I had some Iranian pastry. Pretty good stuff. I have also notice there are lots of blue pools in Tehran but almost all of them are empty! :-)

Met up with Mina and her elder(est) computer sister, Afsah, and her 2 daughters. I appreciate her help alot but did not see sort of what I was looking for. They had some Klemes(not sure about the spelling) which I didn't really want. They are carpets but you can see the knots on the other side. I think I will try the Tehran bazaar on Saturday as stores here are closed on Fridays. I leave for my little Esfehan-Shiraz trip Sunday to Thursday. This means I only have this Saturday to do my shopping since I also fly out next Saturday morning. A hookah pipe is also an item I want, why don't Westerners use a hookah I really do wonder.

I am looking forward to my trip as I think I have seen most of the sites in Tehran. I have my airplane tickets and hotel tickets for Esfehan-Shiraz. I must admit I am rather spoiled during this trip. Mina said that when she came over to the party that it was the first time she had seen a penthouse in Tehran. Also, that it is my first time in Tehran and it is me inviting her and her sister to a party! I guess that is how I roll when I am in Tehran! ;-)

This trip is what I really needed, a trip with some serious edge but having perks like a driver, posh place to stay, a cell phone makes life very bearable here. I think I will come back pretty recharged in Canada.