You like it so much!I visited there with some of my Japanese and Scot friends last year, the city has a lot of unique archeological sites to see.Isfahan is turquoise glitter inmost a green fertile oasis near the vastness of the central Persia
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I visited there with some of my friends last year, the city is very beautiful and has a lot of unique archeological sites to see.
I bet you like it and you want to visit there again and again after the first visit.It is better to visit Isfahan in summer or spring when the weather is rather mild.Esfahān or Isfahan (historically also rendered as Ispahan or Hispahan, Old Persian: Aspadana, Middle Persian: Spahān, Persian: اصفها -6; Esfahān), located about 340 km south of Tehran at 32°39′5″N, 51°40′45″ECoordinates: 32°39′5″N, 51°40′45″E, is the capital of Esfahan Province and Iran's third largest city (after Tehran and Mashhad). Esfahan City had a population of 1,986,542 and the Esfahan metroplitan area had a population of 3,430,353 in 2006 census, the second most populous metroploitan area in Iran after Tehran(Now Tehran is the capital).
Esfahan is located on the main north-south and east-west routes crossing Iran, and was once one of the largest cities in the world. It flourished from 1050 to 1722, particularly in the 16th century under the Safavid dynasty, when it became the capital of Persia for the second time in its history. Even today, the city retains much of its past glory. It is famous for its Islamic architecture, with many beautiful boulevards, covered bridges, palaces, mosques, and minarets. This led to the Persian proverb Esfahān nesf-e jahān ast: "Esfahan is half of the world".Imam Square: Before Isfahan was selected as capital by the Safavid dynasty, the square called Naghsh-e-Jahan (image of the world) existed in the vicinity of Imam square. During the reign of Shah Abbas the Great, this square was enlarged to almost its present dimensions and famous historic buildings such as the Imam mosque, Sheikh Lotfollah mosque, Aali qapu building and Ghasir gateway were constructed around this square. This square is 80,000 sq meters and twice as large as Moscow's Red square.It is worth to spend one day to visit all the corners of this square.
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A ceremony in 18 century in Isfahan
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There are many historical monuments and places to be visited by every body. These include:
menar jonban
Hamame seikh
masjede jame
sio se pol
pole khajoo
borje kabootarha
hotel abbasi
big square
masjede shah
Aali ghapoo
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| What's really great: |
menar jonban
Hamame seikh
masjede jame
sio se pol
pole khajoo
borje kabootarha
hotel abbasi
big square
masjede shah
Aali ghapooali ghapoo
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| Sights: |
menar jonban
Hamame seikh
masjede jame
sio se pol
pole khajoo
borje kabootarha
hotel abbasi
big square
masjede shah
Aali ghapoo
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Hotel Toos is cheap and near the city center we stayed there for 3 days. The service is moderate but if you don`t want to spend lots of money on hotels, Toos is a good place since the hotel is near the city center and most of the important archeological sites.
We went to the Hotel Abbasi restuarent which is a 5 star hotel, I saw about the prices, a 2 beds with breakfast is at least 200 USD, some people believe that it is worth to stay there at least for one night to enjoy the sense of old Isfahan!
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Si-o-se-pol: Situated on the bank of Zayendeh-Rud river. The city of Isfahan has some unique and beautiful bridges connecting both the banks. The bridge is used by the Char Bagh (four gardens) highway connecting the Char Bagh with the Armenian settlement of new Julfa. An extra ordinary structure - 300 meters in length and 14 meters wide, serves both as a bridge as well as dam.
Khaju Bridge: This bridge located about 1.5 Kilometers downstream to the east of Sio-seh-Pol, the Khaju Bridge is slightly smaller than Sio-seh-Pol. It has two levels of terraces overlooking the river. Built on the foundation of an earlier structure, this bridge too, has been constructed for two purposes - a roadway and a dam.
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Isfahani Traditional art of Zarih making
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New Julfa : Situated on the southern bank of Zayandeh Rud river, New Julfa was founded by Shah Abbas for the relocation of Armenians who were forced to flee their home in Old Julfa in Armenia because of Turkish attacks. The Armenian immigrants were given special privileges and formal guarantees concerning their religious freedom.
Vank Cathedral: The construction of this church commenced in 1606 at the time of arrival of Armenians immigrants to Isfahan and was completed between 1655 and 1664 under the supervision of Archbishop David. Though the exterior of the church is unexciting, the interior is richly decorated with oil paintings of Jesus Christ and people sacred to the Armenians. Oil paintings and gilded carving, in the representation of God's revelation throughout the Old and New Testaments, cover the walls from the tiled lower portions of the ceiling.
Bazaar and Qaisarieh protal: Isfahan bazaar is a real labyrinth of domed streets into the old town. The entrance to the bazaar is through a majestic gateway in keeping with the dimensions of the square called Qaisarieh. The gateway is decorated with mosaic tile work, its main motif representing Sagittarius, Isfahan's astrological sign, shown here as a chimera. This Bazaar is one of the biggest and most lively bazaars of the Middle East. Wandering through some 5 km of paths, one can find shops hat sell almost every imaginable item. Small openings in vaulted roof let in sufficient light and yet keep out the intense heat of summer and retain warmth in winter.
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Abaasi
Amir
Motahari
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Talar-e-Ashraf: This palace which dates from the time of Shah Abbas II is situated just to the west of the main palace of Aali Qapu and east of another palace, known as Hash Behesht. It is currently used as an officer's club by army and is therefore closed to visitors. It derives its name from the period when Isfahan was ruled by Afghanis whose leader, Ashraf, made this building his headquarters.
Jame (Friday) mosque: This is one of the oldest mosques still standing in Iran, and is built in the " four ivan " architectural style, placing four gates face to face. It was built in the 8th century but soon after, it burnt down. It was rebuilt again in 11th century and it went through remodeling many times. As a result it has rooms built in different architectural styles, so now the mosque represents a condensed history of Iranian architecture.
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Published on Monday February 25th, 2008
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Mon, Mar 10 2008 - 05:50 PM
 by leillli
| well done,but i do agree with david,as a person who live in isfahan,there are much things you could add here as updated information not some old, un-fashioned one!but atleast thanks for your try:) |
Tue, Feb 26 2008 - 04:02 PM
by rangutan
From the style, perhaps copy and pasted from another source? I hope the material is original. Interesting, I've never seen a Japanese Scotsman, are there many in Iran? ;-) Still, some useful tips, thanks. See/compare with http://www.globosapiens.net/esfahani-travelogue/Esfahan.html
Different spelling, same place, Wikipedia accepts both. |
Mon, Feb 25 2008 - 01:14 PM
by davidx
| When I started, I expected to be giving 4 or 5*. Your introduction and photos are fine and four of your later sections are very good. Unfortunately I think your lists in three sections let it down badly. Have fewer if necessary but do tell us something about them. I bet not more than 20 of our members, apart from the Iranians, have evr seen this city and there is clearly much to tell. |
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9 votes
