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Firstly some pictures.

This is one of a handful of bridges which cross the Zayenderud River. Unfortunately the river is now dry as a bone; someone said that's because the water upstream has been diverted and sold by the government. When the river was running cafes were setup along the underside in the arches and every night up to 3am you would find hoards of families spread out all over the river bank having picnics. Nightlife now is just a fraction of what it once was.

 

 

I infiltrated the grand Abassi Hotel (you normally have to pay an entry fee to access its common areas and courtyards) to see what $60/night can get you. It's quite beautiful yet saddening that it costs Australians peanuts yet the majority of locals would only ever dream of spending a night here. There are huge open courtyards, rooftop restaurants, winding staircases lined with red carpet, and intricate paintings and artworks across the walls and roofs.

 

 

I metup with a CouchSurfing group on Friday and did a mini-trek into a mini-mountain. It reminded me of the Himalayas trip except on a mini-scale. I didn't need my Diamox for the 400m altitude. Friday is a rest day for Iranians and climbing this mountain is very popular. I think close to 2000 people were scattered on the mountain and around its recreational areas at its base. CouchSurfing seems to be more popular than Facebook in Esfahan, with a strong and committed group who find great pleasure in interacting with foreigners.

 

 

The sun fell.

 

 

They sat and sang Iranian songs loudly and with great pride. There is a German traveler guy center-front who did not sing but was as equally immersed as I was.

 

The view from the descent.

 

 

 

I'm kind of sick of mosques right now as grand and beautiful as they may be. What's concerned me more finding out how the people of Esfahan feel about their lives. I've tried to speak to as many people as possible and asked their thoughts on their own lives, their country, and where they see themselves in it. Unfortunately I can't really say many positive things about how they feel.

 

From the CouchSurfing group I couldn't find anyone who was content with their situation; all of them wanted some way out of the country. Many of the youths had a Masters in some discipline - engineering, architecture, urban planning. Yet none of them could find solid employment and others had to work in unrelated fields teaching English for $1-2/hour. I'm not really sure why they couldn't find work; it could be a combination of the rising inflation, skills surplus, lack of experience, lack of demand. I don't know. But they all felt like they had done all this hard work only to end up overqualified and working in a country where they can't be themselves to their full potential.

 

When I heard this it struck me as something straight out of Johan Galtung's work on violence and peace research. Galtung wrote a masterpiece paper back in 60s and called for the definition of violence to be rethought. When most of us think 'violence' what comes to mind is physical pain, punishment, weapons, assault, war, etc. Galtung basically said, violence is more than this, violence is when we are stopped from reaching our potential. We can be free from physical pain, bruises, and we may not fear for our lives. Yet if we are prevented from reaching our potential because of some external oppressive powers, then that is a form of violence that is subtle in appearance but nonetheless real and strong enough to hold back our progress.

 

I think about the life I live in Australia and I know that me and my family have infinite freedoms to do what we like. Here, the youth have been raised into a country whose economy is breaking down, whose job prospects within the country are poor, yet they struggle to leave and go abroad. Their money is worth so little and because English - an international language which is vital for travel - has been given such little and token significance in the curriculum it further reduces their chances of studying or working abroad.

 

I have to be very careful what I say here as I don't want to underestimate the sensitivities and capabilities of those who control my liberty here. But I have discussed this with others more knowledgeable and have concluded that it seems nobody is going to make any changes any time soon about these problems. I think it's easier to maintain control of a herd of sheep if you don't teach them how to break down fences.

 

I think it's only a matter of time anyway.