Kashan Iran 伊朗卡尚 3/2018 (2)

9-10/3/2018. From Tehran, I traveled to Kashan, about 250 kilometers away, arriving at about 3 p.m. It felt like a small town on the Silk Road. After a quick bite, I started asking for directions to two historical buildings: Borujerdi and Tabai. Instead of showing the directions, a young man pointed me to his bike, and before I realized it, he whizzed me to the site. This was the first time I was taken for a ride in Iran, with good intentions. They were not grand or majestic, but both were pretty from the inside and out, very pleasing to the eyes.

I then visited someone’s bathroom. Well, actually the bathhouse of a sultan, Sultan Amir Ahmad Historical Bath, which is now disused. From the look of it, it must have been a good place, even in old times, where you scratch my back, I scratch yours.

I had been walking the whole day, finally ending at the beautiful Agha Bozorg Mosque. This brief moment, in the evening twilight, all colors turned soft. The azure sky started to dim. The domes, arches, minarets, facades, were lighted with different mellow colors. The desert air kept silently still, the handful of visitors sitting on the floor, thinking quietly. A pin drop would have been shushed. This was a picture of inner calm that evokes spirituality, one of those nights that feels surreal. It felt magical on the Silk Road.

The guide drove me to Fin Garden before we left Kashan This was a historic Persian Garden, the oldest extant garden in Iran. This was not a garden lushed with shrubs and trees, and flowery displays of bright colors. Outside the wall of the garden, the desert continued to be harsh. Within the walls, this was a haven like heaven. The trees and shrubs were well spaced out so I could breathe easy; the colors were light so I was not distracted; wherever I went, the sound of flowing water spoke to me consolingly; the high baby blue sky let me stand tall and upright. They harmonize the natural elements to give me inner peace while I withdrew into myself.

9-10/3/2018 离开德黑兰前往250公里外的卡尚小镇，下午三点抵达，犹如丝绸之路一小镇。快口嚼快餐后，打算在住宿周围参观两著名古房，布鲁杰尔迪古宅和塔巴塔巴伊宅院。琢磨之余我向路旁一青年问路，他没啰嗦,干脆就把我引到他电动车，风驰电挚十分钟后把我拎到了景点，然后又一溜烟消失了。这是我在伊朗第一次被坐上电动车。

随后去参观人家的浴室，其实是前苏丹的，艾哈迈德苏丹浴室。这是以前的澡堂, 就是大家一起洗澡的概念，你搓我背， 我揉你背。

这一天就是不停的走，直到傍晚，在这著名回教堂佐尔格清真寺 （Agha Bozorg MosqueAgha Bozorg Mosque） 结束今天探旅。这天情调就像走了丝绸之路一段，教堂柔和神幻彩光，黯然失色的蓝天，四周没有丝毫动静，我坐在教堂前台，心里无比宁静，很神奇的感受。

今早离开卡尚之前参观费恩花园。在这干旱黄土，这公园不只是花草，还有那清澈流水和我随行，我心灵受到洁净。