15. June 2026
Modern Tehran is a loud giant. It greets travelers with choking smog in the winter, grabs them by the throat with hot air in the summer, and forces them to quicken their pace. It tests everyone who arrives here, demanding an honest answer: do you love it or do you hate it?
28. April 2026
On my knees lay a model of a gifted badgir (a wind tower — an essential element of Eastern architecture). It had been given by a native resident of an old traditional village of Kish, where every detail carried meaning and spoke volumes about the place. Inside, there was a warm sense of fulfilled joy from what I had seen — and a frightening premonition of an approaching large-scale catastrophe…
13. April 2026
Everything around us glowed in golden-red tones, endlessly stretching under the watchful eye of a giant star called the Sun. A third of Iran’s territory is silent and uninhabited. Vast salt marshes rule here.
After sunset, twilight engulfed us — the red desert slowly faded and disappeared into darkness. We were approaching the city of Nain, still a few hours away from Yazd. We decided to stay there for the night. Another reason was the hotel — very old, built in a traditional style.
25. March 2026
It was winter outside, which meant even heavier smog in Tehran — a suffocating haze that hung over the city and refused to leave. I kept silently scolding myself: these were terrible conditions for a newborn, and we had to get out. So we decided to fly to Kish Island.
This stunning coral island lies in the Persian Gulf, not far from Dubai, and from the airplane window it looks like a pearl resting on the water.
11. March 2026
Mashhad is the second largest city in Iran and the main producer of Pepsi in the country. Modern, well kept, and sacred to many believers. Its name means “place of martyrdom.” The city is built around religious tourism. Every year millions of pilgrims come here, many traveling the entire distance on foot.
04. March 2026
The strict dress code has, after all, influenced my attitude toward clothing. In Kyiv, after living in Tehran, I began to prefer simple and comfortable things. Comfort became more important than the desire to please everyone; I no longer wanted to attract attention on the street.
At the airport, we were met by an old friend who immediately asked, "What is there to miss in Iran?" I don’t answer—I know he wouldn't believe me anyway.
25. February 2026
In 1933, the contract for the North–South railway was signed with the Danish engineering company Kampsax. The project began with its most formidable challenge: the Northern Alborz Mountains, rising sharply toward the Caspian coast.
Several European companies had already failed to force a railway through the Alborz range. The greatest obstacle lay in the steep incline leading to the Gaduk Tunnel and the vast valley carved between two mountains. It seemed almost impossible terrain for a train.
21. February 2026
A white SUV was slowly descending along the road of the Zagros mountain range. Green meadows stretched all around, and a distant lake shimmered in reflection. We were already approaching it when I suddenly noticed stretched black tents. As we drove closer to one of them, we saw a slightly plump woman in a sky-blue dress and a dark headscarf. She was holding a long wooden spoon and calling the children to lunch. The kids were joyfully playing around a large tent.
11. February 2026
The road eventually delivers us to the silent plains of Pasargadae and the tomb of Cyrus the Great. Or, as any local would pointedly correct you, Kurush. In Iran, "Cyrus" is a Hellenized ghost; to the people here, he remains Kurush—a name synonymous with the sun. Shrouded in the mythos of a royal heir raised by shepherds to escape a death sentence, Kurush’s ascent was more than a conquest; it was a social revolution.
cultural guides · 18. January 2026
The next trip was Shiraz. It was written about by Yesenin in his Persian Motifs, and sung by Hafez.
The city lies in Fars Province, the historical homeland of the Persians and the Persian language. This is where Iranian statehood was born.