Zigzagging To Kathmandu

Kingsley Holgate and his team have reached Kathmandu. Here he tells the tale of the team’s travels through Iran and Pakistan, on the way to Kathmandu. And as always, it is best told from his expedition journal scribbles, as the team criss-crossed Iran.

- Kingsley Holgate

Mention to friends that you are going to Iran and you’ll find they’ll probably be quite sceptical. The perception many have about the Islamic Republic is that it is a dangerous, suppressed rogue nation. We, however, are adventurers – not politicians – and are struck by the friendliness, warmth and genuine curiosity of everyone we meet, despite their crazy driving habits.

Trucks and cars straddle and change lanes in gay abandon, driving like bats out of hell. Indicators and rear-view mirrors seem to be ignored, as are motorbike crash helmets.

What helps budget-conscious Landy travellers like us is the diesel price. At the official price of 3 000 rials per litre (30 South African cents!), diesel is less than half the price of drinking water in Iran.

Strangely, though, in one of the world’s greatest oil-producing countries, it’s not that easy for us as foreigners to get. Hossein (our fixer) has to do deals with friendly truck drivers at fuel stations to get us some at two or three times the official rate. Still, even that’s a dream price for us.

We reach the city of Isfahan, travelling through vast, winter-barren desert landscapes. The Persians call it Nesf e Johan, meaning ‘half the world’ and rightly so: the mosques, caravanserais, thousands of domed market stalls and ornate gates that lead off the main square literally take our breath away. At the splendid Shah Mosque with its huge arches, domes and intricate, jewel-like blue, green and gold ceramic mosaics that cover almost every inch, Ross and Shova Mike meet a Mullah, who in ancient Farsi script, adds another message to the expedition’s Scroll of Peace and Goodwill and presents us with a small painting.