11 Reasons you should travel to Iran:
People: People are fantastic here, it's a very warm culture, I've been here twice now, I've come alone both times, I've never been alone, it's the type of place; people will come up to you, they're very open. They want to help, I find it very authentic. It's not just a politeness. There's realness to it.
Diversity: It's super mixed up, the geography is all over the place, you have lush forest, mountains, deserts like this, sea, Persian Gulf, and it's also culturally varied. Every region you go to in this country is much different.
Infrastructure: Thirdly, I'd say the infrastructure is good, that was surprising for me. The main highways are good, the inter-country flights are excellent, trains, long-distance buses are very easy to get around. That hasn't been a problem at all. Quit often a guesthouse will book. You know what ever you need.
History: The fourth thing that really stands out is the history. The history is deep, there are many layers to this place. There is a feeling in Iran, there is a depth, and you feel it when you first land here. That’s something you just have to experience on your own and that's just by being on the ground here.
Safety: Well, that's most people's concern with Iran. Because of what's seen on the news and it's so crazy this place gets such a bad rap on that front, because the actual reality is completely different than the perceived reality, which is, it's safe to travel here. Things can happen, I did have a phone stolen in Tehran during this trip. But that can happen in Rome, that can be happen in Barcelona too. But as far as petty crime there is some. Violent crime super low, most likely safer than where you are from. Maybe Switzerland or Norway being an exception. They are really good at breaking down politics and people and separating the two, do they hate US politics? Yeah, for sure, the country is getting pinched by sanctions right now. Do they hate American people? Probably the most pro- American country I've been to which very interesting.
Costs: It's 2018, it's near the end of 2018 and their economy's been clobbered, they're dealing with hyper in flatiron, it's really shitty for the average person here, the sad reality or the beneficial reality for the traveler is, it's super cheap. I mean ridiculously cheap. I don't think there's a value like this on the planet right now for what you get. I stayed at the most beautiful guest house and it was 25$ a night. My plane ticket tomorrow back to Tehran is 20$, your money goes very far at the moment if you are coming in with a hard currency.
Education people: There are a lot of clever people here. There are a lot of philosophical people. They like to go into the philosophy of things; Rumi and Hafez. Its like backed in to the DNA of this place. If you like conversations about more philosophical topics, Iran's a great place to be.
Language: a lot of people speak English here and they speak it well, I think Farsi to English isn't the hugest gap as far as listening to it in the accent; it's pretty easy here, so getting by with English is not a problem.
Food: the food is good. It's not my favorite, because it's heavily meat based and right, there is a lot of rice and breads so I don’t typically do a lot of rice and bread and a lot of meat. If you do, you are going to love it. If you are a vegetarian there are excellent alternatives and the names aren’t coming into my head right now but I had this bean soup last night that was delicious.
Hospitality: Hospitality is deep and it's thick and people are going to invite you for things here, just go openly. Go in with an open mind and open heart and if you do so, it's going to be sad while leaving this trip. I had such a social life here. I actually have more of a social life here than I do at home and you will never feel alone in this country. There are some countries you go to and you have to really work to break through the front lines, let's say. It's harder to connect into the people. I'd give an example of China. Depending on where you are in the far west, it's different but say, in the east from what I've experienced you are not going to connect in as easily. In Iran, it's almost impossible if you put a smile on and say hello. They are going to give you so much here.
Architecture: Architecture is stunning, the Islamic architecture is simply beautiful. There is also some interesting stuff in Tehran. There's some new modern architecture. There are also some older stabs at Art Deco, and some just some eclectic mixed up stuff, so don't listen to the hype that you see on the media. The group thinks of all those around you and are going to tell you how dangerous Iran is. It's interesting that they have most people have no knowledge on what it's like in the country and they're the ones giving advice. So don’t listen to that, do your own research, because the reality in the country is that it's a fantastic wonderful place to travel too. It will mark you in a certain way. Definitely recommend traveling to Iran.