Friday, April 30, 2010

Postcrossing intermezzo...

Jippieh - ANITA_2004 arrived at tabriz this morning and we had breakfast together! After she started to write her postcards! And we, POSSY & CROSSY & PAUL helped her!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Large events throw their shadow ahead...

No comment... Not yet!
And they brought us with them - it was so exciting! We think there had never been any travelling toys in an event like this...

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

First postcrossing (mini)meeting in el goli

Yea...
Today we had a tiny meetup with three tab-postcrossers!
and with some guests for sure: PAUL the BACKPACKER, POSSY & CROSSY
...and EMMA is so sad - we had forgotten to invite her! Poor emma... and so ipuenktchen took a photo from her as well...
Although it was great! In the meantime it was misslondon's b-day, and we congratulated her and gave her our gift. After we had a look at so many cards, as we hadn't seen each other quite a long time! Misslondon was so kind to prepare us a great makaroni salad, lili_6789 brought a very delicious chocolate as a dessert, and me, I add islamic beer without alcohol... And as the weather was great, a beautiful spring day, misslondon proposed to enter the terrace and so we did! We enjoyed it so much!! we never stopped to chat and it was so funny for us. Even we wrote some cards and for sure took some pics.
"Jaye OLDIEOMA khali kardim!" As we have a saying in farsi "your place was empty", when we are missing somebody, and so we remembered oldieoma's empty place! And she will be with us hopefully very soon and have a "Pfiff" with us!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Armenian Monastic Ensemble in Iran

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1262/multiple=1&unique_number=1542

All these great sites, registered as a UNESCO world cultural heritage site since 2008, are situated in NW of IR 15o and 25o km far from here! The two main monasteries Ipue had still visited in 1977 und 1978, but now we are curious to see the other parts, too! We decided to enter the jolfa region today! lili_6789 was with us and for sure Possy & Crossy & me, Paul!
After leaving home in the morning we had fun with the football-fans in town, as there should be a match in the afternoon between 2 of the most famous teams of IR.
We were leaving tabriz via autobahn, which is crossing now the ancient pilgrimage route up to mt. ainali, the mosque.
Our first stop had been 1o km to marand beside the first ski ressort yam (payam in fact!) to see the ancient carvansary. They are still working for the renovation!
Mount misho in front of the carawansary Payam.
Entering jolfa, which is a free trade zone and has border entrances to armenia and auton. rep. nakhtshevan, we went straight to the aras river, which is marking the border! And you can see the sentries on the azerbaijanian ground. The area is quite abandonned and only sometimes a few houses... But how impressing mountains! And so beautiful the river! And everywhere full of poppies.
Everywhere people are sitting there to have a picnic or men are fishing in the river... What a difference to the olden times of the former russian UDSSR , when first you had to get in jolfa a persmission paper to enter the border-area and let your camera at the sentry station to go straight to st. stephanos monastery!?!?

Sightseeing points beside jolfa:
After 1o km we reached the chupan chapel, part of world heritage site st. stephanos! a nice small chapel a bit higher in the mountain - but a bit strange: It was "taken" by a family as their picnic place!
In the small yard they had met their blankets and were relaxing... And were a bit strong looking at us, as we were entering their private area... And gosh, inside the small chapel they had their "kitchen"! Preparing a meal... Perhaps it's time to declare it as a museum and getting a fee...Several beautiful landscape views with the aras river you had seen a month ago, when ipue came here with Paul the backpacker and a small group of guests! Pleas have a look at the earlier postings!
Then we reached the main site St. Stephanos Monastery. It was really crowded as it was a Friday! The "sunday" in our country! And yes - we could buy some postcard folders! Some of us went into the monastery and some of us went for fishing... Later after passing the Darresham Chapel just beside the river, part of st. stephanos monastery...
...we were looking for a picnic place, too! And we were very successfull with a beautifull place under trees and among the poppies beside the river... A place like a painting!
There we had our late lunch and we rested untill the sun got behind the mountains and it was time to leave! Back on the transit road the traffic was quite awfull, but we reached our home safely at 1o PM! What a great day! Thank you everybody!
Zia-ol-malek bridge.
Sunset near Maarhand.
Mosque in sofiyan.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

What a beautiful weather today!

Today we had a downtown-trip and as the weather is so great I took my bicycle with me! First we went to tourist information for some hints and after we had a look at the former townhall (recently a museum!) and last but not least we went for two postoffices ;-)

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Another postcrossing day

in the morning it was a bit boring as we had nothing to do and so dear ipue proposed us to make a *postcrossing day*, to write cards to our dear friends, because she would like to go to the post office, and this is quite far and she doesn't go that often.....
*ooooooooh - good idea!!!!* we were shouting....
and she brought us two boxes with her cards from her country! boah - we really couldn't decide which one to use....
BUT WHO IST THIS???? ipuenktchen brought another guest and introduced to us!!!!!!! boah, how beautiful it is!!!?!? it's name is EMMA. and it comes from FINLAND!!!
whenever you had seen a finnish meetup, there were some of them!!! it's a custom of the finnish postcrossers whenever they had a guest from abroad they give one of it as a souvenir!!!!! and ipue had been in finnish meetups in fall 2oo9 and is now the owner of this beautiful one!!!! given by dear HUPPU68 in HELSINKI meetup!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
lucky ipue!!!
like every time and everything the pencils were too big for us - well....... finally each of us was busy to write!! :-)))))))))))))) when finished each of us made it's signature on the other cards, too :-)
later she let us have a look in her treasure of stamps!! how beautiful!!!!!!! and she allowed us to choose the stamps for our cards by ourselves!!
after we got ready to go down town!! we went to a place nearby, jumped in the bus, changed the bus, later jumped into a taxi, and after an hour we arrived at the main post office!!!!!!!
and our cards are now on their way to.......... pssssst..!! SURPRIIIIISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
;-))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
LET'S KEEP IN TOUCH!! *smile*

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Ghabtshi brothers' pottery workshop 1

The more than 5o years old pottery workshop in the ancient part of tabriz belonged to abbas and ahmad ghabtshi, both passed away high in their eighties, the younger brother some years ago, the elder brother some months ago, originally from zonouz in north of tabriz, where the kaolin is found.
The son of abbas-agha is managing now the workshop! about 1o years ago he started to help his father and uncle by preparing the clay, which is a sweaty hard job!! and when his uncle passed away he just got retired and started to work here fulltime!
(fulltime for them means every day until noon!)
Well, we are happy the pottery workshop will not be closed! Even recently they renovated the work shop! They are not that busy like before, but better than nothing! And recently there is a young member of potter's house employed working on the potter's wheel!
So we went there this morning and brought our work pieces we've done during the last 1o days for the kiln to be ready, whenever it will be filled again... We will let you current! I like there and I hope we'll go there again untill I'm still with ipue!