Persian Design at the Jameh Mosque – Yazd, Iran

Inside the Jameh Mosque in Yazd, Iran

Last Updated on July 23, 2017 by Audrey Scott

Yazd, a historically Zoroastrian town and a sort of desert outpost that took in people fleeing persecution and wars in other parts of the country, is one of our favorite cities in Iran. Its old city is almost entirely built in brown-red adobe clay, helping to blend it into the surrounding desert landscape and to keep its building interiors cool.

Continue Reading

The Hidden Peacock at Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque – Isfahan, Iran

Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque in Esfahan, Iran.

Last Updated on December 28, 2017 by Audrey Scott

If you look up, at just the right time, you'll see a peacock on the ceiling,” our guide, Javad, explained as he walked us under the gilded and tiled dome of Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque in Isfahan, Iran.

We craned our necks, searching for just the right angle. With the aid of sunlight passing through a nearby window, an image of a peacock — previously unseen, now tail shimmering — was revealed to us brush strokes. Intermittent cries of “Oh!” indicated when everyone in the room “got it.”

Continue Reading

The Fairy Chimneys of Kandovan, Iran

The Kandovan fairy chimneys in northwestern Iran.

Last Updated on July 23, 2017 by Audrey Scott

Upon hearing the news of the recent earthquakes near Tabriz in Northwest Iran, my mind went immediately to the time we spent in that region last November. This includes a day trip from Tabriz to the village of Kandovan where people live in fairy chimneys, caves made from volcanic ash deposited thousands of years ago.

Continue Reading

Hurghada Fresh Market, Egypt

Hurghada Market in Egypt

Last Updated on July 23, 2017 by Audrey Scott

When most people think about the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada, Egypt they likely imagine relaxing on the beach, scuba diving, adventuring in the desert, golfing, and lounging at a big resort. Hurghada does have all of that.

Rarely, however, does one think about fresh markets and a taste of local Egyptian culture. It's there in Hurghada, if only you look hard enough.

Continue Reading

Pyramid Hopping in Egypt

Last Updated on July 26, 2020 by Audrey Scott

Do you remember learning about ancient Egypt in elementary school?

I do. I recall images of Cleopatra, mummies, hieroglyphics, and women with black bobbed hair and men dressed in kilts, all strutting. I remember pyramids that seemed too big to be real, as if aliens must have been the ones to deposit them in the middle of the desert.

Continue Reading

Midnight Express: Iran to Turkey by Train

Inside an Iranian Train, Tehran to Istanbul

Last Updated on October 3, 2017 by Audrey Scott

Iran is again catching its share of headlines. So it seemed as good a time as any to share the story of our exit from the country — hopping a train en route from Tehran across the border to Turkey, then all the way to Istanbul. One of the finest and most surprising segments of our around-the-world journey.

Continue Reading

Street Market in Old Alexandria, Egypt

Fun at the street market in Alexandria, Egypt

Last Updated on July 23, 2017 by Audrey Scott

When time is limited, you have to make tough decisions. In Alexandria, Egypt, I decided to hit the streets of its old town rather than going deep into the ancient catacombs. I was looking for interaction, for life on the streets.

And rather than heading down the main street, I found the loneliest alleyway to take me in a different direction. I ended up in a vein of street markets that wasn't so lonely after all.

Continue Reading

The Hanging Church of Coptic Cairo

Hanging Coptic Church in Cairo, Egypt.

Last Updated on July 23, 2017 by Audrey Scott

Coptic Cairo. The name alone exudes ancient, mysterious, almost mystical. People still live, work and worship in the same place as they have for thousands of years. It's a humbling walk back in time in this secluded Old Cairo neighborhood, whose tranquility belies the 22-million strong bustle of modern Cairo just outside.

One of the highlights of Coptic Cairo: The Hanging Church, suspended above firm ground on palm tree trunks connecting two ancient Roman fortress towers.

Continue Reading