After 3 days that I spent in Tahran, I wake up early in order to go to Kashan city. After having breakfast, I say goodbye to my hosts whom I found on Couchsurfng. I go to the bus station before the departure time since I bought my ticket earlier.

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My bus departs at 09.00 o’clock. After a 2,5 hour journey, I arrive Kashan. Since the bus continues to another city, th passengers get off the bus on the sideway at the city exit. It does not go to Kashan bus station. There are many taxi drivers waiting for you where you get off from the bus. They surround me and keep asking where I will go. When I see on my offline map phone app that I am far away from city center, I decide to make a deal with a taxi driver instead of walking. I did not book my hotel before. Therefore I decide to go to a place that the taxi driver recommends. The txi price will be 80.000 Riyals. If I don’t like the hotel or if it is expensive, I will look for another hotels in the city center.

After 10 minute taxi ride, we arrive at the hotel. It is in an alley but it is in an central area. When we get into the hotel, we started to bargain. The hotel owner is a woman at her 40s. She turned the a mansion with a wide courtyard into a hotel. She says that single room, breaksfast and internet cost 30 Dollars. I jokingly tell her that I did not come from England and it is very expensive for me. When I tell that, she says “OK” and reduces the price to 20 Dollars. :D It is a good example why you should never buy anything without bargaining in Iran.

I tell her that it is also expensive and I ll go to another hotel. After getting off from the taxi, I saw other hotels too. Her last offer was 15 Dollars but wihout breakfast and internet. Then I tell her that I’m leaving. When I did this, she said that I can stay in a 4 person room and it costs 15 Dollars including breakfast and internet. Noone was staying there now. After seeing the room, I say that I liked the room but 15 Dollars for that room is expensive. Another guest may also come. I offer her 8 Dollars  and we make a deal.

I think that the bargain took about 20 minutes. But finally, she accepted my offer. After putting my stuff into the room, I go out to explore Kashan city. There are important places to visit in this city:

• Tabatabaei House
• Sultan Amir Ahmad Hammam
• Borujerdi Mansion
• Mahdi Mosque
• Agha Bozorg Mosque
• Kaşhan Bazaar
• Kashan Fin Garden

After leaving the hotel, I eat something in a nearby place in order not to lose much time amd walk on to the first place that I will visit.

Tabatabaei House

It is a house which got to be built by the famous carpet merchant Seyyid Cafer Tabatabaei in1880s. The architecture of the house was Ali Meryem. To call this place a house may be a little bit unfair. It will be better if we call it a small palace. The house that was built on a 4700 m2 area has 4 gardens, 40 rooms and 3 wind towers. The interior of the house is like a labyrinth. You may easily lose your way. The decorations of the house are quite nice. If you want to take pictures of the light penetrating through its colorful windows, you should visit this place in the afternoon. Tabatabaei House is a place that you must visit in Kashan.

Entrance Fee: 150.000 Riyals (15.000 Tomans)

Visiting Hours: Everyday 10.00 – 20.00

Sultan Emir Ahmad Hammam

After visiting Tabatabaei House, I go to the historic hammam nearby. Sultan Emir Hammam was built by Safavids in 16^th century. The hammam which was destroyed in 1778 was rebuilt by Kachar dynasty. It consists of 2 parts. These are Serbineh and Germhane. Serbineh is the place where people change their dress and chat. Germhane is the place where people get washed and rubbed with a coarse bath-glove. The decorations and carvings inside are amazing. Hammam’s interior walls are covered with a kind of plaster prepared by mixing milk, egg white, soybean flour and lime. The hammam is used as a museum today. If you want, you can go up to the roof after visiting inside. I can see the Borujerdi Mansion which I will visit later from the hammam roof.

Entrance Fee: 150.000 Riyal

Visiting Hours: Everyday 10.00 – 20.00

Borujerdi Mansion

There are many mansions to visit in Kashan. It is a city like Safranbolu. You may understand better if I say that. Borujerdi Mansion is the most important place to visit after Tabatabaei House. That mansion belonged to a wealthy carpet merchant of that times.

There are different stories about the construction of the mansion. The carpet merchant that owned Borujerdi Mansion met his colleague Seyyid Cafer Tabatabaei, the owner of Tabatabaei House. Over time, he fell in love with his daughter and asked for her in marriage. Her father said that she could only marry a man who owns a beautiful house like the one he owns. And the carpet merchant decided to build a house in order to marry the girl he loved. But the construction took 18 years. The place that I visit now is Borujerdi Mansion which he built for the girl he loved.

There are other mansions to visit in Kashan. Two of them that I did not visit but should be seen are:

• Abbasi House
• Ameri House

Entrance Fee: 150.000 Riyal

Visiting Hours: Everyday 10.00 – 20.00

Mahdi Mosque

After visiting Borujerdi Mansion, I go to the garden of Mahdi Mosqu which located just on the next street. The mosque with 2 minarets has a large courtyard. I took my shoes off and got inside. There are rooms on the both sides of the mosque. In these rooms, the students willing to be mollah are educated.

There is a sarcophagus inside the mosque. I was surprised when I saw that well decorated sarcophagus. I was not expecting something like this. After leaving the mosque, I go to Agha Bozong Mosque which is more important to visit.

Agha Bozorg Mosque

Agha Bozorg Mosque was built by the famous Iranian architecture Hacı Şaban Ali in 18^th century. It has a large courtyard. And in the midlle of it, there is a small pool. Beneath the courtyard is the madrasah. The madrasah is still active. Bozorg means “great or wonderful” in Farsi. Inside this mosque which is famous with its simetrical design, there are great wall decorations. It is impossible not to see the huge nails on the wooden entrance door of the mosque. According to the Iranian boy who wanted to show me the courtyard, their number is equal to the number of verses in Koran. Agha Bozorg is one of the most beautiful and elegant monuments in Iran.

Entrance Fee: Free

Visiting Hours: Everyday 08.00 – 20.00

I have saved the most important place, Agha Bozorg, for the last. After visiting there, I walked on the streets of Kashan and started to explore the city. Since I have a kitchen in where I stay, I go to Kashan Bazaar to buy something to eat and souvenirs. The time is late and it is about to close. I quickly do the shopping and return to the hotel. I woke up early this morning and wandered around the whole day in a hot weather. Tomorrow I have to start off again. Therefore I returned to my hotel after a long walk. When I arrived to my hotel, there was another person in my room which was empty tomorrow. After me, an Indian girl has checked in to the hotel. She will stay for one night and then she will travel to Tahran. We talked in the courtyard of the hotel and drank tea together. I have to wake up early tomorrow in order to explore a new city. My journey will be to Isfahan this time.

Where is Kashan city and How to Go There?

Kashan is 2-2,5 hours away from Tahran, the capital city. There are buses to Tahran hourly. It is a city which you should visit during your trip from Tahran to İsfahan. I recommend you to stay there for at least 1 night.