First days in Iran were a lot about culture, getting used to the new country, but also a lot about bazars and cities. Now its time for the real fun, our first desert on this trip, the Dasht-e Kavir.
Before getting there, we stumbled across another place, don’t know how it is called, it simply popped-up in the middle of nowhere on our way to the desert; a wonderful caravanserai. It feels sometimes like you would be able to smell the camels from past times in there.
Finally getting to the entrance gate to the Dasht-e Kavir, all the excitement got killed and replaced by anger. Being told that we are not allowed to enter with a foreign car was just the first step of annoyance. After heavy discussions they allowed us to enter but only with a guide “helping” us to find the group of Iranians we met earlier that day and had an appointment in the desert for a late lunch. What it is good for? If we would know, just had the pleasure of paying in the end USD20 for that nonsense, of course without a receipt.
So when you are planning to go, be creative, there are so many tracks around this gate and nobody is interested in you afterwards anymore.
It of course takes some time to get over all the hassle and paying money just for nothing, but next morning, the world looks different again and the desert shows up with all the beauty.
The day before we had already some camels close to the track, but not really time for good pictures. Here, close to the dunes, we did not expect them at all, so you can guess how happy we were getting these shots.
Just one last warning, even though we knew it, but it looked okay and dry enough. When you get on the salt lakes, be careful, or like in our case, adjust your earlier decision to the reality and get out there as long as you can.
Beside all the sand and the salt lakes, you can find so many beautiful old cities at the edge of the desert, like Karshahi …
… or Kharanaq…
Interesting places to explore and look around, all isolated enough so that you can still enjoy the beauty of an evening in the desert. What can be better than having a nice campfire in the evening?
Well, maybe the night sky in the desert, but only maybe.
