About the Trip

In 2023, I went to Iran without a solid plan, only planning to see Tehran and Hamedan. I ended up liking the bus system and explored Tehran, Hamedan, Kashan, Isfahan, Zanjan, Rasht, Anzali, Talysh, Masouleh, and Shiraz. Here, you’ll learn about the “why” of my first–time trip.

Below covers some incentives that kept me steadfast in my decision to visit Iran, for my first ever time, in 2023. I only share a few of them on this public page, because many of them are personal and may not apply to everyone.

{1} Language: I had made the decision to learn Persian in summer 2022, with the distant hope of eventually mastering it one day. Visiting Iran for two months in 2023, allowed me sufficient time to be exposed the language in all forms: writing, reading, listening, and speaking. Plus, there are so many native Persian speakers who understand basic Arabic; the least an Arabic speaker can do is learn basic Persian. After 2 months in Iran, I decided I want to go all in and continue my Persian lessons. This ultimately lead to my follow up travel to Iran in 2024, where I am now enrolled in University of Isfahan’s Persian Language programme.

{2} Diplomacy: To fight stereotypes and bridge our people(s) closer together.
Being from Western Arabia—as a Saudi “national”, but actually of Yemenite heritage—I am unfortunately familiar with my own peoples’ malicious, and often untrue, comments about Iran and Iranians. It’s pretty casual. In the past, I would correct people if I knew my sources, but my voice is usually dismissed. Yemen, Arabia Felix, is just as ancient, beautiful, diverse, and cultured as Iran — we have a lot to offer one another. The average Iranian does not know much about Yemen, nor do Yemenis know much about Iran. The sad thing is, Iranians may know more about the histories and culture of China, Russia, or France, but not Yemen, and the opposite is true. So in addition to cultural diplomacy, I want to eventually play a role in cultural exchange and appreciation. “Arabs” are not monolithic.

{3} Hearing discouraging comments from people makes me want to do the thing more. Discouragement from acquaintances that Iran is not safe for tourists or people, or discouragement from extended family doubting my ability to do things for myself. This is why I kept my trip a secret for 10 months, until the grapevine grew out of control right before the trip.

{4} Proving to myself that I can do the trip alone, and I don’t need fluency or people to tell me what to do; I can figure it out and survive. I know there are risks (different risks exist for every country); but I know what those risks are and how to reduce them. Even with the risks, I am still more curious than I am nervous.

{5} The Time is Now: Saudi Arabia and Iran restoring diplomatic ties was just a major stroke of luck for me; I planned my trip and purchased my plane ticket before the two countries shook hands. I had a strong feeling that things between the two would resolve soon, but it happened a little sooner than I predicted. 🙂 That said, West Asian affairs are always shifting and sliding, so after hearing the news, it further cemented my plans into place. I need to go to Iran now whilst Saudi-Iran relations are calm (and hopefully continue to improve).

Edit from the future: turns out I was the first Saudi Arabian many people had met since before 2016, and even more surprising to them was my real heritage, from Yemen; it is apparently very rare for my “kind” to visit Iran — this alone makes me aim to be like an ambassador, and represent my culture as best as I can in Iran.

{7} Coffee! Since our exporting of high-grade Yemeni Harazi coffee and mocha to North America came with a hundred obstacles and crazy expenses between 2019 and 2022, we put a pause on Maiden Mocha. In the future, it would be cool to open a Yemeni coffee roastery karaoke café in Shiraz that also operates as an escape room and museum. I am still doing marketing research and breathing some life into the story of the 500–year Yemeni coffee legacy, and still sampling Yemeni coffee to tasters I trust. But I anticipate it will take a few years, if ever, so for now it’s just a little dream or maybe something I will do in retirement.

{8} The need for solitude.

{9} A medieval ancestor buried in Amol, Mazandaran. It would be nice to visit him.

{10} Iran is an anthropological wonderland. In that same vein, the archaeology sites across Iran, both excavated and unexplored, are extensive!

{11}. . . continued. I have plenty more compelling reasons. I cannot share them all now.

The blue lines show the major roads I travelled on.