UKC

This is an interesting link that a friend sent me

http://thephotosociety.org/blog/story-telling/iran-where-climbing-is-an-act...

In reply to MikeTS:

I'm now dreaming about climbing Mount Damāvand!

ای دیو سپید پای در بند
Ay dīve sepīde pāī dar band,
Oh white giant with feet in chains
ای گنبد گیتی، ای دماوند
Ay gonbade gītī, ay Damāvand
Oh dome of the world, Oh Mount Damāvand

In reply to noteviljoe: Looks like the forum doesn't like Persian script

In reply to MikeTS:

Thats cool written article. Overplays american paranoia, but a good story nevertheless.

Very interesting re the chador-line or however she put it. Having floated about the mountains of nthrn iran i concurr, along with distance from thosr who care, most iranian peaks are in areas with ethnic groups less imposed upon by central iranian politics, and are trendy holiday destinations for liberal tehranites who already eschew the chador.
I regularly met groups of female students on study tours in the NW who only wore scarves in large towns, and even then often minimally.
Some of the pagan ethnic groups laugh at the strictness of flatland iran and all its rules. The caspian and talesh regions are known for being liberal get aways just like baja or majorca (relatively).

In reply to MikeTS:

I believe Iran is a country of sensible (sometimes well-educated) people ruled by nutjobs.

Read the book "Freedom Climbers" about Polish climbers who used climbing as a means to rebel and be free. It is really interesting from a climbing as well as a political and philosophical view.