TEHRAN ,TEHRAN تهران، تهران

فرامرز سلیمانی و میرزا آقا عسگری مانی
At first Mani thought we were in Tehran,
then I had to remind him
this is New York city
a.k.a. BIG APPLE
and we are visiting New York Public Llibrary
who is celebrating Walt Withman life,
the great poet of democracy...
*
*

   میل میلاد تهران 

MILAD TOWER,BORJ MILAD TEHRAN,IRAN  /برج میلاد تهران
Built 1386/2007 between Shahrak Gharb & Geisha
باید دانست که برج یک کلمه عربی  است

تاج صحرا
در آغوش البرز
تهران  تهران
CROWN OF THE DESERT
EMBRACED BY ALBORZ MOUNTAIN
TEHRAN ,TEHRAN
*آب شاه در تهران:

مسجد سپهسالار تهران 

«ما در ٢٤نوامبر ١٨٥١به تهران وارد شدیم. پذیرایی سردی از ما نمودند. کسی به پیش‌واز ما نیامد و اندکی پس از آن آگاه شدیم که در این میانه اوضاع دگرگون شده‌است و چند روز پیش از ورود ما، در پی کارشکنی‌های درباریان و به ویژهٔ دسیسه‌های مادر شاه، که از دشمنان سر سخت امیرنظام بود، میرزا تقی‌خان از کار بر کنار شده بود. اما همین‌که امیر از ورود ما آگاه شد، به میرزا داوودخان گفته بود این نمساوی‌های بیچاره را من به ایران آورده‌ام. اگر سر کار بودم، اسباب آرامش آن‌ها را فراهم می‌کردم، اما اکنون نگرانم به آنان خوش نگذرد. سعی کن کارشان رو به راه شود.»

ادوارد پولاک که همراه دیگر معلمان اتریشی در روز ٢٧ محرم ١٢٦٨ ق دو روز پس از عزل امیر کبیر وارد تهران شد
تاریخ عزل امیر کبیر ١٥ نوامبر ١٨٥١ هم ثبت شده است 

امیر کبیر بنیان گذار دارالفنون 

١٨٠٧ فراهان 

١٠ ژانویه ١٨٥١ 

سر در دانشگاه تهران 

میل میلاد و نمایی از تهران در داما ن کوه البرز 

سردر شمس العماره 

بازار تهران 

موزه هنرهای معاصر 

تاتر شهر 

شهرداری تهران 

Faramarz Soleimani and Mani,years after cruise in Tehran of 1970's,in New York,New York 1991,Tehran mardan palace hotel,real or virtual,thanks to cyrus ,in addition to Ab shah,Darolfonun,Amir Kabir...

Tehran University gate,a panoramic view,bazar,or baazar,or even baazaar,then and now with Shamsolemereh and Masjed Imams clock tower,museums:Iran Bastan,contemporary arts,Abgineh,Shahr theatre,Tupkhaneh,Meidan Sepah,Meidan Shahrdari,the late,and...

Tehran,Khiaban Pahlavi,Khiaban Mossadegh,Khiaban Vali Asr

updated:8 OCT.2012

THE 200 YEAR YOUNG

CITY OF SMOG

TRAFFIC

AND TAXI MOSTAGHIM

LAYING ON ALBORZ LAP

ON DUSTY DESERT ARMS

جوان ٢٠٠ ساله 

شهر دود 

آمد و شد

وتاکسی مستقیم

یله بردامان البرز

در آغوش غبارین کویر

MY GOOD FRIEND,A POET AND ARCHITECT ,JAHAN JON JAAN,IS ASKING ME WHAT THE OLD NAMES OF THESE PLACES ARE IN TEHRAN.THIS IS A GOOD REASON OF THINKING

OF MY OLD LADY.I WANT TO THINK OF HER.I WANT TO WRITE ON HER.I WAS BORN and GREW UP IN SARI,Mazandaran AND NOT in TEHRAN, BUT TEHRAN IS MINE TOO.

Like ESFAHAN,NEW YORK,PHILADELPHIA ,WASHINGTON,D.C.,New Orleans;

TEHRAN IS MINE.AND THAT IS WHY I WANT TO THINK OF HER AND WRITE ON HER.

AFTER ALL I WENT TO SCHOOL,BOTH HADAF HIGH SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY OF TEHRAN, IN THIS CITY.I TAUGHT BOTH IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITIES IN TEHRAN.I PRACTICED,WROTE AND PUBLISHED IN TEHRAN.I FELL IN LOVE ,GOT MARRIED AND TOOK MY CHILDREN(BUT NOT GRANDIES) to &fro TEHRAN.

I LOVE HER.

I LOVE THE PEOPLE AND PLACES,STREETS AND ALLEYS,Lalezar and Estambol,

CAFE AND RESTAURANTS,پیراشکی خسروی،بستنی اکبر مشدی،PRESENT AND PAST

IT'S MINE.

MIIIIIIIIINE.

O.K. TOO ROMANTIC .IT JUST REMINDED ME WHEN MIRZA AGHA ,MY POET FRIEND,CAME FROM HAMEDAN TO TEHRAN AND LIVED IN SEMI HIDING ,WORKING WITH HIS TAXI CAB AND SOMETIMES SLEEPING IN THERE,IF NOT IN A FRIEND'S OFFICE OR IN ANOTHER FRIEND'S HOUSE. HE TOOK ME AROUND ONE DAY TO GET TO KNOW MORE ABOUT MY TOWN.AND IN A CRASH COURSE I TALKED TO HIM ABOUT TEHRAN AND EVEN SUBURBS,NOW A BIG CITY BY THEIR OWN:

IT IS PLAINLESS IN A PLAIN,OR POOR PLANNING IN A DESERT PORT WITH PLENTY OF TRAFFICS,THE CRAWLING NOMADS IN A WARM PIEDMONT SLOPE,A PERMANENTLY POLLUTED,WITH POPULATIONS AND PULMANARY POISONS.

IT IS A PLACE OF PALACES,PARKS,PARDIS AND AGAIN:FORBIDDEN PLACES.

IT IS

MOUNTAINS

IT IS MOSQUES

IT IS MEIDANS,THE SQUARES

IT IS MUSEUMS

IT IS MERCHANTS AND MONEY IN BAZAR

AND MAN POWER,WHEREVER

IT IS MANTRA AND MOTTO

IN STREETS

IT IS MARDOM,THE PEOPLE

AND DO NOT FORGET RASTEH BAZAR-E FARHANG

(MOGHABEL DANESHGAH=UNIVERSITY ROW BOOKSTORES)

MIRZA AGHA, AN ORIGINAL SHAHRESTANI,LIKE I WAS ALMOST RAN AWAY.I HAD TO GRAB HIM AND SAT HIM DOWN ON HIS SEAT BEHIND THE WHEEL,LIKE A KAISAR OR EMPEROR OR KHAGHAN FROM HAMEDAN ON HIS THRONE.THE ONLY THING MISSING WAS A CROWN,AND I WAS IN PROCESS OF MAKING IT BY OFFERING MY FREE LESSONS ON TEHRANOLOGY.

AND I YELLED,SHAKESPEARAN WAY WHILE SHAKING HIM SO HARD:

...AND NOW TEHRAN,TEHRAN.

I WAS IN MANI'S CAB AND HE WAS SWEATING,AND THIS WAS LIKE A 2-3 HOURS

A TOUR - DE - FORCE

AND I WAS TALKING ABOUT A TOWN,

NOW:MY TOWN...

SOMEHOW AGHA MOHAMD KHAN GHAJAR ,IN HIS CAPITAL,SARI OF MAZANDARAN,DID NOT FEEL SAFE SITTING ON A CROWN BEHIND A BIG WALL,CALLED ALBORZ, OR MAY BE HE THOUGHT THERE ARE MORE EYES WAITING AND LOOKING FOR HIM ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS RANGE OF MOUNTAINS WITH HER VOLCANO,DAMAVAND OF 5671 METER HEIGHT.TEHRAN WASN'T TEHRAN IN THE OLD DAYS,EXCEPT FOR THE PEOPLE LIVING IN CAVES AND SUBWAY TUNNELS OR YOU MIGHT CALL SUBTERRANEAN DWELLINGS,ONE FARSANG FAR FROM RAY,A BIG PLACE.THEN MONGOLS ARRIVED IN 1218-1334,NOT WITH BOUQUET OF FLOWERS,BUT WITH SOME SWORDS AND A LOT OF THIRST FOR BLOOD,NOWADAYS IN HISTORY BOOKS OR MOVIES CLAIMING IT AS SPIRITUALITY!

THEY KILLED AND BURNED AND RUINED AND MADE SURE THERE WILL BE NO REMAININGS OF AN EMPIRE NOR CIVILIZATIONS.SOMETHING NOW CHINESE DOING TO UIGHURS,

OF THE SAME TRIBE OR FAMILY

YEARS LATER,MIRZA AGHA ASGARI,NOW MANI,MY GOOD GUEST,IN MANHATTAN,NEW YORK TOLD ME :

AFTER THOSE DAYS IN TEHRAN WITH YOU, I ESCAPED THE BIG CITY,BECAUSE ,ON THE RUN,I COULD NOT TOLERATE SOMEONE CALLED ALBORZ AND PARTICULARY WITH THE SILENT DAMAVAND, STOOD TALLER THAN MY BELOVED ALVAND IN HAMEDAN.

I WONDER HOW HE HANDLED ALPS AND MATTERHORN AND THE OTHER TALL GUYS

IN EUROPE AND HIS NEW ASSADABAD:BOCHUM IN GERMANY.

AGH GHUYUNLU ,1502-1736 FIRST FELL IN LOVE WITH TEHRAN.THEY MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT THIS WAS A GOOD MEADOW FOR THEIR WHITE SKIN SHEEPS TO GRAZE.AND THEN SAFAVID CAME,1378-1508,AND ESPECIALLY TAHMASB I WHO WAS IN LOVE WITH SHAHNAMEH,LIKED TEHRAN TOO,AS THEY ALL LIKED MAZANDARAN'S SARI,FARAHABAD,AND ASHRAF,LATER NAMED BEHSHAHR

SHAH TAHMASB ORDERED TO BUILT A WALL AROUND TEHRAN WITH 114 TOWER. A PART OF EARTH DUGGED FOR THIS BECAME KNOWN AS PIT:CHALEH MEIDAN AND CHALEH HESSAR,ALSO CHALHESSAR,THE WALL WAS REMOVED DURING NASSEREDIN SHAH GHAJAR,WHO PLANNED EXPANSION OF TEHRAN BEHIND QUARTERS AND WALLS,TO THE LIMIT OF A NEW TRNCH...

NADER AFSHAR ASSIGNED HIS SON,REZA GHOLI AS GOVERNOR OF TEHRAN,AND KARIMKHAN ZAND LIVED TEMPORARILY IN TEHRAN TO BE CLOSE TO MAZANDARAN,FOR CONTAINING AGHA MOHAMD KHAN

...AND THEN THERE WAS THE SHORES OF CASPIAN,WHERE AGHA MOHAMMAD KHAN GHAJAR LATER WAS BORN IN.BUT SOMEHOW THIS CRAZY KILLER KING PREFERRED THE DUSTS OF DESERT(LATER TRANSLATED INTO SMOG AND POLUTIONS),TO FINE LOVING BREEZES OF CASPIAN,AND MOVED THE CAPITAL FROM SARI,MAZANDARAN TO THIS LITTLE SAVAGE VILLAGE OF TEHRAN,IN SUBURB OF HISTORICAL RAY,SOMETIMES SPELLED REY.

NOW MIRZA AGHA WAS YAWNING AND EVEN MORE SWEATING BUT I IGNORED THIS IN THE MIDDLE OF MY LONG LECTURE,I PUT SO MUCH TIME AND EFFORTS ON.

AGHA MOHAMAD KHAN,I INSISTED ON REPEATING THE GEO-HISTOSOCIO-POLITICAL FACTS,ANNOUNCED TEHRAN AS CAPITAL IN 1168/1789,OR 1200 H.GH.AND THEN IN 1174/1795 PUT A BIG CROWN ON HIS LITTLE HEAD,TO LOOK MORE OFFICIAL.

AND STARTED BUILDING PALACE AND PLACES,CONTINUING WITH

GHAJARI ARCHITECTURAL EXAMPLES LIKE MADRESSEH AND MASJED SPAPHSALR,NOW NEXT TO ANCIENT PARLEMENT OR MAJLESS,AND STILL GOING.

THE REAL MODERN TEHRAN,IF YOU WILL

STARTED IN 1921 DURING REZA KHAN,NOW REZA SHAH PAHLAVI,SHAHANSHAH IRAN(BUT NOT PERSIA ANY MORE,AND THE LANGUAGE IS FARSI,NOT PERSIAN!)

,AND THEY KEPT GOING,GOING,GOING,GONE

ALL-THE- WAY

TO SOME 16 MILLION POLLUTION CLAD POPULATION AND PLUS

AND STILL GOING.

WE STOPPED BY A GHAHVEH KHANEH,LITERARY A COFFEE HOUSE,AND IN REALITY A TEA HOUSE, TO GIVE A BREAK TO THIS ASSADABADI GUY,

AND THEN CONTINUE WITH MY ORIENTATIONS OF MEIDAN,MOSQUE,MUSEUMS AND ANY OTHER M PLACE AND OR TOURIST TRAPS

BECAUSE MANI NEEDED MONEY

BY TAKING AROUND THE REMAINING OF TEHRAN TOURISTS,

NOW MOSTLY ORIENTALS WITH NARROWED EYES

AND OF COURSE WE DID NOT FORGET TEHRAN WALL STREET,A K A BAAZAAR

WITH BIG MONEY!

MONEY

in Iranian towns and cities,bazar is the pulse.you could hear it palpitayingbazar of tehran is no exception.it was then and it is now.

like Esfehan with arguably the largest bazar,shiraz,tabriz ,mashahad,kashan,yazd,kerman,and even smaller,less buisness oriented places like sari ,gorgan and rasht

bazar of tehran is a heart within a living body

and always aive and well.

it is a nice place to visit too,with covered alleys and streets,mosques ,colorful rugs and merchandise,and specially shamsolemreh ,literally

sun of the buildings

again from ghajar era

with two cubic short towers.

baz are

oh bazm ara ye jelveh

baz are

nabz khofteh ra

beh delha

باز آر 

آه بزم آرای جلوه

باز آر نبض خفته را 

به دل ها

حسن هنرمندی

in this poem,h.honarmandi is asking his lover to bring back the silent palpitation to the heart.

and that was bazar all about,where we were rolling in streets and passed by enterance of grand bazar,bazar bozorg

and witnessed all the rush

in palpitations

.....

MOSQUE OR MASJED AND CHURCH

masjed shah is completely tehrani and a vast folklore and culture with it.

it is a ghajari architecture,like most of the old building in tehran and it is functioning as official mosque of bazar.

there is also kelisaye aramaneh or sarkis cathedral in karimkhan zand boulvard ,built in 1340's/1960,s

.....

MADRESSEH,SCHOOL

madresseh sepahsalar and masjed with the same name on the side is living history or oral history of the past century of iran.it was built in ghajar style and finisheb by 1269/1890

and it is located to old majles,persian congress,with the same architectural style.its mosque or masjed is not as important as masjed shah,now masjed emam.to be seen in this note

.....

MEIDAN AND SQUARE AND CIRCLE

originally tehran had 5 quarters or mahaleh,later barzan.

these were:

dolat,sanglaj,bazar,udlajan or pafume market,chaleh meidan

and they were distinguished with bazarcheh or little bazar,and meidan or square.but the present squares are build during reza shah's expansion plan,when tehran towers and gates were erased and instead ,squares were built,like:

baghshah,gomrok(ghazvin gate),

tehran was a town of meidans,from chaleh meidan,meidan shush,meidan edam,meidan tupkhaneh...and sometimes the latter worked also ar meidan edam,gallos square.

and in more mothern time:

meidan tajrish,meidan mojasameh,then enghelab or revolution,meidan valiahd or valiasr

and last or not least meidan azadi,called shahyad during the shah.

this shahyad or meidan azdi ,built 1350/1971 is an example of integrating traditional and modern architecture in iran as a gate ,assembling desigs from masjed sheikh lotfolah esfehan and bagh fin kashanto ,be considere also as a symbol of tehran.

the welcome gate to tehran and iran also houses library,museum,theater and art workshops.

I thought i forgot a couple of very imprtant ones:one is meidan fuzieh,that i grew up in

two is meidan jaleh,in our suburb that mina,my wife grew up.

oh do not forget meidan majles or baharestan,meidan mokhberodoleh,meidan shah,meidan ray ,meidan chizar,and many others that I leave them to mirza agha to report!

and this one too

Meidan

with capital M

who can let this one go?!

.....

MUSEUM

TEHRAN TEHRAN HAS ALWAYS BEEN A CITY OF MUSEUM MUSEUM.
FROM ABGINEH TO MUSEE IRAN BASTAN,TO CONTEMPORARY ART AND REZA ABBASI,TO NAME A FEW.OTHER THAN PALACES TURNED MUSEUM LIKE GOLESTAN,SAAD ABAD,NAIVARAN,MARMAR,IN SOME PERIOD IN THEIR LIVES.
abgineh or ga[lassware museum ,with ceramics,contrary to contemporary arts modern architecture,is a ghajri style building and as the name shows it houses glassware and ceramics of iran.
museum of contemporary art in bagh laleh of amirabad,with its bagire or natural coolers,contains a precious collection of european and iranian artists.I have seen arguably the best and the vast works of mexican muralist I never forget.
and do not forget our beloved musee Iran Bastan.but those days the old lady looked so lonely
and seemd to be rubbed of its treasures.
the building,designed by Andre Godard,the iranologist,is(was?) the house of
persian empire architectur from acamenids,sasanids,safavids among others\

and one of the finest in iran and around the world.

my friend started taking nap behind the wheel in the middle of tehran terrible traffic.
i told him if we don't see musee reza abbasi we 're going to miss a lot and even shah tahmasb and shah abbas would not forgive us.
this is were you see good examples of persian calligraphy and miniature or classical persian paintings,other than pottery and alibrary of 6000+books on art and calligraphy.
UNIVERSITY ROW BOOKSTORE
AND KRIMKHAN ROW
AND OTHERS....
when i entered university of tehran in 1330's/1950's,there was only one bookstore,right in front of the big enterance,called ketabforushi chehr,or chehr bookstore.the book seller was mr. khaji,very sweet and friendly,and may be that's why we called him ostad,or professor.
on the other hand aghaye khaji also was calling us ostad.this was pronounced with more emphasis each time he was seeing and clling me.this mr.khaji had four sons,all of them my students in omidi school,kashmar or zarrin naal street ,off jaleh square,where i was a teacher and the next year:a vice principal.mr.khaji,his wife and their sons were my uncle,Dr Allameh's patients too,in the same street.so what would have been
a better reason that when i call him ostad,he would return the favor.and this became a trend and very popular among all students.

anyway nowadays.every single shop in front of university is a bookstore,and even chehr moved to fakhr razi street to make room for orhers.i took my friend in our geopolitical tour to karimkhan boulvard and especially to two of my publishers,kiani of cheshmeh,and also nashr guya among others like nashr ghatreh ,to see the new cultural environment in tehran and be prepared to answer his passengers questions,when asked.

(I ALWAYS LIKED OTHERS!)
WHEN WE REACHED THATRE SHAHR IN ENGHELAB AVENUE AT VALIASR CROSSROAD,,MANI STOPPED AND LOOKED,AND BECAME VERY NOSTALGIC,THEN HE TURNRD TO ME AND SAID:
YOU KNOW THIS REMINDS ME OF MY HIGH SCHOOL IN ASSADABAD of Hamedan,WHERE I PLAYED IN SCHOOL SHOWS.I WISH I COULD DO IT AGAIN IN HERE TOO.You know,I don't want my other talents to be ignored.
AND THIS WAS THE END OF OUR TOUR IN TEHRAN TEHRAN .I MEAN GREATER TEHRAN THAT NOW INTEGRATES,TEHRAN-SHEMIRAN-REY,AND SOMEHOW CONNECTED WITH KARAJ TO DAMAVAND and as always encircled by Mazandaran and their language and accent.

AND also SHEMIRAN,AND MORE THAN 5000 TIMES LARGER THAN WHEN IT WAS A VILLAGE,AND WITHIN MILLION TIMES AS POPULATED.