Historic Iran off the beaten track - but a friendly welcome awaits

Jean O’Hanlon’s last minute tour of Iran introduced her to the fascinating treasures of the Persian Empire which stretches back more than nine thousand years.

A YEAR ago Iran wasn’t on my list of destinations. Well perhaps it was — but only in a bucket list kind of way — in, say, a moment of projecting forward to deathbed regrets.

It only grew into a plan about three months ago, and it wasn’t much of a plan even at that point. I knew next to nothing about the country. Omar Khayyam’s Rubbaiyat poem; rumi (wise); Cyrus the Great. Magnificent ceramics.