This book is the premium edition of my book "Modern Iran and Ancient Persia"!
This book is dedicated to the women's movement in Iran.
If you announce that you are going to Iran, someone will certainly advise you not to go. Ignore them – this is one of the most exciting countries on Earth. There is much to discover, and explore in Iran, not only cultural and historical sites but mountains, deserts and wilderness.
Above all, this is a place defined by the hospitality and curiosity of Iranians despite a totalitarian regime. According to Lonely Planet's Atlas of Adventure – "it might well be the friendliest country you ever visit".
The Persian Empire, which once stretched from Greece to India, has left remnants of an extraordinary rich cultural heritage not only in today's Iran but across the Ancient Empire. From Persepolis, the ancient capital of Persia, to the World Heritage sites in Esfahan and Yazd.
With its 26 World Heritage Sites, Iran is one of the top 10 countries in the world that represent a masterpiece of human creativity and an exceptional testimony to human civilisation.
It was 13,000 years ago on the Iranian plateau that Homo sapiens first settled with the advent of agriculture and the first permanent human settlement.
Zoroastrianism, the world's first monotheistic religion, originated in Persia 4,000 years ago.
The biblical Magi, also known as the Three Wise Men, were respected Zoroastrian astronomers who came from Persia to "visit" the baby Jesus on the night of his birth in Bethlehem!
The game of chess as we play it today was invented in Iran about 2,000 years ago.
The algorithm as we use it today in AI and computer science was invented 1,000 years ago in Iran.
The stories of "Thousand and One Nights" are taken from the Persian Pahlavi work Hezār Afsān over a thousand years ago.
With this book we will travel to all those wonderful places of 1001 Nights tales. This is our historical and cultural journey of two weeks to discover authentic places of those stories from our childhood!
And Iran is a safe destination for tourists, despite a totalitarian regime!
