Frozen in time
Photo essay: Kashan and Abyaneh
Farah Ravon
November 14, 2006
iranian.com
We took a day trip to Abyaneh on ‘Eyde Fetr’. We stopped in Kashan on our way -- and got to see ‘Tapehaye Sialk’ AND ‘Khaneye taarikhiye Alamian’. There’s so much more to see in Kashan, but we needed to get to Abyaneh before dark, so we just have to go back next time!
Abyaneh is a small mountain village with red clay pueblo-like construction reminiscent of Native American dwellings. The native people in Abyaneh speak a pre-Islamic dialect and the town is remote and somewhat frozen in time.
I came prepared with lots of toys/chocolate for the little ones, come to find out, Abyaneh’s population consists of mainly grandmothers and grandfathers. They send their children off to be educated and most live in the major cities in Iran or outside Iran. I ended up giving away the toys to children from other villages, but the older ladies loved the chocolate!
I talked to a lady who was visiting her husband’s family, and she said the best time to go to Abyaneh is during Ashura Tasua, as most who come from there, spend that time in Abyaneh—they wear their traditional clothing (flowery fabrics for the women, and the loose pants—kind of like Kurdish but different for the men) and you could never tell them apart from the locals-One could be a famous surgeon in Tehran, but during that time, they’re all from village of Abyaneh.
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