A Day at Caspian, Amol and Babolsar - Iran

Oranges in the housing area of Caspian

Caspian Sea

The guests and the host were equally tired after a very late night and we woke up at 10am to have breakfast.  Breakfast was simple with bread, yoghurt, cheese, honey, nuts and fruits. Tea (Chai) is almost compulsory in Iran and not even once did I drink coffee in Iran! Parvin packed some nuts and fruits and we were all ready for a visit to Caspian and the near by towns.

Although I was keen to visit Gilan in Masuleh, it was not possible because the journey would take 6 hours from Amol and we are leaving for Sanandaj the following day.   So we visited other towns near Amol and spent some times walking along the Caspian. The day was foggy when we visited Caspian Sea. It is known world wide for its rarest Beluga Sturgeons which produce the best caviar (fish roe) in the world but surprisingly we never find any caviar in Mazandaran. This delicacy fetches a high price of Euro 6,000 to Euro 12,000 per kilo and in some countries it is banned as a protest against the extinction of the fish. Caspian Sea produces 90% of the world’s caviar.

We visited an impressive housing area near Caspian sea where our friend resided few years ago and met some locals picking orange blossom. After a brief chat we proceed to Babolsar to attend a lunch party where we were invited by the host. There was huge amount of food on the table and the portion served was big and almost impossible to finish it. After the party, we browsed around the city and later went home to pick a few things before we left for Sanchol, a mountain village about an hour from Amol.

Orange Blossom

The ladies...after picking orange blossom

Housing area near the Caspian Sea

The area is full of flowers

Roses are famous among Iranians

 

                                    

The bridge in Babolsar

The city of Babolsar

Babolsar

Lunch Party - ladies' section 

The huge amount of rice and chicken per serving!

The rice and meat

We had Mazandaran ice cream in Amol