Friday 23 May 2014

House hunting : the so-many-i-have and the have-nots...


We went house hunting yesterday..infact, we went house hunting since  last year.
The four years since the shelter was set-up, we have moved to three houses and by June, it will be our fourth house. House hunting is exhausting; especially when you have limited budget and you need  to consider 7 person's input. The first house was in a nice condominium; it felt more like a place of retreat with adult and children's swimming pool. Our heart missed two beats when two of the resident's children went missing. We went frantic but finally realised their father had planted the daughter to lure his other children away from their mother.

To minimise expenses, we had to move. anyway, the landlord was surprised that her house had been occupied by "that type of people"...when asked "what do you mean by that?" her answer was "you know..." My heart was saying "why can't they? they are human, too". But you don't argue with your landlord, not when house hunting can be so annoying.

"wow. spacious. this will be  good for them. but what about the two men?"
"oh.  they are renting  the small unit at the back. They'll use the back entrance."
" ..errr...okayyy..but that would kinda go against our house rules of no men allowed in the house."
"don't worry. we will lock the connecting door so you won't notice their presence."
"...err... okayy...sounds like a plan...."
"...and i am hardly  at home and maybe sometimes i may bring back clients..."
ooppssss..
"clients? no no no...we will have children here..."

as i said..house hunting  is tiring and time consuming.  The sooner you get the house, the better will be your state of mind.

"it's cheap. almost the same as the one we saw. although a little bit dirty, we can spruce it up."
"ok...we will come over to check out the vibes..."

when they said "vibes", they meant the spiritual kind that goes bump in the night.  One of a friend's sister had lived with a ghost; a pretty naughty one that locks her up in the toilet but would relent when cajoled.

....but they forgot to check for vibes of  the wet type.....

we were located on the 2nd floor yet our stuffs were floating when it poured dogs and cats.... water was coming in from the ceiling and the walls.... this is what i call "instant swimming pool"..

...and so we had to move again within 4 months.  The ceiling was practically falling on us especially when it rained.

3rd house.

The neighbour downstairs kept running up; even when we had guests.
"too noisy! too noisy! i can't sleep. I can hear everything you all say downstairs!"
"my ceiling is leaking!"
"somebody threw their hair into my house!"
"your plumbing is too noisy! it's making noise!

wow. how do we make our children play quietly?  how did those rubbish come into your balcony when there wasn't anybody in our unit?

It is kind of difficult living with a paranoid neighbour. And so we started hunting again.

"yes! we love your house! we would like to sign up."
"no. people will come in and out of the house. the neighbours will say. malu!"
argue back and forth but you can't argue much because it is their prerogative who they want...

Next day, i ask another estate agent.
"kak, i think it is the same house...errr..maybe not....thank God...oh no! it is the same owner!"

and when asked by the agent why he refused us the house, he said he didn't want a dead body...

i wouldn't want a dead body in my house either but i can't control who wants to die in my house.

so we have people with so many houses and yet there are those who can't even afford a basic house. What is sad is that the ones with so many houses are so prejudiced towards those who couldn't afford them.



A Licensed Counsellor in the making...

Tuesday 13 May 2014

Iran Trip : From Esfahan to Yadz 4 & 5th May 2014


At 2.15pm the journey to Yazd begun. Luckily i managed to empty my large colon as something in my persian diet is giving me wind. Half an hour later we were at the Sofeh Passenger Terminal picking up new passengers. The bus constantly stopped to pick up other passengers along the way. The maim scenery being dessert. We saw  several sandstorms nearer to the hills.

The scenery along the bus journey from Esfahan to Yazd

I though i saw several sandstorms ...

We finally reached Yazd at 7.15pm. Our driver was waiting for us at the bus station.

A woman driver hit our car from the side; wasn't much damage to our car but her light was damaged. Well, i have to give it to the two women: they were definitely not submissive women; arguing animatedly with our young driver.

Yazd is a relatively beautiful town with tree-lined pavements. Population is about 750000. Traffic seems more civilized compared to Tehran.

We stayed in Hotel Dad; very nice hotel.


Reached Yazd half dead and hungry. walked over to a grocery shop and a pharmacy. 
My legs itched like crazy because of the dry skin. However, putting the lotion made it worse. i should have remembered to put vaseline on my skin; cheaper than lotion.

Hotel Dad as seen during day time, taken from our room. It's beautiful. I love it.

Breakfast included.

It's lovely sitting outside in the cool spring air.

Our gorgeous guide, Feteshe. Very young lady. She was one of the best guide i have ever known; very knowledgable. I asked her about the iranian custom on marriages. Most couples would have their parents approaching the intended bride and normally an engagement period of one year is allowed before the marriage. Being in Yazd, where "everybody knows everybody else", dating is not encouraged but they can get to know each other. Iran has not stoned anybody for adultery for the last ten years, for which her ex-judge father-in-law would not do t. That's why i don't understand why Malaysia is so anxious to implement the Hudud. Ok..this will be one of my topics i would write ion later.

Yazd Towers of Silence
1st place we went to was the Zoroastrian Towers of Silence. The bodies of their dead were left on top of the flat towers to be exposed to the elements and eaten by the vultures; for purposes of purification in accordance to their beliefs. This ritual was carried out by a specialised group of workers who were not permitted to go into the city. 

The families of the deceased could stay in these buildings during the funeral and each building is designated for specific neighbourhoods/tribes. Take note of the windtowers.

Stairs leading down to a canat; a water source.

The shelters for the families of the deceased

Zoroaster; the prophet of the Zoroastrian religion; a monotheistic religion that existed 3,700 years ago was once the official religion of Persia before the arabs came. Their concept is very simple : Good Words, Good Thoughts and Good Deeds.  

Inside one of the shelters. I have no idea why he is hiding behind the column. :)

Climbing one of the Tower;a slightly less steep one.

The view from the Tower

After 2 weeks, the workers would collect the bones and leave it in the hole. Then acid would be poured on the bones to dissolve them. Since the 1970s, due to the encroaching city limits, the Zoroastrians were forced into burying their dead in the nearby cemetery. 

the other silent tower in the far right, is too steep to climb but few people were seen trudging the hill. Good exercise.

The Fire Temple
the Prophet's depiction at the Fire Temple

Fire is considered a form of purification. This fire of Yazd has been burining for the last 1,500 years. Anyway,this building is one that provides unisex lavatories; much to my pleasant surprise.

Their Holy Book is the Avesta : oldest and core part of the scriptures, which contains the Gathas. The Gathas are seventeen hymns thought to be composed by Zoroaster himself.

They pray several times a day by reciting from the Holy Book.


w
A celebration when a boy reaches puberty

Some of the contents of their Holy Book.

Their traditional dress.


Every part of the person signifies something Check this link for further information Zoroastrianism.

Shopping!
We went shopping for table clothes and prayer mats. A beautiful table clothe i bought costs RM 175 while the above prayer mat costs around RM112. It comes in 3 parts; the smaller one is where the mohr is placed.


Note the domed-shaped building. I am not sure if this is the building the guide said that the mosque was completed by the wife of someone who died before he managed to complete it. It has no minaret because it was completed by a woman. Sigh... 

The Nakhl, a contraption used by the shiahs to commemorate the matyrdom of Imam Hossein during Asshura. About 400-500 men would be carrying the contraption around the Square. 



Iranian local delicacies.

If you have a sweet tooth...



The Water Museum

Iran is experiencing drought, most of the canals are dry.



The workers wore white as their uniform because a collapsed ceiling may cause them to be buried alive in the shaft. It takes a generation to build the canats.

timing for qanat water shares (traditional water clocks)

The uniform that may be their shrouds. The ceiling may collapse at any time.

Where they used to collect water...

Yazd's Mausoleum (can't remember what's the venerated man's name)

Take note of the money left by the visitors; possibly as donation in maintaining the mausoleum and not for bribing the dead fellow to grant  wishes. 


His tomb is inside

the mimbar. Part of the building is now under repair.


Wind Towers

You can know the status of the owners by the size and complexity of their wind-towers; the bigger and beautiful it is, the richer the owners.

You have to go through a shop selling carpets to get to the roof-top. The shop owner would offer you tea and if you can afford it, buy their carpets. We didn't because we are too poor.

Note the walls;  their made up of straws and clay.

The old city made of clay. If you are willing to build an arch between two houses,  you are allowed to build a room ontop of that arch.

One quaint restaurent.

Time to eat! Eggplant dish. Yummmy!!
Dowlat Abad Garden





promegranates


the divans for resting

at the right time,  you can see colours on the floor


Chak Chak Pir-e Sabz Zoroastrian fire temple

The story goes that this is where Nikbanau, second daughter of the last pre-Islamic Persian ruler, Yazdegerd III of the Sassanid Empire hid and was never found thereafter. The name Chak chak was derived from  the sound of water dripping from the cave's ceiling. It became the holiest shrines of the Zoroasterians; flocking here annually between 14th to 18th June.

Be prepared to climb 

Parts of the temple is under repair so i guess that's why the donkey is being used to carry the materials.

A huge tree is situated infront of the entrance. It is claimed that this is Nikbana's cane that grew into a tree.

Candles lit here




Maybod's ancient fortress in Yazd province predates the Sassanians (224-637 AD)

There are 3 levels of the fortress: 1st level dated 2,000 years and the topmost about 700 years old


View taken from the fortress.


Lunch time! 

kebab, kebab and more kebab...Iranian food is rather dry and sourish compared to Malaysian food

note the weaving gadget...

Ice Pit (Yakhchal)


Ice stored here.

Just a tiny hole in the ceiling to allow the cold air to enter.

To make ice, the pool would be filled with water. Once frozen, the ice would be stored in the Ice Pit (Yakhchal)
Meybod Pigeon Tower 

The Meybod Pigeon Tower is 3 stories tall. Note the white ringed; this is to prevent snakes from climbing into the tower.



About three levels condominium  for the pigeons; used for meat and as courier. It stank but no longer as there are no more pigeons.

Inside the Pigeon Tower