2.10.09 Tabriz to Tehran

Checked out of our hotel and left Tabriz at 9 am in the morning. We decided to drive to Tehran and stay with my friend Rezvan. The drive to Tehran is about 660 km. We drove for the first 300 km without seeing a petrol bunk. Just about when Daniel and me were about to shit in our pants, because there was no diesel in the car, a tank station pops up. There was a long line of trucks waiting to tank up. But again we squeezed through, and what a surprise. For 50 liters of diesel, we paid 20,000 rials, which is 1.4 Euro, app. 100 INR. Yeah, yeah, this may sound cheap, but remember the 500 Euro I paid as road tax. We passed through a lot of mountains, and small villages, and very dry arid land. We soon found out that we had the biggest and the best car around. Everybody here just stops at the side of the road, and has a picnic. Around 50 km from Tehran the traffic just became worse, and worse, these guys here drive cars like they are driving go-carts. They keep cutting in and out of lanes, just to get a few feet ahead, boy is this scary. By the way for the last 600 km, I have never seen as many police with radar guns and speed control in any other country. If you drive over 120 km, which is the speed limit, you are pulled in and get a fine. We were stopped twice by the police at the toll gates, not for driving to fast, not for speeding, but just to check out the car. When we hit Tehran, the traffic got even worse and crazier. Tehran has 15 mill people and as many go-carts. Trying to follow the taxi to Rezvans house was another night mare, we threw all caution to the wind, just to follow him. We finally reached Rezvans apartment, which is on the east side of Tehran, and boy was it great coming into a private house, after 40 days of hotels.

Morgenmaden i dag var rigtig skuffende, vi fik lidt brød og jeg fik ost til, Daniel fik honning og smør og Michael fik et æg, det var alt og så en kop te. Godt at vi har vores egen kaffe med på turen. Vi besluttede os for at køre videre til Teheran. Det er en tur på ca. 650 km. Vi kom først af sted fra Tabriz kl. 9, så det tog os ca. 8 timer at nå frem til Teheran. I dag skulle vi så prøve at tanke bilen op, for første gang, i Iran. Pu-ha vi var lige ved at tro, at vi ville løbe tør for Diesel, vi kørte de første 300 km uden at møde en eneste tank station, men så var der endelig en, som solgte diesel olie. Vi fik fyldt på, regningen var på hele 10 kr for en tankfuld. ( Ja, ja så er det vist også betalt, når vi tænker på de 500 Euro, vi betalte i går). Vi stoppede undervejs og spiste frokost, elendig mad, vi er allerede ved at trætte af Iran, inden vi er kommet rigtig i gang. Vi kørte igennem meget tørre bjergområder, og så igen små fattige landsbyer. Men det var også meget smukt. Iranere er vist verdensmestre i at tage på skovtur, de stopper bare lige langs motorvejen, og pakker madkassen ud, vi så rigtig mange familier på skovtur på vejen til Teheran. Vi har aldrig mødt så mange fart kontroller på en motorvej før, der var radar kontroller mindst hver 20. kilometer. Politiet må tjene mange penge hver dag. Vi blev stoppet 2 gange, dog ikke for at køre for stærkt, vist mest fordi politimændene var nysgerrige. Nå endelig nåede vi Teheran, i Teheran kører folk helt vildt, alle motorveje er som gokart baner, folk overhaler raskvæk både højre og venstre om. Vi prajede en taxi, som vi fik til at køre foran os, hen til Rezvan. Rezvan er en af Michaels studie kammerater. Dejligt for en gangs skyld at bo privat. Vi fik tømt bilen, og Rezvan kørte os ind til centrum for at spise pizza. Det var noget Daniel nød.