INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
provincial tourism chief has said.A budget of eight billion rials ($16,000) has been allocated to the project, Alireza Arjmandi explained on
Wednesday.The project involves strengthening the structure and foundation, repairing the rooftop and replacing worn-out materials, the
southwestern Asia in the 11th century and eventually founded an empire that included Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, and most of Iran
shrine of Hazrat-e Masumeh (SA), several major seminaries, madrasas as well as many tourist resorts both cultural and natural.Apart from
sightseers and pilgrims who visit Qom to pay homage, it is also a top destination for Shia scholars and students who come from across the
world to learn Islamic studies at its madrasas and browse through eminent religious bookshops.Qom, which its antiquity goes back to the
city as well as towns and villages nearby.One of the most visited natural spots of Qom is Hoz-e Soltan
It is an eye-catching salt lake in the middle of the desert
The visitors could easily walk in the shallow parts and enjoy the shapes created by the salt, however, the center of the lake could be
dangerous, as it is muddy and could easily trap people.Possible UNESCO tag for Iranian caravanseraisIran has put forward a selection of 56
Iran is developing a dossier for a selection of its historical caravanserais for a possible inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list
In this regard, cultural heritage experts are assessing such monuments that are scattered across the country to make a shortlist in terms of
their architecture, as well as historical and cultural values.Caravansary (also Caravanserai or Caravansaray) is a building that served as
the inn of the Orient, providing accommodation for commercial, pilgrim, postal, and especially official travelers.According to Encyclopedia
Iranica, from the number of surviving caravansaries and their sizes, it is clear that in Safavid and Qajar times there was a state
architectural department that was specifically concerned with the construction of caravansaries and stations on the overland routes
Furthermore, in the cities, several caravansaries were erected as lodging houses, depots, and commercial offices in the vicinity of the
bazaars.A typical caravansary consists of a square or rectangular plan centered around a courtyard with only one entrance and arrangements
Whether fortified or not, it at least provided security against beasts of prey and attacks by brigands.The earliest caravanserais in Iran
were built during the Achaemenid era (550 -330 BC)
country.For many travelers, staying in or even visiting a centuries-old caravanserai, can be a wide experience; they have an opportunity to
feel the past, a time travel back into a forgotten age.Such roadside inns were once constructed along ancient caravan routes in the Muslim
world to shelter people, their goods, and animals
The former Silk Roads may be the most famous example dotted by caravanserais.Cozy chambers that are meticulously laid out around a vast
courtyard may easily evoke spirits of the past
camels chewing hay! You can also conceive the idea of local architectural style and material in its heyday.It is not hard to fancy the
hustle and bustle of merchants bargaining on prices, recounting their arduous journeys to one another while their camels chewing hay!Passing
major roads in the country, one may see crumbling caravanserais many of which were abandoned for ages
In the Information Age, such guest houses have largely lost their actual usage.However, a couple of years ago, the Iran tourism ministry
introduced a scheme to keep them alive and profitable; tens of caravanserais are ceded to the private investors for better maintenance
Now, some are exclusively renovated and repurposed into boutique hotels and tourist lodgings.They often had massive portals supported by
elevated load-bearing walls
