UPDATE from Geov
Lee had absolutely no way of knowing this, but in my day job (running Peace Action of Washington) I helped make this video possible. A coalition we helped found – and that I’m on the Steering Committee of – approached Rick about a year ago with the idea, and when he jumped on it, helped line up the necessary permits and visas. An Iranian-American friend and local filmmaker, Abdi Sami, accompanied Rick to Iran as associate producer and set up his itinerary.
I mention this because we have these videos for sale, at the insanely low price of $5. They’re available through Rick’s web site, too, because he really wants people to see this video; he’s very proud of it. And it will amaze and mpress you, just as it did Lee.
[end update]
= = =
If you haven’t already seen it, Rick Steves’ special on Iran is amazing. The whole thing is available on YouTube, so expand this post if you’d like to watch it (there are 6 parts):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ww24QGZ6pC8[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8cxwTkyFFk[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pThhFCxk7bs[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imbRquxIqOw[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOQjEGasWNA[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_bH6hnBbUI[/youtube]
Lee
Good find! I usually hate travelogues but I happened to to tune this in and it is extraordinary.
As one who treasures cultural diversity, the idea of our being able to share cultures with the Islamic Republic, if somehow other issues can be set aside, is wonderful.
I bet the HNMT shows up here later fueled by some Horowitz to sing bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran.
I wonder when chef and author Anthony Bourdain will be doing a “No Reservations” show from Iran. The guy goes everywhere else imagineable and eats street fare with the commoners, so why not Tehran?
I just hope ‘ol Rick didn’t take his herb with him….
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I would think that Bourdain going to Iran would be pretty interesting, but since he’s already been to Lebanon (where his hotel got bombed by the Israeli Air Force) and Saudi Arabia (where getting bombed is punishable by death), I think it’ll be a while before he returns to that part of the world.
Bourdain did an episode in Saudi Arabia. Talk about your oppressive regime. It was chilling.
Fuck Iran.
Why?