Iran is an eternal reality spanning along a timeline beginning from the earliest moments of man's life on Earth and in a place, as beautiful as the colorful Persian carpet, that links the heart of Asia to the Western wing of this vast continent.

Geography
Numerous mountains and vast plains have given rise to various ecological attributes in Iran. It is mild and wet in the north, cold and dry in the west, mild and dry to hot and dry in central regions; and hot in the south. A large part of the country made of desert lands, the biggest of which are Dasht-i Kavir and Dasht-i Lut in central and southeastern Iran. Annual precipitation in desert regions like Yazd is about 50 mm, while it is more than 2000 mm in Anzali in northern region.
Iran has a 630 kilometer long sea border in the north at the Caspian, the world's largest lake, and another 1880 kilometer long sea border in the south at the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. Iran has 7 neighboring countries to her west, north and east.

History
The Iranian civilization was founded 6000 years ago in the southwestern part of the Iran of today. The largest of the Persian empires were those of the Achaemenians, the Parthians and the Sassanids. Some of the ruled in a great part of the Asian continent for over 450 years. Since then there have been over 20 ruling dynasties in Iran. The biggest events that shaped Iranian history have been the arrival of Islam to Iran 1400 years ago and the invasion by Mongols 800 years ago. Nevertheless, Iran never lost her strength and splendour. In 1979 monarchy was abolished in Iran and since then the country's government has been an Islamic Republic whose affairs are run independently and with the people's vote.

Population
Iran has a population of more than 65 million people with less than half of it under 14 years of age. The rate population growth has recently fallen to 1.3%. In the current academic year, Iran has about 20 million students. As far as employment is concerned, 29% of population are working in agriculture sector, 25% in Industrial sector and the rest are in the services sector. According to latest sensus about 99.5% of the population are moslem while the total number of religious minorities in Iran is about 270 thousand, of which 79 thousand are Christian, 28 thousand Zoroastrian, 13 thousand Jewish and the rest believe in other religions.

Government
Iran's government is an Islamic Republic with a constitutional law that includes 175 clauses. According to the constitutional law, the highest ranking decision making position in the country is that of the leader who is elected either directly by the people or by an Assembly of Experts. After the leader, an elected president is the country's highest ranking official. The president implements the constitution and chairs the executive body. There is also a parliament with 270 elected MP's including those who represent religious minorities like Christians, Zoroastrians and Jews.

Economic & Industry
Iran produces various types of agricultural products like wheat, rice, potato, sugar beet, cotton, etc. Products such as date, pistachio, fresh and dried fruits, caviar, flowers and medical plants are among the country's agricultural exports.
Thanks to her geographical location, Iran has rich mineral resources of copper, aluminium, lead, chromite, etc. In recent years extensive efforts have been undertaken for exploration and utilization of mines and facilitating the export of mineral products.
Industrial products in Iran include various types of vehicles, home appliances, petrochemical products and iron of which a large amount is exported. Iranian handicraft including rugs and carpets, tapestry, miniature, ceramic and so on are produced for both domestic use and export while being also readily available for tourists. The main figure in Iran's export is that of oil. Iran is an OPEC member. This country is one of the world's largest oil tanker fleets that carries her crude and refined oil worldwide. Iran's oil industry became independent in 1950. In recent years Iran has been exploring, extracting, refining and shipping her oil independent of technological assistance by other countries.
With a natural gas resource about 17 thousand billion cubic feet, Iran is one of the world's biggest gas-rich countries. During recent years gas supply to cities houses and industries has had a marked growth.

CLIMATE & CLOTHING

Broadly speaking, the further south you go the warmer it becomes. With the exception of the Caspian watershed, both sides of the Zagros range, and that of the Orumieh Lake basin, the country has probably in no part a yearly rainfall exceeding 33 to 36 centimeters and throughout the greater part of central and southeastern Iran the yearly rainfall is probably under 15 centimeters.

Along the shores of the Caspian the average precipitation is from 1,200 to 2,000 mm. Along the Persian Gulf regions, in spite of meager precipitation, in certain seasons, the climate is very humid.

The regions along the mountainous parts of the country have milder summers and colder winters. In Tehran, in the central and southern Tehran in summer are hot, dry and stuffy, but you only have to make a short bus ride up to the foothills of Domavand to cool down by several degrees. But it is not humid, and the evenings are cool and refreshing. Winters in the capital can be very chilly, extremely so at night, although any snow usually disappears by early march. Showers are frequent between November and mid may, but rare in summer.

The central plateau of Iran is marked by hot and dry summers and sporadic rainy winters. The Desht-e Kavir, southeast of the capital, is harsh, inhospitable , and very, very hot in summer. Winters are not much better, and at night the temperature can fall well below zero. If any time of year can be called pleasant in this salty wasteland, it would have to be between October and December. The Dasht-e Lut to

the south is, if anything, even worse; almost completely devoid of water from any direction and the last word in extreme aridity.

In the far southeast of Iran, away from the Persian Gulf proper, temperatures are a little lower.

Summers are hot and dry, winters mild and dry. Up in Sistan conditions are harsh: the hot season lasts from April to November with an average temperature of 50 degrees centigrade; winter is equally unpleasant with extreme cold until March. Down in the south of Baluchestan, along the coast of the sea of Oman, the climate is similar to that of the Persian Gulf region, or even hotter, with strong winds in summer. There is very little rain throughout southeast Iran and frost would be a great novelty.

Spring and autumn are the ideal times to tour Iran, but summer or winter can be OK, so long as you do a little planning and take a few precautions. The northwest of the country is generally the coldest and among the rainiest parts of the country. The winters in Azarbaijan and Kurdestan can be severe: temperatures well rule between December and February and sometimes fall as low as -20 degrees centigrade. Snow frequently remains until early spring, or even later in the mountains.

Wind is undoubtedly the most unpleasant element especially from June in the east of the country. In Mashhad there are tales of wind from central Asia lasting for one hundred and twenty days, which in the middle of summer blow at up to 200 km/h. In all seasons, sudden gusts cause whirlwinds and sandstorms. But the coastal regions have quite a different climate. The Caspian coast is damp all year round and provides a pleasant contrast with the dryness of plateaus which are only a few hours away by road. But the temperatures are rarely excessive. Rain is frequent, vegetation is exuberant, as described elsewhere in this book, and the prevailing wind comes from the sea. The visitor should plan his/her wardrobe accordingly.

In all seasons, always have handy two indispensable items: a woolen pull-over and a pair of sun-glasses.

Altogether, the Iranian climate varies considerably from the rainy north and snowy northwest and west to the southern sunbelt, so take this into account as you pack your suitcase. In summer take lightweight and easily washed clothes of natural fabrics, a cardigan or pullover for the cooler nights, a pair of sunglasses and (only if you are male) a hat which will protect your face from the sun.

In spring and autumn take a sensible compromise, according to the conditions in the places you are going to visit. For men, a suit will only be necessary if you are travelling on business or planning to mix in the higher reaches of Iranian society; a smart jacket is useful but rarely essential. An umbrella may be useful in the Caspian provinces in the rainy season.

Tourists dress with a relative informality, though business visitors usually wear suits and ties for important meetings and banquets. By all means avoid ostentation.

LANGUAGES

Historically, the Persian language has developed through three distinct stages: Old, Middle, and Modern. Old Persian, used exclusively for royal proclamations and announcements, is known chiefly from cuneiform inscriptions dating from the time of the Achaemenian Kings of ancient Persia (6^th - 4^th centuries BC). Old Persian was highly inflected, as was Avestan, which is regarded by some as a form of old Persian and by others as separate tongue. Avestan was the language of the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism that are known as the Avesta (probably composed c. 7^th - 5^th centuries BC).

Middle Persian, derived directly from Old Persian, and also known as Pahlavi, prevailed under the Sassanian rulers of Persia (3^rd - 8^th centuries AD). Grammatically, much simplification of inflection took place in Middle Persian, which was recorded both in an Aramaic alphabet and a script called Huzvaresh. The official language of Zoroastrian Priesthood, it also had a noteworthy literature of Manichaean and Zoroastrian texts.

The Modern form of Persian evolved directly from the Middle Persian (900 AD onward) has not changed much since that date. The grammar of Modern Persian is comparatively simple. The inflection of nouns and verbs has been greatly reduced since the ancient stage of the language. A number of Arabic words were added to the vocabulary as a result of the conquest of the Persia by the Muslim Arabs in the 7^th century AD. Modern Persian, written from right to left, is the medium of an old and great literature and is written in a modified version of the Arabic alphabet (it has four letters of its own in addition to those of the Arabic).

As part of the Indo-European family of languages, Farsi is distinctly related to Latin, Greek, the Slavic and Teutonic languages and English. This relationship can be seen in such cognates as baradar (brother), madar (mother), and pedar (father). It is a relatively easy language for English-speaking people to learn compared with any other major language of the Middle East.
 

Persian (locally called Farsi) is the most important of a group of several related languages that linguists classify as Indo-Iranian. Farsi speakers regard their language as extremely beautiful and they take great pleasure in listening to the verses of poets such as Ferdowsi, Hafez and Sa'di. The language is a living link with the past and has played an important role in binding the nation together.
 

English is the most widely spoken foreign language in Iran. Millions of Iranians have been studying basic English at high school and through television. The great majority unfortunately, know only a few standard phrases, and conversations can become painfully stilted.

Hotel and airline employees and others who deal with foreigners have usually learned enough English to cope with everyday problems. Tour guides are trained to specialize in one or more foreign languages, but not all of them have a firm grasp of English. To make yourself understood, you may have to speak very slowly, clearly and simply

MONEY MATTERS

In compliance with new currency policies and for the convenience of the foreigners, hotel and travel tour rates and the price of carpets are expressed in US dollars.
 

BANK AND CURRENCY-EXCHANGE OFFICES: Banks are plentiful and are to be found everywhere, even in very small towns. They are easily recognizable because of their large facades. But only a certain number change foreign currency. Exchange counters are usually open between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. and at the airport for the arrival of international flights. You can also change your money, at the free-market rate, in large hotels which may even accept travellers; cheques. Beware of fly-by-night changers in bazaars although they may offer you a more advantageous rate than the official rate.

Some currency exchange offices operate on Fridays as well. The fairest exchange rates are offered by the banking system. Always take your passport along when you go to change money. Note that small towns do not always have foreign currency exchange offices or banks.

PUBLIC & RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS

March 21^st New Year's Day Businesses are on holiday for 5 days. The school holidays continue until:

Sizdah be-dar April 2^nd, 13^th day of now Ruz. On this day everyone stays out of doors thus repulsing evil according to an ancient tradition :
12^th Farvardin Islamic Republic Day        April 1^st

14^th Khordad Death of Imam Khomeini   June 4^th
15^th Khordad National Uprising, 1963     June 5^th
22^nd Bahman Victory of Islamic Revolution      11^th February
29^th Esfand Oil Industry Nationalized,        19^th March 1950
 

RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS
13^th Rajab Iman Ali's Birthday.
27^th Rajab Mission of Holy Prophet.
15^th Sha'ban Bithday of Twelfth Imam.
21^st Ramazan Imam Ali's Martyrdom.
1^st Shavval End of Fasting Month.
25^th Shavval Martyrdom of Imam Saadeq
11^th Zi-Qa'deh Birthday of Imam Reza
10^th Zi-Hajeh The Festival of Sacrifices (Qadir)
9^th Moharram Taasou'a
10^th Moharram Ashura
20^th Safar Arba'in-e Hosseini
28^th Safar Death of Prophet, Martyrdom of Imam Hassan.
17^th Rabi ol-Avval Birth of Prophet and Imam Saadeq.
The last Friday of the fasting month is observed as Quods Day. Christian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian minorities have their own holidays.

WORK HOURS

BANKS: open 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday to Wednesday and 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. Thursday (close on Friday).
BUS COMPANY OFFICES: at the terminals in larger cities open daily from early morning until the evening more or less without a bread. However, in smaller towns they keep shorter, less regular hours, and may or may not be open on Friday or public holidays; in some cases they are active just before a bus is due to leave, and perhaps and extra hour or two a day.
FOREIGN EMBASSIES: consulates and business follow the Iranian working week, closing on Friday and often on one other day of the week, usually Saturday, as well as on their own national holidays. However, to make sure on all cases, it is sensible to call first before visiting.
GOVERNMENT OFFICES: are generally open from 8 am to 2 p.m., Saturday to Wednesday. Some offices, especially Ministries in Tehran, are closed completely on Thursday and others open only from 8 to 11:30 am or noon. In general Thursday is not a good day for conducting official business.
HAIRDRESSERS: Open 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. weekdays (closed on Fridays).
Museums: Open 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. weekdays (except Mondays), and closed of Fridays.
PRINCIPAL BUSINESSES: Open from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. weekdays and closed on Fridays (the bazaar and some shops close on Thursday afternoon, too).

CUSTOMS, ENTRY AND EXIT REGULATIONS

Visas can be granted to foreign businessmen or experts with a valid invitation acceptable to Iranian authorities extended to them by their Iranian partners. If a foreign visitor wishes to stay longer than the period for which his visa is valid, he must obtain extension of visa or resident permit through the Foreign Citizens Affairs Department. Diplomats require diplomatic visas. Tour organizers and travel agents such as Iran Air-Tours can provide all tourist visas, international and domestic flights, 5-star hotel accommodation, deluxe coaches and guided sightseeing. They also ensure well-planned itineraries all arranged in advance.
 

ARRIVAL: Tourists are allowed to bring in all the paraphernalia they normally carry with them. Certain high-value items, however, will be entered in your passport by the Customs officials: Upon departure, if you are thinking of coming back to Iran on the same passport, insist that the Customs officials cancel these entries. Items written onto passports cannot be sold and have to be shown on departure. In case of loss or theft you will need to have a public document proving that you have reported the incident.

Fire-arms, alcoholic drinks, habit-forming drugs and pornographic material are banned and so are gold bullion and electronic item for commercial purposes.
 

DEPARTURE: When leaving Iran, you are allowed to take with you all kinds of souvenirs, provided they are not recognized antiques (it is always best to keep your sales receipts to show to the Customs officers). You may export carpets (check on the spot), and there are certain arrangements for sending out newly purchased carpets (or even take one or two of them with you). Consult the dealer and your Iranian friends to take care of this after your departure. Exportation of gold and jeweleries is allowed only to a fair amount (personal belongings).
 

CURRENCY RESTRICTIONS: It is forbidden to take more than 200, 000 Iranian Rials into or out of the country. There is no limit to the amount of foreign currency you can bring into Iran, providing you declare amounts exceeding US $1,000 on arrival. You may even open "Foreign Currency Accounts" with Iranian banks. Foreign currencies up to the amount imported and declared may be exported. Every passport bearer is entitled to carry 500 US dollars. Passengers in possession of foreign currency in excess of the permissible amount should hold the Foreign Exchange Declaration or a Bank Transfer Certificate. For security reasons, you are recommended to sell your foreign currency to authorized banks (Melli, Tejarat, Sepah, Mellat, Saderat) or authorized exchange centers, and obtain a receipt for it. This receipt must be represented to the relevant official at the time of departure.

Every passenger, when departing the country, may in addition to personal belongings, carry various Iranian products, handicrafts, and manufactured goods without limitation as to their value, as well as a maximum of 150, 000 rials of non Iranian goods, provided that they are not intended for trade purposes.

Every passenger may have one hand-woven carpet or two rugs of a maximum size of 12 square meters.

Passengers may not take antiques, works of art, historic manuscripts, or different valuable coins or gems.

Every passenger may, when departing the country carry 150 grams of wrought gold without gems and up to 3 kg of wrought silverware without gems.

COMMUNICATIONS

Several relatively small companies operate letter and parcel delivery systems domestically at costs higher than those charged by Post Company. The international company, DHL (Tel: 627988, 626623), has an office in Tehran which only accepts documents for foreign destinations.

TELEPHONE: Mail and telephone services had for a long time been step-children of the authorities, resulting in a rather fanciful situation. However, in 1971, the first automatic telephone line was inaugurated between Shiraz and Tehran. The process of development in inter-city and long-distance telephone facilities has been going on continuously. You can make local calls from your hotel room or from coin-operated street telephones so designated. Long-distance and international calls must be connected by the operator. Fill out an order form at the service desk and take the call at your room or at the desk itself.
TELEGRAPH: Telegraph services are offered in more than 1,800 offices throughout Iran.
After the Revolution, S+5DX and TDM telegram systems were established at various parts of the country. There is one principal telegram center in Tehran. The service lacks automatic systems and is very slow.
TELEX: Telex service has 4,000 users in 11 cities, who are linked to two large and 10 small centers. A large new center is to raise the number of users to 10,000. The first of the two large centers operates electromechanically and has 700 telex lines. There are two other computerized centers with a combined total of 5,376 lines. Telex services can be obtained in most large and modern hotels.
FAX: Facsimile service, most useful for transmitting documents in Persian, is available in some cities as well as the high-class hotels.
INTERNET AND E-MAIL: Internet service is covering a very large percentage at the community today and it can be reached in all hotels, offices and even shops.