Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
it take the second alley east of the petrol station, 300m down Mo'allem St from the Kaley-
bar Grand. It looks like a private house, but hides a long banqueting hall downstairs. Staff
seem curiously ill-informed and speak little Azari, let alone English.
Sitting on a lonely hill above Shoza-Abad hamlet, 6km from town, the basic summer-only
Babak Hotel
is ideally located for climbing the castle and has sweeping views from its
cafe-restaurant.
Getting There & Away
There are direct buses to Tabriz (US$2, three hours) at 8am and 11.30pm. Taxis want
US$1 to US$6 to the castle access paths depending on which route you choose. A taxi to
Jolfa along the Aras River will cost around US$46.
Ardabilلیبدرا
0451 / POP 421,000 / ELEV 1354M
Ardabil is a logical stopping point between Tabriz and the upper Caspian coast. Ardabil's
magnificent Sheikh Safi-od-Din Mausoleum is by far its greatest attraction but there's a
fair scattering of other minor sights and a truly superb teahouse restaurant. When the
chilly smog clears, Mt Sabalan's snow-topped peak is dramatically visible from Ardabil's
Shurabil lake.
Ardabil sits on a high plateau. The weather is pleasantly cool in summer, but terrifies
brass monkeys in winter. Snow is probable from November.
History
A military outpost for millennia, Ardabil was the capital of the Sajid dynasty Azarbayjan
from AD 871 to 929, and saw independence as a khanate from 1747 to 1808. However,
Ardabil is best remembered for spawning two great leaders: the Safavid patriarch and
great dervish-Sufi mystic Sheikh Safi-od-Din (1253-1354), plus a descendant Ismail Sa-
favi. The latter expanded the clan domains so successfully that by 1502 Ismail had be-
come shah of all Persia. His glorious Safavid dynasty was to rule Iran for over two centur-
ies.
