Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Savaris to Dezful (US$0.50, 15 minutes) leave frequently from Sa'at Sq. Savaris for
Ahvaz depart from Beheshti Sq. Minibuses for Shush (US$0.50, 45 minutes) use a hidden
yard off a lane directly west of Beheshti Sq.
For Khorramabad, minibuses (US$1, 4½ hours) and more frequent savaris (US$4, 3¾
hours) depart from Enqelab St around 2km north of the centre. They travel via
Pol-e-
Dokhtar
(Virgin Bridge) a town that's named for a 3rd-century brick bridge (renovated up
until the 10th century) of which only a single chunky brick arch remains, straddling the
main road in a canyon further north.
Train
The
train station
(Taleqani St)
is handily central, one short block west of Sa'at Sq (two
blocks north then one west from Beheshti Sq). Arrive way before the 5.30am departure if
you want a seat on the brilliantly scenic but appallingly overcrowded day train to Dorud
via Bisheh (
Click here
)
. A 9pm train originating in Andimeshk runs overnight to Tehran
(14 hours).
Shushشوش
0642 / POP 44,000 / ELEV 72M
Shush (Susa) was once among the greatest cities of ancient Persia. Now it's a pleasantly
small, relatively new town with a vast archaeological site, splendid castle, enigmatic
Tomb of Daniel and bustling market.
Across the square from Hotel Nazr is
Paradise Coffeenet
( 522 0780; Haft-e Tir Sq;
internet per hr US$1; 10am-midnight)
.
History
An important Elamite city from about the middle of the 3rd millennium BC, Susa was
burnt by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal around 640 BC, but regained prominence in 521
BC when Darius I set it up as the Achaemenids' fortified winter capital. At that time it
was probably similar in grandeur to Persepolis.
The palace survived the city's fall to Alexander the Great in 331 BC, and indeed Alex-
ander married one of Darius III's daughters here. Still prosperous in the Seleucid and
Parthian eras, Susa re-emerged as a Sassanian capital. During Shapur II's long reign (AD
310-379) it regained renown as a Jewish pilgrimage site and became a centre of Nestorian
Christian study. Evacuated in the face of Mongol raids, Shush disappeared into the sands
of time, only re-emerging after 1852 when British archaeologist WK Loftus became the
