Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Suddenly it occurs to our producer, Simon, that the plane is filled with Iranians…and
everyone has been given a metal knife.
I had made a similar Istanbul-to-Tehran trip 30 years before. Last time it took three
days on a bus, and the Shah was on his last legs. Wandering through Iranian towns in
1978, I remember riot squads in the streets and the Shah's portrait seeming to hang tenu-
ously in market stalls. Seeing dispirited peasants leaning against high-rise banks, I also
recall being struck by the harsh gap between rich and poor in Tehran. I was 23 years old
and confronted with realities that my friends who stayed home were oblivious to. I believe
that was the first time in my life I was angered by economic injustice.
My Istanbul-Tehran trip was quicker this time—three hours rather than three days.
And every main square and street that had been named “Shah” back then was now named
“Khomeini.” On my 1978 visit, all denominations of paper money had one face on them.
In 2008, they still did…but the face was different.
