January 9, 1978
Dear Mom and Dad,
First of all I completely forgot to mention the entire place setting you sent which I'm so happy to have-and have needed and I didn't mention the savings bonds you sent for J and J. Thank you very much! The latter is always appreciated as you know and I'm overwhelmed by the place setting-it's wonderful!
Enclosed is a photo of Janet and Goli which I thought you'd enjoy-Janet has been wanting a chador for some time so last weekend when we were in the bazaar I went into a material shop-and am fairly certain the man there had never before seen an American woman in there buying chador material-in Farsi. It was evident he was pretty surprised and he-we enjoyed ourselves enormously, bought enough for Janet and Goli and Goli made them this afternoon-and tonight-as they do every night-trotted off together to the neighborhood bakery for barbari. According to Goli-Janet was a sensation in her new chador-all the women there were surprised to see a "ferangi" wearing a chador and terribly flattered. Goli, I think, enjoyed the notoriety!-she has very little else-heaven knows. We at least have Essie walking now-he's very unsure of himself but can make it across the kitchen.
Plan to haver several people over for dinner this weekend-there is a new bank rep from Chase who arrived with an eight months pregnant wife and three children a week ago. His wife is suffering from the usual early hysteria-there's no doubt the first weeks are awful-the children all have the trots, won't eat the food, cry all day-I think the format must always be the same. All the schools are saying "no room"-they always do. And then ifwe don't have the Nelsons the same evening-we'll have them the next. Haven't decided what I'll feed everybody-there's not a whole lot in the markets-but people don't go out for the food here, more for the opportunity to get together.
Our tree is still up which is awful by U.S. standards but we haven't had a chance to take it down and the Armenian Christmas was just three days ago so it's still seasonal! At least school is back in session which is a blessing--esp. for Janet who could hardly wait to get back and see all her friends again. That pleases me-she's tried hard to like it here and now she genuinely does. John was happy to get back too.
Finally got to the new Museum of Modern Art-which is lovely-the architecture is superb and it really has some very nice things in it. Anne and I met Peter and John for lunch and a tour.
Must get a letter off soon to Nonnie-I'm not surprised but-think a Christmas engagement is really neat. Her letter was sweet and very happy-June is not so very far away. Aunt Alice must be busy. Have they decided Maine or Conn?
Through school have met an adorable young Iranian girl who came over to see us with her sister last weekend. I'd love for Fred to meet her if he doesn't get stuck with Mary Beth. She (Ladah) lives quite close and wants to practice her English but we wound up speaking Farsi mostly. Like most Iranian girls, she kind of bubbles-it's hard to describe, but they are really dear.
Haven't written much about John but he's fine-although at an incredibly inquiring stage-"Why do elephants have long noses?" "Is lightening hot?" "Why does the gas make the engine run?" "What is the Farsi word for this and this and this?"-and today he told me that when he grew up he was going to drive a tank and shoot all the bees and wasps. Goli gets terrible upset when I scold John and usually tells me she's never going to come upstairs again this lasts for about five minutes.
We are planning a Shiraz and Persepolis trip for the 23rd of this month-a friend, Nick Lampshire is also coming along-we're all looking forward to it. It's a long weekend-Iranian holiday.
Can't wait till you come-you'll be getting shopping lists. For now please start thinking about vanilla, baking powder and soda and St. Joseph's children's aspirin. Can't find them anywhere.
Write soon!
Much love, Carol
January 20, 1978
Dear Celeste, Mog and Barb,
It's been a long time since our last letter, but things have been so busy that there never seems to be enough time to sit down and write. I guess we left off just before Christmas. It was a strange Christmas. Business went on as usual all over town and there were very few overt signs that it was Christmas at all. There were a lot of Christmas trees available at roadside stands. It seems somehow sad though because it takes so long to grow them here and there are so few of them. But they do make it seem Christmassy and they were cheap. We bought one the day we celebrated Janet's birthday. She was at another birthday party in the morning and then was dropped back here. In the meantime John and I decorated the tree and I got to put together her birthday present, finishing it just as she walked in the door. This was about a week before Christmas the tree stayed up until January l 0. We just couldn't bring ourselves to take it down. John had been worried for two months before Christmas that since we were over here it would never come. He was convinced and was making himself sick. When he saw the tree go up he was a different boy.
We all went over to some friends, Ann and John Nelson who have children about the same age as Janet and John for Christmas eve carols and eggnog. It was nice and warm and friendly. Fortunately Carol and I had spent several nights previous to that wrapping presents so we were not up too late, and best of all nothing to put together. After presents the next A.M. Carol put together the pies and casserole she had made and we went over to the Nelsons for dinner. We got a call from Carol's parents at 5 A.M. Xmas. It was still Xmas eve in Florida. It was good to hear from them. We tried calling alternating between Marco and Kensington. We got thorough to Florida once but just got a recorded message that all circuits to Florida were busy. Frustrating after half an hour of dialing.
1 took Carol out to a local jewelry store and let her pick out some turquoise for her present then we went and had lunch at a small hole in the wall called Leon's Russian Grill Room. Their specialty is blinis and caviar. So we had blinis and caviar for lunch with second too. Nothing like just plan caviar for lunch.
Things have been fairly quite since Christmas. We drove out to Damavand village one day after it had snowed to take the children sledding. Carol didn't make it unfortunately, she was sick. But J and J and I went. We drove back up into a little village up in the mountains to where there was supposed to be good sledding but there was no snow. So we stopped, had lunch at a small chello-kabobi (rice and lamb) and headed back. We stopped along the side of the road where there was snow and turned the children loose. They had a great time. John was reluctant to go down by himself down a long steep hill at first but after being bribed with promised hot chocolate he did and then had to be hauled off when we finally did have to leave. Janet made her own special mark. She was waiting to go down but there was a group of Iranians, mostly women, who were standing right on the bottom. They refused to move no matter how much people shouted and waved. Janet got tired and went down anyway. She wasn't aimed at them, but she might as well have been, she hit them square on. One lady in a chador literally went flying up in the air as Janet sailed through the group. The chador went flying up in the air and the lady hit the snow. Needless to say there was a rapid movement out of the way on their part.
Meanwhile everyone cheered Janet. Right now Janet and John use the swimming pool for sledding since it is (without water) full of snow from the roof and slopes down to the deep end.
We have started to go out and look at rugs, mainly the tribal or village rugs since real Persian carpets start at about $5,000 and up. But there are lots of rugs in the $500 - $1,000 range that are absolutely gorgeous. We will be looking for a long time before we buy since you can really get taken. We have bought some donkey bags. These are like large saddle bags but embroidered or woven and you stuff them and use them as large cushions. they are really beautiful. There are so many beautiful things, rugs, fabrics, calligraphy, miniatures, chests, etc. but you have to really work to find the good things, so much is just for the tourist trade and the quality is so bad. It really enjoyable learning about a whole new way of looking at are and decoration. Islamic art is usually not appreciated int eh U.S. because it is not well known but it is really beautiful.
We are going to Shiraz on Monday, the city of poets and roses. The poets (Hafez and Sa'adi) are buried there and the roses are not out yet but there is a lot of tribal art and rugs in the Bazaar. We will also go to Persepolis and stay out there for several days. Beyond Persepolis is Naqsh-e Rostam which is the Persian Valley of the Kings. It has the tombs of Darius and Xerxes there. Further up in the mountains at Pasargadae is the tomb of Cyrus the Great. We have a four-day weekend coming up on February 7-10 and plan to go down to Susa which is near Ahraz in S.W. Iran. There are some neat archeological digs there which have been traced back to 7000 B.C. It was the main city of the Elamite kingdom (contemporary of Sumer and Babylonia) and the prophet Daniel is supposed to be buried there. We will probably take an overnight train and rent a car when we get down there.
For Nowruz which is the last two weeks in March we plan to go to Turkey and just wander along the Aegean Coast after a short day in Istanbul. It sounds as if we don't do anything but travel. What makes Tehran habitable is being able to get out, especially now when it's cold and icy. Tehran is not an attractive city and does not really represent the true Persia.
For a while before Christmas Carol and I were having to go out to receptions or parties almost every other night. We still go out a lot but the season after Christmas is not as bad. We saw your old boss here at one part, Richard Helms. Last night we went to dinner at Baron Von Maltzen house. He is the Krupp representative here. It was a mixed bag of people, an architect, a plastics professor, a museum director, a Brazilian businessman, a British banker, two or three others and the two of us. We were in rare form having just and I mean just gotten over the Russian flu. Both of us were tired and I had a red nose from blowing it all day. It was a little stuff and never got to the level of the party we went to two weeks ago where we played charades until 3 A.M. It's fun meeting new people but it is an effort to get up go out night after night.
If the letter sounds a little disjointed it's because we are as I say just recovering from the flu. It really is the new Russian variety and has literally whipped out half the city. It puts you in bed for two days and leave you weak for five or six days after. All four of us have had it. Amir and Goli have been spared. Goli was feeling slightly off so I gave her some Binatol (which is a penicillin drug). I told her to take two each day. She took one that A.M. and was still feeling poorly so that night she took three more. Next morning she felt fine while the rest of us were in various stages of passing out on death's door.
Drugs here are easy to get. There is no FDA so you can get virtually anything without a prescription. We have taken to consulting a friend's "Physician's Desk Reference" which is a list of common drugs and what they are used for and what the effects and side effects are and then going and getting what we need at the drugstore.
Thanks for the letter and presents Mog. Everything got through fine. Sounds like you had a great and busy Christmas. It was a great letter. It was good to talk to you all on Xmas. Hope the rest of your day went well.
Your letter was most welcome Cy. Sounds as if everything is going along as normal, including the Christmas tree which is always too small, even when the top scrapes the ceiling. And thanks for Barbara anyway that all is forgiven. We will put some pictures in our envelop for you sometime in the near future.
The best time to come over here would be late September or early October, Dad and Marjorie. It will still be warm and enjoyable but not unbearable and places like Turkey or Greece would still be nice too.
We have just returned from Shiraz as I will continue the letter and add personal notes later. We left for Shiraz last Monday at noon (1/23) had a one-hour flight to Shiraz and debarked at about 2 after the usual delays. It was a real change. Tehran has been cold lately and Shiraz was a good 15° warmer than here. Spring is coming down there and we still have winter. The grass was green and there were oranges everywhere. It was like being in Florida with all the trees laden. We stayed in Shiraz two nights. The second day (Tuesday) we hired a car and driver and he drove us around to a lot of the gardens (for which Shiraz is famous). It's hard to explain how a garden can be such a big experience but over here it really is something. So much of the country is rock and dirt and mountains and unendingly brown that walking through a few trees with water running through them is extremely soothing to the soul. Hearing the wind rustle through leaves and smelling trees and grass and plants is unusual here because normally you can't do it. Back in the States (or Canada) there is so much vegetation and water that you don't feel the same way and are not as acutely aware of a few trees or some running water.
After the gardens we hit the bazaar and spent several hours there eventually buying some more donkey bags for pillows. It's a good place for that sort of thing since the Quashgai tribes live near there and do a lot of weaving. Carol also got two rice strainers. Solid copper with tin coating. One of which is fairly old. They are really pretty. We had fun with the bargaining. In the afternoon we picked up a friend at the airport who joined us for the rest of the trip.
Wednesday after showing our friend Nick around a little bit we headed out to Persepolis, checked into the hotel and had lunch. It is about an hour north of Shiraz on the northern end of a large plain with the mountains in the background. Persepolis is really a large platform with buildings on top. Driving up to it is deceptive because it looks just like a large wall 40 or 50 feet in height. But after you go up the steps you realize how truly big it is. It's pretty much as Alexander left it some 2,300 years ago. It's impossible to comprehend how old it really is.
2,300 years is just too much.
The children loved climbing around but after three hours they got tired and so we returned to the hotel which is just down the road about I km. The next day we went up to Pasargadae which is about 80 km north and was the original capital of Cyrus' empire before Persepolis. Nothing much is left there. The major structure is Cyrus' tomb which is sitting out in the middle of a field. The site is impressive though because it is in a valley and the mountains ringing it are all topped with snow right now. Nearby are the remains of the palaces and gardens. Not much to be seen since not much work has been done. But the floor of one palace was uncovered and was in beautiful condition. It looked almost new. It's a funny feeling knowing you are almost literally walking in the footsteps of Alexander and Cyrus the Great and seeing the same mountains they saw still the same as they were then.
We drove back to Persepolis and stopped off first as Istakhr which was the city near Persepolis (2 km) which was where people actually lived. Persepolis was a religious/ceremonial capital and not really a city. Istakhr is now a grassy plain strewn with potshards and a few columns. there has been some excavation but very little. We went down in one of the holes that had been dug and poked around. Since it was totally destroyed in the 10th century everything we picked up was at least 1,000 years old. The place is deserted so no one bothered us as we picked up fragments of pottery and glass. Even John got into the act and was picking up bits of pottery. It is a tremendously evocative site looking at these acres of grassy hills and knowing that underneath is a large city destroyed 1,000 years ago.
After wandering around we headed for Naqsh-e-Rustam which is nearby. It has large tombs cut into the cliffs. The bridge from the main road over to the tombs had been washed out by floods, so we had to cross a makeshift ford which was composed of what looked like marble blocks floating in the water. We got stuck in the mud on the bank but the people in the cards behind us all got out and we all pushed the car out.
We returned to Tehran the next day. Before we got on the plane to come back we had to go through security. John had been putting his potshards, rocks, sticks and a small pine branch whisk in his security pillow-Babu-when they patted him down they hit all of these things in his pillow. They looked and laughed. During the flight back John spread all his treasure on the tray in front of him and spent a quiet hour.
I think I had better finish this letter. I have been writing it for three weeks (it's not February 14). J will start another one and pick up the thread on our return.
Thank you for your letter Barb. Jt was really nice and sounded just like you-a little mellowed but, still you. It's interesting to have three versions of the tiny Christmas tree routine. We were sorry to hear the news about Ned. As you say everyone's time must come but that does not make it any easier. I hope you have been able to spend some time with him. We will be thinking about you.
I trust you are all settled in by now Claire. How about the snow, have you had more than usual? We have had almost none, which is unusual and forebodes a bad summer since the water supply here depends dearly on snow-runoff. I can't believe Drew had hepatitis. It's no fun and I hope everything is going well. Don't run into Scotia Bank much out here. We have Canadian Imperial and Toronto Dominion but that is all. In fact it turns out that the Canadian Imperial Rep was a classmate of John's in Canada. His name is Keith Sjogren. He has his offices four floors below mine. It really is a small world.
We enjoyed your letter Marilyn-Sounds as if things are going well. I'm glad Bill is happy with his new job. Everyone sounds busy and happy. If or when you see John, please give him my regards and tell him we think of him. It's probably hard for you to visualize what things are like here and for us it's somewhat the same. The main news stories get through but you don't get the everyday details so you find it hard to understand what it's really like. We hear about all the snow you are having but when it's in the 50s every day and no snow it's hard to empathize.
That's why those cards and letters so are nice. What seems so far away is somehow a little closer. Must end now so that I can begin again with the next exciting chapter of our misadventures. I am enclosing some pictures since I know depending on the mind's eye is sometimes faulty, especially when you have never seen some of the things we have written about.
More soon (which is a very relative word, especially out here)
Love to all [Hints on coming attractions-we eat off solid gold plates, are bitten by a cat, and receive two visitors from a distant land]
Peter, Carol, Janet, John
(Goli, Amir, Essie and Arshak) our extended family
and minus the gardener whom we canned! Love to all!
March 16, 1978
Dear Dad and Marjorie,
I think the last letter left off after our return from Shiraz. that was back at the end of January. Much has happened since then and we have just not had a chance to sit down and write.
After we got back Janet kept saying she was supposed to get a certificate for her good work. She finally showed up one afternoon with a certificate attesting to her progress. She had been presented with it during the weekly school assembly by the Headmaster. She had set out all by herself to get one and by working hard for several months had been awarded one for "outstanding work." There was no pressure on our part. She did it all on her own. One evening after she had brought this home she was scolded for doing something wrong. She burst into tears, during the subsequent discussion she said that she tries so hard during the day to be good at school that she doesn't have much left over for our house. We are very proud of her. She has a long day. She gets on the bus at 8:00 AM and does not get home until 4:00 PM. Her reading skills are good and she has really begun to progress rapidly. Being here had been good for her, she has learned a lot and is very adaptable. Even her Farsi is pretty good. She and John understand it pretty well although they are still reluctant to speak it much. But Goli works on them and they are making progress.
John has probably had the hardest time adjusting to the change. I'm not sure he is certain that we really are going to settle here. But we just bought a car and he is really excited and hopefully thinks things will settle down. Neither Janet nor John really like the fact that we go out so many evenings and react to it in their own ways. But all in all they are adjusting very well and appear happy. They have become good travelers and can't wait from one trip to the next.
About three weeks after we got back from Shiraz Janet and Butch arrived. It unfortunately was just a short visit, about 48 hours, since they were stopping at a number of places in the Middle East, but it was really good to see them. They flew in on the co. plane and we met them at the VIP pavilion at the airport. Janet and John were beside themselves. We dropped the group off at the Hilton since that was where they were staying and we went on home. They were supposed to join us half an hour later for dinner at the house but their driver got lost and they didn't show up until an hour and a half later. The children got to stay up late and see them. We had a quick dinner and then they went back to the hotel. It has been a long day for us since we had all gone to get a cat a Janet's school which had bitten her the day before. We arrived around 8 AM and picked up the cat. The problem was the only way to transport the cat was to swaddle it up in some rags very tightly and so I held it against the floor in the front seat for the half-hour trip to the Pasteur Institute where they have a rabies clinic. As we were getting out the cat got loose in the car and bit me. We were able to secure it and bring it inside. Janet and I both got tetanus and Diphtheria shots while the cat was put in a cage for observation. I originally offered my arm for the shot but the nurse said no-so I bent over the table in the dispensary while Arshak the driver laughed his head off and people passed to and front in front of the wide-open double doors. That took all morning and so we then went and had lunch at the office. Carol took the children home to change and clean up and then right off to the airport. So it was a long day.
The day after Janet and Butch arrived Carol spent the day shopping and sightseeing with her mother while I went off to work. That evening we were invited to attend the dinner given in their honor by Mr. Ansary the head of the Iranian Oil Co. It was quite a dinner, from the caviar appetizer to the gold serving dishes which were used on the table. Real gold not just trim. After that we all trooped downstairs to the movie theater. It was a large room with plush easy chairs and coffee tables. We watched The Parallax View a 1974 movie while waiters passed around dessert, coffee and brandy.
The following day the Texas party was off to Saudi, etc. and we went back to our normal everyday lives. The days are full for all of us. We all more or less troop out of the house around 8:00 AM, me to work, Janet on her bus to school, John with me to school and Carol to her language classes. The nice part of the work over here is that I usually finish work around 4:30 and then get home by 5. During summer the hours are shorter 7 AM to 2:30. Here the family gets to be together for a few hours before the children go to bed instead of the way it was in NY, getting home in time to say goodnight.
Right after Janet and Butch left my immediate superior and the former representative here arrived to make calls on our customers. Since he had only given me two weeks' notice and since hotel room is at a premium we couldn't get him a room, so he stayed at the house. He was here for a week and after calls all day long and entertaining in the evening we were at the end of our tolerance when he left. He was easy to have as a guest but just the weeks leading up to the visit had been so busy that we were both exhausted. So we took off for Kerman in the Southeast for a long weekend.
Kerman is a city on the edge of the great desert which fills much of central Iran. It is normally very dry but it was raining when we arrived. We caught a 6 AM flight from Tehran (one hour) and got in in time to spend most of the day in the bazaar. Kerman itself is not all that interesting. At least from the point of view of finding interesting buildings. But the Bazaar was fun and Carol and another Carol (a friend of ours) found a man selling old pattern cards for Kerman carpets. These are cardboard cards with graph paper attached on which are painted the designs of the carpets. They are used by the weavers to count their stitches and put the wool in the right place. They are really pretty. Carol was able to find about six cards which fit together and formed the quarter section of a carpet. We plan to paste them together and have them framed.
We rented a car and took our two children plus Carol Nasr and her two children down to Mahan which is a small town about 30 miles from Kerman. It is in the middle of a desolate valley which stretches SE from Kerman. It is set against snow covered mountains and is a real oasis. There is a sanctuary there composed of an inner and outer garden and the mausoleum which is incredibly beautiful. In the middle of a brown desert are green trees, water and a blue dome on the mausoleum together with minarets. [If you ever get a chance and would like to see really outstanding pictures of Iran you should get a book called Persia: Bridge of Turquoise by RoloffBeny. It's expensive but the pictures are incredible.] If anyone gets it I will refer to specific pictures when writing about specific trips. I would especially recommend it for you since you plan to come out. It will give you a better feel for the place.
After Mahan we went down to Barn which is about 200 kilometers from Kerman. It has an I 8th century citadel and mud-walled town which are now deserted but which are enormously photogenic not to say fun for the children to climb up and down. You won't believe the things Janet and John will now climb up and down and over. They are becoming little mountain goats.
We stayed on in Kerman for another day or two, one of which was spent in the hotel because it rained all day and the other day just poking around the city and seeing some of the sights. The desert is dramatic and the air is so clear. It was nice to get away from Tehran for a few days.
When we got back we were into the swing of things again. Receptions or parties three or four nights a week plus luncheons etc. It is really a pretty rough pace over here. While we enjoy our trips so far they have not been that frequent. Besides you find you really need to get away from all the pressures. Claire's letter made a mention of the fact that I was really enjoying myself while Carol must be lonely. It's true I am enjoying myself but Carol's problem is getting enough time to herself. There is so much to learn here and each day goes by so quickly, we can hardly believe it has been seven months. We are both meeting new people all the time and making new friends. Because we are all out here in a strange place together it seems easier to break through the formalities you go through in the States at parties and get to know people. I think we both feel comfortable enough now to walk into a reception now and start meeting people for the first time. It's something I couldn't have done last fall but you learn fast here.
When we arrived we were in lots of situations where we walked into a room of I 00 or 200 people, not knowing a soul. Since my job calls for meeting people, off we went making the circuit. We have made some really good friends and have enjoyed some good times with them. Besides as a family we are closer because we spend more time together.
Following our return from Kerman I had the head of our merchant bank here for five days. Turned out he knew Janet and Butch for 25 years so it became old home week. He and his wife (both English) had a good time. Ten days later we left for a vacation in Turkey. It seems as if we do nothing but travel. We do a lot but for us they are the high points and I write about them more often.
I will write about the Turkey trip in the next letter, this one has dragged on long enough and I want to get it mailed. The pictures really go with the last letter since they are Shiraz and Persepolis. Next letter I will try and get some more in. (The pictures are poor quality. They were made from slides but they didn't do a very good job, the colors are too washed out.)
Love to all,
Peter, Carol, Janet, John
It seems we have segregated letters-mine get circulated among Granvilles, Cooneys and Evans. Peter thinks the first part of Oct. would be good-the weather is super-when we got here the 20th of September it was still very hot. Now spring is in full swing and Tehran couldn't be lovelier (i.e. the leaves on the trees aren't caked with dust yet)-in another month it will be blast furnace.
Your trip, October 12, 13, 14 P. has a long weekend which we could stretch out on a trip. (John Booth too?)
Just got back from Roudaki Hall where we had dinner and saw Marcel Marceau perform.
Carol and Ali Nasr went with us. Super evening.
Miss you-much love
We crossed with Mr. Hyde on the Queen Mary some years ago.
March 18, 1978
Dear Janet and Butch,
Would you believe it? There we were, my wife and I, in that difficult city Tehran; my fourth visit, Pat's first. Being now so dreadfully old (and so senior? Isn't it awful?) we were met by Peter Blyberg-a very serious young man; I thought I'd have to be careful not to be flippant-and he produced his wife. You have met her, I understand! Pat and I think she's absolutely super; she took Pat around museum after museum using her Farsi (and her dishy looks!) to extract all kinds of privileged information from the captivated Persians. And she and Peter showed us the Iranian countryside, culture, restaurants and life generally which less fortunately guided visitors might take years to see. They are a delightful couple who brought us a vivid ray of sunshine following, as it happens, many months of darkness, you must be proud of them.
When I visited you in Darien 25 years ago, was there a little girl of 5 or 6 running around? In any event, I have struck a bargain with Carol and Peter that a quarter of a century hence they will tell me where their little daughter Janet is living-and I'll be off there like a shot.
We ourselves must meet again before long. I do hope you are both well. Best regards from Pat and me.
Sincerely, John (Hyde)
April 2, 1978
Dear Mom and Dad,
Am attempting to start a letter of sorts-we've been crawling over ruins for two weeks and at the end of each day we were exhausted-the thought of a literary effort on any level was beyond us! We have seen so much-walked miles and haven't even made a dent in what there is to see here. At the moment we are back in Istanbul (one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen)--our first stop was here-then to Antalya on the Mediterranean. Alanya. Kusadasi on the Aegean a jewel of a little city with a wealth of ruins-Ephesus which is probably the most spectacular of all because of its size and because it is so intact, the old streets are still exactly as they were and the house where the Virgin Mary died is there although rebuilt. My favorite was Termessos which is in the mountains and involves some climbing. It dates back to 500 years
B.C. with extensive ruins. We went there on a cold and cloudy day. It was nearly deserted and as the mist wrapped itself around us and the ruins all I could think of were the ghosts of the past. Termessos was never taken or conquered because of its high location and sheer cliffs. In many ways the ruins were an incongruous sort of homecoming in a Muslim country-St. Paul preached in the theater at Ephesus. Philip martyred at Hierapolis-also at Denizli we swam in the hot springs which we all loved-the weather has been cold and damp so getting out was torturous. Turkey is beautiful and shines with cleanliness after Iran! Their fruits and vegs abundant, gorgeous-every little market a work of art. We never worried about eating anything-even little bazaar restaurants had delicious food. Many times we stayed in places without heat, hot water and electricity is cut off for part of the day in most places but they were always spotless. The Turks are hardworking joyful people-they have very little but they knock themselves bonkers to make you happy and to be helpful. This morning we left Izmir which was lovely because there especially we were adopted by someone at every turn. A shopkeeper directed us to a pleasant hotel, a Turkish English teacher we met on a ferry boat ride (we had been promising John) insisted we join him afterwards in a cafe for baklava and this afternoon we picnicked at the foot of the temple of Zeus at Pergamon with a pleasant family-we can't speak Turkish and they knew no English at all but they wouldn't rest until we had shared their bread and homemade cheese with them. It was probably the most delicious meal we've ever had.
Peter took several Polaroid pictures and gave them to the family which they loved-although initially they were very nervous about it. Naturally John is the main attraction. People just go crazy over him. Those are highlights-I could go on for pages.
Janet, with her usual total recall has learned a tremendous amount-she's a good traveler and I think we could take her anywhere in the world-especially now that she's gotten over Middle Eastern crowds and smells-although Turkey smells right. There isn't a field that isn't covered with wildflowers, wild mint and thyme. The whole country smells like a gourmet kitchen. John, with his short fuse, is a little more difficult-and he tires-and Janet never does but his little legs have covered miles too.
Your visit to Tehran was wonderful-like so many of your visits in the past, it was a tease-never long enough! It was not possible to sit down and write after you left but I'll explain that later. Many many thanks for the peanut butter, baking soda, cream rinse, shampoo, John's truck, Janet's doll and on and on-baker's chocolate. They are greatly appreciated by all-even Essie has developed a fondness for peanut butter sandwiches-peanut butter, I think, could bridge the cultures of the world. We were so happy to be included in all that you did loved it although the net results was that time flew by faster than ever. We miss you very much.
And now later-at the moment we're sitting in the Istanbul airport for several hours Pan Am oversold their seats in Rome so most of the people here got knocked off the flight-us included even though we were here an hour before the flight and confirmed early this morning-but on the bright side you might just get a letter out of it. Whoever said travelling was glamorous???
We did some shopping this morning-things to buy are copper, brass and particularly leather and suede which is a very good buy and of good quality-and evil eyes-shopkeepers gave Janet and John enough evil eyes to last them a lifetime! Old Iranian copper is much better-but we did find an old (140 year) Islamic bowl, signed and dated which is lovely-prices here are better.
As you know we had Chemical people coming through right after you left-the surprising part (which at this point shouldn't surprise me at all) is that John and Pat Hyde know you and think the world of you. They were delighted with the reunion and we adored them.
Peter made a quarter of the appointments John wanted and they were unable to get to some of those as Tehran traffic was worse than ever (even with Arshak's skills-and he knocked himself out in the colossal effort of getting from one place to another) all due to the frenzy of Nowruz shopping. I've never seen the city so crazy. Goli and Amir were off the wall with excitement more on that later. Anyway it didn't matter as Pat and John's trip was less business and more of a departure from their past year and a new beginning. I don't know if you heard their 17-year old son Tim was killed in an automobile accident last spring. He was with four other friends and he was sitting next to the driver, the other four walked away from the wreck. Pat apparently collapsed and was unable to resume any sort of normal life for a long time. They were marvelous here and we took them everywhere-to the mountains-Golestan Palace etc. etc. (possible because half their stay was over the Iranian weekend). I also took Pat to the Cultural Museum which is interesting because they have workshops there with people demonstrating how the work is done. I got in a conversation in Farsi quite by accident with the man who was doing the fabrics the Shahbanu wears on state occasions. He brought out his entire portfolio of the original swatches and photos of the occasions for us to see. Pat and J were thrilled. J also thought it was neat the Shahbanu wears local handicrafts. They were gorgeous-showy-but gorgeous. Anyway we gave them a lot of TLC which was easy to do because they are so sweet. After they left we collapsed-and four or five days later we were in Istanbul! (We're still in Istanbul!)
On the last Tuesday before the new year it is an Iranian tradition to build fires at night and the people jump over them-a symbolic gesture of leaving the old year behind and beginning a new one. Actually these fires are more like bonfires and they leap through them rather than over them-usually three or four fires in a row. This we did with Goli and Amir and afterwards went downstairs for a spread of oranges, shirini (assorted cookies, candies and nuts)-and they gorge themselves on this stuff-and we had to too. Never felt so revoltingly yucky in my life-but it was a first-so. J and J loved all the gluck. At least we probably walked it off in Turkey. Every day we had a daily parade through our kitchen of new clothes, new shoes and on and on. It's a nice time of year-despite the crowds, because everybody is festive and happy. There were lots of school celebrations and the children had a ball everybody gets substantial tips-and I mean everybody-the garbage man, Janet's bus badgi, all the little maids at the children's schools and on and on.
Received news that John has been accepted at Janet's school next year-he'll be able to ride the bus and that will make life a lot easier-it will be nice for the two of them too, I think.
And now for what seems like ancient history is our Kerman and Barn trip-a long weekend we took after you left. There was some sort of religious holiday-the birthday of the prophet-remember it was a happy one. Kerman is a desert town and what is really worth seeing is a little town next to it called Mahon. The air and sky is crystal clear and it has a complex of some of the most beautiful Islamic architecture I've seen. The gardens too were breathtakingly lovely-total peace. Nearby was an old summer palace and garden-also lovely. Then we went on to Barn-not so old (1750) compared to what we have recently seen but fascinating-it is the ruins of a mud town and fortress-it goes on and on and the children loved the exploring and climbing. The town is surrounded by date palms and is lovely. The Iranian families we met were really sweet-although Kerman Farsi is very difficult to understand.
Just saw Iran Air arrive so I'll start to gather things and people. (later) As always it's a crunch but my handy canvas bag full of copper (the bowl is quite heavy) is useful in an Iranian crowd. Janet used to be horrified by this but she can butt ahead like a little bull now. We are also on board with Ann and John Nelson and their two little boys-we met and separated according to various interests during the trip. The built-in playmate situation at the airport today was a godsend!
As far as I know we should be in one place for awhile probably picnics on weekends.
We have a car now! A Peykan station wagon which we haven't had a chance to drive. We got it a few days before we left and the registration the day before we left. l drove it around the block and it's fun, it's a little car and easy to handle. John was delighted, he climbed up on the roof (of car) and stayed there for several hours. The one thing we've really missed are spur of the moment trips-to a friend's house or even a drug store.
Home safely now-J and J in bed-pooped! Knew the other interim activity I'd forgotten was Les Anderson's visit-he arrived the day after you left and we had a big dinner party-went well.
That's all, I want this to go in the pouch tomorrow-Peter just went through the pouches here seems there's a lot coming up but will save that for another time.
Please send this on to Fred. He sent pictures of his duplex-it's really attractive. It's funny to think of Fred having tenants.
Lots of love to all,
Carol, Peter, J.C. and John
May 1-2, 1978
Dear Mom and Dad,
Want to take a minute to catch up with you before we really get into May-which is solid!
Dad, thank you for your thoughtful (and informative) letter to Peter. It was especially nice hearing of Peter's promotions from you and only the other day did he receive a letter from Mr. Leblond saying-yes, it's true! We're thrilled-and Texaco said it first! I have to say that Peter is really happy with his work-in spite of phone calls at all hours and the 10-kilo pile of stuff he drags home every night. He would be the first one to say that doing business in Iran is never dull! Neither is living here for that matter.
April has been a nice month with few social engagements-an aftermath of Nowruz.
John had a super birthday party which he loved. I had a bunch of little people here for lunch and a treasure hunt-in the garden (now laden with roses!) Some of the mothers stayed for cake and coffee-I made them a separate cake-but while it was on the counter Peter opened a cupboard and a can fell on it. John was total contentment and the day after he climbed in bed with us and announced he'd stay here for four years. One Christmas and one birthday usually seems to do the trick. His Farsi is unbelievable-fluent-he even gets his tenses right.
We went on an outstanding picnic two weeks ago-way up in the mountains-the dirt track we drove up to get there was something else. I'll spare you and not describe it! The weather was sunny and warm. We picnicked in an apple orchard in full bloom and snow all around which the children played in. Above us perched on a high cliff was an old Mongol castle.
Gorgeous-nearby was a charming village on steppes going down the mountain. Needless to say they've never seen electricity or running water. The children gave us a great reception as we drove past. The little Peykan does a good job getting us around. I have been driving some. It feels good and as though I have a little more control over my life. I hated having to always depend on Arshak and taxis.
Have spent a lot of time studying Farsi-I had hit a slump for while with it but I feel like the pieces are beginning to fall into place. Thanks to Goli I have a startling vocabulary-if not complete-at least startling! At least it's better than when you were here. I met a very funny and sweet Iranian (her name is Iran) at school and we get together for tea and speak Farsi and I help her with her English homework. She's really delightful and when we're talking I don't even realize it's in Farsi which was the first real breakthrough for me. We tarof (Iranian manners-or social custom-difficult to describe like crazy, much bringing of flowers and candy and I get to say neat stuff like "Goiban-etun" (I am your sacrifice.) It's a gas.
Was able to find a few spring things at a little boutique run by Iranian unwed mothers it's a charming place. For patronizing it Arshak says God will surely love me.
Had my teeth cleaned today and they are in good shape.
We leave this weekend for Yazd-a desert town in central Iran. It sounds like a fascinating place-a large colony of Zoroastrians live there and there are temples to be seen and towers of silence (large domes on which they expose their dead so as not to pollute the elements of fire, water and earth). We're going with J and J, our friend Nick Lampshire and another couple and their children. Unfortunately lots of new GTE people have been coming in and Ann and John Nelson are totally involved in getting them adjusted. Ann and I get quick phone calls in whenever we can-sort of like what our May will be.
On the 12th of May we leave for Bahrain for a week-it's an area Chemical Bank meeting. J and J will stay home, a teacher from Ann's school will come and stay with them. Goli and Amir would probably be quite capable of taking care of them but I want some one who speaks English for that length of time and also they would never discipline the children'. I told Goli that this woman is lonely, has never married and this will be sort of a vacation for her and since she is a friend of Xanome Nelson's they approved. G and I are really quite possessive with Janet and John. The people who are going to Bahrain are all Middle East representatives most of whom I've met plus some other people from New York-all interesting-all characters. We look forward to seeing them again. After the meeting we'll have more Chemical people arriving in Tehran and Peter will be bouncing around the country plus a trip to Turkey which he also covers. The days between Yazd and Bahrain are few but packed. Somewhere in there we're taking the Oranges to Roudaki Hall for a performance and dinner in the rooftop restaurant there. They haven't had an opportunity to go there yet and it's really lovely. Several weeks ago we took Carol and Ali Nasr there to see Marcel Marceau who was absolutely fantastic.
If I ever write a book in Iran I will call it "Goli'isms." I have really grown to love her dearly and she is probably one of the funniest people on earth-unfortunately her antics get lost in translation. Last week Amir's 95-year-old uncle came for dinner (the most incredibly marvelous looking old man you ever saw)-he's from Tabriz, speaks Turkish, has five wives none of whom, out of respect, have ever been allowed to speak to him. Goli was in the same boat, she had to keep her chador on tightly clenched in her teeth and was not allowed to eat with Amir and the uncle. She hated every minute of it but when she came up she said to me, "Oh well, it doesn't matter. He's 95 and he'll probably die tomorrow-if not tomorrow "past Farda" (the day after). Several weeks before another Tabrizi family (relatives of Amir's) arrived and really drove Goli nuts, they being unused and skeptical of indoor plumbing. She was out hosing the garden down for obvious reasons-it seemed every five minutes. On top of that Soraya, the wife, has never liked Goli because she wanted Amir to marry her sister instead. A daughter of Soraya's had very teary eyes being unused to Tehran pollution so I applied some murine which cleared them up beautifully and Soraya spent the rest of her time dragging up inedibles for us. We have a unique vantage point of Iranian life and I just sit back and enjoy.
Have become, more or less, the substitute mother and confidant of the two A.F.S. students here in Iran. They are two 17-year-old girls who have cheerfully put up with an awful lot. I met them in my Farsi class and have enjoyed them tremendously. Being single, American and 17 in Iran is difficult to say the least but they are so funny, refreshingly American and I will miss them when they go home this summer. One of them came over and helped out on John's birthday. J and J adored her.
Janet has become the hotshot marble player at school Yesterday she finally came home with a "bonker"-big day! She's become acutely conscious of her height, hair, clothes etc.-it's like having a midget teenager in the house.
Must go pull my act together, I have clothes to wash, iron and pack before we leave for Yazd tomorrow.
Am enclosing some pictures-one of Stonehenge, the others from Persepolis-one from Turkey. The slides were good but the prints they make here are horrible.
Please send this on to Fred-I never seem to get beyond group letters but the days zoom by. Fred, I think of you so much and miss you terribly.
Dad, again, thank you for your letter, it was the nicest way to hear Peter's news I can think of!
Fred, good line for you-
"Xodetun, goli ye." You, yourself are a flower!
Much love to all, Carol
Forgot to mention-Ann Blyberg is getting married this weekend-to Jim who goes back to Berkeley days. The wedding is in Seattle-the whole family is meeting there-we spoke with Ann a week or so ago on the phone. She said she really doesn't appreciate Ame calling her a blushing bride. I wanted to write the announcement-"The bride, a vegetarian, wore green...................... "
Much love, C.
Dear Dad and Marjorie,
Have just received your long letter about the wedding and your trip out west. It sounds as if everyone had a good time. I'm glad the weather as good for the wedding. We are all looking forward to seeing the pictures when they come out. Carol and I both wish we could have been there. I'm glad the problem of the missing letters is solved.
I forgot where I left off last time. I'm not sure that I wrote about Turkey or not.
Assuming that I did I will only give a brief summary of the trip and then pick up after our return at the beginning of April. Turkey was great, everything was so green after corning from Iran.
We had fish every day and despite the on and off again weather we had a really good time climbing over ruins and along beaches. Unfortunately my eight rolls of film were reduced to two by the local film developer. It's a real shame because some of them were really good.
After we got back things were slow for a week or two then they started moving again.
We finally got a car so we are more mobile on the weekends and do not have to rely so much on our driver Arshak. It is a small station wagon, the local name is Peykan but it's really a British Hillman produced in Iran.
We got the good news from Janet's school that John can attend next year. So that means they can both go off in the bus together although John will come home at noon while Janet stays on until 4:00. That simplifies matters since John's school had no school bus this year and I had to take him in the morning and Arshak would pick him up at noon.
At the beginning of May Carol and J travelled to Bahrain. The bank had a regional conference there so Carol and I both went. It was interesting to see but I don't think I would want to live there. It's just a small island and after a two-hour tour there is nothing left to do. Apparently the big thing to do is to go to the Sheikh's beach on Friday and walk up and down. the sheikh sits there watching the girls and handing out free Cokes to one and all who stop and pay their respects.
It was nice for the two of us to get away even though J had to work al I day. However we partied in the evening. We have a good group in the Middle East territory and everyone had a great time. The food was really good, it's all flown in and fresh including the beef from Colorado. On Carol's birthday I had arranged for about seven or eight of us to go to the Gulf Hotel which is near our own. The food is really good there and they have a band. I had also arranged to have a birthday cake made as a surprise. Well we finally ended up being 19 people. And so when we toasted happy birthday to Carol we had I 8 people standing singing happy birthday (and we had three birthday cakes!). We ended up dancing until about I :30 or 2 AM. Another night we had a barbeque around the pool and needless to say a few people got thrown in. One friend borrowed the club's towel and went back to the Hilton dressed in a towel. He walked through the lobby, slightly damp with just a towel on.
On the way back from Bahrain we stopped overnight in Shiraz. We wanted to go to Shapur which is the former Sasanian capital of Iran. It is an enormous ruin covering several square kilometers but only a fraction of which has been excavated. It was really hot and a two hour drive from Shiraz but the drive was really incredibly beautiful.
We were waiting at the Shiraz airport for our flight when Carol got into a conversation with an American woman who was standing in the mob scene. The woman out of the blue asked if she were Carol Blyberg. It seems that she and her husband had just come from Tehran and had tried to contact us there-they were friends of Carol's parents and were travelling through the Middle East. Our flight took off before theirs, which was delayed three hours but it was really amazing how small the world has really become when you meet someone by accident in Shiraz airport who was given your name in L.S.
Tehran periodically gets to be too much to take so we generally take off on one of our trips. Tehran is like New York City-the pace of life is so hectic, people are always in a rush, there are too many foreigners so the Iranians can't be that nice and it is a grubby, dusty and hot place. Toward the end of May we got to the breaking point again and so we took off for Yazd. Yazd is an old city on the edge of the Great Salt desert. It is the Zoroastrian center of Iran and still has a large Zoroastrian population. It even has several "towers of silence," the towers in which they would expose their dead to be eaten by the crows and vultures. We visited two just outside of the city and I got up into one by climbing the walls. Nothing is left today but the center was filled with gravel and just plain barren.
We went in a real entourage. We have some good friends here who have four children, the oldest five years old and the youngest is three months. They came along, together with their Iranian housekeeper. We also had another friend, the one who went to Shiraz with us, Nick Lampshire and another couple who drove down, while we all flew. We spent three days in Yazd and had a great time. We wandered through mosques, bazaars, old buildings, down alleyways, up onto roofs and over walls. We saw the last of the hand looms in action. One guidebook we used mentioned a whole area of weavers and we spent two hours trying to find them, when we finally found the spot they were gone, having been replaced by a factory outside of town.
We went way up into the mountains to a valley hidden about 3,000 feet up. We had a picnic there in the garden of the taxi driver's father's house. (We used two taxis for the time we were there.) We had brought all our picnic stuff and had a great time. The children waded in a pool that was in the middle of the garden, or at least until John cut his toe open on a broken bottle. So everyone gathered around to give first aid (we even have a picture) and quiet John down. We trundled back to our model in Yazd tired and happy though. Our motel was really a series of bungalows set in a really pretty garden. The restaurant was in a separate building and so we would all tramp there for breakfast and dinner. We were all sorry to leave Yazd but will probably be back since it really is so beautiful.
This brings me up to the beginning of June. And since I have been writing this letter since early June and it is now July I think I had better end it and get it in the mail since it has been a long time since I last wrote. Let me fill you in on our plans for the home leave though.
We plan to leave here August 7 or 8, stop in Frankfort for a day and then go on to N.Y. We will be staying at Carol's parents in Greenwich. I plan on coming back here on the 7th of September and Carol may stay a day or two longer. During the time we are in Conn we all have various doctor and dentist appointments. I am not sure when we will get to Canada or Washington but we will get there. Once we have seen the appointment schedule then we can set our visit schedule. It may have to wait until we actually get there. When we see you we can talk about what you should bring with you. It will still be warm here with cool nights. We can also set an agenda of where you would like to go so we can make arrangements between when we get back and you arrive. If you let us know what sort of things you are interested in buying we can do some scouting beforehand. I will try to write once more before we leave to fill in between June and August. Sorry for the delay in the letter but things have really been hectic and there is just never enough time to do anything.
If there is anything you want us to bring back (other than pistachios and caviar) let us know. We are all looking forward to seeing everyone and I'm sure you'll be amazed at how Janet and John have grown.
Much love to all, Peter
P.S. Please thank Claire for her really nice letter about the wedding etc.
July 6, 1978
Dear Mom and Dad,
It was good to talk to you on the 20th-and we had wanted to wish you a happy Father's Day too-Dad. J and J are beginning to realize it won't be long till we see you and they are counting the days. Janet does say she likes chelo kebab better than hamburgers and she will miss having that when we're in the States-John will simply wonder why there's no sheep in the street. Appreciate you're making all our appointments-if you have a chance could you drop us a line so we'll have an idea when they are and we can clue in the rest of the family as to when we might be able to see them.
We've had a peaceful week or so-not counting stomach and intestinal problems which had had us and everyone we know down-mostly due to the fact that the hot weather has really set in eggs are never refrigerated-usually they sit in the storekeeper's window-milk seldom-and meat arrives in its original form, minus the skin in the back of a pickup truck. But without all that the traffic would be even worse.
Yesterday we went with another family (good New York Catholics-of children under the age of five-after delivering the last one in Iran Marie had her tubes tied) to Qazvin-two hours of hairy driving from Tehran.
Qazvin was the first disappointing town we've been to. Weird people with an obvious dislike for foreigners-we had heard the bazaar was good there but all in all that was a bust. However in Qazvin there is a Qaiu lmamzadeh (burial place for descendants of the original 12 Imams-there are many of these all over the country-the structures range from modest simplicity to flashy). This one was flashy in the best sense of the word-dazzling tile work, mirrored tiles, like you saw in the Golestan Palace painted ceiling and so on. The Iranian ladies walk around the grilled enclosure kissing every inch of it and weeping and walk out backwards. The people there really were nice and one young boy hopped on his bike and went home to borrow his mother's chador so I could go in and see the tomb. There was also a man and his family from Ahwaz on vacation who took a liking to our children and wanted to line them all up with his children for a picture-john draws crowds anyway-well you should have seen this one! After that we went to see the Friday Mosque-that is everyone but John and I. Outside there was a fruit market and John made friends with a little boy who had a baby goat and lamb and they played with the animals and had such a good time until the baby goat decided to butt John all around the market. The old bazaaris nearly killed themselves laughing and even John didn't mind too much. When everyone came out of the mosque I was happily stocking up on peaches and tomatoes. So after all that plus a picnic we left for home and crossed Qazvin off our list of places to see. The town is really a dump-unlike Yazd which was gorgeous and charming in every way. Today J and J were really wiped out-we did a little shopping this morning and took them to the club for an early dinner and a swim.
The Pars American Club lacks (totally) style or class and short of actual murder there are no rules-I'd never bring a guest to dinner there! It's super for the children however, there's an enormous pool (swimming lessons every morning), ratty playground which the children love and John can bring his trike and ride it anywhere he wants. It's also very close to our house and I can drive there easily. That's where I am every morning-Janet has loved her swimming lessons and is doing beautifully-John will do everything his teacher asks him to do but steadfastly refuses to go in water over his head. At first he didn't even want to stay with his class but I told him he couldn't have any popsicles if he didn't-an outright bribe. Over the weeks he's developed an easy and happy relationship with his teacher and he enjoys it now. He makes it difficult at times because he never starts anything new without a fight. At the moment he desperately misses Gali who has left with Amir and Essie for their two-week vacation to Tabriz. Marie suggested to just pile the dishes up in the kitchen and spray now and then. The house could look worse and Peter is helpful in keeping it up, especially with the watering which has to be done every day. It's peaceful with just the four of us, social events are down to nil and all in all it's a pleasant lull but looking ahead September and October are solid. People are leaving town now in packs but really the heat is not too bad-unless you are driving downtown, in the pollution in the stop and start traffic, in which case it's horrible and you immediately think you are going to throw up. Tehran smells don't bother us as much as they did when we first came-in fact we hardly notice them. In fact Peter and I were saying the whole place seems pretty ordinary now that we know our way about and what people are saying and we don't realize how different it is until someone new comes to town.
Janet has lost her first tooth-a week ago and together with a good tan, lots of freckles and short hair looks adorable. She spent the day she lost her tooth debating whether or not the tooth fairy would leave American money or rials-practical little beast.
I told her that in Iran she'd have to call the tooth fairy the "pariye dandeen" and it would probably leave rials-it did. She dug out the little tooth box you gave her and was thrilled the next morning. She's really a love and has grown up so fast this year-I love it when she dials her friend Shiva all by herself and then asks for her in Farsi. I think both children have really learned to cope. John's latest is, "Mommy if you'll do (such and such), I'll (put on my shoes, eat breakfast, pick up my room etc.)-is that fair enough?"
Sorry it's been so long between letters-I hate to write in the middle of everybody throwing up--it sounds so dreary!
Much love to all. Carol
July 15, 1978
Dear Mom and Dad,
Thank you for the list of apts.-that helps a lot-home leave is flying by too fast already! A few things have changed-we are now leaving August 8th A.M. for Frankfurt where Peter has some business to do and will be there till August 10th when we leave for N.Y. arriving at 2:30 in the afternoon. I don't have to tell you we'll get out to the house as quickly as possible! Now Peter must go to London September 5th and then back to Tehran for a Melli Bank reception which N.Y. Chemical people will also be arriving in Tehran for-but I plan to satay on in Conn-ti I possibly the 1ot 11th of September depending on you and Dad and Fred-then J and J and I will fly straight through to Tehran. Hope that's O.K. with you. Then Janet will have four or five days to get herself straightened out before school starts and John doesn't start until the following week.
Goli and Amir have finally come back from Tabriz-much to Goli's delight since Amir's family still wash all their clothes in the jube. She said life here is much easier. They arrived in the middle of an impromptu breakfast we were having so suddenly the household seemed normal again. J and J, of course, were overjoyed. We were having breakfast for Dick Mautner who had just dropped his wife, Marie and four children off at the airport (home leave) with Ann Nelson and her two boys-so John Nelson came for breakfast plus Nick Lampshire who is not married and a frequent trip mate of ours and who frequently does come for breakfast anyway plus Pari and Peter Banko-who are bankers. (Confusing?) Peter is American, Pari, Iranian-really enjoyable people. Breakfast lasted until 2:00 in the afternoon and at 4:00 we somehow all wound up around the Banko's pool. They have a little boy John's age which is super! The night before we all went to Arshak's house for dinner-(you remember our driver) which was a lovely, warm and to say the least, enormous family gathering. No English spoken at all and J and J had the time of their lives with all of Arshak's grandchildren. They are all Armenian-fabulous people. The food was unbelievable and I've never seen such well-scrubbed people or such a spotless house in my life.
By now you are back from Wilmington-I was glad you were going from there to the Giffords, which I'm sure was relaxing and friendly. Aunt Alice, whenever more of Nana's household is being parceled out, gets extremely depressed. These household goodies represent or are I should say tangible proof of her mother's love for her which even now she feels insecure in. So when a favorite or valuable piece goes to another sister she agonizes not so much over the thing but what it symbolizes to her and it hurts her to think one sister has more love given (if you will) than the others. She's mentioned this many times in one form or another and it's really sad, I'm not sure it can be resolved. Anyway I hope it wasn't too bad.
We are finally sitting around smelling soapy and feeling clean after several days of no hot water-typical. I think Goli and I will harass some realtors soon just to see what's around.
Tehran rents have gone down considerably since we rented this place and we may even save Chemical a bundle ifwe come up with something good. If we can't find anything that's O.K. too. It definitely has to be in the same area though since the children have such a nice short commute to school.
I'm going to take my clean body and put it to bed!
Lots and lots of love, Carol
July 24, 1978
Dear Nancy and Jack,
Thank you (I think) for the clippings from House Beautiful-I had an immediate case of rampant nostalgia. There is nothing in Iran that comes close. Now we collect donkey bags (the weaving is beautiful), assorted copper and 1,000-year-old pots-the latter becoming a habit hard to break. All of it stashed in the marble jumble we call home.
We can scarcely wait to see you-staying at Mom's will be so near. We hadn't heard you were working for the NY Times. Aside from a super job you're putting together a remarkable resume! If it's any consolation--everybody in Iran works on Saturdays. In fact, weekends and holidays sort of slide by-we celebrated Easter on a Friday two weeks after the fact-tacky. We have been reading about the East Wing at the National and will probably see it this summer-actually-for sure we'll see it but in Farsi everything is conditional-another habit hard to break-when Peter comes home from work the format is "God willing, I'll fix dinner-." He needs to get out for a while-it's a fascinating job and place to live-but laced with frustrations and right now a change of pace is essential-2 ½ more weeks with a short stopover in Frankfurt so he can scream at the people who never answer his telexes.
It's true that news of lran sounds terrible and there are problems here but truthfully there is little to see. Since the bazaar is a powerful political center we have avoided that area but really, I would rather be in Tehran than N.Y.C. Lately everybody-Iranians included, has had stomach problems-just when you get better and try to make plans to do something-zip. It's been quiet lately. We've had to cancel two trips although everybody is fine now.
Tehran is hot HOT. In the I 00's every day and the sun is relentless-dust in your ears, nose, mouth, and eyes. They are being crafty with the power cuts-we always have light (they did promise) but not enough power for handy items like refrigerators and washing machines which only work after 11:00 PM It's been a lazy summer-J and J have had swimming lessons every day and Janet has really taken off and has become a powerful little swimmer-grinning little imp with her front tooth out that she is. John has decided he doesn't like deep water and has regressed-always an amusing little devil-Peter caught him grilling cheese in his electric mosquito killer last night.
The bankers are doing their best to amuse themselves. Last week Peter went with a bunch of them tubing down the river in the Lar valley, several hours outside of Tehran.
Fabulous scenery he said as he came back looking as though he'd been parboiled. There are the usual pool parties and since we have the only maple syrup in Tehran-we do breakfast but most people have left on home leave-so that's back to pots which we prowl for on weekends. We were so culturally active this spring having discovered Roudaki Hall for the performing arts (and the edible steaks in the rooftop restaurant). There is a lot to do-but summer is a welcome change of pace-and you never have any rainy days.
We took a day's trip to Qazvin with another family-crazy drive with people zigging and zagging at unbelievable speeds the whole way. Qazvin is not my favorite spot (we realized we were picnicking in a goat graveyard when the wind changed) but it does have some fun flashy architecture (mirrored tiles-lots of gilt). In answer to your question-yes, on occasions such as these we wear those "awful black robes"-veils really, called chadors. Goli would not think of leaving the house without one and always has a scarf on her head if Peter is home. Lately her hands are bright red from dipping into the henna, which, according to Goli, is good for everything from changing your hair color to improving your microbes.
I am writing by the pool-John has dribbled ice cream on this and assorted children splashing-you could get "Tehran tummy" by just reading it.
The trick now is to gather the children from opposite ends of the pool, get them dressed and organized for hamburgers-lamb burgers, whatever they are-and then shopping. I know where I can get fresh chickens that smell right. Lately we've been overdosing on these gorgeous little yellow plums the Iranians call "aloo." I've never seen them before but right now the produce is gorgeous.
Can not wait to see you-love to you and Jack!
Carol
September 25, 1978
Dear Barbara,
You're probably thinking my manners are terrible-and you're right. Knowing you, you've read the news-we came home in the midst of utter confusion though not all necessarily related to current events here-Chemical Bank was here in force for the Bank Melli reception and Peter was running around like a crazy person with them trying to ignore the obvious side effects of jet lag. Meanwhile Mom and Dad were in a snit calling everywhere trying to find out what was going on (the children and I having stayed on in Conn. after Peter left)-1 did, however, leave on schedule-took an all-night straight there flight-] and J were super except John developed a scary fever during the flight-never felt him as hot as that and yet he managed to help haul hand luggage, wait patiently while I collected suitcases, collar a porter and so on there was no way anyone could get into the airport to lend a hand-Arshak miraculously was able to meet us outside-he found me just as I was climbing into a cab. We got home and Goli and Amir and Essie just flew into our arms, two friends called who had been waiting for us to get in. Goli instantly produced tea and while I drank that I got my mind turned around to Farsi and felt more content and very much back at home. It breaks my heart to think of what has been going on here-and the worst of it now being the Tabas earthquake-20,000 dead-roughly one person out of every family survived-not only Tabas but perhaps 60 more villages-gone.
These people endure too much-Goli's sister who lives in South Tehran felt the shock, everything in her house rocked back and forth. And Tabas-we were going to go there this year. It was the most beautiful village in Iran-beautiful gardens and ancient architecture-all gone, nothing is left standing.
I won't even go into the political situation-first of all, you've probably read more than I have-rumors abound of course. Living where we do-there is not much to see-naturally soldiers everywhere and the curfew is strictly obeyed-that's been extended to midnight now.
Getting to bed early has not been a bad idea-parties simply started earlier. It's very bad for those who are poor i.e. women having babies int eh middle of the night are out of luck-that sort of thing. Contrary to rumors there is plenty of food. J and J started school on schedule and I have been back roughly two weeks and this weekend will be giving my second dinner party. In the midst of disasters everywhere. Life is incredibly normal.