A Perfect Hideaway - Sanchol, Mazandaran

The town and villages along the Caspian shores get very hot in Summer and some affluent Iranians would have a holiday home up the mountain to get away from the summer heat. Sanchol is a perfect hideaway on the mountains about an hour drive from Amol.  It was foggy on the day we drove up the winding road of Sanchol.  Ebrahim drove high enough until the other side of the mountain became visible with houses dotting the landscape.  We stopped the car and started climbing a few hundred meters on top of the highland...it was worth the effort when we saw the breathtaking view of the village from a distance.

We came across very few cars, the surrounding was peaceful with only birds chirping and the air was fresh and crisp .  There was a shepherd busy gathering hay for his horses and we walked over to the shepherd's hut to have a peek at his activities. My friend was talking to the man in Persian and he invited us for tea but we had to leave as it was getting late.  We then proceed to our friend's house on the highest peak of the village. From the balcony we had another perfect view of the rolling green hills and the valley.

Parvin and I prepared hot tea to be served with biscuits and nuts.  It was really unfortunate that we were not able to spend the night in Sanchol as we were leaving for Sanandaj the next morning. It was almost dusk when we left Sanchol to get back to Amol.

Public Bath

From the other side of the mountain

The village from a distance

Beautiful tree with its flowers scattering on the ground

We visited the shepherd's hut

The shepherd's hut

Holiday home in Sanchol

Traditional heater for extra heat on cold winter nights

The villager came to deliver fresh eggs, milk and turkey

The valley near the house

The valley

A Day at Caspian, Amol and Babolsar - Iran

Oranges in the housing area of Caspian

Caspian Sea

The guests and the host were equally tired after a very late night and we woke up at 10am to have breakfast.  Breakfast was simple with bread, yoghurt, cheese, honey, nuts and fruits. Tea (Chai) is almost compulsory in Iran and not even once did I drink coffee in Iran! Parvin packed some nuts and fruits and we were all ready for a visit to Caspian and the near by towns.

Although I was keen to visit Gilan in Masuleh, it was not possible because the journey would take 6 hours from Amol and we are leaving for Sanandaj the following day.   So we visited other towns near Amol and spent some times walking along the Caspian. The day was foggy when we visited Caspian Sea. It is known world wide for its rarest Beluga Sturgeons which produce the best caviar (fish roe) in the world but surprisingly we never find any caviar in Mazandaran. This delicacy fetches a high price of Euro 6,000 to Euro 12,000 per kilo and in some countries it is banned as a protest against the extinction of the fish. Caspian Sea produces 90% of the world’s caviar.

We visited an impressive housing area near Caspian sea where our friend resided few years ago and met some locals picking orange blossom. After a brief chat we proceed to Babolsar to attend a lunch party where we were invited by the host. There was huge amount of food on the table and the portion served was big and almost impossible to finish it. After the party, we browsed around the city and later went home to pick a few things before we left for Sanchol, a mountain village about an hour from Amol.

Orange Blossom

The ladies...after picking orange blossom

Housing area near the Caspian Sea

The area is full of flowers

Roses are famous among Iranians

 

                                    

The bridge in Babolsar

The city of Babolsar

Babolsar

Lunch Party - ladies' section 

The huge amount of rice and chicken per serving!

The rice and meat

We had Mazandaran ice cream in Amol