Iran, Ardabil 2023 - اردبیل رو با هم بگردیم
We are in Ardabil today For 2023, Ardabil is chosen as the tourism capital of ECO countries and right now we are on our way to a tourism area; Heyran which will be the first place we will visit in the following days ECO stands for Economic Cooperation Organization It's an Asian collaborative economic intergovernmental organization that was founded in 1984 by three countries; Iran, Turkey, and Pakistan In 1992, the ECO expanded to include 7 new countries; Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan They choose one city every year as their tourism capital and Ardabil was chosen as the tourism capital for 2023 We're on our way towards Heyran Mountain Pass Right now we're in an area where the fog starts Look at the climate and weather here, it's really good Mr. Vahid Malmeer This is an special journey It's really great The weather is really amazing the combination of fog, mist, and clouds; it's just really good We're now near the gondola lifts, we will get on one to go up and will record some footage up there, wish you guys were here We are on this trip, because the Ministry of Cultural Heritage invited us to visit the natural and historical landmarks of Ardabil together, in this video Second day, morning And we're near Heyran Pass again because yesterday we were unable to record any footage here This road goes right through the Fandoqlu Forest and there's this amazing green natural environment around us but yesterday we could not see any of it Sabalan Mount is visible from all sides and angles And these are hazelnuts forests of the area A vast plain, all hazelnut trees and forest before we reach the Heyran Pass and the lifts are up there, on top of the mountain, that's where we are going We are now on top of Heyran and the path you see is the famous Heyran mountain pass That part is in Azerbaijan There's a river there that is the border of Azerbaijan and Iran and down there, that's Gilan Province There's a border outpost there, which belongs to Azerbaijan - Mr. Faraji - Glad to be here Mr. Ali Thanks Mr. Vahid - Mr. Farhad - Hello
Mr. Ali, this is a Heyran Lift ticket for guests I'm proud to say that we are guests here Thanks a lot, appreciate that Heyran Mountain Pass is one of the most beautiful places in Iran one part of it is in Ardabil Province and one part is in Gilan Province One surprising thing I saw here, was the natural vegetation on the Azerbaijan side, because you cannot see any damage or buildings there But sadly on the Iranian side, the vegetation is less rich and dense Many parts and sections of the forests here were damaged and they are converted to farms or villas but thank God, construction is now prohibited in the area Our next destination, the border city of Anbaran which is 30 km away from Ardabil it's chosen as the National City of Kilim (kilim: a flat tapestry-woven carpet or rug) On the Heyran road, on our way back towards Ardabil, we found this store here which has many different types of kilim and other traditional items and the prices are really good! Incredible prices This is 75,000 toman (around 1~2 USD) This one 180,000 toman (around 2~4 USD) The prices are really good, really affordable (Kilim Vafa Store) Miss Nezarati: The kilim that I'm working on here, is a double-faced type of kilim This type can be woven using both wool yarn and acrylic fiber The pattern or design you are making here, where does it come from? What is its origin? This design is called Shirazi Design It's one of the Qashqai kilim designs how long does it take to make one? What size is it? The kilims woven here are 60x1 or 60x2 2 meters and 6 meters This one is a 2 meter kilim and it takes nearly 3 weeks to 1 month to weave it How much does it cost for like, per square meters? The 2 meter kilims, based on the design and the weaving type, using acrylic fiber, the prices start from 1,200,000 toman ($25) In Anbaran City, lots of women do weave kilims and this is how they earn their living mostly and in most of the homes here, lots of people, from 10-year-old girls, up to 70-year-olds, are working on and weaving kilims And most of the designs are instinctive and unscheduled So people don't weave based on some layout or chart? No, we don't weave based on charts or diagrams This is a hoff stick which is used to make the weaving more convenient In some villages, people don't use this stick What is its purpose? Since these kilims are double-faced, the weaving type is like this: One time, we have to cross the yarn through the bottom threads, and then once, on the top When we use this hoff stick, when we put pressure like this, from the top, the bottom threads would come on top - so makes it easier to weave - It adds some distance there Yes, correct In some villages that people don't use this hoff stick, they do it in an alternate fashion, top first, then bottom, and repeat They don't use this hoff stick After a short break, we're now visiting the Sheikh Safi Al-Din Ardabili's Shrine the great great-grandfather of King Ismail I (1501-1524), Sheikh Safi Al-Din was the leader of the Safavid order in Ardabil and later, during the time of Shah Ismail, the Safavid dynasty (1501-1736) was founded Sheikh Safi Ardabili was born in 1242, which is close to the period of Mongol invasion of Persia (1219-1258) He was born in Kalkhuran Village, Ardabil The Mongol invasion of Persia changed many things in Iran on social, political, economic, and religious fronts which made it possible for khanqahs and sheikhs to come to power and expand A khanqah was a place that dervish and sheikhs (elders) prayed and teach in At the time, Zahed Gilani's khanqah and after that, his successor, Sheikh Safi's khanqah in Ardabil, were the places that most people's beliefs, were close to The sheikhs had so much power that every sultan or wazir that wanted to rule the kingdom, must be supported by the sheikh of the khanqah I should add that the kings and wazirs, in order to attract the religious leaders, used to offer land to khanqahs and satisfy all the basic needs of sheikhs for free to get their support As the disciples of Sheikh Safi increased, and as his territory expanded, he successfully left a heritage that included the basic structure of a Shia dynasty for his descendants And it actually worked 132 years later, Shah Ismail I, founded the Safavid dynasty Miss Mirmohammadzadeh, guide: The Sheikh Safi al-Din Khanqah and Shrine Ensemble was registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010 The original foundation here was built nearly 700 years ago, during the Ilkhanate period (1256–1335) And it's really unique, considering the relics and artifacts we have here such as the tile work, the unique and special architecture of the place, and the plaster work and stucco and the paintings khatam-kari (khatam-work) and the crafts and works done on wood and metal The main sahn (courtyard) of the ensemble includes buildings, such as Darol Hadis, or Darol Motavali, the Janasara Mosque, Qandilkhane Hall, and the exterior of the Allah Allah Dome or Tower which dates back to the Ilkhanate period (1256–1335) and it's one of the characteristics of Iranian-Islamic architecture The inside of the Sheikh Safi al-Din's shrine, has a unique, special and beautiful architecture decorated by very beautiful and exquisite arts and patterns which date back to the Safavid period (1501-1736) Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili was a famous mystic, 700 years ago He was an influential Sufi master This place was his khanqah, where he used to guide and teach his disciples Sheikh Safi al-Din passed away 700 years ago and he was buried in his own khanqah, according to his will This place is known as the Sheikh Safi's Shrine and his mentorship and guidance, was transferred to his descendants The shrine of Sheikh Safi was much bigger than what you can see right now but it was reduced to this ensemble that you can visit right now This is the Qandilkhane Hall, and the tombs of Sheikh Safi and Shah Ismail I The tomb of Sheikh Safi Al-Din Ardabili is a beautiful burial chest decorated by khatam art So, this is the grave of Sheikh Safi And the building that contains his tomb, is the Allah Allah Dome or Tower that we saw the exterior outside A cylinder dome, with repeating religious text on it: "Allah Allah" The name of God (Allah) decorating the building The inside of the dome contains the tomb of Sheikh and his children with beautiful decorations made on canvas fabric with gold powder and natural dyes You can also see an ancient form of wallpeper in this room And here's the tomb of Shah Ismail I in a very beautiful burial chest an exquisite vault with khatam art on it buried close to the Sheikh Safi The beautiful Qandilkhane Hall is the name of this graceful and fine building you see here Qandilkhane dates back to the time of a Safavid king, Tahmasp I (1524-1576) and it was a place used for religious rituals and rites During the reign of Tahmasp I, this hall was used as a place of gathering Men used to gather down here, and women used to stay in the iwans on the sides, which makes the building similar to a shabestan On the top iwans of the hall, which have staircases, but now the stairs are closed to the public All the patterns and designs you see on the walls, are made on plaster, this form is called muqarnas using gold powder and mineral and natural dyes which dates back to the Safavid period (1501-1736) and they decorated the building with Islamic patterns One of the notable things of this hall, is the famous carpet of Sheikh Safi, or Qali-e Ardabil (carpet of Ardabil) which is the best Iranian carpet During the reign of Safavid Tahmasp I, this carpet was woven for the Qandilkhane Hall by a person, named Maqsud Ali Kashani and they put carpets all over the hall and they even painted the design of the carpet, on the ceiling of the hall The ceiling was vault or arch shaped and it was acoustically good for voices By using this famous Ardabil carpet in the hall, they added a special beauty to this place but unfortunately, under the pretext of restoration and repair of the ensemble and financial status of the Qajar government, the famous carpet of Ardabil in the Sheikh Safi's Shrine, was sold and it was moved out of Iran, and later it was displayed in London's Victoria and Albert Museum It's still on the display at the museum, as one of the famous art pieces of Iran The beautiful paintings and patterns on the ceiling, also degraded and it's gone now and the ceiling you see on Qandilkhane Hall, was built in a flat manner in Qajar period Later, the local artists of Ardabil weaved another copy of the famous carpet It took them nearly 7 years to weave it, they did so here in this hall, in Ardabil by the Cultural Heritage of Ardabil and right now, it's on display in one of the side sahns (yards) here You can see it in Janasara Mosque It's a beautiful 62-meter carpet, it has 60 columns; a recreation of the famous Ardabil carpet Now, we are in Shah Beyt ("King's House") which was built in the Safavid period, which is called Chinikhane Hall It's a very beautiful, luxurious, exquisite and unique hall and it features a very unique and special type of architecture This hall was built during the reign of Abbas the Great (1588-1629) The ruler of China, offered some Chinese dishes and plates to Abbas the Great And King Abbas, donated these items to his ancestral place, and he ordered to build this exquisite building for these Chinese dishes and plates close to the tombs of his ancestors Sheikh Bahaie, was commissioned to design this building and the Safavid architectures built the whole thing The insides, the top part, and all the sides of the building, were arranged based on the forms of the dishes and plates Beautiful plasterwork that is known muqarnas work Caved or hollow muqarnas that were painted on using gold powder and mineral and natural dyes, using Islamic patterns, in the Safavid period (1501–1736) When these plates and dishes arrived at Ardabil, each of the enclosures here, became a placeholder for each plate and therefore, a really beautiful display of Chinese plates is the result we see here This building became a great place for royal catering and receptions for Shah Abbas When the King Abbas would come here to visit his ancestors' tombs here, from Isfahan to Ardabil, he was catered to, in this hall, by the people of Ardabil and used to do his royal affairs and relations in this very hall But unfortunately, history was not capable of keeping the treasure house of Sheikh Safi intact, and the Russians pillaged and plundered the hall After the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813), during the reign of Fath-Ali Shah Qajar, a large number of the plates and antiques here were stolen by the Russians and these items are currently on display in Hermitage Museum, in Russia A few number of the plates remained in Iran and what we have are all on display here, in the Chinikhane Hall but some of them are also on the display in the Azerbaijan Museum in Tabriz and National Museum, in Tehran and Chehelsotoun Museum, in Isfahan The rear part of Janatsara Mosque, is famously called Shahidgah (Martyrdom) These are the tombs of martyrs of the Battle of Chaldiran which were moved here by the order of Shah Ismail I The Battle of Chaldiran was the first war between Iran and Ottoman Empire, in the Safavid period which took place in 1514, near the Chaldoran County in the north west of Iran The Ottoman Empire won this war It was during this war that the modern Kurdistan in Iraq, Turkey and Syria, were seperated from Iran and even Azerbaijan, but during the reign of Shah Abbas, Azerbaijan and part of Kurdistan was added to Iran's territory again The Traditional Bazaar of Ardabil is another tourism destination here I highly suggest visiting this market, if you ever came to Ardabil This bazaar was built here before the Safavid period but it flourished and became very popular during the Safavid period (1501–1736) God be with you all, I have great greens here, sweet and healthy veggies Wish you all were here The glass suspension bridge in Hir Village Ardabil Province, 20 km away from Ardabil City Really beautiful Show the nature, Mr. Vahid The Sabalan Mount and this beautiful plain, unique and amazing Shourabil Lake, Ardabil City In the last two days, we visited some of the beauties of Ardabil Province There are still many parts we have not seen yet, like the beautiful city of Meshginshahr, the ancient city of Garri the hot springs of Sabalan and the city of Sareyn and many more which we will surely visit on our next trips here I hope you enjoyed this video and as always I would appreciate it if you share this video with your friends and help us show our dear Iran to more people which would also help me continue doing what I do here I put a link on top, to another video about the beautiful nature of Nurabad, Fars If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest watching it
2023-05-22 20:35
