A blog from Persian Kat

Quotes and things that happened:

KG said ghorboonet beram to my grandma and she was so happy that she gave him a giant kiss and hug.

Grandma keeps commenting about how smart karl is. I attribute it to his being mixed race and she agrees.

My dad says that when he goes out with Karl he feels like he’s going out with his own son.

KG said that him and his family love that daddy is so outgoing and goes up to just anyone and asks them any question. Him and Daniel went out together and my dad was curious about a chandelier store so he went in and asked hella questions, then walked out with a couple of free calendars. KG thought that was cute.

My dad says Karl and Daniel are really smart.



Kat's thoughts:
So far things have been progressing very well. Karl and his family are really enjoying Iran and that makes me very proud. They have gotten a good perspective of the Iranian culture, and fully appreciate the rich history as well as the sincere Persian hospitality. For the past eight years I’ve been trying to educate them (as well as others around me) about Iran and its people, but nothing prepared them for the actual experience. Hearing about a place is very different than actually experiencing it, especially when one is constantly being bombarded with bullshit propaganda from their racist, prejudice government.

We are currently on a bus about to leave Esfahan to go back to Tehran. This morning we visited the mosques and palace in Naghsheh Jahan square (renamed Imam Khomeini square after the revolution, of course). While we were walking towards one of the mosques, a mullah stopped Norm and struck up a conversation with him. KG got some of their interaction on video. He asked Norm where he was from and when Norm responded, “America,” he enthusiastically replied, “Welcome to Iran!” The mullah wanted to know about Norm’s perspective of Iran, and oddly enough, he even asked Norm if he knew of Abraham Lincoln! He was glad to hear that Norm was enjoying Iran, and after a couple of minutes of polite conversation, the mullah left and we were all pleased to have witnessed such a rare interaction: a mullah choppin’ it up with an American Jew.



In his last post, KG mentioned the wrestler and his father who sat next to Norm and I, and chatted with us about the American economy. The wrestler was curious to know what KG and his family thought of Iran. He was aware that many in the West believe that Iran is full of terrorists and angry Muslim extremists, not to mention the constant confusion between Iran and surrounding nations, which are primarily Arab, not Iranian.

What has really been confirmed for me (and everyone else) on this trip is that the majority of Iranians—whether they are extremely religious or lack a defined faith—have made the differentiation between the American government and its people. They believe that just because our nations don’t get along politically, it’s no reason to harbor any negative feelings or even antagonize the people of the “rival” nation. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same thing for my fellow Americans. I don’t blame them…they have been fed much organized and consistent propaganda, most of which doesn’t differentiate between people and their government. But let’s not forget that Iran has spread a significant amount of anti-Western sentiment in the form of murals, public speeches, media, etc. Even elementary schools tried to instill anti-US thoughts in their pupils. However, it’s obvious from our interactions that the Iranian people have been able to rise above their government’s unfair political tactics by judging a people individually, and not broadly as a nation. We can all learn much from this.

Here are some pics from the past few days: