28/06/2017
Despite all its beauty and rich culture, Iran has been isolated for decades from the rest of the world while it could be one of the first and most magnificent travel destinations. Nowadays, the growth of social media has helped to connect people from all around the world. Many people are interested in traveling to Iran to discover this mysterious land but there are still a lot of misconceptions surrounding the subject of safety.
I was born in the beginning of societal isolation and I grew up with only communicating with peers of my gender, of which laws separate children by the gender from the start of the school, so early that many of them hadn’t learned the difference between both genders! So in this way women and men couldn’t, and still may not, get to know each other properly and they also used to have an inaccurate view about each other, especially the view of a woman’s role by men based in old traditions, religion, the family values they were taught and in general the present masculism in this country.
Iranian women are still struggling with (gaining basic civil rights) the anti-woman rules. It is the essential right of any person to live freely in peace within a society. So, Iranian women are currently defending their civil rights and continue to keep fighting against all discrimination.
Surprisingly, I have seen a lot of women travel to Iran alone. In Iran women need to have the permission from their male member of their family to travel alone and even to get their passport. It was strange and interesting at the same time for me to see several foreign female travelers visit to my motherland completely alone. I was wondering what made these independent female travelers want to go to Iran? And how might they feel to be in Iran as a woman?
I decided to go back to Iran to meet my family and friends after 8 years and to also to work on this project. I have met several solo female travelers in different parts of the country since returning to Iran. Each one of these travelers has a different motivation to travel to Iran. Some of them have had their Iranian friends back home inspire them to experience the culture. Some of them have watched Iranian movies and now they wanted to see Iran for themselves. Some of them were just passionate about traveling and wanted to have a new experience and to see a new culture. Almost all of them have been surprised by how much experiencing Iran is different than the common false image which has been created by the mass media and cultural stereotypes. They were amazed by how the Iranian people are willing to connect and make friendships with people traveling from the other countries. These female travelers have been fascinated by the diversity within the country. How dialect, foods, fashion, and climates change from one region to another. And how this country is very safe to travel in compared to what they anticipated.
One additional aspect that impressed the female travelers that I met was how the Iranian women behave. They found them so powerful and beautiful and they work to better their lives despite all the limitations placed towards women in Iran. These women try to live their life and find their way to create and truly belong as an equal in Iranian society. The Iranian women have expressed their excitement to met independent female travelers. They hope they could be an inspiration for them.
I also asked each of the female travelers about the law of wearing a hijab. Most of them didn't mind wearing it for a while because it's obligation for any woman traveling to Iran and it’s only a commitment that lasts few weeks. But almost all of them believe that wearing a hijab should not be a law forced onto any woman. In their opinion it is a clear example of discrimination towards women and each woman should have the right to choose just as men have their right.
Through this experience for myself, I hope the magic of traveling works to connect people and, in addition, to make the economic situation better for Iranian people through tourism. The Iranian community needs more connections and more exchanges with the other nations in order to meet this goal. Hopefully more people especially women travel to Iran so that could inspire the Iranian people, women in particular, to travel too. As a result we can have more experiences of life and make a better country that promotes diversity and hopefully can educate the next generations of the Iranian people and travelers together.
July 2017 Tilburg
