13 Jul 2011 | 2 comments » Herat, people
I met this young man in downtown Herat, the oldest part of the city where the Citadel of Herat or Qal’a-ye Ikhtiyar al-Din is located. I took his photo from a distance that I could zoom in on his face to capture the bitter smile on his face. I can’t forget his strong hand shook my hand while seeing cracks on his back hand and fingers because of tough winter weather. I invited him to a cup of tea, he shared with me his stories from the prison in Iran and showed me the scars and cuts left by beating by prison guards.
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23 Jan 2011 | no comments » Herat
The famous minarets—ancient prayer towers that wobble about five stories up into the sky. They are crumbling, but still have bits of the original bright blue lapis tiles on the sides. The Fifth Minaret - all 55 meters of it - from 12 century -seems ready to collapse into a dusty heap of bricks and colored tiles at any moment. Herat in the past was the first city for the very highest expression of architecture, from all the other expressions of Islamic art, like calligraphy, mosaics, and poetry. It’s been described as the Florence of Afghanistan.
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29 Dec 2010 | no comments » Herat
It’s an old system of furnace which is still in use in cities and in outlying areas. It has a simple setup, a wheel attached to a blower machine and the blower’s end hooked into the mud furnace. The furnace is filled with coal and in the meantime food is also being cooked, as you can see in this picture. I took this picture in summer 2008 in old part of Herat.
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18 Feb 2010 | no comments » Herat, historical
This citadel, which has been suggested as another possible site for Alexander’s fort, is known today as the Citadel of Herat or Qal’a-ye Ikhtiyar al-Din. The name Ikhtiyar al-Din, which refers to both the eastern and western enclosures, is thought to be the name or epithet of a Kartid amir or military commander. Destroyed a second time by Timur’s army (1380), Qal’a-ye Ikhtiyar al-Din was rebuilt after Shah Rukh (reg. 1405-1444) moved his capital to Herat and began a building campaign. He reinforced the citadel in stone and fired brick and covered its exterior with glazed tiles.
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