Having had a "royal" night sleep I got up fairly early, though it wasn't necessary as we would be staying at that particular hotel for three nights, so as to thoroughly explore the richness of Isfahan, often referred to as "Half the World".
Just across the road from our Hotel stood the rather exquisite bridge Se-o-se Pol (which stands for 33 bridge in Persian referring to its 33 arches). In times of severe draught the river Zayandeh Rud was dammed upstream to provide water for Yazd. It is the longest of the 11 bridges of Isfahan.
There was some quiet beauty which seemed to add to the poetical environment and none of us was indifferent to what our eyes could see. It is said to have been constructed under the supervision of Allâhverdi Khan (chancellor to Shah Abbas I during the 17th century), this being the reason why the bridge is often known after his name.
There was some quiet beauty which seemed to add to the poetical environment and none of us was indifferent to what our eyes could see. It is said to have been constructed under the supervision of Allâhverdi Khan (chancellor to Shah Abbas I during the 17th century), this being the reason why the bridge is often known after his name.
We continued walking down till we reached another bridge considered among the finest in the province of Isfahan. Having been constructed by Shah Abbas I around 1650 CE Pol-e Khâdju served as bridge and dam, as well as a place for public meetings. Originally decorated with artistic tile-work and paintings its central structure in the shape of a pavilion (where Shah Abbas used to watch the river flow) is still used as a tea house.
On both sides of the bridge there were lion statues with human heads in their mouths, most probably to remind the invaders of the Safavide supremacy. They were quite impressive, I must say, though equally impressive were the pillars under the archways where groups of singers and musicians are said to regularly gather.
We did come across some old men singing traditional Iranian songs, which very much sounded like the sad melodic Portuguese songs. Massoud let us know that the songs they were singing were related to the drought and the fact that the river bed no longer resembled the one they remembered even if just in their faintest memories.
I was sad and disappointed for not having brought along the filming camera because those were without doubt some of the best male voices I ever listened to.
Some graves were to be seen as we strolled around the bridge ... their origins unmentioned, but certainly pertaining to the Safavid dynasty.
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