The road to the citadel of Qamechoqâi was almost non-existent. We were driven amidst stones and gravel terrain by a very competent driver who nevertheless had us fear for our lives more than once, due to the hard conditions on which the small bus seemed to make its way lurching every now and then.
As we got closer to it we were stopped by some local police who kindly informed us we were forbidden to get much closer because of it being an animal protected area and at that particular moment in time there being several bird species nesting. I believe many of us were relieved, to be honest, because getting there seemed dangerous despite the obvious historic interest behing such a citadel believed to have been founded in the first millennium.
We drove back to where our bus had left us off and headed towards Sanandaj having stopped twice on the way because of a sheppherd and one of the two Safavid bridges to be found in the area.
Once we reached Sanandaj we headed to the bazaar which had once more most of his stalls closed (we seemed to be particularly unfortunate every time we tried to buy something) though some of us always managed to, I being the case, as I bought a fairly exquisite typical coat and a silk headscarf. We strolled around the Bazaar's alleys and as we were leaving met some rather interesting locals dressed up in typical Kurd outfits.
The moment we approached the hotel we would be spending our last night at before flying back to the capital city prior to getting back home I started feeling melancholic. Despite some problematic situations throughout the circuit I had enjoyed it and had got along well with a few people I would have to say good-bye to soon. As with everything in life certain moments don't last forever but I was sure memories of many of those would certainly linger on.
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