After retracing yesterdays sidetrip into Museuleh we got back onto the main coastal road heading north towards Astara and the border with Azerbaijan. This road was not memorable for any good reason, pretty much the Iranian version of strip developement being small villages with crowded mains streets every couple of kilometers, continuing rain and no view of the Caspian see. What we did see apart from lots of trucks and crazy drivers were lots of rice fields. This area is famous (in Iran) for the rice it grows.

After a series of phone calls we met up with Hossein about 10km south of Astara and right near the village of Canrood where he lives. He found us a precarious parking spot near his house and we spent some time catching up over the everpresent "tea". Before the day was completely done Hossein took us on a small local tour. Down to a camping area right on the beach front, then around Canrood village before a visit with a local family. The beach camping area was a surprisingly large but ramshackle establishment and we could imagine it thronging with people in the summer. The tour of the village and visit with the family was an interesting glipse of Iranian rural life. An interesting mix of traditional and modern. TV, DVD player and gas heater right next the family cow and sitting on carpets.


near Hosseins house.