Abbas and the nomads

Finding a green, fertile valley after travelling hundreds or maybe thousands of miles of pure desert, felt like the mythical appearance of the oasis for the thirsty. This happened to us when we arrived at Bavanat.

We were in search of meeting the nomads. We longed to have a taste of how the original humans lived. Luckily, we had the contact of a man that was to be our guide in a little town called Bazm. Let us say, little did we know, that we would be meeting a very special character and one of the best entrepreneurs of the land: Abbas Barzenar.

Years ago, Abbas began housing roaming hippies in a spare room in his family home. Today, along with his daughter Sarah, who has become his Director and Commercial Manager, they’ve built 40 rooms, have learned English with the tourists, own an organic farm where they grow fruits and vegetables and tend to their vast herd of animals which include: hens, ducks, cows, donkeys, pheasants, pigeons, chickens and, of course, sheep. By the way, the whole country is full of sheep!

Abbas has been recognized by the former president, he is a celebrity in local television and is considered by the government an example to encourage people to stay in the countryside and help energize the economy.

What’s even lovelier is that he has maintained his passion: he is still a farmer and enjoys cultivating the land.

After being a guest in Paris, he concluded that all successful cities have museums, so he went ahead and built one for his town. Moreover, as a result of what he saw in a trip to Switzerland, he decided that self-service was the best way to run his restaurant and it works wonderfully.

After touring this extraordinary facility, we were off to visit the nomads!

Abbas took us 30 minutes up from the valley and into the desert mountains. Soon we started to see grouped tents arranged in small neighborhoods. As we approached, several people came out of their homes to greet us.

What first surprised us was the outstanding physical beauty of the nomad men and women of all ages! The elegance with which they carried themselves made us think they could easily be featured on Vogue magazine covers or designer catwalks, this after a fair share of soap and water of course!

One thing we learned: nomads hate the cold, which is why they spend the summer in this area and right before winter strikes they head south in search of warmth.

The sheep are their inseparable companions: they take their milk, make their carpets, cushions and coats with their wool. The black goat fur is used to make the roof of their tents because it’s a great heat absorbent and if it rains it tightens and turns impermeable. The mobile homes are beautifully decorated with bright colors which break the darkness of the roof and walls.

When we were invited to enter, our hostess with supreme elegance unfolded a carpet for us to sit down, and with exquisite taste distributed cushions for everyone to sit. No shoes allowed.

While travelling, there are moments which become unforgettable and sitting on this carpet with the comfort of these cushions, drinking wild thyme tea, in the company of this nomadic family; in an ideal temperature, enjoying the beauty of a desert sunset is certainly one of those moments that will forever remain in our hearts.

One Comment:

  1. Fascinante ….

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