World History Teacher Explores Iran

Thanks to St. Luke’s professional development, this past July, I spent a good part of the month on a trip I never thought possible. For seventeen days I was immersed in The Islamic Republic of Iran. Despite a few visa and passport-related obstacles, the process was far less complicated than I had envisioned. Because all British, Canadian, and American citizens are required by Iran to use a government-approved tour company, I happily joined two other educators, two humanitarian workers, a barrister from Oxford, and an NYU student on an educational tour through Ancient Persia and contemporary Iran.

Some might say the timing of our trip flirted with the adjective ‘precarious’- 109 degree Persian summer, Ramadan, and squarely in the middle of nuclear talks. Another way to view precarious is ‘an incredible learning opportunity!’ Despite the heat, ancient historical sights such as Persepolis, Cyrus’ tomb, Xerxes’ rock cut tomb, and the Zoroastrian Tower humbled us. Looking at relief carvings of satrapies bringing tribute to Darius on the Persian New Year Festival in ~500 BCE is just something one has to see in person. After visiting sacred Achaemenid and Sassanid structures, we moved on to Qajar and Pahlavi palaces taking note of how carefully and meticulously the current government preserved the sights despite the regime change. Moreover, these historical places are free to Iranian citizens, encouraging a collective memory of a pre-Islamic Revolution national narrative.

For the second half our the trip, mosques, madrassas, shrines, and bazaars occupied most of our days while wonderful Persian meals (and dancing) with local families comprised our nightly activities. In Shiraz, Esfahan, and Kashan, meals with families proved to be one of the highlights of the trip. Besides sampling Persian cuisine (lamb neck, chicken and plums, walnut and pomegranate stew), I found the cultural exchange invaluable. We stayed and dined with a cross-section of people ranging from Persian university professors, to nomads from the Kashki tribe, to Baluchistan refugees running a caravanserai in the desert. Though most families differed in socio-economic status, all were eager to discuss topics that I assumed were off limits, such as politics. Our conversations varied greatly and covered a variety of topics. Every person I encountered, whether in a home or a random exchange on the street, expressed a profound hope and a desire for the United States and Iran to normalize relations. Perhaps the most memorable of these interactions occurred on one of the last days of the trip. I was on my way back from buying my typical 109 degree lunch (a Magnum ice cream bar) and thinking about my impending and obligatory heat nap when I heard urgent but light foot steps behind me. Crime against foreigners in Iran is virtually unheard of, but, as I was alone, I started to get nervous. I turned around just as this little elderly lady with an iron grip grabbed my hand and, in broken English, asked where I was from. When I told her the United States, her face light up and she put my hand over her heart and said “American people are good. Iranian people are good.” As she said this, she started to cry. Then I started to cry, not entirely sure of what we were crying about, but nonetheless moved by this woman’s emotion. By the end of the afternoon, the entire group piled into her Tondar 90 and we joined her family for the Iftar meal that evening. This was just one of many interactions that resulted in a wonderful and spontaneous opportunity for cultural exchange and understanding.

Besides visiting historical sights and participating in exchanges like the one I described above, I also experienced a fascinating interplay of Shia Islam, freedom, gender relations and equity issues, order, and stability in contemporary Iran. As one might expect, ‘public’ behavior varies greatly from ‘private’ behavior. I look forward to sharing my full experience with my students in Foundations of Ancient History as well as my spring elective, Violent Politics.

As a world history teacher, traveling to places in my curriculum has always been a priority. I started out with the classics, Greece and Italy, then quickly graduated to more adventurous places- Baltics, Balkans, Caucuses, then on to North Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Over the last decade, I can say I have visited almost every country I teach about, save a handful. This special professional development opportunity to visit Iran, made that number even smaller.