I'm zipping thru the book on Iran and well, Iran just sounds cool! And talk about cheap. The author goes on and on about how 1500 rials is a bit expensive for a personal pizza, or how 9000 rials for steak is pricey but worth it if you want something different. Granted the guide is a bit out of date, but I imagine prices haven't changed that much. Latest market exchange rate (not official rate - apparently banks now offer the black market rate and official rate is only for import/export purposes) is like 8400 rials per dollar. So you can get a steak dinner for a buck and that is a bit expensive??!!! I mean, even if prices have doubled that's a whole steak dinner for two bucks. Man, we'll be livin it up in Iran!

Aside from the fact that it is cheap, it just seems really interesting. Definitely want to spend a month there... hopefully I won't have any problems with the visa. Japanese can get visas to Central Asia with no problem. Hiroshi can walk up to the border and go right on thru. I have to apply at least three weeks in advance at an Iranian embassy. And I thought that Canadian passports were on of the best to have. It will be interesting at the end of all this to see who has to pay the most fees all up to get visas to get into all the different places we are going.

Radio station today is on French. I can actually understand parts of it. Yes I can hear rustry gears deep in my brain throwing off the dust and grinding into action. I might remember it faster than I had thought. I figured it was gone not having used it in so long. Anyway for some reason they're playing middle eastern music on the French channel. Kinda fitting for my reading!