This Iranian American Life

Watch the video In loving memory of my father

Watch the video What is gratitude? When do you know to be grateful for where you are? When do you know that even though you can be where you are, you can choose something else?This is a conversation in Tehran between my sister and a friend about gratitude and choice. This video is eight minutes long...So please save this video for when you have time to listen to this very sweet philosophical discussion.

Watch the video Many things are sold in the streets of Tehran, while you are waiting in traffic. Some will sell walnuts, hafiz poems, and flowers....Others will perform an instrument or offer to clean your windshield. This is a clip of someone selling us Mariam flowers, a flower with a very lovely smell. Translation______________________ My mom: what? where? Bah! what flowers! Sir how much are these flowers? Please don't throw them in the car!* Vendor: 1000 tomans per bunch. how many would you like? Mom: 1000 tomans per bunch? It has 5 in each? Tell him to bring one for me! Sir please come here! Sir! Tell him we want the good ones. Me: Sir! we would like one please! The good ones please! My sister: Thank you. Here you go sir [handing him the money]. Thank you. Goodbye. [handing flowers to my mom] Bah bah. [this is a sound used to express if something looks, sounds, smells or tastes good] ____________________ *Note This has happened to my mom before, so perhaps she was taking preventative measures. Once a guy was selling walnuts in the street and saw we were interested. He put the bag of walnuts in the car, and the traffic light changed color before we had a chance to pay him. We had to turn back around and find him and give him the money! Our family was very disappointed in us for arriving so late :)

Watch the video Tehran is surrounded by mountains, and visiting them is one of my favorite things to do in Tehran. Here is a clip of my cousin and I, and some other passerbys...hiking, having picnics, and enjoying the day.

Watch the video ****Thanks to everyone who made this node a possibility!!***** Here is a look at us shooting video explaining how to start a videoblog in Farsi. We used freevlog.org and node101.org (and many other resources--thanks so much to all of you wonderful people out there), and came up with a new community vlog to get people started: http://vloginiran.blogspot.com This videoblog is going to be a place for people to begin uploading their videos as they learn about videoblogging, and it can act as a collective videoblog for a number of people to post video to. We talked about many things besides videoblogging as well... For example, we talked about Wikipedia, Web Syndication, Creative Commons, and how to learn about other vloggers and the vlogging community, through sites such as http://community.vlogmap.org/   -----------Translation: Aha! Now! Should I start!? You remember now [what you wanted to say]? Yes, Yes! Wait [singing random Persian song] >Is the camera zoomed Are, zoomeh [this means, yes, it is zoomed, which also translates into Farsi as It is my wish which is coincidentally very funny because of the way that he sings the word, rather than simply saying it] Ok, so first I would like to talk a bit about the history of videoblogging and what things people video blog about. -------- You know it is really important that people video blog about things they are truly passionate about, and something that you really really likebecause if you are not excited, then others will certainly get bored! -------- [showing freevlog.org] You can go to Blogger, a free blogging site,however you have to host the video on another site, and link between the two sites, for example between Blogger and Blipthey did something so that the two sites work together, so you can cross post video, and they link together like thiswhich is really great, and makes your life easier. --------------End Translation More people in Iran will be able to learn about videoblogging on local television, or in a public setting (hence the islamic garb), since high speed internet is so expensive here (three to five hundred dollars a month, depending on the speed)...

Watch the video This video clip is of my mom and her sisters looking at pictures together, and the thumbnail is of my parents. _____________________________________________________________________ Translation: eh! This is my mom! And this is me! With my grandparents! OH! WOW! (about my mom and uncle) My mom and dad... they are so beautiful. Oh, get this one of me and Baba Zandi [her father], Parastou!! ok aw, Is it nice? Let me see! Did you get it well? [laughing] aw, my mom and dad are so beautiful here. Let me see! Let me see! Look at the three Hassanabadi sisters [Hassanabad is the name of the street they used to live off of] Yes, get the Hassanabadi sisters. This picture, just like this, it is the three of you all sitting here right now! And here is your father. Your Mom and your Dad and us three sisters.

Watch the video The Bazaar has many things for sale (wholesale and retail): food, fruits, and nuts, rugs, gold, fabric, clothes, appliances, steel, decorations, art, etc.... This clip takes you through the entry of the Bazaar to the area where Persian rugs are sold...

Watch the video This clip shows some of the music played for a really great celebration that I went to last night, in honor of Hazrat Ali's Birthday...to be continued...

Watch the video I went out with one of my best friends and stumbled upon this Kabab place (Super Protein Chizary). I really liked the guy we met there--he was super friendly and asked me to shoot video of him making kabab. Salam (Hello) My friend: Sir we would like 2 barg kababs, and juicy please. *birds chirping* Me: Where are the birds!? Right here [they belong to the store] Me: so, you make kabab here. Do you enjoy it? Very Much (Kheili)! Next to the grill, in this really hot weather... it is so much fun! Your space is empty. (He is very much kidding here when he says this [Jayeh Shoma Khali]) (We all laugh) Note--Iranian Expressions "Jayeh (insert name here) Khali" "(Insert name here)'s space is empty" Your space is empty here is an expression that is often used in Iran. In this case the guy is kidding with us, but usually when a family sits down to eat, they will say that the space of the person that really likes that particular meal is empty. Also, when a family reunites after a long time someone may acknowledge the empty space of someone who could not make it (their space is empty unless filled by their presence).

Young people having fun Watch the video Hanging out in the coffee shops in Northern Tehran. I started handing out my camera's yesterday. Here are some of the girls I gave the cameras to. Dialogue: _____________________________________ Don't be afraid of the camera! [A friend comes in] [everyone shakes hands] Hey! How are you! I'm great. [more greetings] That's right, I'm getting bigger, see. [girl on left touches his chest] I was touching his chest and was looking at that man [passing by] straight in the eye! girl on right: She was touching this gentleman's chest then the committee [the police] were passing by just outside!! See how it is. girl on left: I was looking at him straight in the eye![more joking and laughter] ______________________________________

Offerings for the souls of those who have passed Watch the video Kheiriyeh or Kheirat is something that is given for the soul of a loved one or someone who has passed on.My mother recently gave Kheiriyeh, for the passing her much missed father. Here is a video of my mother passing out some of her delicious rice pudding. As people get the offering, they usually say Roohesh shad or May their soul be joyous , and then they pray for their soul by reciting the fateh, which is the following prayer:This is recited once: All praise is due to God, the Lord of the Worlds. The Beneficent, the Merciful. Master of the Day of Judgment. Thee do we serve and Thee do we beseech for help. Keep us on the right path. The path of those upon whom Thou hast bestowed favors. Not (the path) of those upon whom Thy wrath is brought down, nor of those who go astray. Immediately followed by this verse which is repeated three times: Say: He, God, is One. God is He on Whom all depend. He begets not, nor is He begotten. And none is like Him. Translation taken from here and here

Hitching rides in Tehran Watch the video Sure, it can be a bit of a fuss to get around without a car. However, in Tehran, people are likely to pick you up and drop you off to where you need to go. As you can see in this video, I wanted to get into a cab, but I didn't find one going my way. So we just got into someone's car. They just picked us up, and dropped us in the direction we wanted to go (since it was on their way)...There are also plenty of people who drive around town, pick people up, and get paid to do it (with their own cars). Usually people will say, it is free ghabel nadareh or it is not worthy of you, and then you say, no really, how much can I pay. Then they will tell you how much. This happens all the time, no matter where you go shopping. how much? ghabel nadareh (it is not worthy of you) No thanks, really. 400 Tomans please.

A superstition I can live with Watch the video At least once a week, my grandmother will burn esfand (Peganum Harmala) for the family. The smoke smells really nice, acts as an antiseptic, and is also said to rid the effect of the evil eye. Rather than harming the person, any bad energy is said to be cleansed away. It is also customary to burn esfand at weddings. Last night I went to a wedding, where this gentleman circled the esfand around my head before putting it into the fire.

Hangin out with my great Aunt Watch the video Ameh Akram is my mom's aunt (my grandfather's sister). Dialogue________________________________________________________ [the US] was very fun...and if i wasn't so old and if they were to ask me to go back [to the US] I would go. I am afraid that if I go back something might happen to me...Or if they were to put me in a nursing home... I would rather sit in my own room here. I saw my sister. They put her in a nursing home. It broke my heart. I brought her in my house, even though my own leg was broken--she knows. Yes, one or two years. I brought her in my home and my own leg was broken.________________________________________________________

Hafiz Poetry Fortune Watch the video I am in Iran now! It is so great to be here, amidst family and friends, people I love, wonderful places, and really wonderful experiences. This first video is of me and a man who is selling Hafiz poems on the street. Hafiz is a poet from approximately 700 years ago. His poems are still a major part of life in Iran today. Sometimes the person selling them will have a bird, who will then pick the poem for you. Each poem holds words of wisdom and love of life. Before picking a poem, it is advised to first call upon the poets soul. Click here to read some of Hafiz's poetry and see what you come across today...

After reading this thing called Putting Documentary Work to Work (download the pdf on this page) I was able to see a moment of crystal clarity where documenting and organizing different aspects of our lives can really share a story so powerfully within a community. Otherwise, it is all just a bunch of stuff, by itself. By establishing and re-creating relationships between information, we are able to give the information a context in which to live--so that it goes from words, sounds, images, and motion into knowledge and quite possibly, greater forms of wisdom. One really inspiring project is Indivisible, "an exploration of community life in America by some of this country's most accomplished photographers, radio producers, and folklorists." StoryCorps, is one such incredible project. Online, you can hear the tone and emotion in people's voices as they tell their own stories. Story Corps created StoryBooths and provided an opportunity, and a space, for people to share their own experiences. I really like this mother/daughter interview, among others.

So, I have come up with a list of places to see in Iran. After visiting Wikipedia, and Flickr, there seems to be lack of good information about Iran. Last I checked on google maps, there was not a single dot indicating life or civilization in Tehran. I have been asked if Iran is green, whether or not people ride camels, and how people get around. I have been asked these questions since I was a kid, and I am happy to share my experiences. Some of the places I will be going to document are: Sareh Pole Tajrish (Tajrish Square)--These Pictures are of Tajrish during the Persian New Year, but I couldn't find that many online. I love Tajrish because of how it feels when the sun is setting, the beautiful backdrop of mountains surrounding the busy city, everyone shopping, meeting up with friends, finding a ride home, meanwhile hearing the call to prayer, or prayers that are recited only during the holy month of Ramadan, which is one of my favorite prayers to listen to. Mountains-- I LOVE MOUNTAINS, and have grown up loving the mountains surrounding Tehran. I would go hiking with my friends for eight or nine hours till we reached the summit of Tochal, and later we would take the tele-cabin back down. I have not yet been to the top of Damavand, which is the highest peak in the Middle East--but I was religious about going hiking in the tochal mountains as often as I could... Masouleh, the Caspian Sea, and Kish Island are great places to see as well. One of my favorite desert towns in Iran is Yazd, which is also the center of Zoroastrian culture. There tuly is a great variety of landscape in Iran.