Day 98 An Iranian Family

SYNOPSIS:   This is about Majid and his family who live at the Caspian Sea.    From a Bush supporter to an Ahmadinejad fan - all under one roof.I met Majid over the internet several months ago when I was looking still for travel partners and travel information.  He had responded to an ad and even though he could not travel himself had offered help and information on anything relating to Iran.  And of course he wanted me to visit him.  Red alert, right?  Yes, I emailed with him quite frequently to get a sense of weather he was a predator or real.  I decided he was real and that it was worth visiting him for an insight into an Iranian family and an opportunity to see that Northern area of Iran if ever so briefly.  His village was a detour for me, but it was within reach on the way from Masouleh back to Teheran.  And it was located at the Caspian Sea which intrigued me.I arrived there in the evening and Majid, a young student of English Literature without much of a job, met me and showed me around town just before darkness set in.  We walked along the seashore and watched a fisherman throwing out his net.  I was much reminded of the Baltic Sea, or Lake Michigan.  She shore was rocky at this stretch.  People swim there in the summer time, Majid told me.  Men, swim here, I asked for confirmation? And yes, he had to admit, it’s only the men who swim here…Majid is the oldest of five children.  He is just as old as my son, 28.  I was given the room of his three sisters to sleep in.  Only two still live at home.  One got married two years ago and I was subjected to about two hours of a video about the wedding…  It had its interesting moments – the dance by local women in local costumes.  Promptly, I was asked to dress up in the costume for everyone’s amusement and some photos.  I did.A ¼ inch blanket was rolled out on the floor as my bed.  I am absolutely convinced now that the rock hard beds I have encountered all throughout Iran are a matter of choice.  And I bet you, it all goes back to the Nomadic roots.  There were three rooms to the house in addition to a bath, laundry, storage, and kitchen.  All were carpeted and lined with rows of cushions along the walls.   Two of the rooms were bedrooms for the children; one for the girls, the other for the boys.  The girl’s bedroom had a closet and a bookshelf.  The boy’s bedroom had a computer and some hooks.  This was the extent of the furniture, the furnishings, and the “stuff”.  A couple of pictures were almost accidental.  The largest room functioned as a family room and dining room and a bedroom for the parents.  An alcove had seating arrangements around the TV which was running all the time…  A corner was dedicated to dead relatives.  There were some grandparents and a small child of a relative that had died in a car accident.During meals a bred cloth was rolled out on the floor.  Meals were taken sitting on the floor.  Both the bread cloth and these eating habits are further confirmation of the deeply rooted Nomadic traditions in Iran.  Only in the cities do people eat at tables and sleep in beds I was told.  Speaking of the cities and of more Western influenced habits:  The bathroom in Majid’s house actually had a Western style toilet built in next to the Iranian but it was crystal clear which one would be used.  The Western toilet was built into the corner in a way that sitting at it properly did not leave enough room for your legs!  In other words, it was useless and more likely built in for show.  I tried it but ended up sitting side-ways which made even me abandon this idea and using the squatter instead.Safora, Majid’s mother even prepared most of the dinner on the floor even though she had a kitchen counter.  She squatted next to the samovar which was ready to dispense tea at any given moment and was visibly more comfortable on the floor than anywhere else.  Despite her (my) age, she could get up from a cross-legged sitting position into standing without any intermediary steps.  That takes something.  I tried…In the kitchen I noticed a calendar, next to a clock, next to six pictures of Ahmadinejad.  I asked what that meant.  Majid explained that his mother is a fan of his and loves him so much, that she put up his picture in her area of the house, the kitchen.  She did this in particular as her husband, Abdulhassan, is not only a huge fan of America, but also an ardent Bush fan.  Wow.  That is the first time I have heard of a Bush supporter in Iran.  I asked if there are many.  No, not too many.  But Abdulhassan loves Bush because he believes always the opposite of what Iranian TV tells him to believe, he explained.  I guess that is one way of forming a political view point…  But he does not like Obama.  Why not?  Because he is black.  I asked how he could not like a black person even though he presumably has never met one.  Because he has seen enough bad stuff about blacks on TV…  Really?  He just told me that he likes Bush because that is the opposite of what TV told him – how does that not apply to Obama?  Cornered like this, Abulhassan ended our political discussion and we started the wedding video…Good night.