iran (called Persia until 1935)

guidebooks:
My favorite guidebook is A Travel Guide to Iran by MT Faramarzi, though I'm not sure it's available outside of Iran.

tour agencies:
I worked with Iran Doostan locally, and they were overall quite good and reasonably priced. Request their excellent guide, Amin Badakhshan, and fantastic driver, Javad Tavakolian.

websites:
The list is a bit dated.

General:
CIA Factbook
Iran Access
Iran Online
Iran Yellow Pages
Iran Mania
L.C. Country Study
IRNA

Other:
USA/Jebhe Melli Iran—Iran's main secular pro-democracy organization.
akhtasa—a persian blog
Robyn's World of Iranian Dance
Niva Kedem - lovely work by an Israeli photographer. Unrelated to Iran but worth mention and a look.

uzbekistan

Map taken from the CIA World Factbook

books:
The best guidebook is Uzbekistan by Odyssey Guides. I also like Cadogan's Central Asia; it's much better for general history and anecdotes than hard travel information, so no matter that it's a bit outdated.

A must read is Tom Bissell's Chasing the Sea: Lost Among the Ghosts of Empire in Central Asia. It's a clear read that will ground you in the history and temperament of Uzbekistan. You might guess I've developed quite a crush on Rustam. Thank heavens, Bissell gets it.

David Remnick's Lenin's Tomb, which merited a Pulitzer, is largely about the breakup of the Soviet Union. It's not heavy on Central Asia, but an understanding of the USSR is fundamental in grasping the current landscape. When I left Victor's copy in a marshrut-taxi in Samarkand, I felt like I'd lost a wise old friend.

Many others to be added when time permits.

tour agencies:
The status and quality of these places change constantly, but one reliable place is also a guesthouse in Bukhara, Lyabi House. I worked with many excellent local guides and drivers in Uzbekistan, so if you'd like more information about reaching them, contact me.

websites:
CIA Factbook
EurasiaNet
Freenet Uzbekistan
Uzland

bio

My life? A long, slow dance from the ideal to the real, and back again.

email contact:
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