Nowrooz, a celebration of food and life

A few facts about my birthplace, my vatan:

• It has several wickedly cool five-star hotels in Tehran, Isfahan, the Island of Kish, and many other cities.
• Nearly 70% of Iran's population is under the age of 30, and the median age is 23. That's an awful lot of young people who are chomping at the bit for change.
• Persepolis (Takht-e-Jamshid), the city that Alexander supposedly had one of his mistresses set afire, is still fairly intact, and an amazing, awe-inspiring monument to the Persian Empire.
• Some of the best snowboarding in the world can be found in Iran's Dizin ski resort

Anyway, why am I waxing poetic about Iran today? Well, March is upon us, and with it comes the Persian New Year.  It's a season full of celebration, food, dancing and revelry. It's a time to clear away the cobwebs of the past year, and start fresh.

Over the next few days, I will share traditional Nowrooz recipes, traditions, stories and more.

I invite you into my virtual home, to share a cup of tea, a story and a sweet. And, to each of my wonderful visitors I say, Aid-eh Shoma Mobarak (Happy New Year!).

Comments

[Beth]

Happy new year!

[Lenn]

Happy New Year to you as well!

I can't wait to read all about the traditions, foods and the like!

Anything a good L.I. Rose would pair well with? ;)

[Fatemeh]

Lenn -

Sadly, the only varietal I truly, truly don't care for is, in fact, the varietal of my homeland (Shiraz).

I drink ice cold vodka instead!

[Moira]

Aid-eh Shoma Mobarak, Fatemeh! I'm really looking forward to reading your upcoming posts...

[Viv]

Aid-eh Shoma Mobarak to you, Fatemeh! I've been lucky to count many Iranians as my neighbors here in Seattle. All fellow tea enthusiasts, outgoing, excellent conversationalists, warm and very bright. I was introduced to Reshteh and Ash-e Reshteh by the Iranian Jewish mother of our dear neighbor Babak. It was delicious! We've kept some Reshteh in the pantry since then. I'm really looking forward reading about your favorite festival sweets. Cheers, Viv