Coming to the central square of the city, to the Maidan-i-Shah you stop at the first glance. The mosques and other monuments of the square are so wonderful, you remain rooted to the ground for long minutes. This square alone represents the rich heritage of the Persian Empire. I mention only three of the monuments, wonders that you can visit there: The Msjid-i-Shah or King's Mosque is a marvel of Safawid art and a magnificent example of the brilliant architecture that constituted the glory of Isfahan at that time. The Chehel Sotun or Pavilion with Forty Columns is now a museum of Persian paintings and ceramics and was originally a pleasure pavilion used for the king's entertainment and receptions. The Mosque of Sheikh Luftullah (or Masjid-i-Sheikh Luftullah) is a comparatively small sanctuary, but it is a real gem in which the art of mural mosaics in Isfahan reached its peak. 

For us the small shops around the square also represented interest, especially the carpets of marvellous designs and colours.

Oh,  I almost forgot about the hotel we stayed at. It was converted into the present luxury hotel - Shah Abbas Hotel - from the Caravanserai of the King's Mother, Khan-i-Madar-i-Shah. The floor of the entrance hall was covered with a carpet of around 30x15 m of the above described colour, I could hardly take off my eyes from it when we entered the hotel. The whole hotel radiated oriental splendour, including the dinner we had in the court of it. Do not miss staying there if you happen to travel in Iran.

Shiraz is the only city that survived the wars of ancient powers, it is now the capital of district Fars. It did not impress us, did not look nice, the streets, houses looked old and not very well maintained, but the ancient buildings, some half-ruins, some almost untouched by the teeth of time, some perfect, used today as if constructed a few decades ago are worth to visit. I recall a few: Masjid-i-Vakil, Shah-i-Cheraq, Masjid-i-Atik, Masjid-i-No and Khan's madrasah. It was also pure joy to study the carpets of the city: such a richness of designs, colours, that you are simply lost, studying them.. 

Persepolis was just 65 kms from Shiraz. The hottest place I have ever been to in my life. We arrived by car in the middle of the day, the sunshine was soaring, the air trembling and dry, dry, dry. I do not remember the exact tempreture, it must have been around 50 deg. C. I put a wet handkerchief on my head, but it became as dry as a bone in five minutes. Probably this was the main reason we did not find the site as exciting as we expected, or the excavations occupied too vast an area. What I remember is the terrace and the monumental staircase, the ruins of the "Hall with a Hundred Columns", the rock Tombs of Artaxerxes II and III. Sorry, my memory is indeed fading.