Iran - Andrew Burke [177]
Treat yourself to a dose of Safavid-era luxury in the wonderfully restored Caravanserai Zein-o-din
Experience a real desert oasis at simple, silent Garmeh
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QOM
0251 / pop 1,070,000 / elev 931m
Iran’s second-holiest city after Mashhad, Qom (Ghom) is home to both the magnificent Hazrat-e Masumeh shrine and the hardline clerics who have ruled the country since 1980. The genesis of the 1979 revolution can be credited to Qom, from where clerics had railed against the shah’s regime since well before Ayatollah Khomeini was exiled in 1964. Today it remains one of Iran’s most religious and conservative cities, where Shiite scholars and students come from across the world to study in the madrasehs.
The ‘peoplescape’ of Qom is absorbing in its contrasts. Mullahs and religious students mix with a steady flow of pilgrims, and everywhere you look women wear the head-to-toe chador. But even Qom is seeing some change, and the odd figure-hugging manteau and made-up face. Still, travellers should be discreet and dress conservatively, particularly around the Hazrat-e Masumeh. The best place to sit and watch all this is at Astane Square, behind the shrine.
Despite the ever-present scaffolding the shrine is magnificent. And if you are not going to Mashhad and have an interest in the kind of devotion that is a hallmark of Shiism, then Qom is worth a quick visit. Note that little English is spoken in Qom.
Orientation
Hotels, restaurants and countless souvenir shops coalesce around the Hazrat-e Masumeh shrine and neighbouring Qom River. The ‘river’, however, is so dry that it has been concreted over and is usually used as a car park, market and late-night raceway. Buses stop at Haftdad Sq, 4.5km from the shrine, en route to and from Tehran.
Information
Bank Melli (Mar’ashi Najafi St) Slow as a wet week.
Coffeenet (Mo’allem St; per hr IR6000; 10am-10pm)
International Telephone Centre (Mar’ashi Najafi St; 7am-11pm)
Money Exchange (Mar’ashi Najafi St; 9am-8pm)
SabaCenter Internet ( 774 7711; A Khoshraftar Alley, off Mar’ashi Najafi St; per hr IR6000; 10am-10pm) Good place to meet young people.
Sights
Pilgrims come to Qom to see the shrine, and that’s pretty much it. Southeast of the shrine the unremarkable Khan-e Khomeini (Ruhollah Sq), where Ayatollah Khomeini lived before being forced into exile, is of interest if you’re staying in the midrange hotels nearby, though it’s not open to visitors. It’s the single-storey place with rendered mud walls.
Hazrat-e Masumeh
At the physical and spiritual centre of Qom is the Hazrat-e Masumeh ( 24hr), the burial place of Imam Reza’s sister Fatemeh, who died and was interred here in the 9th century AD. It’s an impressive sight, with one enormous tiled dome and another golden dome flanked by exquisite minarets. Much of what you see today was built under Shah Abbas I and the other Safavid kings who were anxious to establish their Shiite credentials and provide a counterweight to the sect’s shrines at Karbala and Najaf (in modern-day Iraq), then under Ottoman occupation. The magnificent golden cupola was an embellishment built by Qajar ruler Fath Ali Shah, and today’s ‘shahs’, the Ayatollahs of Qom, have embarked on a massive project to expand the complex.
Nonmuslims are allowed into the grounds (women must wear a chador, available at entrance No 3 on Eram St), but not to see the shrine itself. However, several readers report wandering around either with an escort or alone. Cameras are banned unless you can convince the stewards otherwise.
Sleeping
Qom’s sleeping options are conveniently gathered by budget range. Most budget places are in or near Haramnema Lane, a small alleyway just north of the Ahanchi Bridge, opposite the shrine. There are also some lower midrange places in the lane, but their foreign prices are so high that they aren’t worth it – without a big discount. Shop around. Three new midrange places have opened about 2km southwest of the shrine. During religious festivals Qom is packed, and it’s busier most Fridays.
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