Asia

[Visited: May 2022]

After visiting Shazdeh Garden in the morning, where I had found a big crowd because of the day off for the end of Ramadan, I am on the way east. We leave the main road to Bam, and drive up the mountain to Rayen. There, I am told, I will find the second biggest adobe structure in the world. I have been a long-time adobe admirer, so I am looking forward to seeing Rayen, as a preparation for seeing Bam later on. It has been a sunny day so far, but when we are driving up the mountain, thick clouds are floating in from the mountains behind. By the time we park at the entrance, the sun is well hidden. I buy my entrance ticket, leave the driver behind, and start exploring. It is said that the citadel of Rayen is 1000 years old, and it was inhabited until around 150 years ago.
Unlike the garden I saw in the morning, Rayen has much less visitors. I have of the citadel almost all to myself. I wander around the ruins freely, exploring hidden corners, entering ruins of what once were homes, climbing crumbling roofs for views. Much of Rayen citadel still lies in ruins, and you can only see the foundations of where houses once stood. But I see high walls looming over the ruins, and when I come closer, I realise how high these walls really are. I have arrived at the palace of Rayen - and this part has been rebuilt. I criss-cross the palace, see courtyards with trees, and walk through dark passages until I find a way to climb the roof and see those courtyards from above. I try to imagine what this all must have looked like when people lived here and guests stayed here.
After visiting the palace, I continue exploring, and come to a section where there is no one else. This is the raw part of Rayen, with crumbling walls, with collapsed buildings, with unexpected details of the interior of houses that are now exposed to the elements. It is the section I like most, as it gives me the most authentic feel. It is here that I realise that the clouds are growing heavier and heavier and darker and darker. Beyond the palace, I find a way up the high wall surrounding Rayen citadel. Despite various efforts, the Arabs never managed to conquer these walls. I see the Haraz mountains in the distance, and see clouds descending straight to Rayen. Then, the rain finally starts to fall. It soon develops into a downpour. It is so heavy, that we wait for someone to take us the 50m back to our car, and even in the short sprint to the door of our car, the rain drenches us.

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Rayen Citadel (Iran)

Rayen Citadel > Iran > Asia

[Visited: May 2022]

Around the World in 80 Clicks