...Iran (Part 2 - Iranian Pizza and Hejabs)

Imam Mosque in Esfehan, the most beautiful mosque in the world

One thing that has surprised us here (other than people's readiness to slag off their government whenever they see a foreigner) is the Iranians' love of fast food.

Iranian fast food is a welcome change to the massive meals you receive in normal restaurants which consist largely of meat and rice. You can actually get a good burger here. Here is Finn devouring a surprisingly good camel burger:

Look at the love in those eyes for that burger

 However, Iranian 'pizza', and I use the word 'pizza' very loosely here, is something else. What, I can't say, but it's very far from my idea of pizza. If you are Italian, you might want to stop reading.

So after an amazing morning gaping at the ruins of Persepolis, we needed to un-culture ourselves and headed to a fast food joint. To be precise, 'The First World Pizza and Hamber' which (obviously) sold 'onli pizza and hamber 110'. We ordered 'pizza' and joined the confusing queuing system. After 5 minutes, we received this:

Just look at it!

A pizza in nothing but name and base and the weight of 5 bags of sugar. In total, we counted 10 different toppings. Brace yourselves: Tasteless cheese, mince, vegetables (mushroom, pepper and chopped tomato), 'sausage', mayonnaise, gherkin, crisps (yes) and last but by no means least, something yellow. I know what you are thinking (other than 'I wish I'd waited to eat until after reading this blog), what about the tomato sauce  that  makes a pizza a pizza?! Well fear not! We were given the option of ketchup which was squirted all over the medley of ingredients. In fact, surprisingly it was the only thing you could really taste. I suppose when you have that many flavours, one has to dominate.

 I have no idea how they came up with this idea of pizza but I like Finn's suggestion that someone saw a picture of a pizza and just guessed.

On a completely different note, a word on wearing a hejab (headscarf) and eating. Wearing a hejab is obligatory here and something I'm getting used to. I find that often after meals I have a small mountain of rice hidden in the side of it. Finn has likened it to a horse's nose bag, while I prefer to look upon it as the hamster cheeks I have always longed for. However, I notice that Iranian ladies do not have the same issue and so should probably stop indulging myself. Incidentally, getting the hejab on in the first place is quite a chore. The rebellious nature of my hair refuses to be tamed by a piece of material. For visual learners among you, try to picture a fluffy cat being forced into a vet-bound pet carrier. It is a constant battle. On the plus side, its ability to defy gravity means I unintentionally copy the fashion here of having a bouffant fringe and a hejab several centimetres off my head. Swings and roundabouts.

Trying to eat Iranian dessert (noodles in rose water) without creating a small mountain inside my hejab