Shiraz night tours

Our first couch surfing host took us to see the night views of Shiraz. 

• Qor'an Gate (Dar vazeh Quran) - the city's main entrance. The original gate was built as an ornamental decoration by the Buwwayhids (Buwayhid dynasty) about 1000 years ago, but this was replaced 60 years ago by new gate, which is considered one of the finest architectural designs in Iran and has won numerous awards. From the the gate, we walked up the stone stairways to enjoy picturesque and panoramic night views of Shiraz. The tomb of Khajooyeh Kermanee, a famous poet is also located here. 
• Haden Tomb - Mausoleum of Hafez- Hafez (1324-1391), the greatest master of Persian lyric poetry and the literary giant of the 14th century in the west and central Asia, was born in Shiraz, lived all his life here, sang its praises in unsurpassed verse and was buried in a garden known after him as the Hafezieh, in the northeast part of the city. The extraordinary popularity and the wide appeal of this great poet among all Persian-speaking people make his tomb a cherished placed, visited by all. This mausoleum was rebuilt in the early 50’s. A flight of stone steps reaches to the tomb under a tiled cupola resembling a dervish’s hat. The tombstone is beautifully inscribed with two of Hafez’s poems or Ghazals. 
• Saadi Tomb - Mausoleum of Saadi: Here lie the earthly remains of one of Iran’s greatest poets-Sa’di. Even from the very early days after the poet’s death, the mausoleum of Sa’di became a place of pilgrimage to lovers of poetry and literature. In 1808 AD Karim Khan Zand renovated the mausoleum. The tomb was rebuilt in the early 50’s. The porch with its tall columns of pinkish marble is a traditional feature of Iranian architecture.

We walked about the city after more water pipe smoking with two other backpackers, and took more photos on the way. 

People in Shiraz enjoy a lazy pace of life.  the stores close between 2-5 pm, so everybody can have late lunch and take naps.  The stores open up again in the late afternoon, and people enjoy night life and late dinner (9-11 pm) thereafter. Of course, people can get up late the next day after 9 am.