Dave’s Reise nach Osten

First, we have to talk about food: It is a big pile of rize. And kebap.
Just to make that clear, kebap here does not mean the same thing as at home! (here = Turkey + Iran). Kebap simply means “meat and open heat”. In Iran even more distinct: “meat on a stick over the heat”. [Auf Deutsch: Grillade, gegrilltes].
We also make meat over the fire in Europe, but call it differently; we only started to use the word kebap because we did not have a word for the big meat sticks the Turks introduced in Europe.
But back to here: Try to go to a small restaurant aside the street in Iran and get something else than kebap. Impossible! What do you have? That. Aaand that. First the owner points to the meat and than to the chicken kebap. The chicken in pieces on a metal stick, the meat often mashed around a wider stick. And what else do you have? Kebap. Oookey.

Once in Tabriz, we asked a shopkeeper where to eat around his shop. Is that sandwich place over there good? “Do you want to eat real Iranian food or sandwich?” Seems like this guy knows where to go, let’s go for the Iranian food. Well, it was a nice little restaurant, but they served only kebap. And not even good one!
After two months in Turkey I am pretty much fed up with kebap all the time. So going to a fastfood place in Tabriz and getting a good burger was a celebration!
I have to say, there is actually good Iranian food, e.g. aubergine with a filling of mashed walnuts. But you only get it in homes. It’s a pity.

Drinks. There are lot of softdrinks around. The big softdrink producer called Zamzam sells a copy of Pepsi and something called Fanta but written ‘Fana’. Not as good as Fanta (or Yedigün in Turkey!), but drinkable. They also have the original Coca-Cola! So if someone can explain me how this embargo from the USA works, please tell me! Any additional article, link or whatever is appreciated, I really want to understand why they can have Intel products, French cars – and Coca Cola while there is an embargo. Update: I know now that most of this thing are imported via other countries, but still, I am wondering how they can fill Coca Cola bottles in Iran…

And I bought some chocolate. But it is not very good. (In Turkey they have really good one, I was amazed!) How not to get homesick without good chocolate?