The World’s Not-So-Dangerous Places

 

You might think that destinations like Colombia, Iran or Northern Ireland are too risky to visit. But they’re actually safe choices with many wonders to offer the (somewhat) intrepid traveler.

Danger tends to leave indelible images in our mind: terrorist bombings in Belfast, guerrilla warfare in Africa, drug lords toting machine guns in Colombia, the killing fields of Cambodia. All too often, especially for far-off places we don’t know well, those images tend to crowd out any more current pictures.

Yet countless destinations we once thought too dangerous to visit are in fact perfectly safe places to vacation in 2009. Even the most perilous countries on earth are no riskier than America’s highways, where more than 40,000 people die every year. That makes a road trip one of the most dangerous vacations you can take.

So do the safe thing and get on a plane to one of these foreign lands you only thought were dangerous. They’re not guaranteed to be free of crime or petty larceny; nowhere on Earth is. As with any destination, take the standard precautions you’d take in any place you’re not familiar with: Don’t wear flashy jewelry, don’t carry large amounts of cash and stay out of dark alleyways.

Iran

The headliner of the Axis of Evil is safe for Americans? Absolutely. “You could leave your wallet on the street in Tehran and come back a month later and it would still be there,” says Robert Young Pelton, author of "The World’s Most Dangerous Places." Iran is so safe, that even guidebook writer Rick Steves is encouraging his readers to go.

English is widely spoken, especially among the younger generation of Persians, who are just as curious about Westerners as Americans are about their hosts. Women, even Western women, must keep their heads veiled in public. But they are far from hidden in modern Iran. The fairer sex makes up nearly two-thirds of the university population, and are increasingly driving and joining the work force.

In Tehran, wander the organized chaos of the Grand Bazaar, losing yourself among the millions of square feet of spice merchants and carpet sellers. The palaces of the Qajars, by contrast, take on a kind of chronological progression, since each was built next to or near the palace of the preceding ruler. All are museums today, retaining the original furniture and decor of generations ago.

If Tehran is the capital of modern Iran, Esfahan is the centerpiece of ancient Persia, dating back more than 400 years. Its blue mosaic-tiled mosques and spectacular pedestrian bridges across the Zayandeh River have earned it a place on UNESCO’s World Heritage list.

 پ.ن ۱:

کی باید تصمیم بگیره ایران در حال حاضر امن هست یا نه؟!

پ.ن ۲:

اتفاقی چند تا نوشته آخراینجوری(سیاسی) شد !

پ.ن ۳:

تا حالا فهرست میراث جهانی یونسکو رو دیدین؟