Article on Iran hiking/mountain climbing

[DarthStiller]

Kind of a cool article I read today in The Atlantic. It's more related to mountain climbing and rock climbing, but applicable enough.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc ... rsia/8914/

[chumley]

The government regulates most aspects of public life, dictating acceptable dress, films, theatrical performances, and music. Censors monitor television, radio, and newspaper communications for politically and socially seditious content. Kisses are edited out of movies. Cellphone service and Internet access exist at the government’s pleasure. There are few public spaces in the towns and cities, and those places are strictly patrolled. A recent mass squirt-gun fight between young men and women, deemed “un-Islamic,” ended in arrests and detentions.

Chafing against restrictions, many Iranians find outlet in the spacious, rugged landscapes of their ancient and beautiful country. On Fridays and Saturdays, the Islamic weekend, and on holidays, people flock to the countryside; the more adventurous are compelled farther afield, into hiking, canyoneering, peak bagging, and technical rock climbing. In such an authoritarian society, the ability to control one’s own destiny is a rare and precious thing. Climbing delivers that ability in significant measure: by and large, around the globe, the vertical world exists beyond government. In it, individuals conform to rules of their own making—and bear the oftentimes harsh consequences of their mistakes.

Really makes you appreciate the freedoms we have here, while recognizing that despite our different cultures, many of us find the same pleasures from our adventures.

[DarthStiller]

@chumley
I liked the line "you don't any men with long beards and mustaches up here".