Travel Guide Kashan

80 km separate Qom from the Kashan Oasis, at the boundary between the Zagros mountain range and the Dasht-e Kavir desert. Formerly known as one of the most prosperous oases of the ancient Persia, set on the silk road, Kashan, 250 km south of Tehran, is now a small, gentle town on the edge of the great Dasht-e Kavir, final walk before the vast expanses of inns inhabited by the desert. In the seldjoukide era, the city is already famous for its carpets, fabrics and manufactures of ceramic tiles with metal reflections, the famous Kashi. Relatively spared by the Mongols (xiiith century) and the armies of Tamerlan (xivth century), Kashan will benefit from the favors of the safavid kings (1503-1722), which will stimulate their commercial and craft development. Shah Abbas II (1642-1666) is indeed his capital. The invasion of Afghans at the beginning of the eighteenth century and a violent earthquake will nevertheless begin its prosperity. Deeply religious, like its neighbor Qom, Kashan is home to beautiful Qadjar houses, now open to the public. A walk in the beautiful Fin Garden, one of the most beautiful in the country, will also give the measure of the love worn by Iranians to plants and trees. The walls of the old city, illuminated under the dark night of the desert, also have a fabulous side. The city is also experiencing a revival due to its proximity to the Teheran airport (200 km which runs in 2 h). Many tourists actually choose to make Kashan their first or final stage in the country, without passing through the Tehran box.