Traveller Letters: Why you'll love Iran

LETTER OF THE WEEK

My husband and I spent four weeks on a journey in Iran. The Shiraz based travel company Trip to Persia, in collaboration with our requests, developed a detailed itinerary and were exceptionally helpful in providing guidance on navigating the visa process. And - with our delightful guide, Yas, and our driver, Meysum - our holiday exceeded expectations. From the colourful history of Persia to the genuine warmth of Iranians, delicious local food, spices, mint and rose water drinks and delightful cardamom tea, the country with its diverse terrain and its people made for a fascinating overland encounter. So for those who said to us before we left, "Why go to Iran?", here is the answer: we have returned, safe and sound, enlightened and with great respect for the country.

-Jenny Cato

RAIL AGAINST THIS

John Skues relates a "bruising Platinum Class" trip on the Indian Pacific (Traveller, May 10). Our experience, however, was very different. We travelled Gold Class from Adelaide to Perth in January 2014. From booking the trip to disembarking at Perth we can only rave about our wonderful journey. Our compartment was spotless and comfortable, our meals were excellent, the travelling companions were all interesting and the director ensured a happy, enjoyable and informative journey. Off-train stops at Cook and Kalgoorlie were fascinating and worthwhile. Mr Skues may well travel the Canadian Rockies at a cheaper price and he may enjoy it, but he will deny himself the opportunity to see this unique land.

-Maurice Marshall and Denise Elson

TREES AND FEEDS

After living in Japan for about 13 years, seven of which were in Osaka, I was somewhat bewildered by the inaccuracies and misconceptions prevalent in Stephen Phelan's article on Osaka (Traveller, May 10). To say it is a "city without trees" is to call Sydney a "city without beaches". I wonder if Mr Phelan took the time to stroll down the lovely tree-lined Midosuji Avenue that runs from the main business area of Umeda to the shopping and entertainment area of Namba? Or visit the beautiful rose garden at Nakanoshima park, among the many other parks in the city? And from personal experience, I do believe Osaka has more than just one "great coffee shop" besides that mentioned in the article - and I'm not just referring to the numerous standard foreign and domestic coffee shop chains scattered throughout the city.

-Nikki Kaur

To add to the excellent information about Osaka (Traveller, May 10), there are several tips I could offer that enable the visitor to eat very cheaply in a country which seems to have the undeserved reputation for being so expensive. You can find fantastic cafeterias in most of the big department stores around Japan, and they do great meals. Also the food halls of these department stores sell off their obentos and other ready-to-eat foods at the end of each day, heavily discounted. You can also get obentos at any convenience store, which they will heat up for you. Add a vending machine can of beer, and your dinner is less than $10. Great value.

-Margot Pope