7 days in Iran (CS Monitor)
Worth a look. The piece goes beyond the stereotypical sound bites. ~ pinto
7 days in Iran
How a possible thaw with the West is viewed in Iran – on the factory floor, at Friday prayers, and in government suites.
Scott Peterson, Staff writer / December 15, 2013
CAB SERENADE
Touchdown at 3:36 a.m.
The Iranian passengers work their way through immigration, their passports stamped by young officers smartly dressed in pale green uniforms. The line for foreigners is shorter, and I am the only American. These days, a generation after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, which turned flag burning and chants of "Death to America" into an art form, Iranians don't get to add many US passports to their database.
Yet despite the decades of mutual hostility, Iran still has perhaps the most pro-American population in the Middle East. It shows in the reaction of the officer, who slips me a quiet handshake and says, "Welcome."
A sign on a nearby cubicle reads "Finger Print Room," and I ask if this is still part of the routine. Iran began taking fingerprints of visiting US citizens in the late 1990s, in reaction to a US decision to do the same to all Iranians entering the United States. Back then the process was a messy affair, with an ink pad and tissues, leaving my fingers stained purple for days.
With a smile the officer reassures me that prints won't be necessary, and I raise my arms in mock surprise and gratitude. He laughs but is immediately overruled by a superior, who delicately leads me to a cubicle, apologizing: "So sorry, so sorry. It will just take a moment."
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2013/1215/7-days-in-Iran
