On Thursday morning (24th August) we left Isfahan and Ebi's uncle drove us to visit some of Ebi's mother's Bachtiari relatives in a village called Aloni, about 30 minutes drive from Lordeghan. I remembered some of them from the wedding. They were all happy to see us again and asked all about our trips to Shiraz and Isfahan, as well as of course, many more questions about me and the UK.

We had lunch with them, which was the famous Bachtiari Kebab. This is pieces of chicken, which are left overnight to marinade in lemon juice and saffron to make the meat nice and tender. They are then barbequed on coals to give them a delicous smoky flavour. This was served with fluffy rice and sabzi (salad which was a mixture of fresh mint and basil leaves, this seems to be a very popular accompaniment to meals in Iran).

Later in the afternoon we took a walk in the fields behind the family's house. The temperature in this part of Iran (and in Shiraz and Isfahan too) is a lot cooler than in Abadan, so it was very pleasant to wander around without sweating a lot! The family own some of the fields at the back of the house and they grow their own white beans and rice, which they use in the cooking.

Unfortunatly, again, I cannot access the photos I took here, but I will try and find some photos. It was so beautiful and peaceful. This region of Iran is surrounded by steep towering mountains and we went for a walk in an area just outside the village.

We had dinner later and stayed the night with them. Next morning we had breakfast, of traditional Bachtiari bread (made by rolling dough until its very thin and baking it on hot stones), cheese, cucumber and fresh tomatoes, which were picked from a nearby field when we went walking the night before.

We set off in the car with Ebi's uncle, aunt and cousin to see a little of Lordeghan where they live and then drove for 6 hours through the mountains to Izeh, where we said goodbye. Ebi and I travelled to Ahvaz and then onto Abadan.