Kandovan                                                                                        Click Here for Map

     A couple of hours along narrow roads south-east from Tabriz, this village dates from approximately 1300AD. Although many of the houses are much more recent, they are all carved out of the same volcanic rock, and in some of them, doors, windows and internal features are still being created.

    Living in a famous tourist destination must be rather tiresome, and the residents are understandably reluctant to be photographed, so I was very surprised to see on a recent National Geographic video about the village that a five-star hotel has been opened, complete with jacuzzis and a restaurant!