Motell Rastorau Clayale at Kermanshah

Motell Rastorau Clayale at Kermanshah This photograph of our motel at Kermanshah was taken in the morning of day 3 when we were getting ready to leave .

The stage between Kermanshah and Tabriz was to be one of the longest of the journey. After leaving the motel we made good time, but even so the sun had long gone down and it was completely dark when we eventually reached Tabriz and started to look for our hotel.

One problem was that the distance we had to travel each day meant we usually arrived in the evening and there was little time for sightseeing. We were much more concerned about finding the hotel or motel where we planned to spend the night. The AA had provided a route guide and although it gave directions to recommended motels and hotels, they were not always easy to find, especially at night. Often the motels were not on the main highway as one would expect, but were more like guesthouses tucked away in the suburbs.

It was only in North Iran at Tabriz that we had the luxury of a full day off from driving. We spent the day at Tabriz sightseeing before setting off on the next leg of the journey. But to have done that everywhere would have doubled the journey time, and unfortunately the only thing we saw in Kermanshah was the motel.