Sanctions empty Tehran's poshest properties
In one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in northern Tehran, a Japanese-inspired garden with mini-waterfalls welcomes potential buyers to a newly built luxury apartment.
The four bedroom, four bathroom unit boasts marble floors, a state of the art open kitchen, computerized lighting systems and amenities that rival five star hotels.
It's an apartment so posh visitors are required to wear sanitary shoe covers.
With a market value close to $3.5 million, the need for guests to tread carefully is understandable.
"In my opinion it's worth it," says real estate agent Bahar Khalili. "It's one of the best apartments in Tehran. An exceptional building designed by the best developer in the city."
But for the past year this swanky home has sat empty without a buyer -- half the other units in the six-floor block are empty, too.
So are tens of thousands of other apartments throughout Tehran, all for sale but sitting vacant without buyers.
"Right now we have a lot of apartments that are not sold and sitting empty because of high prices," says Khalili.
Housing prices in Tehran soared beginning in 2012, soon after western powers imposed the toughest round of economic sanctions against Iran to curb its disputed nuclear program.
The sanctions were a huge blow to Iran's economy and when the value of Iranian currency took a nose dive and no one could figure out where the economy was going, many here poured their money into real estate.
According to political analyst, Mohammad Ali Shabani, "real estate became the best way to protect your money."
Khalili agrees with this sentiment. "This is the safest investment you can make today," she said.
"Real estate has always increased in value. We have one apartment that's increased roughly $1,000 per square meter in the past five months.
"If someone wants to invest in Tehran and knows what he's buying, it's almost (a) certainty that's a good investment."
But with Iran's economic future still looking hard to predict and many Iranians lacking buying power, the market is at a standstill -- sellers not selling because they're hoping prices go up. Buyers are not buying because they're hoping prices go down.
The outcome is a Tehran skyline full of empty apartments -- and investors still looking to buy and build despite very little demand.
"Sometimes you wonder how can people possibly build more apartments when nothing is selling," said Khalili.
But remarkably, it's happening in Tehran because until the economy improves and housing prices start to stabilize, they believe, real estate is the safest place to invest.
Daimler is out, Toyota is out, Porsche is out, Hyundai, PSA Peugeot-Citroën are out and when it comes to selling cars in Iran, now Maserati and Lamborghini are out, too. The definitive pullouts of those last two automakers are said to be reactions to a press conference held by a group called United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). The group highlights businesses that sell in both the US market and Iran, and works to get those businesses to choose one market or the other.
UANI said it had sent letters to Maserati and Lamborghini about their dealings in Iran, but that the letters went unanswered. Mark Wallace, head of UANI and a former US ambassador to the United Nations, held a press conference in October of last year that referenced the two companies. Apparently Lamborghini contacted Wallace just after the press conference and told him "they were out, they weren't doing any business in Iran anymore."
Discussions with Maserati then took place, and the Italian automaker said it had been out of Iran ever since Fiat announced it was leaving the country in May 2011. UANI said Maserati had been in talks with an Iranian distributor, however, and that distributor was continuing to use the Maserati name. The carmaker has since cut all ties with Iranian interests and has prevented its name from being used, adding that its new models will not be able to be sold there because they won't pass regulations the country's regulations.
1. Factors to take into consideration when determining compatibility are usually in this order: Religion, Social Status, Educational Status, Political Party, Attraction, Sense of Humor, Values, and that thing called LOVE.
2. Many relationships develop in cars and parking lots (a favorite being the Dbayeh Marina), as most young people live at home with their parents until they are married (and sometimes even after they’re married!).
Am I the only one who has seen this banner one hundred million times?
3. Usually when out at a pub or a nightclub, neither men nor women will approach someone they don’t know, even if they find that person very attractive..but will wait to add them as a friend on Facebook (to check out who they are, what their status is, what school they went to, and who they associate with), or have one of their mutual friends introduce them. This could mean that two people will stare at each other the whole night, but neither one will make the move unless facilitated by a third party.
4. That being said, once contact has been made..most “dating/getting to know each other” takes place over Facebook, MSN, Gmail chat/BBM since casual dating is difficult because everywhere you go in Lebanon, you are bound to run into someone you know..which makes you define the relationship too soon into it. Therefore, it often appears that relationships progress quite quickly since most of the “dating/getting to know each other before it’s official” takes place online..or in cars..or in parking lots. So, as soon as two people go out ALONE in public, it usually means that things are “official.”
5. If you and your partner have enough disposable income, you will rent an apartment so that you can spend intimate time with each other (even if you’re still living/sleeping at your parents house). This is especially true for people who are of different religions.
6. Most plastic surgeries take place in the months right before Summer and Christmas, since that’s when all of the bachelors who are working/studying abroad come home to spend time with their families and look for a potential wife.
7. Lebanese men want Lebanese women to be more open when it comes to casual sex, however, when it comes time to marry, many Lebanese men (even the most open-minded!) will judge Lebanese women (and maybe even consider it a deal breaker) if they have had sex before marriage. Because of this, a (more liberal) Lebanese woman is much more likely to have casual sex with someone she would NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS consider marrying (foreigners get a lot of action because of this).., and lie to her “potential future” husband about it..and simply get hymen reconstructive surgery before her wedding day. While other (more conservative) Lebanese women take their virginity so seriously that they don’t even wear tampons.
8. If you are an Eastern European woman living in Lebanon (and not working in a supernight club) you will automatically be labeled a prostitute no matter how many degrees you have, languages you speak, or high powered positions you’ve held.
9. For most Lebanese men, looks still comes ahead of intelligence, character, and moral values. And for most Lebanese women, money comes ahead of looks, intelligence, character, and moral values.
10. Many Lebanese women are known to look, dress, and act provocatively, yet when it comes down to it, will hardly ever follow through with “it.” Especially with a man she is considering marrying. She wouldn’t want him to think she was “easy.”
Why women who DON'T sunbathe are TWICE as likely to die early than women who do
Ultraviolet radiation from the sun thought to be cause of skin melanomas
But Swedish researchers have found that women who avoid sunshine are twice as likely to die from any cause - including cancer
Study asked 29,518 Swedish women to monitor their sunbathing habits
It goes against everything we've been told about sun worshiping.
But a new study has shown that women who avoid sunbathing during the summer are twice as likely to die than those who sunbathe everyday.
Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden claim guidelines which advise people to stay out of the sun unless wearing sun lotion may be harming us, rather than helping us.
Exposure to ultraviolet radiation from sunlight is often cited as a cause of skin melanoma and the NHS recommends avoiding overexposure to the sun to prevent all types of skin cancer.
But after following nearly 30,000 women over 20 years, the new research found that women who stay out of the sun are at increased risk of skin melanomas and are twice as likely to die from any cause, including cancer.
'The mortality rate was increased two-fold among avoiders of sun exposure as compared to those with the highest sun exposure habits.'
A lack of vitamin D, which is created through exposure to the sun, is thought to be to blame, as it is known to increase the risk of diabetes, rickets, tuberculosis and multiple sclerosis.
Prof Dorothy Bennett, Professor of Cell Biology at St George's, University of London, said: 'The findings support the consensus that the ideal amount of sun exposure for Northern Europeans is ‘a little’, rather than zero.
'As the authors comment, our bodies need sunlight to make essential vitamin D, which can help us resist some cancer types.
'Those who normally avoid the sun and/or cover most of their skin are advised to take vitamin D supplements.'
The research was published in The Journal of Internal Medicine.
Koloocheh is a Persian cookie made in various parts of Iran. They are prepared for Norooz celebration in the south of Iran. Different regions of Iran have different Koloochehs. In the Caspian_sea region of northern Iran, Koloochehs most notably come from Lahijan and Fuman. Other regions, such as Kashan and Yazd in central Iran also have their own Koloocheh.
Koloochehs differ in taste and consistency from region to region. Those from Fuman are larger than most other regions in Iran (approximately 4 inches in diameter and 1/2 of an inch thick).
Iran's most famous Koloochehs come from Lahijan. Although recently additional flavors such as chocolate have been added, Lahijan Koloochehs traditionally come in Walnut or Coconut varieties and are approximately 2 inches in diameter and 3/4 of an inch thick. The Kashan Koloochehs are much smaller (approximately 1 inch or less in diameter and 1/2 of an inch thick).
Koloochehs from southern Iran are brittle biscuits that principally consists of water, sugar, wheat flour and egg white. Masgati is a crystalline soft confection which consists of rose water, starch, sugar and water.
Koloocheh and Masgati is the special souvenir of Shiraz.
Relatives of two Iranian teenage boys at the center of a row with Saudi Arabia said the pair was physically abused in Jeddah by airport officials but not sexually harassed.
Ahmad Amirabadi, an MP from the holy city of Qom, told the ISNA news agency that he had spoken to the families of the two boys and had received a different account to what was widely reported.
“We have spoken with the families of these teenagers and they completely refute the issue of sexual harassment,” ISNA quoted Amirabadi as saying. He added that the families complain the boys were “beaten and insulted.”
Earlier this month Iran’s foreign ministry said that two Iranian teenage boys, aged 14 and 15, had been stopped at Jeddah airport by officials and subjected to “sexual abuse.”
The pair had flown to Jeddah in March for the ritual Umrah pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
Hassan Subhani Niya, a member of Iran’s National Security Committee, also told Iranian media there was no evidence the boys had been sexually abused.
Earlier, President Hassan Rouhani had asked the foreign ministry to investigate the matter “and prepare an inclusive report on the subject.”
According to Iranian media reports, while performing a body search on passengers Saudi officers allegedly took the teenagers away, citing suspicions, sounded off the alarm at the gate and subjected them to abuse.
The Iranian government said last week that Saudi officials had arrested the airport officers responsible for the act, but there has been no such confirmation from Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile on Saturday, a small group of demonstrators staged a protest outside the Saudi embassy in Tehran, demanding that Riyadh prosecute the errant airport officials. Demonstrators waved banners that called Saudi Arabia “the kingdom of terror” and labeled the newly-ascended King Salman a “war criminal.”
Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia have a decades-old history of bitter ties.
Tensions have recently exacerbated over Saudi allegations of Iranian military support for anti-government Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen, where Riyadh has also stepped in militarily.
According to a bill presented by Foreign Policy and National Security Committee of Iranian parliament, sending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia may be terminated.
Based on the bill that signed by 80 members of parliament, Umrah rituals will be suspended until the Saudi officials guarantee the security of Iranian pilgrims and stop their harassment.
In an interview with Fars News Agency, Seyyed Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, spokesman for the Foreign Policy and National Security Committee of Iranian parliament said: Recently, Saudis’ audacity and arrogance towards Iranian Umrah pilgrims in Mecca and Medina has increased and a week before two Iranian teenagers were sexually abused by Saudi police in Jeddah Airport.
He added: So, MPs are in favor of a bill that terminates Umrah until the Saudis safeguard Iranian pilgrims and respect their honor and dignity.
In other action, 18 members of Iranian parliament sent a letter to President Hassan Rouhani to condemn the harassment and ask for punishment of those Saudis who abused two Iranian teenagers.
Another member of Foreign Policy and National Security Committee of Iranian parliament Mohammad Saleh Jokar, insisted that the government never withdraw on this matter and should take back Iranian credibility. In his interview with ISNA he asked for firm stance of Iranian Government on this matter.
Yesterday, Iran voiced protest to Saudi Arabia over the sexual harassment of two Iranian teenage boys by the Saudi police.
Foreign Ministry Deputy for Consular and Iranian Expatriate Affairs Hassan Qashqavi said Iran has submitted a letter to the Saudi charge d’affaires in Tehran over the incident.
Explaining the incident, he told reporters on Tuesday that according to the Iranian head consul in Jeddah, the two teenagers were asked by two Saudi police officers for more body inspections when they were leaving a Saudi airport.
Noticing that the inspection had taken longer than usual, their fellow passengers took notice that the two teenage boys had been sexually harassed, Qashqavi said.
The Iranian consular officials lodged a complaint file and informed the police chief of the airport of the incident, he noted.
He added that the Saudi police summoned all its officers on duty in the airport and then asked the two teenage boys to identify the ones who did the crime. But nobody punished for this offensive crime.
