HI, I'M RICK STEVES, IN THE MOST FASCINATING AND SURPRISING LAND I'VE EVER VISITED.

WE'RE IN IRAN, HERE TO LEARN, TO UNDERSTAND, AND TO MAKE SOME NEW FRIENDS.

THANKS FOR JOINING US.

Women: HELLO!

LIKE MOST AMERICANS, I KNOW ALMOST NOTHING ABOUT IRAN.

FOR ME, THIS IS A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY.

WHAT ARE MY HOPES?

TO ENJOY A RICH AND FASCINATING CULTURE, TO GET TO KNOW A NATION THAT'S A LEADER IN ITS CORNER OF THE WORLD AND HAS BEEN FOR 2,500 YEARS, AND TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE 70 MILLION PEOPLE WHO CALL THIS PLACE HOME.

WE'LL EXPLORE THE LEADING CITY OF TEHRAN, AND AFTER SURVIVING ITS CRAZY TRAFFIC, WE'LL EXPERIENCE IRANIAN LIFE TODAY IN THIS GIANT METROPOLIS.

AFTER A SAMPLING OF IRAN'S RICH AND GLORIOUS PAST, WE'LL DISCUSS THE 20th-CENTURY STORY OF THIS PERPLEXING NATION.

MOST IMPORTANT, WE'LL MEET AND TALK WITH THE PEOPLE WHOSE GOVERNMENT SO EXASPERATES AMERICA.

THE RELIGIOUS AND THE POLITICS IS MIXED.

AND AFTER A VISIT AT KHOMEINI'S TOMB, WE'LL SIDE-TRIP TO THE COUNTRYSIDE AND GET A TASTE OF THE TRANQUILITY OF RURAL LIFE.

IRAN, TWICE THE SIZE OF FRANCE, SITS EAST OF EUROPE IN AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT CORNER OF ASIA, SURROUNDED BY TURKEY, IRAQ, PAKISTAN AND AFGHANISTAN.

FROM THE CAPITAL OF TEHRAN, WE'LL FOLLOW AN ANCIENT TRADE ROUTE SOUTH TO THE VILLAGE OF ABYANEH.

EVERY COUNTRY, INCLUDING OUR OWN, LIMITS ACCESS TO FOREIGN FILM CREWS.

WE'RE HERE IN IRAN WITH THE PERMISSION OF THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT, AND WE'RE WORKING WITHIN THE LIMITS IT SETS AS WE EXPLORE THIS COMPLEX SOCIETY.

KNOWING WE'RE HERE TO EXPLORE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DIMENSIONS RATHER THAN CONTENTIOUS POLITICAL ISSUES, THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT IS ALLOWING OUR WORK.

IT BELIEVES THE WESTERN MEDIA HAS GIVEN IRAN AN UNFAIR IMAGE.

THEY GAVE US OUR VISAS PROVIDED WE RESPECT ITS LIMITS, AS ENFORCED BY OUR GUIDE.

HIS JOB -- KEEP US SAFE, MANAGE THE COMPLICATED PERMISSIONS, AND KEEP AN EYE ON WHAT WE'RE SHOOTING.

TEHRAN, A YOUTHFUL, NOISY CAPITAL CITY, IS THE MODERN HEART OF THIS COUNTRY.

IT'S A SMOGGY, MILE-HIGH METROPOLIS.

WITH A TEEMING POPULATION OF ABOUT 10 MILLION, ITS APARTMENT BLOCKS STRETCH FAR INTO THE SURROUNDING MOUNTAINS.

TRAFFIC IS NOTORIOUS HERE.

MY FIRST IMPRESSION -- WILD DRIVERS.

BUT AFTER SURVIVING MY FIRST DAY, I REALIZED THEY WERE EXPERTS AT KEEPING THINGS MOVING.

MANY MAJOR STREETS ACTUALLY INTERSECT WITHOUT THE HELP OF TRAFFIC LIGHTS.

IT'S DIFFERENT, BUT IT SEEMS TO WORK.

TWO WHEELS ARE FASTER THAN FOUR.

HELMET LAWS ARE GENERALLY IGNORED.

AS A MATTER OF FACT, SOMETIMES THE DIRECTION OF TRAFFIC IS IGNORED AS WELL.

TO CROSS TOWN QUICKLY, MOTORCYCLE TAXIS ARE A BLESSING.

BUT WEAR THAT HELMET -- I'D RATHER LEAVE A LITTLE PAINT ON PASSING BUSES THAN A PIECE OF SCALP.

PEDESTRIANS FEND FOR THEMSELVES.

NEGOTIATING TRAFFIC AS YOU CROSS THE STREET IS A LIFE SKILL HERE.

LOCALS SAY IT'S LIKE GOING TO CHECHNYA.

IMMERSED IN THE COMMOTION OF A BUSY WORK DAY -- APART FROM THE CHADOR-COVERED WOMEN AND LACK OF WESTERN FAST FOOD CHAINS -- TEHRAN SEEMED MUCH LIKE ANY CITY IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD.

IF YOU NEED TO GET SOMEWHERE IN A HURRY -- OR IF YOUR MOTORCYCLE TAXI IS UNDER SOME BIG BUS -- THANK GOODNESS FOR THE SUBWAY.

TEHRAN'S THRIVING SUBWAY MOVES OVER A MILLION PEOPLE A DAY.

THIS SUBWAY SYSTEM IS REALLY AS GOOD AS ANYTHING I'VE SEEN IN EUROPE.

OF IRAN'S 70 MILLION PEOPLE, WELL OVER HALF ARE UNDER THE AGE OF 30.

WHILE THERE ARE PLENTY OF MINORITIES, THE PERSIAN POPULATION DOMINATES.

THE LOCAL ETHNICITY REFLECTS THE TURMOIL OF THIS COUNTRY'S LONG HISTORY.

YOU'LL FIND PEOPLE WITH GREEK, ARAB, TURK, MONGOL, KURDISH, AND AZERBAIJANI HERITAGE.

IRANIANS ARE NOT ARABS, AND THEY DON'T SPEAK ARABIC.

THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ISSUE WITH THE PEOPLE OF IRAN.

THEY ARE PERSIANS AND THEY SPEAK FARSI.

FACES SEEM TO TELL A STORY, AND ARE QUICK TO SMILE...

ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY SEE A FILM CREW FROM THE USA.

ACTUALLY, WE FOUND THAT THE EASIEST WAY TO GET A SMILE WAS TO TELL PEOPLE WHERE WE'RE FROM.

I'M FROM THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

OH, YOU'RE FROM THE UNITED STATES, OKAY.

AMERICA!

NO!

YEAH, IT'S TRUE!

IT'S ACTUALLY TRUE.

THANK YOU -- THAT'S NICE TO HEAR.

[ CHILDREN CALLING ] I WAS IMPRESSED BY HOW THE PEOPLE WE MET WERE CURIOUS AND EAGER TO TALK.

YOUNG, EDUCATED PEOPLE ARE INTERNET SAVVY AND WELL INFORMED ABOUT THE WEST.

THEY GENERALLY SPOKE SOME ENGLISH.

ANYWHERE FOREIGNERS WENT, SIGNS WERE BILINGUAL -- FARSI FOR LOCALS AND ENGLISH FOR EVERYONE ELSE.

THE SCRIPT LOOKS ARABIC TO ME, BUT I LEARNED, LIKE THE LANGUAGE, IT'S FARSI.

THE NUMBERS, HOWEVER, ARE THE SAME AS THOSE USED IN THE ARAB WORLD.

ANOTHER COMMUNICATION CHALLENGE, PEOPLE HERE HAVE TO DEAL WITH DIFFERENT CALENDARS -- PERSIAN AND MUSLIM FOR LOCAL AFFAIRS, WESTERN FOR DEALING WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD.

WHAT YEAR IS IT?

WELL, IT DEPENDS... AFTER MUHAMMAD, ABOUT 1390 YEARS AGO -- AFTER CHRIST, TWO THOUSAND AND SOME YEARS AGO.

AND ALL THIS COMPLEXITY IS THE RESULT OF A LONG AND TUMULTUOUS HISTORY.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF IRAN HELPS TO GIVE AN APPRECIATION OF THIS COUNTRY'S RICH HERITAGE.

AT FIRST I WAS DISAPPOINTED BY WHAT SEEMED LIKE A HUMBLE COLLECTION FOR SUCH A GREAT CULTURE.

THEN I LEARNED THAT MOST OF ITS TREASURES WERE DESTROYED OR LOOTED BY INVADERS.

MUCH OF WHAT SURVIVED WAS TAKEN AWAY TO THE GREAT MUSEUMS IN THE WEST.

THE COLLECTION STARTS IN PREHISTORIC TIMES, BACK WHEN NOMADIC HUNTERS WERE BECOMING FARMERS.

THIS BRONZE PLAQUE FEATURING GILGAMESH DATES FROM ABOUT 1000 BC, A TIME WHEN THIS REGION WAS IN THE REALM OF MESOPOTAMIA.

THEN, IN ABOUT 500 BC, WITH THE GREAT KINGS DARIUS AND XERXES, THE MIGHTY PERSIAN EMPIRE WAS ESTABLISHED.

THEIR ART GLORIFIED THEIR KINGS AND THE NOTION OF PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.

CULTURE FLOURISHED, AND IT WAS ABOUT THIS TIME THAT, WITH CUNEIFORM, THE PERSIAN LANGUAGE WAS FIRST PUT INTO WRITING.

THAT FIRST PERSIAN EMPIRE WAS CONQUERED BY ALEXANDER THE GREAT FROM GREECE.

LATER, A SECOND PERSIAN EMPIRE WAS CONQUERED BY ARABS.

THEN CAME INVASIONS BY TURKS AND MONGOLS.

FINALLY, WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A THIRD PERSIAN EMPIRE IN THE 16th CENTURY, THIS CULTURE ENJOYED A RENAISSANCE.

WHILE IT'S WEATHERED WAVE AFTER WAVE OF CONQUERORS, THE ESSENCE OF TODAY'S IRANIAN CULTURE IS STILL ROOTED IN THAT FIRST PERSIAN EMPIRE FROM 2,500 YEARS AGO.

Narrator: PERSIA, AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, A POOR AGRICULTURAL COUNTRY, RICH ONLY IN LEGEND AND UNDEVELOPED NATURAL RESOURCES... Steves: IN THE 20th CENTURY, WITH THE DISCOVERY OF ITS VAST OIL RESERVES, IRAN BECAME ENTWINED WITH THE WEST.

Narrator: OIL WAS STRUCK AT LAST, AND DRILLING COMMENCED... Steves: DURING WORLD WAR II, IRAN WAS A VITAL OIL RESOURCE FOR THE ALLIES.

AFTER THE WAR, IRAN'S YOUNG SHAH, OR KING, MOHAMMAD REZA SHAH PAHLAVI, BECAME MORE CLOSELY INVOLVED WITH THE WEST.

OIL FLOWED EASY, AND HE WAS A FRIEND OF WESTERN OIL COMPANIES.

THEN THINGS CHANGED.

Narrator: OIL AGAIN POSES A THREAT TO PEACE, AND THE MIDDLE EAST AGAIN BECOMES A TROUBLE SPOT AS IRAN'S VAST PETROLEUM RESERVES AROUSE NATIONALISTS... Steves: IN 1951, THE POPULAR PRIME MINISTER MOSSADEGH NATIONALIZED IRAN'S FOREIGN-OWNED OIL INDUSTRY.

WITH THE RESULTING TURMOIL, THE SHAH WAS FORCED INTO EXILE.

THIS IS WHEN THE TROUBLED RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN IRAN AND THE UNITED STATES BEGAN.

EVERY IRANIAN SCHOOL KID KNOWS THE DATE "1953."

THAT'S WHEN THE CIA ENGINEERED A COUP THAT OVERTHREW THE DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED PRIME MINISTER MOSSADEGH.

HE HAD ANGERED THE WEST BY NATIONALIZING IRANIAN OIL, SO THEY INSTALLED THE PRO-WESTERN SHAH, INSTEAD.

Narrator: FORMER PREMIER MOSSADEGH'S RUINED HOUSE IS A MUTE TESTIMONY TO THREE DAYS OF BLOODY RIOTING CULMINATING IN A MILITARY COUP FROM WHICH THE ONE-TIME DICTATOR OF IRAN FLED FOR HIS LIFE.

THE SHAH, WHO HAD FLED TO ROME, COMES HOME.

BACKED BY GENERAL ZAHEDI, MILITARY STRONGMAN, WHO ENGINEERED HIS RETURN TO POWER.

IRANIAN OIL MAY AGAIN FLOW WESTWARD.

Steves: BACK ON THE THRONE, THE SHAH ALLOWED WESTERN OIL COMPANIES TO RUN IRAN'S OIL INDUSTRY AGAIN.

WITH THE PROFITS, HE MODERNIZED THE COUNTRY.

THROUGH THE '60s, THERE WAS A RETURN TO STABILITY AND THE SHAH WAS A KEY AMERICAN ALLY IN THE MIDDLE EAST.

THE SHAH RULED IN ROYAL OPULENCE FROM GRAND PALACES.

HE ENJOYED SUMMERS IN THIS ONE UNTIL THE LATE 1970s.

STROLLING THROUGH ITS FINE ROOMS, VISITORS ARE REMINDED HOW THE SHAH LIVED IN EXTREME LUXURY.

BUT HIS MATERIALISTIC DECADENCE AND PRO-WESTERN POLICIES OFFENDED IRAN'S CONSERVATIVES AND ALIENATED RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL GROUPS.

ANGRY PEOPLE HIT THE STREETS.

THE UNREST LED TO CRACKDOWNS BY THE SHAH'S FORCES THAT TORTURED AND KILLED THOUSANDS.

ALL OF THIS EMBOLDENED A REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT, AND BURNED INTO THE NATIONAL PSYCHE A FEAR OF AMERICAN MEDDLING IN INTERNAL IRANIAN AFFAIRS.

AFTER 25 YEARS OF THE SHAH'S RULE, THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION THREW HIM OUT AND BROUGHT AYATOLLAH KHOMEINI BACK FROM EXILE.

THAT REVOLUTION, AND THE AYATOLLAH, ESTABLISHED THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC, WHICH RULES TO THIS DAY.

WALKING THE STREETS HERE, I FELT A DISTURBING PRESENCE OF GOVERNMENT.

THIS IS NOT A DEMOCRACY.

IN 1979, THE NEW GOVERNMENT BROUGHT IRAN NOT FREEDOM, BUT WHAT THEY CALL A "REVOLUTION OF VALUES" -- IT LEGISLATED MORALITY, SUCH AS NO ALCOHOL AND NO CASUAL SEX.

AS FAR AS MANY PARENTS ARE CONCERNED HERE, IT'S FAMILY VALUES.

IRAN IS RULED BY A THEOCRACY.

THEY MAY HAVE A PRESIDENT, BUT THE TOP RELIGIOUS OFFICIAL, A MAN CALLED "THE SUPREME LEADER," HAS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY.

HIS PICTURE, NOT THE PRESIDENT'S, IS EVERYWHERE.

RELIGIOUS OFFERING BOXES ARE ON EVERY STREET CORNER.

THE DAYS WHEN THE SHAH'S MEN BOASTED THAT MINI-SKIRTS IN TEHRAN WERE SHORTER THAN THOSE IN PARIS ARE CLEARLY LONG GONE.

WOMEN MUST DRESS MODESTLY, AND ARE SEGREGATED IN PLACES LIKE CLASSROOMS AND BUSES.

AND YET HERE IN THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN, TO ME THE ATMOSPHERE FELT SURPRISINGLY SECULAR, COMPARED TO OTHER MUSLIM COUNTRIES.

SKYLINES ARE NOT PUNCTUATED WITH MINARETS.

I BARELY HEARD A CALL TO PRAYER.

EXCEPT FOR WOMEN'S DRESS CODES AND THE LACK OF AMERICAN PRODUCTS AND ADVERTISING, LIFE ON THE STREETS HERE SEEMED MUCH THE SAME AS IN SECULAR CITIES ELSEWHERE IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD.

WHILE RELATIVELY UNCLUTTERED WITH COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING, THERE ARE PLENTY OF BILLBOARDS AND MURALS, AND THEY PACK A POWERFUL PROPAGANDA MESSAGE.

SOME RELIGIOUS MURALS ARE UPLIFTING -- THIS ONE IS A SHIITE SCRIPTURE CLAIMING, "THE MOST CARING HELP IS TO GIVE GOOD ADVICE."

YET OTHERS ARE TROUBLING AND HATEFUL -- THIS ONE CONDEMNS WHAT'S CONSIDERED AMERICAN IMPERIALISM WITH SKULLS AND DROPPING BOMBS, RATHER THAN STARS AND STRIPES.

AND THIS ONE GLORIFIES HEZBOLLAH FIGHTERS AND THEIR STRUGGLE WITH ISRAEL, WHICH MANY HERE CONSIDER AMERICA'S 51st STATE.

THIS MURAL HONORS A MARTYR, ONE OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS WHO DIED FIGHTING SADDAM HUSSEIN BACK IN THE 1980s.

THESE MURALS MIX RELIGION, PATRIOTISM, AND A HERITAGE OF DEALING WITH FOREIGN INTERVENTION.

WHILE I FIND SOME OF THEM OFFENSIVE, I SEE IN THESE MURALS THE FEAR AND THE SPINE OF A PEOPLE WHOSE VALUES ARE THREATENED.

THE GREATEST CONCENTRATION OF ANTI-AMERICAN MURALS SURROUNDS THE FORMER U.S. EMBASSY.

IN 1979, IRANIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS SUCCESSFULLY STORMED THE EMBASSY.

THEY TOOK 52 HOSTAGES, AND HELD THEM WITH THE WORLD LOOKING ON FOR 444 DAYS.

SOME IRANIANS CLAIM THE HOSTAGE CRISIS WAS A WAY TO RADICALIZE THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION AND PUT THE HARD-LINERS IN POWER.

OTHERS SAY IT WAS A PREEMPTIVE STRIKE TO STOP THE UNITED STATES FROM ORCHESTRATING A MILITARY COUP DESIGNED TO OVERTHROW THEIR THEOCRACY AND PUT THE SHAH BACK IN POWER.

THEY ALSO WANTED TO FORCE THE EXTRADITION OF THE SHAH, WHO WAS IN EXILE IN THE UNITED STATES.

TODAY, IT FEELS LIKE THE HOSTAGE CRISIS IS OLD NEWS, AND YOUNGER IRANIANS HAVE MOVED ON.

THE MURALS SEEM TO DRONE ON LIKE AN UNWANTED CALL TO BATTLE -- A CALL WHICH PEOPLE I ENCOUNTERED, IT SEEMS, HAD SIMPLY STOPPED HEARING.

TEHRAN IS A VIBRANT METROPOLIS -- IRAN'S SOCIAL, ARTISTIC, AND EDUCATIONAL CENTER.

ITS UNIVERSITY IS THE OLDEST, BIGGEST, AND MOST PRESTIGIOUS IN THE LAND.

IT'S QUITE SELECTIVE -- ONLY ABOUT ONE IN TEN APPLICANTS GET IN.

HERE, AS IN OTHER IRANIAN UNIVERSITIES, STUDENTS ENJOY A HIGHER EDUCATION PAID FOR BY THE GOVERNMENT.

BUT WANDERING THROUGH CAMPUS, WE LEARNED THAT FREE TUITION COMES WITH STRICT GUIDELINES, AS DICTATED BY THE THEOCRACY.

WHILE I HOPED TO FIND SOME NON-CONFORMITY, THE VIBE HERE MADE B.Y.U.

SEEM LIKE BERKELEY.

COMPLIANCE RAGED.

WOMEN ARE PERFECTLY WELCOME.

IN FACT, WOMEN OUTNUMBER IRANIAN MEN IN BOTH UNIVERSITIES AND IN MANY RESPECTED PROFESSIONS.

BUT SEGREGATION IS THE RULE.

IN CLASSROOMS, IT'S MEN ON ONE SIDE AND WOMEN ON THE OTHER.

THERE WAS NO REAL STUDENT UNION CENTER, JUST A SMALL COMMONS IN EACH DEPARTMENT, WITH A SNACK BAR FOR MEN, AND AN ADJACENT ONE FOR WOMEN.

DESPITE THE CONSERVATIVE ATMOSPHERE, WE FOUND STUDENTS FRIENDLY, CURIOUS, AND WILLING TO CHAT.

WHAT DO YOU STUDY?

CHEMISTRY.

CHEMISTRY?

VERY DIFFICULT.

FOR ME, VERY DIFFICULT.

WHAT DO YOU STUDY?

CHEMISTRY.

ALL OF YOU ARE CHEMISTRY?

SO WE ARE LEARNING VERY MUCH WHEN WE COME TO IRAN.

FOR EXAMPLE?

FOR EXAMPLE...

THE PEOPLE ARE NOT ANGRY WITH AMERICA.

YES -- THAT'S A VERY INTERESTING POINT.

SO THE GOVERNMENTS HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME, BUT THE PEOPLE, IF WE MEET THE PEOPLE, IT'S LIKE THIS...

SO FOR AMERICANS, WE ARE A VERY RELIGIOUS PEOPLE, BUT WE MAKE THE GOVERNMENT AND THE CHURCH APART, YOU KNOW?

YOU THINK THAT'S...

YES, IT'S THE MAIN PROBLEM.

SO YOU'RE A MODERN YOUNG WOMAN?

YEAH, OF COURSE.

WELL EDUCATED.

I LIKE TO BE.

AND YOU MUST WEAR A -- COVER YOUR HAIR?

IT'S A LAW.

NOW, I CANNOT SHAKE YOUR HAND?

NO, BECAUSE HERE IT'S A RELIGIOUS SOCIETY.

SO I CAN GO LIKE... SALAAM?

ME TOO.

I CAN GO "SALAAM"?

NO, "XODA HAFEZ."

"XODA HAFEZ."

"XODA HAFEZ."

"GOD"...

OKAY, AND I CAN SHAKE HIS HAND?

YES, YES.

I'LL SHAKE YOUR HAND FOR HER...

OKAY?

[ LAUGHTER ] THANK YOU.

Man: DO YOU LIKE TO TAKE A PICTURE?

I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A PICTURE, THAT'S A GOOD-LOOKING HAT.

I HAVE A GAME I LIKE TO PLAY WITH ALL MY NEW FRIENDS.

I WILL GO LIKE THIS... CAN I TAKE A PICTURE WITH YOU AND ME?

AND ALL OF YOU GUYS TOGETHER, SO YOU CAN GO HERE.

OKAY -- ARE WE READY?

SO WE'LL LOOK INTO THE CAMERA AND WE'LL SAY "SALAAM."

WE'LL SAY "PEOPLE TO PEOPLE."

PEOPLE TO PEOPLE.

IRANIAN WOMEN LIVE UNDER STRICT MUSLIM LAWS IN PUBLIC.

TO A WESTERN VIEWPOINT, THE DRESS CODE IMPOSED ON WOMEN SEEMS DISRESPECTFUL.

BUT ACCORDING TO AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE, MODESTY IS CONSIDERED RESPECTFUL.

IN IRAN, WOMEN'S BODIES ARE NOT VEHICLES FOR ADVERTISING.

YOU DON'T SEE SEXY MAGAZINES.

THERE IS ALMOST NO PUBLIC DISPLAY OF AFFECTION.

WHILE WOMEN CAN DRESS AS THEY LIKE AT HOME, IN PUBLIC THEY WEAR THE CHADOR AND ARE EXPECTED NOT TO SHOW THEIR HAIR OR SHOW OFF THE SHAPE OF THEIR BODY.

I FOUND THEIR AWARENESS OF OUR CAMERA FASCINATING -- WOMEN SEEMED TO SENSE WHEN IT WAS NEAR AND WOULD ADJUST THEIR SCARVES TO MAKE SURE THEIR HAIR WAS PROPERLY COVERED.

LOCAL SURVEYS INDICATE THAT ABOUT 70% OF THESE WOMEN WOULD DRESS MORE FREELY IN PUBLIC IF ALLOWED.

WHILE MODESTY IS ENFORCED, VANITY IS NOT OUT OF BOUNDS.

IN FACT, COSMETIC SURGERY -- ESPECIALLY NOSE JOBS-- IS BIG BUSINESS HERE AMONG THE MIDDLE CLASS.

EVEN THOUGH COVERED UP, WOMEN EXPERTLY UTILIZE THEIR FEMININE CHARMS.

FACES ARE BEAUTIFULLY MADE UP, AND WHEN SO MUCH ELSE IS COVERED, PARTICULARLY EXPRESSIVE AND MYSTERIOUS.

AND, AS FAR AS HIGH STYLE IS CONCERNED, THERE'S NO BETTER PLACE TO SEE IT THAN THE HILLY DISTRICT OF NORTH TEHRAN.

BROWSING IN ITS MALLS AND CLASSY SHOPS, YOU COULD BE IN LONDON OR PARIS.

SHOPPERS WHO HAVE THE MONEY CAN FIND NEARLY ANYTHING THEY LIKE.

THIS HIGH-END CONFECTIONERY SHOP GIVES A GLIMPSE OF THE TASTE AND LIFESTYLES OF NORTH TEHRAN CITIZENS.

CAFES IN LUSH GARDENS LIKE THIS ARE THE PLAYGROUND OF IRAN'S WEALTHY... WHERE THEY LET THEIR HAIR DOWN, JUST A LITTLE.

THE YOUNG, PRIVILEGED, AND COSMOPOLITAN MANAGE TO BE QUITE FASHIONABLE.

THIS SCENE MAY BE CHIC, BUT I HEARD THAT THE REAL PARTYING GOES ON IN THE PRIVACY OF PEOPLE'S HOMES.

MANY OF THESE PEOPLE COULD AFFORD TO LIVE ABROAD, BUT PREFER TO LIVE AS ECONOMIC ELITES HERE IN THE RITZIEST CORNER OF TEHRAN.

ON OUR WAY OUT OF TOWN, WE VISIT A SYMBOL OF THIS VIBRANT CITY -- ITS FREEDOM MONUMENT.

DATING FROM THE 1970s, IT'S ONE OF THE FORMER SHAH OF IRAN'S MANY EXTRAVAGANZAS.

HE BUILT IT TO CELEBRATE THE 2,500th ANNIVERSARY OF THE PERSIAN EMPIRE, AND ALL THE MIGHTY PERSIAN KINGS WHO CAME BEFORE HIM.

UNDERLINING THE ANCIENT ROOTS OF THIS SOCIETY, ITS DESIGN SYMBOLIZES A ZOROASTRIAN FIRE ALTAR, AND IT'S DECORATED WITH CLASSIC PERSIAN MOTIFS.

LEAVING TEHRAN WAS QUICK AND EASY WITH ITS IMPRESSIVE SYSTEM OF HIGHWAYS.

JUST OUTSIDE OF TOWN, WE DROPPED BY THE GREAT MOSQUE CONTAINING THE TOMB OF AYATOLLAH KHOMEINI.

HE WAS THE SPIRITUAL LEADER OF THE REBELLION THAT OVERTHREW THE SHAH IN 1979, AND KHOMEINI RULED THE COUNTRY FOR THE NEXT DECADE.

EVEN THOUGH THE MOSQUE CAN ACCOMMODATE UP TO A MILLION WORSHIPPERS ON SPECIAL DAYS, IT'S UNDERGOING A MAJOR EXPANSION.

THE WORK IS FUNDED BY SMALL DONATIONS MOSTLY FROM THE POOR, AS THEY WERE THE PEOPLE KHOMEINI INSPIRED THE MOST.

THIS FELT LIKE A PARTICULARLY EASY-GOING MOSQUE, IN KEEPING WITH KHOMEINI'S IMAGE AMONG HIS PEOPLE.

RATHER THAN THE IMPRESSION I'VE LONG HELD OF A MENACING IDEOLOGUE, HERE HE'S CONSIDERED A SAGE AND A CHAMPION OF TRADITIONAL VALUES.

AFTER THE SHAH'S EXCESSES AND CORRUPTION, KHOMEINI'S SIMPLICITY AND HOLINESS HAD A STRONG APPEAL TO THE IRANIAN MASSES.

HE DID USE OPPRESSIVE TACTICS, BUT TO THE POOR AND THE LESS EDUCATED, THE CHARISMATIC KHOMEINI WAS LIKE A MESSIAH.

AS THE PERSONIFICATION OF THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION, HE SYMBOLIZED DELIVERANCE FROM THE ECONOMIC OPPRESSION AND WESTERN DECADENCE OF THE SHAH.

KHOMEINI GAVE MILLIONS OF IRANIANS HOPE.

CONTINUING SOUTH ON THE MAIN HIGHWAY, THE ARID VASTNESS OF THIS ALASKA-SIZED COUNTRY IS CLEAR.

VENTURING UP A RIVER VALLEY, WHERE WATER BRINGS LIFE TO THE LANDSCAPE, WE FIND A TIMELESS MOMENT -- A SHEPHERD WATCHING OVER HIS FLOCK.

THE SCENE COULD BE FROM 5,000 YEARS AGO, WHEN THIS CORNER OF IRAN WAS PART OF THE FERTILE CRESCENT -- A PLACE AND TIME WHEN FARMING AND THE DOMESTICATION OF ANIMALS HELPED GIVE RISE TO THE FIRST GREAT CIVILIZATIONS.

YOU GET THE FEELING THIS COULD BE BACK IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA.

THEN WE CAME ACROSS THE VILLAGE OF ABYANEH, NESTLED IN ITS VALLEY.

THE REMAINS OF A RUINED CASTLE ARE A REMINDER OF ITS FORMER IMPORTANCE.

NOW A SLEEPY BACKWATER, ABYANEH IS A PICTURESQUE EXAMPLE OF IRANIAN VILLAGE LIFE.

THE REFLECTIVE ROOFS HELP RESIDENTS WEATHER BLISTERING SUMMERS -- I'M GLAD WE'RE HERE IN MAY.

AS IN SMALL TOWNS ALMOST EVERYWHERE, THE YOUNGER GENERATION IS PULLED TO THE BIG CITY IN SEARCH OF EMPLOYMENT AND A MORE EXCITING LIFE.

THOSE WHO REMAIN ARE OLD AND SEEM TO HAVE AN ABUNDANCE OF TIME ON THEIR HANDS.

THE FEW TOURISTS -- MOSTLY IRANIAN -- WANDER THROUGH, ADMIRING THE SIMPLE ARCHITECTURE AND FINE OLD WOODEN BALCONIES.

FOR ME, THE VILLAGE HIGHLIGHT WAS MEETING ITS PEOPLE.

WITH A LITTLE TRANSLATION HELP, I GET A DEMONSTRATION IN THE LOCAL FASHIONS FOR MEN.

[ SPEAKING FARSI ] ALONG WITH BAGGY PANTS, THE TOWN IS PROUD OF ITS UNIQUE GENDER-SPECIFIC DOOR KNOCKERS.

I NEVER CONSIDERED THE VALUE OF KNOWING IF IT'S A BOY OR A GIRL AT THE DOOR.

BUT THAT'S HANDY FOR A CONSERVATIVE MUSLIM WOMAN.

Woman: ZAN...

GIRL.

Woman: MARD.

MARD -- MAN.

MAN.

XODA HAFEZ.

XODA HAFEZ.

XODA HAFEZ -- BYE-BYE.

BYE-BYE!

OKAY.

AND THE MAIN INDUSTRY SEEMS TO BE SELLING DRIED FRUITS.

SALAAM.

OOH, IT'S GOOD?

WHAT IS THIS, IS THIS GOOD?

HOW MANY?

KHOMEINI.

"KHOMEINI"?

KHOMEINI.

KHOMEINI.

I DON'T THINK SO, NO.

I'LL GIVE YOU SOME -- LET'S SEE, LET ME GET -- HOW MUCH -- OH, KHOMEINI?

HIM?

OKAY -- THAT ONE?

OKAY.

MERCI.

SO, IT SURPRISED ME -- THEY SAID ONE KHOMEINI, AND I BOUGHT THESE DRIED APPLES WITH THIS BILL, AND IT'S GOT A KHOMEINI ON IT.

THAT'S WHAT THEY CALL THE BILL FOR THE TOURIST, "A KHOMEINI."

OKAY, SO -- [ SPEAKING FARSI ] NICE.

I CAME HERE KNOWING NO ONE AND UNCERTAIN OF WHAT TO EXPECT.

AFTER VISITING ITS LARGEST CITY AND A SMALL VILLAGE, THE THING THAT HAS IMPRESSED ME THE MOST IS THE WARMTH AND OPENNESS OF THE IRANIAN PEOPLE.

[ CHILDREN CALLING ] GRANTED, THERE ARE NO EASY SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS CONFRONTING OUR TWO NATIONS.

BUT, SURELY, GETTING TO KNOW THIS CULTURE IS A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

I'M RICK STEVES -- HAPPY TRAVELS.

AND AS THEY SAY HERE, "PEACE BE UPON US."