For tourists searching for a quick and free slice of traditional Iran there’s the Tajrish Bazaar (Bazar-e-Tajrish), in the heart of north Tehran, which is closer to the city’s top hotels than the more famous the Grand Bazaar of Tehran in the city’s center. It’s smaller than the Grand Bazaar, but Tajrish is less congested and the air is cooler and less polluted than central Tehran.
Quaint passageways rebuilt from hundreds of years ago – open 9 am to 9 pm seven days a week – are home to merchants of every kind of food, electronics, clothes, gold and silver jewelry, religious artifacts, artwork and household goods, all next to each other, in no particular order, lit by a combination of incandescent and daylight sneaking in through the roof.