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In this vlog, I'm walking through the streets of Tabriz, testing out my new DJI Pocket 4P, visiting local markets, trying amazing food, meeting friendly people, and experiencing what everyday life is like in this incredible city! :)
With so much of the world's attention on the region, I wanted to share what I saw firsthand during my visit. This video isn't about politics - it's about travel, culture, and the people who make Tabriz such a memorable place to explore!
In this vlog:
Exploring the streets of Tabriz
Visiting the famous Grand Bazaar
Trying delicious local food
Discovering the city's history and architecture
Experiencing everyday life in northwest Iran
If you enjoy authentic travel vlogs, local food, and discovering places beyond the headlines, make sure to like, subscribe, and join me for more adventures around the world.
Have you ever been to Iran, or is it on your travel bucket list? Let me know in the comments!
Instagram: @itsjaypalfrey
Beyond Border Expeditions: beyondborderexpeditions.com
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0:00
Welcome everybody to Tabriz, a city in the eastern Azerbaijan province of Iran
0:04
with a population of 1.7 million people and the population here speak Azari Turkish as well as
0:11
Persian. Ibn Battuta passed through these streets and the city and claimed it as one of the most
0:16
important cultural and trading hubs in the world. So of course if Ibn Battuta said this I have to
0:22
spend the entire day exploring what he meant. Let's go, I'm excited. My friends before we get
0:27
into the video in Tabriz I want to show you my brand new vlogging camera which I've shot all of
0:32
the recent content on including this video in Tabriz. I've been testing DJI's brand new Osmo
0:38
Pocket 4P and is genuinely one of the best cameras I've ever laid my hands on. As someone who travels
0:44
solo most of the time the three-axis mechanical gimbal and active track are huge. I can walk
0:49
through busy streets, hike or simply vlog hands-free and the camera keeps me smooth and perfectly
0:53
framed throughout. The biggest upgrade for me however with this camera is the brand new dual
0:57
camera setup. You get a wide 20mm lens that's perfect for landscapes and travel shots but now
1:03
there's also a dedicated 60mm portrait lens. It genuinely feels like having two cameras in one
1:08
tiny device. If you like getting creative this is one of my favorite settings within the camera
1:13
Up to 4k at 240 frames per second for incredible slow motion plus D-Log2 if you want extra
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flexibility when color grading your footage later. Image quality has also taken a huge step forward
1:24
thanks to the brand new one inch sensor. Whether you're filming a sunset, shooting into bright light
1:29
or exploring cities after dark, it does an amazing job of holding detail in both shadow and harsh
1:34
light. And despite all of that, all of the incredible things that this camera has to offer
1:38
it's small enough to fit inside my pocket. So it means I'm carrying this camera every single day
1:43
And as a travel creator who carries his entire life on his back, any loss of weight is incredible
1:49
and this camera really has blown my mind with its capabilities. I am so, so impressed
1:55
This is the brand new DJI Osmo Pocket 4P and it will be in my pocket and in my backpack
2:01
every single day on my trips and it will be the only camera I am now filming on
2:05
I'm so excited about this. As I mentioned, this entire travel video is filmed on this
2:10
Hope you enjoy the footage and I hope you enjoy Tabriz. To begin my time here in Tabriz
2:15
I've just arrived to the Blue Mosque. This mosque was built back in the 1400s by the Kara Kiyunla dynasty and was then developed by further dynasties that followed that dynasty itself
2:26
And this mosque is famous for its blue and white tiling in which I'll show you inside a very specific way of creating the tiles and the blue color, which is not created anywhere else since that dynasty
2:38
this blue color is so rich and so deep and after the Safavid dynasty took over here in Iran they
2:45
changed it to create seven colored tiles and that specific type of blue was no longer created
2:50
therefore as time passed on the craftsmanship that it took to create that specific deep blue
2:56
was no longer existing and the mosques that you can find all over Iran never have this color blue
3:03
that you can find inside the specific deep sea color and i'm going to take you inside sadly this
3:09
mosque was destroyed in 1780 by a huge earthquake that rocked tabris and therefore what is inside
3:16
and what you can see around me under construction as you can see is all that remains of this mosque
3:21
which is over 550 years old i'm really walking through history actually iranians are fighting
3:28
for this to be part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its deep-rooted history. This mosque
3:34
has been here through centuries, it's been here through so many different histories here in Iran
3:40
it's been through so many different dynasties and the people that have walked through this
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specific complex I can even begin to imagine so many different types of people so many incredible poets writers Wow let me take him inside because I have to show you
4:15
Thank you
4:45
One thing I have to show you in this mosque is what is right behind me
5:11
What you can see behind me is Kufi calligraphy. This Kufi calligraphy is Wawwadi famous because of the way it's written
5:20
You can read it from left to right, from up to down, and it's an ancient way of writing
5:25
Now, as you can see, here is the Kufi calligraphy. This part just here, I'm going to zoom in for you
5:33
This right here is the Kufi calligraphy, and it actually says Muhammad
5:38
Kufi calligraphy can be read from left to right, from right to left, up, down, down, up
5:44
And it's a historic way of writing. The reason they use Kufi calligraphy is because in the religion of Islam
5:52
it is not permitted to be painting any deities, any ideas of God
5:56
And that is specifically why they use Kufi calligraphy. For me, it's so interesting
6:01
I think this is the first time I've ever seen Kufi calligraphy. And it's fascinating to me that there's a language that's made, created
6:09
that you can read from left to right, from right to left, from up to down, and down to up
6:14
I think it's incredible. As you can see around me, this is the courtyard
6:21
of the mosque. This is all that remains on this section of the mosque and mausoleum
6:34
I do hope one day that UNESCO can find a way to rebuild this
6:39
This area is so rich with history, with culture, and this phenomenal technique which sadly has been lost over different centuries
7:09
I am now exploring Molokul Life. I'm walking down a place named Tarbiad and this is one of four
7:34
bazaars that cover Tabri city As many of the bazaars across this region of the world this bazaar sells everything for clothes fruit to fresh juices I have a fresh yellow melon juice Walking in the blazing heat is currently around 40 degrees
7:50
And I'm getting a flavour of local life. Many people think that because of the current political situation, life has kind of come to a standstill
7:58
And as you can see around me, it has not. It is so busy. and the city is beautiful the city is alive and life continues people are out talking
8:12
tabriz is a very beautiful city it's very quaint and calm and there's so much greenery around
8:19
much like a lot of the cities and of course people are very friendly like many of the cities here in
8:27
They are based around water, they are very green, they are very calm cities despite there being 1.7 million people living right here and not such a large space
8:37
I love it. There are statues everywhere. Beautiful
8:50
I'm making my way towards the largest bazaar, the largest covered bazaar in the world
8:56
I love this city. This is one of the best and most beautiful world of this bazaar
9:05
Let's do it. As you can see they're selling everything. Brudfruits, flowers, dates, spices
9:20
Beautiful. These are some of my favorite places in the world. I first discovered markets like this in Abil in Kurdistan in 2019
9:30
And ever since then, I am obsessed with looking through places like this
9:35
with the intense smells of the spices, making you sneeze. It's something I've written a lot about
9:40
in my book that comes out in September. I love it. You can see all of the tea
9:55
Wow, it's cow feed. Yes, cow. Ah, rose
10:05
So good. I had this in Kashan and you have it as rose water
10:09
Yes, exactly. This is the natural energy. It's amazing. You walk through the bazaars, you are met with many different caravanserais
10:17
Caravanserais were the meeting points centuries ago where people used to come, they used to trade, they used to sleep
10:23
And there's a very famous coffee shop here that I've been told to try
10:29
You can see here the name. Yemen Kavesi. Kavesi in Turkish means coffee
10:34
and as you will know the original point of coffee was from Yemen you can see
10:42
this was the style of the caravanser Wow beautiful look at the carpet
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this is the coffee shop Wow
11:06
In the traditional style. I have finally made it here to the Tabriz Grand Bazaar
11:15
This is the largest covered market in the world, covering over 400,000 square meters
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It's been around for more than 400 years. The exact date when it was first created is unknown however as the dynasties continued to rule here they expanded and it ginormous there is no maps no route you kind of just come in you get lost
11:38
wow there is so many different spices here so many different dried fruits
11:47
You can see here so many different dates, sweets, cheeses, honey
12:00
This is fresh honeycomb right here. This sells for around $5 to $6 here in Iran for the entire honeycomb
12:11
Wow, this is one of my favorite things to do when you come to a brand new place
12:17
is just to wonder the smell of the spices and cigarette smoke
12:23
Fresh coffee. Assalamu alaikum. Look at the fresh coffee. Wow, the smell is incredible
12:35
See the coffee beans. I can't begin to tell you what I'm smelling right now
12:48
There's so many different types of spices, coffee, honey. It just goes on for miles and miles
12:58
4,000 square meters. Incredible. Look at all this honey. Piles and piles of honeycomb fresh honeycomb
13:10
Salamu alaikum Friendly people of course They opened it only for me Salamu alaikum
13:24
Wow Just raced through the bazaar it was unknown to me that we were heading to this location
13:32
But right in front of me is one of the most beautiful mihrams I've ever seen. Wow this is just outside of
13:43
the Grand Bazaar. Take a look at this. The detail is so intricate. Wow
14:04
I'm not sure what's going on
14:34
So beautiful. Thank you
#Tourist Destinations