Persepolis
| |
| Population - Total - Density - Metro |
29,530,164 7,600/km² 64,500,000 (Including Shiraz and metropolitan Areas) |
| Country | Parthia |
| Area - Total |
4500 km² |
Background Information
Persepolis is the capital and largest city of the Shahdom of Parthia. One of the oldest cities in the world, with richly ornate ancient ruins, bountiful museums filled with grand relics of the past, and a timeless history its people are immensely proud of, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Not only history buffs, but art buffs (the city has dozens of art galleries that put the Louvre to shame), diners (several of the restaurants in Persepolis are ranked among the world's best by food critics), and architecture buffs. Although not open to the public - and heavily fortified - the city's biggest attraction, drawing over 10,000,000 visitors a year, is the Shah's palace. The city is also famed for its remarkably warm and hospitable people, who are not only receptive and open to visitors, but fluent or near-fluent in English. Police, hospital workers, and those working in the tourism industry in particular, are well versed in the English language, and speak it as if it were their native tongue. The city is home to posh suburbs, exotic and beautiful gardens, vibrant nightlife, huge Western-style shopping malls, zoos, and much more.
Surprisingly for such a vast city, it is remarkably clean and safe. Pollution and litter are almost non-existent, the streets are smoothly paved, sidewalks are in top condition and the city is very clean and crime free. The economic well-being of the populace, coupled by a massive (largely unseen) presence of police and SAVAK agents, ensures that crime, especially against tourists, almost never happens. Bizarrely, one of the most popular activities for tourists is watching live executions of criminals, a practice that is resoundingly condemned by more left-leaning nations.
Though mostly Zoroastrian, the city is very diverse, with many small but vibrant Christian and Jewish communities. People of all races and religions (except the Arabs and Hazara, who are looked down upon) get along cordially, and are united in the pride they have for their great city and nation.
Transport
In 1950, the city had less than 60,000 inhabitants, in the modern section known as the old town. By 1954, an increased rate of movement to the city caused Shah Ardeshir XI to implement a series of urban planning measures which preserved the old city, while creating a road system around it designed for vehicular traffic on a massive scale. These wide roads (the widest, Shahanshahi Boulevard, is 12 lanes across) ensure a relativley smooth traffic flow even during rush hour, an impressive feat for a city so large. The Parthian highway system also helps to connect Persepolis to its suburbs, and also, to the more distant cities of Parthia. The highways work on similar rules to the German Autobahn, with no speed limit beyond the 200km/h reccomended speed.
A rail system also exists, which connects Persepolis to all other cities and major towns in Parthia, though some station transfers may have to occur in order to reach some destinations.
Persepolis is served by two airports: Shah Ardeshir International Airport (SAP), which handles most international flights, located about 55km southeast of the city center, and also serves destinations to Shiraz, and the Shah Narseh International Airport (SNP), which serves mostly Parthian destinations, but also some regional destinations, like Istanbul or Dubai. Shah Narseh International Airport is located 25 kilometers south of the city center.
Economy
Persepolis is the headquarters of most Parthian buisnesses, functioning as a banking, IT, commercial, and industrial hub of the Parthian state. It's GDP by itself is immense, accounting for around 9% of the entire country. Per capita wealth is one of the highest in the world, at roughly $250,000 per year incomes being considered the median. Persepolis's large banking industry, as some would call, a massive organized industry specifically dedicated to helping people hide their money so they don't have to pay taxes on it, or laundering ill-gotten gains, is one of the largest in the world, and possibly the most trusted in the entire industry, is the single largest service industry in Persepolis, employing around 7% of the workforce. Other industries, however, also are considered some of the best in the world in terms of profitability, competitiveness, and quality. Persepolis lives up to the Parthian state's reputation as being perhaps one of the easiest nations in the world to do buisness, ensuring vast sums of foreign capital continue to pour in.
Culture
As the Capital of Parthia, Persepolis is very much the cultural center of the nation. Though Parthia is undoubtedly considered Westernized, the city remains heavily steeped in the traditional cultural practices of Persian civilization. The Parthian National Gallery, one of the largest collections of antiquities and art in the world, is a museum of the same quality as the Metropolitan or Louvre, serving as a repository for tens of thousands of pieces. Shahyad Symphony Hall, while not averse to the occasional performance of Western Classical Music, remains both a center of traditional Iranian music performance and a center of schooling in music.
In terms of dining, the capital offers a multitude of restauraunts considered exceptionally fine by Michelin reviewers, with ten restauraunts recieving the prestigious three star rating, thirty two recieving two, and an unbelievable 120 receving 1. Though most serve eclectic modern cuisine typical of the extremely upscale restauruants, some serve traditional Persian or Persian-Asian fusion cuisine. Many multitudes of excellent restauraunts, not rated by the Michelin guides, also exist, ensuring it is always easy to find a place to eat. Many of them are located in the Old Town of Persepolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and continuously inhabited since the 7th century AD. Though much of the grand bazaar of the Persepolis Old Town has been appropriated by extremely high end fashion and furniture shops, it remains an extremely attractive and charming place, brought up to the standards of modern comforts and luxury.
The city is also the center of the Parthian Government, and though the Shah's main residence is situated 40 kilometers to the west of the city, the majority of government offices are situated in the city, as is a large penthouse apartment owned by the Shah.
Tourism
Persepolis is considered an excellent tourist destination due to its wide variety of sights, exhilerating and enjoyable nightlife that few places even in Eastern Europe can match, and luxury which can easily rival Dubai. Most tourism in Persepolis is geared towards the middle and upper income brackets, so low end accomodation tends to be scarce, as is low end dining with catering to tourists, though most Parthians speak English relativley well.
Persepolis boasts some of the finest accomodation and dining in the Middle East, Luxury hotel chains are easy to find: Persepolis has both a Ritz-Carlton, and a Four Seasons. However, the Shahanshahi Hotel is considered to be the best in the city; consisting of 244 suites of varying sizes, it attracts some of the wealthiest individuals from around the world. For the less wealthy, Persepolis offers many mid-range hotels, from small family-owned hotels, to the Persepolis Hilton and Hyatt. Traditional Persian food is ubiquitious, and highly reccomended to anyone who visits. Cute Bunny Burgers are also widely availibe, since Parthia has one of the largest numbers of franchises of any country on Earth.
