TEHRAN—The historical city of Tabriz, which was once the Iranian capital under Safavids, will play host to Tajikistan’s cultural week in the near future.

The mausoleum of Kamal Khujandi, who was a 14th-century Persian poet and Sufi, has long been a top destination for travelers from Tajikistan, CHTN quoted East Azarbaijan province’s tourism chief as saying on Saturday.

“During the cultural week of Tajikistan in Tabriz, we will try to comprehensively introduce the cultural, historical, and artistic capacities of the province to our guests,” Ahmad Hamzehzadeh explained.

“In addition, we are set to operate special sightseeing tours for our guests during the cultural week scheduled to be held in October,” the official said.

Home to hospitable people, Tabriz is a perfect introduction to Iran for sightseers crossing over the border from Armenia, or through the Gurbulak Bazargan border from Turkey.

Like many cities in Iran, Tabriz has a long and rich history but saw many of its historic buildings destroyed by invaders or earthquakes. Tabriz became the capital of the Mongol Il-Khan Mahmud Gazan (1295–1304) and his successor. Timur (Tamerlane), a Turkic conqueror, took it in 1392. Some decades later, the Kara Koyunlu Turkmen made it their capital. It was when the famous Blue Mosque was built in the ancient city.

The city retained its administrative status under the Safavid dynasty until 1548 when Shah Tahmasp I relocated his capital westward to Qazvin. During the next two centuries, Tabriz changed hands several times between Persia and the Ottoman Empire. During World War I, the city was temporarily occupied by Turkish and then Soviet troops.

Downtown Tabriz is very walkable, and the people are also extremely friendly, something not particularly common in big cities.

AM