The Fear of Being Different When Traveling

"Although there were many Iranians in the U.S., there were few American tourists in Iran, and none at the mausoleum. It was one of the only places I visited in Iran where women were required to be fully covered. I tripped clumsily across the marble floors, which were covered with magnificent Persian carpets. I began to fear sticking out and becoming a target because I looked and behaved differently from everyone else."

"The vast, mosque-like structure, with its four minarets, is a pilgrimage site for followers of the man who became the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. It is estimated that between one and three million Iranians fled as the country suddenly transformed from a secular monarchy to an Islamic Republic."

"As we entered the vast mausoleum, which was the size of an indoor sports stadium, we were told that men and women had to be separated. Paul was led to the front of the right side of the enormous space. It was so distant that he vanished from my sight and I felt a surge of the only anxiety I had felt in Iran, where people were among the friendliest I had ever met in any country."

The author and her husband Paul traveled to Iran despite friends' concerns about safety. In Tehran, they visited the golden-domed mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini, a major pilgrimage site built after the 1979 Islamic Revolution that transformed Iran from a secular monarchy to an Islamic Republic. The mausoleum required full coverage for women and separated men and women during visits. As one of few American tourists present, the author initially dismissed concerns about looking different but experienced genuine anxiety when separated from her husband in the massive structure. Despite encountering exceptionally friendly Iranian people throughout their travels, this particular sacred site highlighted the author's vulnerability as a visibly foreign presence in a religiously significant space.

Read at Psychology Today