The Silk Road

The architecture and the mosaics of St Mark's Basilica reveal the links that connect Venice with the distant lands of Asia; the textile maker Alberto Bevilacqua recounts the history of the silk trade.

Ottoman architectural wonders and the traditional local variant of wrestling in which men are doused in olive oil before bouts.

The caravanserai at Aksaray is a perfect example of architecture of the Seljuq dynasty, the first empire in the region starting in the 10th century.

Tabriz is the center of the ancient Armenian community in Iran.

Alfred visits the ruins of Hassan-i Sabbah's fortress, home to a movement known as Hashshashins,drug smokers and killers who formed the origin of the modern word assassin.

In the oasis of Kashan in central Iran, Alfred marvels at the famous pleasure gardens of Fin that cemented the Persians' renown.