I’m still reading this book, but I loved this anecdote of the author’s and had to preserve it.
Before leaving Tehran, I was asked to stop by the bursar’s office at the ministry where I was presented with a bill. Apparently, the authorities were charging me several hundred dollars for my minders – payable in cash only. Suddenly, I found myself uncharacteristically at a loss for words. I was not about to pay the government of Iran for keeping tabs on me, but on the other hand, I was hesitant to cause any trouble.
While I was struggling to come up with a response, Soheila [one of the "minders" - Bill] took charge. “How dare you make these demands,” she shouted, incensed. “She didn’t ask for a minder, you stuck her with it!” Wagging her finger at the bursar, then scolding the other men who came in to see what the commotion was about, she dressed down everyone in the room in a Persian tirade. Eyes flashing, she picked up the bill and with great flourish, ripped it into tiny pieces and scattered them all over the bursar’s desk. The men stood there agog for a few moments, then fell over themselves apologizing to me for any confusion. “They were mistaken,” Soheila said flatly, and that was the end of that.
Priceless.
