Tour de Peace Idealistic Iranian Students Cycle Globe to Promote Understanding by Carolyn Cosmos We are pedaling for peace,î said Hassan Alizadeh, one of two college students from Iran spending four years of their lives bicycling around the globeóminus official financial backing or sponsors. In cities and towns where they stop, they give talks to promote peace and worldwide understanding. The biking duo has been at their peace quest for ìtwo years and 22 daysî so far, with an estimated two more years ahead of them, Alizadeh said on Oct. 14. Theyíre already on their third set of bikes. Traveling an average of 60 miles a day with 100 pounds of gear packed on each bicycle, the students, both 32, are depending on the kindness of strangersóthat is, local community support. Alizadeh and his fellow student rider, Amir Ahmadi, both from branches of Azad University near Tehran, arrived in the Washington area in early October and stayed with members of the Iranian-American community here. Why in the world would they undertake such an extreme sport, even for an admirable cause? ìOur families are worried,î conceded Ahmadi, a sophomore electrical engineering stud ent. ìMy youngest sister, 15, cries on the phone because she wants me to come back,î added Alizadeh, who is majoring in English. ìWe both experienced eight years of war growing up,î said Ahmadi, referring to the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. ìThe bombardment was widespread. A cousin died in the war at age 17. It was a horrible experience and I wanted to change thatî possibility for others. Ahmadi recounts that as a child, he stood and watched other children, dead and dying, being ìremoved from the rubbleî of a bombed building. ìThey were killing young people from my city in the war,î said Alizadeh. ìI wondered, ëWhy are they killing each other?í Two million were killed on both sides. For what? Nothing.î The students insist they have no political affiliations and no specific political agenda. In fact, Alizadeh characterizes politicians as ìselfish,î arguing that ìthey are creating differences between nations just for power, when [ordinary] people want peace and friendship.î ìWe have made so many new friends. People are more or less the same all over the world,î said Ahmadi. Alizadehóthe two friends could almost finish each otherís sentences at this pointóadded, ìThe Iranian people are like all people, peaceful and friendly. We donít have any reason to hate others.î He points out that birds in the sky are free to fly anywhereóhumanity, he says, should learn from them. Wouldnít it be wonderful, he asks, if there were no global borders and earth were one country with one flag, a flag of peace? Both students hail from northern Iran near the Caspian Sea. Alizadeh described his father as a farmer who grows potatoes and wheat. His mother devoted herself to raising him and his three brothers and three sisters. Ahmadi said that his father is a retired financial official and his mother has focused on household matters, raising his older sister, two younger sisters, himself and one brother. The biking duo said they began their treks through the Cycling Federation of Iran, biking within their home country to carry environmental messages to other students. They went from school to school with banners on their bikes giving speeches for clean water, clean air and the preservation of existing green spaces within Iran. Wanting to expand their geographical horizons, Alizadeh said they soon asked themselves, ìWhat can we do to make a better world? What can we do about peace? ìI called lots of my friends,î he said, laughing about his recruitment effortsóbut in the end only he and Ahmadi set out on the peace bike tour in 1995 to three countries: Turkey, Syria and Jordan. Several other short tours followed, and in 1999, they cycled through parts of Europe. ìThen we made a big plan,î Alizadeh said, which would be for a trip around the world to promote peace. In September 2000, the two Muslim students left Iran for Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. They had wanted to visit China but were not let in at the border and thus proceeded to Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Japan. In Japan, a man named Dr. Sepas, who ìwanted to share in spreading the peace message,î paid for their trans-Atlantic plane tickets to Canada. The two have purchased new bikes and are now using Cannondale touring bikes, handmade in the United States ìespecially for long-distance travel,î Alizadeh pointed out. Traveling with gear that includes tents, sleeping bags and one set of clothes apiece, the studentsí U.S. leg of their trip started in Washington state and went down through California to San Diego and then to Nevada, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, New York, New Jersey and Delaware. That brought them to the Washington, D.C., area, where theyíve visited Maryland and Virginia as well as the District, giving talks and urging actions that promote peace. Next they will be going to Georgia and Texas. If they can obtain the visas, they will continue to Mexico, Guatemala and South America, fly to Africa and continue toward Europe. They also hope to visit Australia. ìIím pedaling for peace, not for fun,î Alizadeh said. ìI left my family, my friends, my job, my country, but Iím not crazy. I will have lots of peace in my heart instead of wealth.î Added Ahmadi, ìYou have to be true to your heart. We are doing what we believe in to be true to ourselves.î For more information, you can visit the cyclistsí Web site at www.pedal4peace.com. Carolyn Cosmos is a freelance writer in Washington, D.C.