BANDAR ANZALI, Iran (AP) — Life on Iran’s northern coast on the Caspian Sea is a mix of commerce and leisure.
In Bandar Anzali, fish markets draw locals and visitors. People stroll the shoreline and row boats on the Anzali lagoon. Some women go without the hijab, reflecting a more relaxed atmosphere that has emerged in parts of the country in recent years.
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People enjoy their time at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People enjoy their time at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A fish seller waits for customers in the old main bazaar of the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man walks his dog at a sidewalk in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A woman smiles under a colourful tree in the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Images are drawn into the sand at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People shop in the old main bazaar of the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A fisherman prepares his net at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A stray dog stands in front of a shop in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Clothes hang for sale on the roadside on the outskirts of the port city of Bandar Anzali, along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea in Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Ghesmat Masoumi reads the Quran at his shop in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Athletes paddle while training in the Anzali Lagoon as dome of a mosque is seen at background in the southern coast of the Caspian Sea in port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Seagulls fly over the head of a boatman while rowing in the Anzali Lagoon in the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, in port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
People enjoy their time at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People enjoy their time at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A fish seller waits for customers in the old main bazaar of the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man walks his dog at a sidewalk in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A woman smiles under a colourful tree in the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Images are drawn into the sand at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People shop in the old main bazaar of the northern city of Rasht, Iran, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A fisherman prepares his net at the beach of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea outside the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A stray dog stands in front of a shop in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Clothes hang for sale on the roadside on the outskirts of the port city of Bandar Anzali, along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea in Iran, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Ghesmat Masoumi reads the Quran at his shop in the port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Athletes paddle while training in the Anzali Lagoon as dome of a mosque is seen at background in the southern coast of the Caspian Sea in port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Seagulls fly over the head of a boatman while rowing in the Anzali Lagoon in the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, in port city of Bandar Anzali, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
