This part of the project began with a second overland journey from Tehran, taking two distinct paths—first through the heart of central Iran, then westward toward the mountains.

We traveled to Qom, Kashan, and Ghamsar, arriving in the midst of the spring rosewater festival, through sunlit alleys and homes filled with the scent of fresh Damask roses.

From there, we headed west, through Hamedan, with its cool summer calm, to Kermanshah, Ravansar, and Paveh, where mountains stood tall and the wind carried echoes of history.

In Ghamsar, the flowers were picked by hand, and every smile held a trace of spring. In Kermanshah, the afternoon light settled on stone walls, and in Paveh, the houses rose like stairways into the sky.

The people we met were warm, quiet, and deep; their eyes calm, sometimes full of stories. Along this route, the images weren’t just frames—they were breaths, drawn straight from the land.