I was born and raised in a huge city (megacity), Tehran, packed with people, with over 10 million residents, 16.8 million including the metropolitan area, and about 4-5 million daily commuters. Yes, as many as the population of Denmark commute to the city every day! Daily life is surrounded by car traffic and walking in crowded streets with a lively nightlife.

When I was younger, back in Iran, I used to go on mountain hikes with friends and climb some mountains. I remember the first time visiting the mountain peak north of our city, Tochal (3,933 meters). It was a challenging experience, but the view from the top was breathtaking.

Stuck with details & daily routines

When you live in a city, you are surrounded by buildings, cars, and people. Your focus will be on the daily details of life, such as work, school, and family. A few years pass, and you have skipped visiting many parts of the city. You don't know how people live in the southern parts or the artificial lakes they have built recently in the west. Your life becomes meeting the same people again and again.

Regular hikes during the warm seasons

After high school, when I started studying at a university in another city, Mashhad, I started hiking the local mountains with friends.

When I moved back to Tehran, I continued these regular hikes, but we only went during the warm seasons. We didn't have professional winter equipment, and none of us had experience dealing with the harsh conditions in the mountains during the winter.

I used to put my feet in the river water to cool them down and enjoy the water's caressing effect.

First time going to Tochal during the winter!

One winter, my girlfriend said we should gather friends and go to Tochal. I called a few friends, but all of them skipped because they didn't have proper winter equipment. My girlfriend looked outside. It was not snow, so she said, "They don't have the guts to join us! 😀 "Seriously, how bad can it be there?" she said.

I accepted what my ex said, and we started our hike early in the morning the day after! In the beginning, it was just another hike. It was a bit colder than usual, but nothing scary. We went up and up, and the snow started to appear. It was beautiful. We took a few pictures and continued. At this point, we were a bit tied (photo #1). Walking in the snow was a bit more challenging than we thought.

As we went higher, the snow got deeper, and the wind got stronger. At some point, I couldn't see the path anymore, and we could barely see each other! (photo #2)

We were kinda lost in the snowstorm! Honestly, I had no idea where we were heading, but my manly ego didn't allow me to say that to my girlfriend! 😅

Luckily, we realized we were on the right path after a few hours. After about 8 hours, we were almost there! (Photo #3) We were already above the clouds! It was an amazing feeling!

Finally, we reached the peak! (photo #4) It was cold as hell, and I couldn't even feel my hands anymore! Even though I had a pair of very thick gloves on! The wind was so strong that it was freezing my hands! Was it worth it? Absolutely! The view was amazing!

From there, we had an amazing view of Mount Damavand, Iran's highest peak (5,610 meters)!

The overview of city from mountains

In my opinion, one of the best things about climbing is the view you get from the top. It's like looking at the city from a different perspective. No more daily routines, no more "just details of life". People become as tiny as cells in a body.

You see the city as a whole, and you realize how small you are compared to it. You realize how everything works together as a whole. You realize how beautiful the architecture is and how people fit into that as a whole.

I put my feet in the river again. Frozen! Crazy!

On our way back, we crossed the river I used to put my feet in during the warm seasons. But this time, it was frozen! I couldn't resist the temptation and put my feet on the ice! It was a crazy feeling! For a few seconds, all I felt was pain! I kept them there for a few more seconds but couldn't resist anymore!

My girlfriend thought I was crazy! But I was happy! I had a new experience! Since then, I have tried this many more times, and that's probably why I don't feel the coldness as much as others! When I go for my daily long hikes in Copenhagen during the winter, I usually wear only a T-shirt after warming up for a few minutes. Sometimes, I can see Danes looking at me with wide-open eyes! 😅 (probably thinking I might be drunk or something! lol)

Moved to Denmark

That's what I miss the most from Iran after moving to Denmark-a flat country with no mountains. In fact, the highest point in Denmark is only 170 meters! Which is 38% of the height of the Milad Tower in Tehran!

Sometimes I ask myself, "Why did I move to Denmark?". The answer mainly is the US sanctions on Iranians, which made it impossible for civilians to live a normal life. Apart from that, stupid things like internet censorship, compulsory hijab for women (think a random police officer on the street can tell your girlfriend what to wear!), and a few more things.

I like my salary in Denmark, but I miss the lovely nature, mountains, open-mindedness of people, energetic culture, and the food in Iran. Of course, like any other country, we also have some stupid people who think they can tell women or men what to wear and what not to wear. Still, they are a minority, even though they have the power, with the help of the US, UK, aÒnd Izrael, who have founded and supported all these extremists in the past few decades.

I hope that with the new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, things get better and that we all return to our lovely country. I'll be much happier, and all the Europeans who hate me because of my nationality or the color of my hair will be happy, too. 🤝

This all, of course, depends on whether the far-right Western extremists who support their like-minded fundamentalists in the Middle East don't mess up the situation again! Like they did in 1953, 1979, 1980, 2009, and a few other times! I will write about these in another article. In short, if you don't like me in your country, you should think about who you have voted for and what you have supported in the past few decades.

Lessons learned

Hiking to the top of the mountain taught me to be strong and patient, not to give up too soon, to enjoy the journey, not just the destination, to enjoy spontaneity, and to continue my path even if a snake or a wild hog moves a few meters away from me and does not intend to attack me.

Going to the top of the mountain taught me to avoid being lost in tiny details and enjoy the overview of life. To see the big picture. To see how everything works together. To see how small I am compared to the city, and how people make a united whole. Similarly, how the different parts of software solutions I build work together to make a whole. How a single line of code works together with other parts of the solution. I learned how important architecture is in any social or software system.