December 30, 1978, Mashhad, Iran
The hotel was deserted.
I led my baby brother Iman down the long polished marble corridor. No one was watching us. Along with the guests, the staff had vanished–the doorman in his brown jacket with the gold buttons; the maids in their crisp white uniforms. There was no one to shout at us: “Stop! Get back here. You are not allowed in there…”
–by Rahimeh Andalibian
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