The people of Tehran hold on to peace amid the siege of bombs and bullets

“When I sit at the coffee table, even for just a few minutes, I can almost believe that the world hasn’t collapsed yet,” Fatemeh, a 27-year-old dental assistant, said on March 30. “It feels as if I can escape this war for a moment to live a normal day again. It’s a place where I can dream of a world without the specter of impending death, nor with the heartbreaking prospect of surviving but losing loved ones or property.”

If the frequency of bombings decreases and she sleeps better, Fatemeh will put on makeup and dress up to make her coffee trip extra special. “Then I returned home, back to the reality that I was living in a dark and heavy war.”

Under the lens of insiders, Tehran is trying to maintain its previous peace. In the midst of war, cafes still welcome customers, and shops have no shortage of necessities. People here are trying to maintain the simplest habits so that social life does not completely disappear.

But they know that life is not normal as the US and Israel have maintained a rapid pace of attacks on the capital since the war began on February 28, with a series of assassinations of senior Iranian leaders such as Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Normally peaceful streets are now full of checkpoints. Internet bandwidth is cut off or throttled, only a few domestic services can be accessed. People even had to tape the windows to prevent the glass from shattering when the bomb exploded.

Not only do they fear death or losing loved ones, they also worry about the uncertain future ahead. They wonder where the country will go and how to survive when the economy is extremely difficult.

“These days, I mostly stay at home and only go out if I really have to. The only thing left over from my pre-war routine that helps me keep my spirits up is cooking,” Shahrzad, 39, said. “Sometimes I cry in the middle of cooking. I miss normal days, days when I didn’t have to constantly think about bombs, death, or losing loved ones.”

“I try to be strong for my daughter. But when I think about the future, I can’t picture any clear picture in my mind that I can hold on to as hope,” she confided.

People in Tehran over the past week have been trying to enjoy as best they can the main traditional Persian holiday, Nowruz, which sees people often leave the city on vacation or celebrate at home with family.

“There is no shortage of food, everything is available. Coffee shops are open, we still go out for coffee,” Shayan, 40, a photographer, said about life today in Tehran. “There is gas, water and electricity.”

However, he said a “feeling of helplessness” engulfs people, as they do not know what to do and cannot do anything. “There is no Nowruz atmosphere, we have to force ourselves,” he said.

Although shops and restaurants are open until 9 p.m., “many people don’t go out after the afternoon,” Shayan said.

Despite strict dress codes, many Tehran women still openly go bareheaded in the streets, continuing a trend that predates the conflict and is spreading. Iranian state television even interviewed topless women at pro-government rallies.

Elnaz, 32, a painter living in Tehran, said that when the attacks calm down and she has time to think, she misses the days of “living a simple life”.

“We miss the simplest things, going out at night, or simply being able to go to another part of the city,” she said. “I miss the feeling of walking, shopping, reading books in cafes… simple things.”

“The biggest desire is a peaceful night’s sleep,” she said, saying that there were many nights when the air strikes were so intense that she felt like “the whole of Tehran was shaking.”

“Everything goes back to a single state of survival. Just thinking about surviving with all the people I love. My friends, my family, the people of my city, who are closer than ever in these difficult times,” she said.

Kaveh, 38, a visual artist, said a piece of a rocket fell about 50 meters from his house a few days ago.

“I brought it home. I wanted to make something out of it,” he said, recalling the scene that day, when thick dust fell from the sky and many windows shattered.

Kaveh said security in the city is tight with many checkpoints checking people’s cars and phones.

The gloomy atmosphere was made worse by the unseasonably rainy weather, which contrasted with the spring sunshine usually seen every year during Nowruz. Portraits of children killed in raids were displayed in the square, and giant Iranian flags covered buildings that had been reduced to rubble.

“Ultimately, for many people, what they care about most is the future of Iran and its people, how to improve the situation,” Kaveh said.