Many people are at the beginning of their careers at 24. But for Alessia Piperno, a digital nomad arrested in Iran last September 28 and still imprisoned, the measure was already full. “I lived the classic monotonous work life, boy, some went out with friends and then back to work, work, work» he explained in 2018 to the blog of Gianluca Gotto, also a well-known digital nomad. “I decided to leave first because I wanted to try something different.” For this reason, Alessia bought a one-way ticket to Australia in 2016, where she subsisted for months in a hotel and then on farms far from the big cities. Then Samoa, Iceland, India and Pakistan and finally Iran. After numerous other traditional jobs, he started work remotely as a freelancer for a US digital platform. It has effectively become one digital nomad – that’s the name of those who travel from one place to another in the world without a permanent residence.
Meeting the Dalai Lama
Originally from Albanian hillis Daughter of Alberto and Manuela who manage the family library. She is also waiting for his return brother David. Her father defines her”a lone traveler“The” travels the world to learn about the customs and traditions of the peoples “and the”it has always adapted to and respected traditions and in certain cases the obligations of each country he has visited ». On her trip around the world, Alessia also had the honor of meeting them Dalai Lama. He was in India: “In those days I met a monk, we became friends, met every morning over hot tea and talked about life. One day he said to me: “Tomorrow I will meet the Dalai Lama to attend his classes, do you want to come with me?”. It was a dream within a dream. Two days later I sat with all the Tibetan monks to follow the teachings of the Dalai Lama ».
The arrival in Iran and the clash with the reality of the country
Her six-year journey had taken her to Iran, where she had arrived from Pakistan nearly three months ago. On his Instagram profile, he defined the country rocked by the protests for the death of Mahsa Amini, who was probably killed by the authorities for not wearing the veil correctly. “Many people believe in any propaganda heard from the media how dangerous it is to travel in this country,” he wrote, adding: “Please throw away the television“. During her stay there, she had collided with the different treatment of women in the country: “I’m lucky enough to be able to sing out loud when I’m in the car, to be able to dance like crazy when I’m listening to music, riding a motorcycle, leaving my hair fluttering to the sky happy to walk down the street holding the hand of the one i love without having to hide. If you are a woman, you are not allowed to do this in Iran. And now that I’m in this part of the world where women don’t have that freedom, I think about how lucky I am ».
The arrest
As of the day of her thirtieth birthday, September 28, Alessia stopped connecting to WhatsApp, her traveling companions say Angela and Paulowho were with her in Iran. The two, who are present on social networks such as “Beyond the Trip”, explain that they have tried to contact her and the hostel where she was staying. When they realized something was wrong, they alerted the Italian embassy in Tehran, the Farnesina and the family, who had just received a call from Alessia. The girl called from prison in the Iranian capital. It is not yet known why she was arrested, although the pretext could be the decision Celebrating birthdays in the countryside, a custom severely restricted by Islam. Authorities are working to gather as much information as possible.
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