Neither missiles falling from the sky, nor borders crossed by land, nor flights canceled due to snow, nor even a journey stretched to five days could stop Iranian Negar Mahvash from reaching Xiamen.
Sometimes you hear stories so powerful that they make you want to stand in respect before the determination and resilience of the person in front of you. This is one of those stories—the story of Negar Mahvash, owner of the Iranian company Stonephile. The setting: Xiamen Fair… While walking through the stands and distributing magazines, an Iranian company catches our attention. We introduce ourselves and then ask how she managed to reach Xiamen amid the war. What unfolds is a story worthy of a movie script…
894 KM BY LAND
The journey begins in Isfahan. With the airspace closed, the young entrepreneur sets off by car at 12:00 on March 5. Due to restrictions in the country, there is no internet, no phone connection, and not even a confirmed flight plan to China yet. The first destination is Tabriz. Traffic jams caused by missile strikes in certain areas, combined with exhaustion, make the journey even more challenging. The 894-kilometer trip takes around 10 hours. Negar spends the night at a friend’s house in Tabriz.
SNOW OBSTACLE IN VAN
The journey resumes the next morning. First Khoy, then the Kapıköy border gate… Entering Türkiye through the Saray district of Van, her goal is to catch the first available flight to Istanbul. However, this time weather conditions block the way. Due to heavy snowfall, no flights depart from Van, forcing the two-member Stonephile team to spend the nights of March 6 and 7 there. On March 8, Negar finally flies to Istanbul and books a ticket for March 9 to Xiamen via Guangzhou.
A NIGHT AT THE AIRPORT
A hotel is reserved in Istanbul for the night of March 8. However, the fear of potential delays, traffic, or missing the flight outweighs comfort. Negar chooses to spend the night sleeping at the airport. On March 9, she boards a 10-hour flight to Guangzhou, and finally arrives in Xiamen on the morning of March 10. As we admire the determination behind this incredible journey, we listen to Negar’s own words: “After arriving here, the biggest challenge is not being able to communicate with my family. There is no internet, no phone connection. We will return the same way—first to Türkiye, then by land to Iran. Facing these challenges only makes us stronger.”
