On November 28, the same date as her imprisonment in September just two months prior, Alessia Piperno decided to post on her Instagram profile ― speaking, for the first time, about her days of imprisonment in Iran.

The 30-year-old Italian woman was jailed in Tehran’s infamous Evin prison amidst nationwide protests over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in custody, having been arrested by Iran’s morality police for allegedly breaching the Islamic Republic’s strict dress codes for women.

The travel blogger was released on November 10, and after two weeks of silence, has taken to social media to speak, for the first time, about her experience:

“We had done nothing to deserve to be locked inside those walls, and I cannot deny that those were the hardest days of my life. I saw, suffered and heard things, which I will never forget, and which will one day give me the strength to fight alongside the Iranian people. At the time, I did not take part in the protests, because we were advised against it, and the sound of gunfire scared me. Now, it’s different.”

Piperno is now safe at home in Colli Albani, Rome, after the work of Intelligence was able to bring her back home.

“In early September, I went to visit, for the first time in my life, a prison in Tehran. It was the Ebrat prison, which has now become a museum, but was once used by the Savak secret police, to torture prisoners,” the Rome native continues on Instagram.

 “I stayed within those walls for several hours, trying to imagine the fear that was experienced inside those cells. ‘The prisoners' screams can be heard throughout the prison’, my guide told me. Somehow it seemed as if those screams were still carved into the walls and travelling through those corridors. ‘Do prisons like this still exist in Iran?’ I asked my guide. He sighed. 'Unfortunately yes, the prison of Evin, which is right in the northern part of Tehran.’”

This was an omen, the travel blogger now recounts:

"I felt shivers run all over my body, without remotely imagining that 21 days later, I would also be, a prisoner, in that very prison."

"I am at home, among my family and friends, free yes, but physically. It is my mind that is not, because in that corner of hell, my cellmates, thousands of Iranians, and my friend Louis, are still locked up. I have returned to a normal life, I go out, I laugh sometimes, I make plans for my future, and I sleep in a bed.”

"Today is Monday, today we get a shower in prison. Tomorrow is Tuesday, there are the five minutes of fresh air. My mind now lives a little like this: among smiles, in a soft bed, a plate of pasta, and among white walls where the screams never cease and where fresh air is inhaled for five minutes, twice a week.”

Alessia continues, thanking those who have followed her adventures all over the globe for their continued support:

“I wanted to thank all of you, for your support, for your words, for the wonderful drawings you sent me, for being close to my family, and for dedicating even just a prayer to me. Reuniting with my family was more beautiful than freedom itself. And once again I can only repeat to myself that yes, I AM HAPPY, WE ARE HAPPY, and believe me, it is not a given, just as our freedom is not a given. A hug, to all of you.”