Iran—like many other countries in the Middle East—is a beautiful country, and it’s filled with modern, progressive people who are otherwise depicted as primitive savages in the Western media. The country itself is filled with locales that vary from snowy mountains to verdant forests, flower-strewn plains, and a plethora of sights that would give Yosemite Park a run for its money.

Look at these pictures, and ask yourself if this country deserves to be glassed—because it doesn’t.