Old city

A narrow unpaved lane winds between whitewashed mudbrick walls and courtyard gates, flanked by low buildings with corrugated metal and tiled roofs. Turquoise doors and wooden fencing punctuate the pale walls, while overhead wires and a satellite dish cross the strip of blue sky; no figures appear in the empty street.

Strong midday sun casts hard-edged shadows across dusty ochre and cream surfaces, rendered with thick, chalky strokes of paint. The narrow tonal range of sand, white and pale blue, combined with the deep shade of the alley, creates a hushed, sun-baked stillness.