Life or something like it
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
28th of August
Hello again, finally.. It's been 15 days in which I was planning what I should write and shouldn't. 15 days outside Iraq, full of fun and trying to analyze things. But I'm back now, and I have to write the post.
More than a month ago, we signed for a tour to Turkey, we paid the money and waited for the people at the tourism company to get us the visas (Which is part of their job). It took so much time and finally 20 days ago, they told us they might not be able to do it at all and so we took back our money and changed the destination to Syria. It was the easiest alternative, close to Mosul, and doesn't need a visa.
On the 12th of this month, at 8 AM we started off our journey to Syria. You can't imagine the techniques drivers use to make their way through, and it's not reasonable to post them here. We spent about 2 hours on the borders being searched and waiting for our turn.. We arrived to Aleppo after 10 hours, booked in a hotel the driver recommended and slept.
Aleppo was great and I had the best days there.. Since the 12th till today, we slept in 7 places, 3 hotels and 4 apartments; as follows:
A- 3 days in Aleppo: Stayed in a hotel, in a brand new room. It was very clean and comfortable..
Our bedroom in Aleppo.
On the first day, we went to Suq Al-Azizeyah and Suq Al-Tilal, and I ate corn for the first time in my life there..
The second day: We went to Aleppo's castle, one of the best historical places I've ever been to. I had so much fun there. There was an Italian group there wandering the castle.
Aleppo's castle from the outside.
Foreigners inside Aleppo's castle.
Inside Aleppo's castle.
Inside Aleppo's castle.
Me and dad's image reflected on the castle's floor.
Then we went to the city's suq (سوق المدينة), Suq Al-tilal again and then to Suq Jdaidah.. And then we spent an hour searching for a restaurant, on foot, I was limping from tiredness.. We found a restaurant but it was too scary inside we went out and looked for another one, we ended up in an expensive one but we had fun discovering how the tab in the toilet works :)
The third day: We asked the hotels owner for places we would enjoy going to in Aleppo, he recommended a place called "Magic's city" which was supposed to be a kind of a playing park.. We took a taxi and went there, the cab driver didn't know the way as we knew later but as we got there at last, there was no one inside.. It was a beautiful place but it seems that people come at noon or later and we were the only ones there.. We took pictures but came back before actually having fun there.. The taxi driver took LOTS of money and this is what we considered the first deceiving attempt we had.
In magic's city.
In Magic's city.. It's still under construction by the way.
In magic's city.
Then we went to Nile's street's suq (سوق شارع النيل), and then had the best lunch EVER.. We went to a small outdoor snack restaurant, the waiter was so nice and the cheese burger I ordered was just DELICIOUS..
Aleppo in general is a simple old city, with very nice people, and very beautiful women, believe me, I felt so ugly the first day :( They say it is very similar to Mosul; well, maybe, in a way..
B- 3 days in Latakia: We stayed in an apartments at the river (A chalet), which was unexpectedly REALLY bad.. Dad doesn't like searching a lot, and he took the second chalet we found, and because the first was worse, he didn't hesitate much with the second. We couldn't stand the smell and humidity, and the whole chalet issue made my experience in Lattakia not any close to a favorite..
The first day: We went to the Suq (As you can see, dad was very understanding in our feminine suqqy needs :) )
The second day: We went to "Kasab", a small town in Latakia, very nice, and as mom said, it looks like Lebanon. It's full of mountains and houses built on them.. And like the rest of Syria, it is full of trees. The road to it was so great we didn't want to arrive. We met an old nice man (Abu Khaldoon) on our way back to the chalet, and he invited himself and his fiancee to our miserable chalet, then we sat and talked on the beach a little.
A view into Kasab.
In Kasab too.
Suddenly at night, the electricity turned off. Why? We didn't know.. We decided to go visit the Basil carnival (Basel is a son of Hafidh Al-Asad, the former president of Syria. Basil died in a car accident years ago), a yearly carnival in Latakia, and it was so bad we couldn't stand it. Not as I expected at all, at least, the parts I saw.
The third day: We went to Slanfa, another town near Latakia, looks like Kasab but Kasab is nicer. And then to Suq Al-Maqbi.
In general, Latakia wasn't as I expected it to be. And the ocean was not as nice as I expected it to be, at least not as clean.. Well, I guess that's people's effect to nature.
C- 3 days in Damascus: We took a bus to Damascus, from a company called Al-Qadmoos.. It was very comfortable and respectable, and it looked like a plane from the inside.. We stayed in an apartment then, it was nice, but the owner kept on taking money for separated claimed reasons.. People in Syria are so nice if not for some who would deceive people all the time..In Damascus, I stopped writing down where we went, but I'll try to remember as much as I can..
The first day: We went to Suq Al-Hamidiah, really ancient and wonderful..
The door of Suq Al-Hamideya.
Al-Omawi mosque.
The ceiling of the suq.
A shop in the suq.
Accessories for tourists.
Then to the Umawi Mosque (A well known ancient mosque in Syria). In our way, we had to walk on a special bridge for pedestrians to cross the street, a nice idea, first time I see something like this.
The second day: We went to Zabadany, a city near Damascus, nice like all, with good shops, we bought many stuff.. We met two Baghdadis (X and Y) in our way searching for a restaurant, a husband and wife, a doctor and dentist.. They were nice people, Shiites (Not to discriminate between Iraqis, but to show you how we get along), we had lunch together and then they came to our apartment and we spent the night together discussing life and politics. Mom, dad, X and Y decided they might try a tour to Turkey from Syria for five days together..
But as it turned out when we investigated it the third day, we knew that the visas might not come as easily to us as it is for Syrians who get
them directly in the borders.. Then we went to Bloodan and Baqeen which has a spring that is known for its good mineral water. Bottle water in Syria is taken from Baqeen I think.
The third day: We went to Suq Al-Sayeda Zainab with X and Y to look into the details of the tour to Turkey, shopped a little then had lunch.. At Dawn we went to Kasyoon's mountain after dropping by X and Y and taking them with us, it was really cold.. We had dinner there from the remainings we saved from the big lunch we had (Mom and X made sandwiches of it).
D- 1 day in Zabadany: X and Y came to Syria alone, without their sons, and so they felt lonely.. They convinced mom and dad to come and stay with them in an apartment they rented in Zabadany. We've been to Zabadany before and it was nice, so mom and dad accepted the
invitation.. That day was so much fun, we spent it shopping and eating till 1:30 AM.
A restaurant in Zabadany.
E- 2 days in Amman: That was a little bit planned to.. Mom wanted us to go, especially that Jordan is close to Damascus and doesn't need a visa. The road was problem-free and the driver was the most enthusiastic guy I've ever seen.. We stayed in an apartment in a good neighborhood.
The best thing in Amman is its malls.. It's like Europe, mom said. They're big with elevators and escalators (Which I first used in Zabadany), they have everything in them, and some are REALLY expensive. We spent the two days rushing through malls in Amman, which although is
a desert, is very nice and full of fancy buildings.
I can't possibly count the places we went to in Amman, but we had a good tour by a taxi driver.. We had lunch with a relative who we haven't seen for a long time.. We had dinner in Burger king and KFC, dreams coming true, although the dream was about McDonald, but well, Burger king was more than great.
People in Amman are not to be compared with Syrians, Syrians are the nicest people I've ever met.. I didn't see much Ammanis though, since many foreigners (The apartment we stayed in was owned by an Iraqi, and the workers there were Egyptians)(were there. And as the driver who drove us to Amman said: "People in Amman do not laugh!". Well, I only spent two days and I barely made contact, but that's what I saw.
If I'm ever going to be studying or working outside, and I had to choose between Syria and Amman, I'd choose Amman for those, but I'd choose Syria for living.
F- 1 day in Damascus: This time we stayed in a hotel. The day was mostly to shop for gifts we didn't buy. That day, I just felt like lying in bed and watching TV, I started getting tired of shopping, but I continued nevertheless.
G- 1 day in Qamishly: We came to Qamishly from Damascus on a plane.. A first-time event for me. Dad described the plane as lousy and old, but I enjoyed it, and it was the only one available! The Qadmoos bus was much nicer from the inside. I thought I'd get dizzy or something since I get dizzy in a car, but it was so easy and comfortable, and it took an hour and 15 minutes. We spent the day in a hotel, and we were mostly shopping too.. The driver who took us from the airport was kind enough to stay with us all day and took us shopping..
People in Syria are so interested in what is happening in Iraq, and they respect Iraqis inspite of everything the Iraqi government in saying about Syrians to the media. A shop keeper asked us once in Aleppo I think "Was it better when Saddam was ruling? Or is it better now when the bastards invaded you?"; Syrians hate the American policy, and scaring and threatening them isn't going to change the way they think about it to a better one!
It made me sad when a Syrian soldier at the borders between Amman and Syria asked us: "Why do you say such things about us on TV? More than a million Iraqis are living respectfully in Syria and you say bad things about us nevertheless?".. Dad answered: "It's not us who say it, it's the government, led by America.. It's a plan to divide us".
In my journey outside Iraq, I saw Italians, Americans, Kuwaitis, Iranians, Saudis, Syrians, Jordanians, Egyptians, Chinese and Filipinos.. Those I'm sure about, don't know about the others. All in Syria, then again in Jordan, so, no one should dare and say that Syria now is like Iraq when Saddam was ruling.. Syria has satellites, mobile phone and Internet connections.. They express themselves freely on TV, they dare to criticize the government when talking with us.. They might think they're living badly, you might think they're living badly, but you haven't lived under Saddam, have you?
29th of August
Back to Iraq:
We came back to Iraq on Friday, the journey from Qamishly to Mosul took about 4 hours and a half. HNK fall when running to check her passport at ONE of the many check-points, and she twisted her ankle.. The American soldiers made her sit in a room in the check-point and called a doctor for her to get a bandage.. She's fine and walking now, but has left all the work on me.
I went to lessons today, I haven't missed much, and I'll make it inshallah..
The most important thing that has happened when we were away is that Aya has started talking.. Just few steps but it IS still called walking :) She's cleverer now, and cuter too :)
While being there too, my brother-in-law's grandparent's and uncle's houses got searched by American forces.. This is what happened to them, it might not fit in this post but well, I'm writing so my voice would be heard:
They took the men in the house (One was in his underwear and they didn't even let him wear something), put plastic bags on their heads and didn't free them till 4 days after. They also stole what they found in the house from money and gold.!!
Today, my cousins and her husband came to check their daughter's health.. My cousin's husband's sister was widowed yesterday. He died from an explosions yesterday. My cousin's husband was there in the explosions scene helping to take care of the injured ones because no
ambulance came.. He said while he was doing so, a man came and told him that there's a man dead in a car, he was so much affected by the explosions that his head wasn't even there.. He told the man "Leave him now, we have to take care of the living ones".. Later when he came home, his sister called and told him that her husband didn't come home, so he went and checked in hospitals and found that man and discovered that he was his brother in law..
It saddens me to hear such a story.. And saddens me more that I shed no tears to it. All the wars Iraqis have been through, seeing the same death scenes on TV over the years.. Relatives dying, while people elsewhere live happily while causing us to suffer..
Well, I think all this made us (And me) lose a major part of sympathy.. It's like I'm used to it..
He lost his life, she lost her husband, 2 kids lost their dad and I lost my heart..
Three days in Iraq only, brought me back to my boredom..
Hello again, finally.. It's been 15 days in which I was planning what I should write and shouldn't. 15 days outside Iraq, full of fun and trying to analyze things. But I'm back now, and I have to write the post.
More than a month ago, we signed for a tour to Turkey, we paid the money and waited for the people at the tourism company to get us the visas (Which is part of their job). It took so much time and finally 20 days ago, they told us they might not be able to do it at all and so we took back our money and changed the destination to Syria. It was the easiest alternative, close to Mosul, and doesn't need a visa.
On the 12th of this month, at 8 AM we started off our journey to Syria. You can't imagine the techniques drivers use to make their way through, and it's not reasonable to post them here. We spent about 2 hours on the borders being searched and waiting for our turn.. We arrived to Aleppo after 10 hours, booked in a hotel the driver recommended and slept.
Aleppo was great and I had the best days there.. Since the 12th till today, we slept in 7 places, 3 hotels and 4 apartments; as follows:
A- 3 days in Aleppo: Stayed in a hotel, in a brand new room. It was very clean and comfortable..
Our bedroom in Aleppo.
On the first day, we went to Suq Al-Azizeyah and Suq Al-Tilal, and I ate corn for the first time in my life there..
The second day: We went to Aleppo's castle, one of the best historical places I've ever been to. I had so much fun there. There was an Italian group there wandering the castle.
Aleppo's castle from the outside.
Foreigners inside Aleppo's castle.
Inside Aleppo's castle.
Inside Aleppo's castle.
Me and dad's image reflected on the castle's floor.
Then we went to the city's suq (سوق المدينة), Suq Al-tilal again and then to Suq Jdaidah.. And then we spent an hour searching for a restaurant, on foot, I was limping from tiredness.. We found a restaurant but it was too scary inside we went out and looked for another one, we ended up in an expensive one but we had fun discovering how the tab in the toilet works :)
The third day: We asked the hotels owner for places we would enjoy going to in Aleppo, he recommended a place called "Magic's city" which was supposed to be a kind of a playing park.. We took a taxi and went there, the cab driver didn't know the way as we knew later but as we got there at last, there was no one inside.. It was a beautiful place but it seems that people come at noon or later and we were the only ones there.. We took pictures but came back before actually having fun there.. The taxi driver took LOTS of money and this is what we considered the first deceiving attempt we had.
In magic's city.
In Magic's city.. It's still under construction by the way.
In magic's city.
Then we went to Nile's street's suq (سوق شارع النيل), and then had the best lunch EVER.. We went to a small outdoor snack restaurant, the waiter was so nice and the cheese burger I ordered was just DELICIOUS..
Aleppo in general is a simple old city, with very nice people, and very beautiful women, believe me, I felt so ugly the first day :( They say it is very similar to Mosul; well, maybe, in a way..
B- 3 days in Latakia: We stayed in an apartments at the river (A chalet), which was unexpectedly REALLY bad.. Dad doesn't like searching a lot, and he took the second chalet we found, and because the first was worse, he didn't hesitate much with the second. We couldn't stand the smell and humidity, and the whole chalet issue made my experience in Lattakia not any close to a favorite..
The first day: We went to the Suq (As you can see, dad was very understanding in our feminine suqqy needs :) )
The second day: We went to "Kasab", a small town in Latakia, very nice, and as mom said, it looks like Lebanon. It's full of mountains and houses built on them.. And like the rest of Syria, it is full of trees. The road to it was so great we didn't want to arrive. We met an old nice man (Abu Khaldoon) on our way back to the chalet, and he invited himself and his fiancee to our miserable chalet, then we sat and talked on the beach a little.
A view into Kasab.
In Kasab too.
Suddenly at night, the electricity turned off. Why? We didn't know.. We decided to go visit the Basil carnival (Basel is a son of Hafidh Al-Asad, the former president of Syria. Basil died in a car accident years ago), a yearly carnival in Latakia, and it was so bad we couldn't stand it. Not as I expected at all, at least, the parts I saw.
The third day: We went to Slanfa, another town near Latakia, looks like Kasab but Kasab is nicer. And then to Suq Al-Maqbi.
In general, Latakia wasn't as I expected it to be. And the ocean was not as nice as I expected it to be, at least not as clean.. Well, I guess that's people's effect to nature.
C- 3 days in Damascus: We took a bus to Damascus, from a company called Al-Qadmoos.. It was very comfortable and respectable, and it looked like a plane from the inside.. We stayed in an apartment then, it was nice, but the owner kept on taking money for separated claimed reasons.. People in Syria are so nice if not for some who would deceive people all the time..In Damascus, I stopped writing down where we went, but I'll try to remember as much as I can..
The first day: We went to Suq Al-Hamidiah, really ancient and wonderful..
The door of Suq Al-Hamideya.
Al-Omawi mosque.
The ceiling of the suq.
A shop in the suq.
Accessories for tourists.
Then to the Umawi Mosque (A well known ancient mosque in Syria). In our way, we had to walk on a special bridge for pedestrians to cross the street, a nice idea, first time I see something like this.
The second day: We went to Zabadany, a city near Damascus, nice like all, with good shops, we bought many stuff.. We met two Baghdadis (X and Y) in our way searching for a restaurant, a husband and wife, a doctor and dentist.. They were nice people, Shiites (Not to discriminate between Iraqis, but to show you how we get along), we had lunch together and then they came to our apartment and we spent the night together discussing life and politics. Mom, dad, X and Y decided they might try a tour to Turkey from Syria for five days together..
But as it turned out when we investigated it the third day, we knew that the visas might not come as easily to us as it is for Syrians who get
them directly in the borders.. Then we went to Bloodan and Baqeen which has a spring that is known for its good mineral water. Bottle water in Syria is taken from Baqeen I think.
The third day: We went to Suq Al-Sayeda Zainab with X and Y to look into the details of the tour to Turkey, shopped a little then had lunch.. At Dawn we went to Kasyoon's mountain after dropping by X and Y and taking them with us, it was really cold.. We had dinner there from the remainings we saved from the big lunch we had (Mom and X made sandwiches of it).
D- 1 day in Zabadany: X and Y came to Syria alone, without their sons, and so they felt lonely.. They convinced mom and dad to come and stay with them in an apartment they rented in Zabadany. We've been to Zabadany before and it was nice, so mom and dad accepted the
invitation.. That day was so much fun, we spent it shopping and eating till 1:30 AM.
A restaurant in Zabadany.
E- 2 days in Amman: That was a little bit planned to.. Mom wanted us to go, especially that Jordan is close to Damascus and doesn't need a visa. The road was problem-free and the driver was the most enthusiastic guy I've ever seen.. We stayed in an apartment in a good neighborhood.
The best thing in Amman is its malls.. It's like Europe, mom said. They're big with elevators and escalators (Which I first used in Zabadany), they have everything in them, and some are REALLY expensive. We spent the two days rushing through malls in Amman, which although is
a desert, is very nice and full of fancy buildings.
I can't possibly count the places we went to in Amman, but we had a good tour by a taxi driver.. We had lunch with a relative who we haven't seen for a long time.. We had dinner in Burger king and KFC, dreams coming true, although the dream was about McDonald, but well, Burger king was more than great.
People in Amman are not to be compared with Syrians, Syrians are the nicest people I've ever met.. I didn't see much Ammanis though, since many foreigners (The apartment we stayed in was owned by an Iraqi, and the workers there were Egyptians)(were there. And as the driver who drove us to Amman said: "People in Amman do not laugh!". Well, I only spent two days and I barely made contact, but that's what I saw.
If I'm ever going to be studying or working outside, and I had to choose between Syria and Amman, I'd choose Amman for those, but I'd choose Syria for living.
F- 1 day in Damascus: This time we stayed in a hotel. The day was mostly to shop for gifts we didn't buy. That day, I just felt like lying in bed and watching TV, I started getting tired of shopping, but I continued nevertheless.
G- 1 day in Qamishly: We came to Qamishly from Damascus on a plane.. A first-time event for me. Dad described the plane as lousy and old, but I enjoyed it, and it was the only one available! The Qadmoos bus was much nicer from the inside. I thought I'd get dizzy or something since I get dizzy in a car, but it was so easy and comfortable, and it took an hour and 15 minutes. We spent the day in a hotel, and we were mostly shopping too.. The driver who took us from the airport was kind enough to stay with us all day and took us shopping..
People in Syria are so interested in what is happening in Iraq, and they respect Iraqis inspite of everything the Iraqi government in saying about Syrians to the media. A shop keeper asked us once in Aleppo I think "Was it better when Saddam was ruling? Or is it better now when the bastards invaded you?"; Syrians hate the American policy, and scaring and threatening them isn't going to change the way they think about it to a better one!
It made me sad when a Syrian soldier at the borders between Amman and Syria asked us: "Why do you say such things about us on TV? More than a million Iraqis are living respectfully in Syria and you say bad things about us nevertheless?".. Dad answered: "It's not us who say it, it's the government, led by America.. It's a plan to divide us".
In my journey outside Iraq, I saw Italians, Americans, Kuwaitis, Iranians, Saudis, Syrians, Jordanians, Egyptians, Chinese and Filipinos.. Those I'm sure about, don't know about the others. All in Syria, then again in Jordan, so, no one should dare and say that Syria now is like Iraq when Saddam was ruling.. Syria has satellites, mobile phone and Internet connections.. They express themselves freely on TV, they dare to criticize the government when talking with us.. They might think they're living badly, you might think they're living badly, but you haven't lived under Saddam, have you?
29th of August
Back to Iraq:
We came back to Iraq on Friday, the journey from Qamishly to Mosul took about 4 hours and a half. HNK fall when running to check her passport at ONE of the many check-points, and she twisted her ankle.. The American soldiers made her sit in a room in the check-point and called a doctor for her to get a bandage.. She's fine and walking now, but has left all the work on me.
I went to lessons today, I haven't missed much, and I'll make it inshallah..
The most important thing that has happened when we were away is that Aya has started talking.. Just few steps but it IS still called walking :) She's cleverer now, and cuter too :)
While being there too, my brother-in-law's grandparent's and uncle's houses got searched by American forces.. This is what happened to them, it might not fit in this post but well, I'm writing so my voice would be heard:
They took the men in the house (One was in his underwear and they didn't even let him wear something), put plastic bags on their heads and didn't free them till 4 days after. They also stole what they found in the house from money and gold.!!
Today, my cousins and her husband came to check their daughter's health.. My cousin's husband's sister was widowed yesterday. He died from an explosions yesterday. My cousin's husband was there in the explosions scene helping to take care of the injured ones because no
ambulance came.. He said while he was doing so, a man came and told him that there's a man dead in a car, he was so much affected by the explosions that his head wasn't even there.. He told the man "Leave him now, we have to take care of the living ones".. Later when he came home, his sister called and told him that her husband didn't come home, so he went and checked in hospitals and found that man and discovered that he was his brother in law..
It saddens me to hear such a story.. And saddens me more that I shed no tears to it. All the wars Iraqis have been through, seeing the same death scenes on TV over the years.. Relatives dying, while people elsewhere live happily while causing us to suffer..
Well, I think all this made us (And me) lose a major part of sympathy.. It's like I'm used to it..
He lost his life, she lost her husband, 2 kids lost their dad and I lost my heart..
Three days in Iraq only, brought me back to my boredom..
