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| Tuesday, May 1, 2007 |
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Homeward bound 
| | Just paid up four days of "broadband" access here at the hotel in London, in advance of departure in the morning (after a few hours of sleep). The freight was £12 per night, or $24US. And it has barely worked, thanks to a signal that has been flaky and minimal. In about an hour the last 24hrs worth will have run out, and I won't bother to renew it. If I check in again, it will be at Heathrow in the morning. If not, I'll see you back in Santa Barbara, late Wednesday. |
Burned out
| | Riverbend, whose Baghdad Burning blog has been a steady source of eloquence, anger and perspective "on the ground" (as we in the U.S. like to say) in her home city, will soon join the tide of Iraqi refugees: |
| | I remember Baghdad before the war- one could live anywhere. We didn't know what our neighbors were- we didn't care. No one asked about religion or sect. No one bothered with what was considered a trivial topic: are you Sunni or Shia? You only asked something like that if you were uncouth and backward. Our lives revolve around it now. Our existence depends on hiding it or highlighting it- depending on the group of masked men who stop you or raid your home in the middle of the night. |
| | On a personal note, we've finally decided to leave. I guess I've known we would be leaving for a while now. We discussed it as a family dozens of times. At first, someone would suggest it tentatively because, it was just a preposterous idea- leaving ones home and extended family- leaving ones country- and to what? To where? |
| | Since last summer, we had been discussing it more and more. It was only a matter of time before what began as a suggestion- a last case scenario- soon took on solidity and developed into a plan. For the last couple of months, it has only been a matter of logistics. Plane or car? Jordan or Syria? Will we all leave together as a family? Or will it be only my brother and I at first? |
| | After Jordan or Syria- where then? Obviously, either of those countries is going to be a transit to something else. They are both overflowing with Iraqi refugees, and every single Iraqi living in either country is complaining of the fact that work is difficult to come by, and getting a residency is even more difficult. There is also the little problem of being turned back at the border. Thousands of Iraqis aren't being let into Syria or Jordan- and there are no definite criteria for entry, the decision is based on the whim of the border patrol guard checking your passport. |
| | An airplane isn't necessarily safer, as the trip to Baghdad International Airport is in itself risky and travelers are just as likely to be refused permission to enter the country (Syria and Jordan) if they arrive by airplane. And if you're wondering why Syria or Jordan, because they are the only two countries that will let Iraqis in without a visa. Following up visa issues with the few functioning embassies or consulates in Baghdad is next to impossible. |
| | I wish she and her family well. |
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