LasQoray beach

This picture was taken in an inhibited area near LasQoray, Sanaag. Somali has really beautiful beaches. I think that who ever comes here with a little money and opens some sort of tourist resort by the beach would make a lot of $$$$. The water in this beach is very salty and very clean (Bososo beaches are not that clean; people throw their garbage there).

Sheeps/Goats EVERYWHERE

There are so many sheeps everywhere in Somali. These sheeps/goats are not very good if you have a home with plants because they will eat your plants. They are dangerous because they actually go on top of parked cars and chew the leaves.

Nontraditional traditional house

Typical nomadic home that is not very traditional. Traditional nomadic houses look a lot nicer. You see such houses when you go deep into the desert or remote areas.

Poor Children?

Poor children playing in front of their home. They might seem poor to me but in reality they might not be. I am just going by my assumptions and what I consider to be poor. One thing for sure is that a lot of the poor people here seem to be a lot happier then many people in my hometown of Toronto.

House by the road

In here you see people gathering in front of a house. This is very typical in all of Somalia. People build a little tent (from sticks and leaves) in from of their house and put in lawn chairs so that they can gather around and chitchat. Restaurants with spaces also have this but instead they put a TV with satellite so that people could come and watch a show or pre-recorded Somali riwayads (comedy shows/plays).

More of Bososo

Typical houses in Bososo

More sheeps

A man herding his sheeps. I wanted to take one of his sheeps but I know that at the house they will eat it. BTW I am no longer a vegetarian. I tried and I was loosing too much weight so I had no choice but to start eating meat.  

A normal day in a small street of Bososo

EastLeigh

A homeless Somali woman on the street. She has a child -it is so sad :(
Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh

A man carrying passengers. He is too poor to afford a donkey. I wish I could give him a donkey or bicycle :(
Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh

Somalis going about their business. Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh

Somali ppl doing business. Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh

A Somali women crossing the street. Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh (probably not the cross spelling)

EastLeigh is a neighbourhood in Nairobi Kenya. From what I was told, it used to be a lower-middle class area before the Somalis came there. Now the majority of residence and shop owners are Somalis. When I visited there, I was disturbed by what I saw. The place looked and smelled like sewage. The smell was horrific and it was too difficult to breath. However, the people were friendly, helpful and make you feel welcomed as one of their own. I found the living conditions of the Somalis to be disturbing but sadly they are living a better life then many other Kenyans. They are considered to be doing good or at least ok. The people there are struggling but they are using every resource they can to survive (see above pictures).

Sanaag Region

I went to East Sanaag on Thursday June 16. East Sanaag is controlled by Puntland State where as West Sanaag is controlled by Somaliland. Sanaag is classified as 'contested' region but I think that much of it is under the control of Somaliland (I could be wrong on this. People from Puntland are very passionately about it for reasons I shall state later). This region, like many regions in central and northern Somali is relatively stable and peaceful, although there are some clashes at times. Sanaag is the 2nd largest region is pre-war Somalia (now it could be the largest since Bari, the largest region in Somalia, is divided into two. These days, is hard to know anything because there are so many lines made by clans and “governments”).

What I found to be fascinating about Sanaag is that, one of the houses in Badhan had the Somali flag. This is fascinating to be because it was the fist Somali flag I saw during my 8 days here in Somali. People in much of Sanaag (the once I have met atleast) do not care about Somaliland or Puntland. They don’t want to be part of this political game. They are very passionate about being part of one Somalia. The people I talked to are hopeful about stable and peaceful Somalia and are looking forward to the new government to take control of Somalia.

Sanaag is important to both Somaliland and Puntland. Somaliland wants it because when or if they gain independence, they want to have Sanaag as part of their country due to its size. Sanaag was also part of British-Somaliland before it joined Italian-Somaliland. On the other hand, Sanaag is also very important to people of Puntland because of clan relations. The majority of the citizens of Sanaag are of the Darood clan (mainly the Warsengalis, Dulbahantey and some MJs, although it is important to note that there are a lot of people from the Isaaq clan/Somaliland in West Sanaag).

Sanaag is also important to Puntland because Darood (founder of the Darood clan) is buried in Heylaan Sanaag (near Badhan). We actually went to the Mosque where his coffin is buried in. The place is kept/guarded by a blind old man. It was clear to me that they were Sufis because Sunnis would not bury a dead body in a mosque where people pray in it. Also they read a lot of wacdi, a classic characteristic of Sufism (although they classify themselves as Sunnis, there are a lot of Sufis in Somalia.) I really wanted to take pictures of the place but I was told it was not allowed and it is holly. I thought it was weird that they see the place as 'holly' but who am I to judge anyone's believes. My job is to respect, not judge. 

Hospital

This is Puntland Hospital. Although I have never been there, I was told that it is a good hospital with well-trained doctors and nurses (and YES Somalia does have doctors). Also I live across from it- I took this picture from the roof of my home.

Puntland plate

This is a licence plate in the State of Puntland, Somalia. I am so excited to got to Somaliland and Mogadishu and see different licence plates.

Driving

Much of Somalia does not have traffic lights. The only cities that do are Mogadishu and Hargeysa (the two capitals). The rest of Somali is without any traffic lights. Yet, people continue to drive in every city. How can this be?? Well people here, like many parts of the underdeveloped/developing world, are resourceful. They don’t need traffic light to tell them how to drive. They have developed their own system of driving and of communicating with other drivers.

The steering wheel of the cars are in the same position as those in the UK but the people drive in the same lanes as in North America (on the right). All the roads have 2 lanes. If the person ahead of you is slow and you want to pass them, you “honk” at them thus establishing a communication with the driver to let them know that you are passing them. This “honking” system is also used when you reach an intersection. You don’t know who is coming from your left/right due to houses that are blocking you. Therefore you honk to let other drivers know you are coming and they should slow down.

People also use other methods beside the honking system. Lights are also very important. You use your high beams on the oncoming cars. This lets them know that you are sharing the road with them. The reason for this is that on the highways (2 lanes that go from Kismayo to Bayadhaba to Mogadhu to Belet-Weyne, to Galkacyo to Garoowe to Bososo to Las-Caanood to Burco to Hargeysa to Berbara to basically all of the country. This was something very POSITIVE that former President Siad Bari did for this country) contain some bumps caused by lack of maintenances of these highways. Because other drivers could be sharing your lane, it is very important to communicate with them that you are there especially during the day when your headlights are off or hard to see.

There are no police officers checking for careless drivers, no laws regarding seatbelt and no speed limit (which is not a problem because the road are bumpy and not paved which makes it difficult to speed on them. However, this does not stop reckless drivers from being reckless). Basically drivers are driving despite lack of roads and written laws/enforcements. Because people here are creative and are survivors, they are able to develop their own, unwritten, unenforced, informal laws, which allows them to drive anywhere they want. I don’t know how they do it but they are able to drive despite the odds and they are not complaining the slightest. Lets just say I will not be driving anytime soon while I am here.

Fancy ride

This is the type of cars that we (the NGO I am working with) use. Unfortunately, Somalia lacks infrastructure and the roads are non-existing (I was going to say that the roads are in bad shape but there are NO roads for me to make such comment about). The Somalis are very resourceful people; I really don't think I could overstress this. They make roads out of nothing and in the middle of nowhere. This is why you need a 4X4 or pickup truck if you want to get anywhere outside the main cities. This is because, like I said, the roads are non-existing and many of the roads we take to go to the pastoral villages are just pathways made up of rocks or sand. This is remarkable because the pathways/roads get washout by rain but drivers still find their way home (this takes knowledge of the roads and years of driving experience). If I were to be left alone here, I would for sure get lost-it is just empty land to me.

Nicer Homes

These are the type of houses that those Somalis with money live in. Such houses are equipped with satellite TV, internet connection, running water, electricity, and so much more. NGO's, other international organizations, and most Somalis from the Diasporas live in such houses. The average Somali would not be able to afford such luxury.

My first impression of Bososo

Before I came to Bososo (correct spelling is Bosaso but I like spelling it this way), I was told that the city is really hot. But because everyone was saying this with such passion, I somehow figure they were exaggerating (why I though this? I am not sure but in the back of my mind, I was asking my self “how hot can it really be?). Well it is really HOT!!! During my first week here (I have been here 8 days now) it was really difficult for me to be living here. I couldn’t breath and my contact lenses are making my eyes extremely dry. All I do is complain about the weather and the heat. Even with air conditioner, it is still hot. You feel uncomfortable at times because when you get up from bed, the entire bed is wet (LOL). This was not psychologically healthy if you know what I mean.

The good news here is that you somehow, I don’t really know how, but somehow you get used to it. One thing that amazes me is that people here do not drink a lot of juice. They only drink water. This is fine but I assumed that they would be drinking fruits and stuff of that nature. I am really having a difficult time just drinking water because I don’t like water and only drink about one glass a month if I am lucky. I am more of the juice/pop person then water and milk (which are like heaven to ppl here-they also love meat. They eat all types of meat- Camel, goat, lamp, beef, and fish. Surprisingly, I have yet to see someone eating chicken. No one eats chicken here, they will laugh at you if you suggest such thing and they consider chicken birds).

In terms of how people live and how they are, I don’t think the Somalis here are any different then the Somalis in the Diaspora. The women here are a lot more covered up due to many reasons (some not even for religious purposes) and the men still (indirectly) try to “talk” to you. The only difference is that things are done to the extreme here. For example, a Somali person in Toronto will stare at you for a while then turn away if he/she sees you looking, but a Somali person in Somalia will STARE at you really hard until you leave or are out of their sight. Even if you look at them back they will continue to stare and study your every movement (at times it is very uncomfortable and creepy but what you are going to do?)

Finally In Bosaso

Bososo is a city located in the Gulf of Aden. In this picture you could see the water (don't let the nice beaches fool you, the city is EXTREMELY HOT especially from May to September.). All of the Somali cities along the Gulf of Aden are extremely hot where as all the cities along the Indian Ocean are a lot cooler. This is because of the hot wind coming from the Arabian Desert.

Mountains

There are so many mountains in Bososo. These mountains are made of sand and they do not contain many rocks except for the top.

Mosque/Masjid

Every city you go to, or every village you see, there is always a Masjid (mosques). The Masjids are always more beautiful then the houses. This particular Masjid is located in a place were the people are extremely poor (as you can see from the surrounding areas of the Masjid). Although they are poor, the community has managed, with the help of everyone, to build a place were they could worship their god.

Typical house?

This is a typical house in Somali. I was told that if you go to Mogadishu, Hargeysa, Galkacyo, Bososo, or any other city in Somalia, the houses look the same. So far this is true from what I have seen because I don't see different styles except for the hotels, which are very beautiful (the expensive ones at least)

Finally some green

As you can see, not all of northern Somali is desert. There are so many green spaces. It is funny that no one really lives in these green areas and the majority of the population lives in the desert part of Bari region.

Donkey

This donkey was dying for me to take a picture of him (lol). Isn't he cute? I was shocked to see that there are not that many donkeys in Northern Somali.

Nomadic House

This is a typical nomadic house. When the nomads run out of fertile land, they pack the house up and move on with their herds to greener lands.

Desert?

Apicture from Garowe to Bososo. As you could see from this picture, Northern Somali has lots of mountains and a large portion of the land between Galkacyo and Bososo is dry and it has experienced an intense process of desertification.

My new coins

One American dollar from 1865, and the other 1939 German 5RM with Hitler's picture

Why is the country still RUNNING?

Somalia is a country without any government or formal police system for over 15 years. Yet this country remains to be still functioning. How could this be? How can a country survive this long? I am sure a lot of people have tried answering this by using many means, some which give complex analysis. However, I would like to explain this by using a simple incident that happened to me upon my arrival in this country they call Somalia.

When my flight landed from Nairobi to Mogadishu, Somalia on Saturday June 11/05, (Mogadishu airport which is 50KM North of the city; a small, un-developed airport controlled by the United Nations and used by Somalis and the international community. This airport still remains as the largest airport in Somalia and it is controlled by 2 warlords at the moment). Anyways, moving on with my story, there were couple of guys in the airport who lived in a nearby village-it is actually more like a shantytown. I, along with the guys I was traveling with from Kenya, decided to chat with them because we had an hour and half to kill and because they were staring at us. One of the guys had approached me and asked me if I wanted to buy 2 coins, one American dollar from 1865, and the other 1939 German 5RM with Hitler’s picture (2 very rare coins) for only $20US. I told him that I did not have the money and tried to convince the guys I was traveling with to buy them, but they were not interested. I told the men that I would love to buy it but I can not at this moment. I advised them to keep it because in couple of years when there is a government, it will be worth thousands. However, he was not interested and said that he needed the money right now. Not able to do anything, I went back to the plane. From my seat in the airplane, I saw one of the guys I was traveling with, still talking to the guys and writing something down on a piece of paper. He then got on the airplane and gave me the coins and a piece of paper and told me that the Somali guys are giving me the coins and trusting me in the name of God because like them I am Muslims and Somali. They trusted me to take the coins and the paper, which had a phone number of a man they knew in Bosaso, and pay the man once I get to Bosaso. I was so amazed that these guys who have never seen me before and did not know anything about me, would trust me with something as big as this (NOTE: $20US is a lot of money in Somalia). I was so touched by their trust in me that I ended up borrowing $20 to give to them; they were happy and I took the coins (not really wanting to purchase them at that time).

Some of you are asking why am I am writing you this long story about a boring incident on my way to Somalia? Well because that single moment showed me how this country has been able to survive for over 15 years. People here are making something out of nothing. They have been able to live in peace, yes I mean PEACE, considering the fact that there are no laws and no police to enforce them. They are able to trust each other because they are Muslims and they are Somalis. Right now I am in Bosaso, and here you see women walking at night and no one does anything to them. You also see traders displaying their money in public and no one robs them. Somalia is not the safest country in the world but considering the fact that there is no government and no one to enforce the rules of law, they are doing very well in trying to live in peace and create some stability.

(See the photos of the coins- these are really rare ones although I am not sure if they are real. Regardless, they are cool)