work4change

The Forgotten Flag

2008-03-08T03:23:00.003-05:00

I have came across this flag in an empty airport in Garowe. Most Somali airports do not look like the type of airports we see but this one really brings a new meaning. By the looks of it, there is no way you could guess an airplane could land there. There is NO OFFICES or people to welcome you or collect taxes from you. I was informed. although can not confirm, that this airport is used by cargo planes only, although I might add that UN planes do land there. Because I was on a cargo plane when I landed here, I will go with the assumption that commercial planes do not use this runway. The airport is called Conoco Airport because the locals explained to mean oil company, Conoco, established it and uses it for purpose of searching for oil, transportation's of equipment, etc .

Whatever the airport is, the flag really got to me because it is still beautiful despite being old and covered with plastic bag. It is amazing how you only need to look at the SKY to know what our flag looks like.

2005-09-25T10:53:00.002-05:00

Football teams. People love soccer here; every empty land is full with teams on Fridays. I am surprised to see them with uniforms because most of them can not afford it (I am sure there are some sports organization or/and minister of sport and youth helping them). Sports are good ways of getting people to from competing clans/groups to come together and compete in a 'non-violent' environment.

Lack of Roads

2005-09-25T10:45:00.003-05:00

Much of Somalia does not have adequate roads. Most road look like this, they are unpaved. But these roads are better then other roads in small towns where it is really bumpy. In this picture, the people and the cars are sharing this narrow road. The funny thing is that this is considered a major road. You often see very narrow roads where 3 cars want to pass at the same time. It is extremely funny scene. I don’t know how they do it but people here drive.

2005-09-25T10:21:00.002-05:00

This kid insisted that I take his picture while he was smoking. Many young men think that smoking is cool and sadly so many of them smoke. I think that at least 70% of Somali men and boy smoke. It worries me because there are not any treatments for cancer here and it does not get diagnosed as cancer. They just say that he died and it was his time.

2005-09-25T10:17:00.001-05:00

I think this is an Eagle. I was surprised to see so many different types of birds here. Some of them are really gorgeous, exotic and endangered. You don't except birds in dry, desert place like here.

2005-09-25T10:07:00.000-05:00

This is the crew stopping to prey their Salat. Sometimes it feels like prayer is only for men. Many women do not pray here. It is strange how some of them are covered from head to toe including their face yet they do not perform their Salat.

2005-09-25T10:05:00.000-05:00

Water is a scarce resource in Somalia. This scarcity is not caused by lack of water in the country but rather lack of human resources (as well as machinery). It does not take much to dig a well but in many parts of the country, ordinary citizens find it difficult in doing so because most of the land is rocky rather then sandy. There are many concerned citizens and/or organizations that have been digging wells for anyone to use, free of charge. You just need some sort of packet to carry it with as this woman is doing .

2005-09-25T10:02:00.000-05:00

Doesn�t this guy somehow look a little like 2Pac (in person he really does). My friend suggested that it might be 2Pac hiding in Somalia (lol).

2005-09-25T10:01:00.000-05:00

There people are ex-pastoralist. Most of the people of Somalia are pastoralist. There have been droughts in the 1990�s that have wiped-out many livestock of the nomads thus resulting in the displacement of many pastoralists. I worry about nomads in Somalia because their way of life is going to be extinct if this continues.

2005-09-25T09:51:00.000-05:00

This crap was ready to attack me. I came close to it because I thought it might be dead due to its pale complexion (the other craps I saw were livelier looking). My life was endangered that day-the nightmares it caused me are unspeakable (I am being dramatic, but it really came close to attacking me).

2005-09-25T09:48:00.001-05:00

We bought this goat for about $85. I didn�t like how we had to tie him in our pickup but I guess it doesn�t matter since it was going to be eaten.

2005-09-25T09:48:00.000-05:00

A dead cat in the beaches of Bender Beyla.

2005-09-25T09:46:00.000-05:00

These traditional Somali homes might seem ugly and simply to construct (which they really are). However, they are not good for the environment because they require a lot of trees to build them. We do not have that many trees to spare but we have soooo many rocks and mountains made from rocks that people could build their homes from (believe me when you come here you are going to get so sick of rocks. I don�t think I could handle seeing any more rocks). Let�s try to leave the little trees we have alone so that perhaps certain places in the country might become cooler and it might rain more often.

2005-09-25T09:42:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the only highway aka trans-Somalia-Highway. I feel good that we at least have some means of transportation. It is really the only way that different regions are able to exchange goods/services and get involved in trade. Otherwise many companies and economic activities that exists today would not have been here.

2005-09-25T09:33:00.000-05:00

I get so happy to see green areas because most of northern Somalia is a semi-desert. However, you tend to see some areas that are very green such as this one.

2005-09-25T09:30:00.000-05:00

This picture was taken in Las Qoray. It is soo beautiful. I felt like living there.

2005-09-25T09:28:00.000-05:00

Postural family coming to see why we were taking picture of their camels.

Could it be RAIN???

2005-09-25T09:26:00.001-05:00

Tornado. Actually it is not a tornado but more like raining clouds. I was sooo exited to see it because I though it might rain; rain is a BIG deal here. Fortunately it didn�t rain in the area I was at but it did rain in a nearby village.

Nice Wiring Job

2005-09-25T09:26:00.000-05:00

The wiring system here is Horrible. Telephone companies are in fierce competition to have the most customers. Instead of working out some sort of plan or compromise, each company installs its own wires thus creating chaos in the streets. Did you know that if you are with one Telephone Company, you can not call the other. Most of the people I work with have Golis (popular company in Bosaso) and I have STG (Somali Telecom Group, very new to Bosaso but popular in other regions). This causes major inconvenience to all of us because I can�t call them and they can not call me. I asked one guys who works in STG why this is happening and he told me that there is lack of trust between companies and because there is not strong government that could enforce things, they able to get away with and do what is in their best interest. This is great from a business�s point of view but stinks for the rest of us who might need to call someone with different company in cases of emergency or such.

2005-09-25T09:25:00.000-05:00

This is the Bosaso version of the TTC (lol). On a serious note, this is the public transit. It is a small bus and it gets passengers around the city. At first look they all look the same to me and I was wondering how people know which bus goes where. It then made sense to me because they all have a number after the letter BL and Bsomething. That is how you know which is which. I think that this is marvelous for people to achieve this because they are doing it without a government. I think it is great that these business men are organizing themselves and getting people where they need to be. The cost to ride this is 2,000s.Sh. (Or about 13 cents; 15,000s.Sh =$1US-the exchange rate is awful). I actually rode one of these and it was not that bad. I actually enjoyed it.

2005-09-25T09:22:00.000-05:00

This goat is just wondering around the street. There are so many goats walking around. No one eats these goats because they eat everything they find on the street. In another word, they are unhealthy. I ask if we could just humanly kill them or take them out of the city and I was told that their owners would not approve. It doesn�t make sense that you wouldn�t eat these goats but at the same time you wouldn�t do anything to get rid off them. Some of these goats are in a lot of pain. They eat everything and they become sick. They even cough like humans (very bizarre). The sad part is that many of these goats stay up during the night because they chew Jad (Mira). They eat the jad roots that the people throw away after eating it.

2005-09-25T09:21:00.000-05:00

MY shells!! I collected them during my time here. The small ones are from Bosaso, the Red Sea; the big ones are from Bender Beyla, the Indian Ocean. They are so many shells here and there are sooooo beautiful. People here don�t care for them. They could make a business from selling these shells because you could make simple jewelry from them. However, most don�t understand that and the few who do, do not know how to market it.

2005-09-25T09:19:00.000-05:00

There are so many rocks in Somali cities. Here in this street (yes, these are our streets), you see so many rocks. I was shocked when I first came here and saw so many of them. I kept asking why people don�t remove them. They all laughed at me because these rocks are precious to the owners because they are being used to build a house. I do not understand why they have to bring all of these rocks in the middle of the street months before the construction of the house starts. It is making the city look bad.

Lets play Soccer

2005-09-16T10:14:00.000-05:00

This is a football stadium. The land is especially dedicated for teams to play football/soccer. When you first look at it, it is just a plan area filled with sand but when you take a closer look you see so much more. This stadium is a place where kids come every day between 4-6pm. It is place where youth (only male) could enjoy themselves and be at a recreation center—there are not many places that youth could go and “hang-out”. This is due to lack of funds to establish such reaction spaces where youth could enjoy them selves and be among other youth.

This is how some of the kids study

2005-09-16T10:00:00.000-05:00

These kids are doing their homework in front of their house because their family can not afford to have electricity in their home. It is amazing to see how some of the students in Somalia are so eager for education. They are Hungary for knowledge. It really makes you appreciate what you have. We Somalis in the Diaspora are so lucky yet many of us do not take advantage of the affordable education we have in the West. Being here really made me see the so many things that we take for granted. There are so many kids here who are maximizing the little opportunity they are able to attain. < the picture is not taken good, sorry >

2005-08-13T04:32:00.000-05:00

A goat that just gave birth to lamp. Sorry for the blood work but I thought it is cool because the lamp just walked as soon as it was out (amazing considering it takes us almost 2 years to do the same). I feel like I am invading the privacy of this goat!

2005-08-13T04:24:00.000-05:00

There are so many camels in Somalia. It is the most beloved animal here and it is very expensive. Each one of them costs over $300US. I met a man who had to pay 100 of them because he accidentally killed another man during an argument (talk about anger management issues). This came to around $30,000 (enough to pay back my student loan).

2005-08-13T04:20:00.000-05:00

Me along with 3 other man hiked through mountains, dirt, shoreline (very beautiful shoreline if I may add), and other unpleasant roads for 8 hours to get to this site. It is basically a submarine ship that was owned by the Germans but destroyed by the British during the last months of WWII. The Germans came to help their friends a.k.a. the Italians. Anyways, all the men in town said I couldn�t do it cause I am a girl. But I did it and they were all SHOCKED. They send an army to find me cause we took longer then we indicated. lol

2005-08-13T04:18:00.000-05:00

This traditional Somali home was build by a family after the Tsunami destroyed their home. Bender Beyla

2005-08-13T04:16:00.001-05:00

This is another boat that was destroyed by the Tsunami. There were little kids that were using it as a toy house. They seemed to be happy unlike the owner who is unemployed and can no longer earn a living as a fisherman. Bender Beyla

2005-08-13T04:16:00.000-05:00

Boats that were partially damaged by the Tsunami. Bender Beyla

2005-08-13T04:12:00.000-05:00

This is a far picture of Bender Beyla. Beyla was the town most affected by the Tsunami. I absolutely enjoy being there cause you have the ocean, mountains and beautiful weather (unlike Bososo which is 40+ all the time-lord I don�t think any place could get hotter then here). Although there are is not much talk about assisting those individuals that were affected by the Tsunami in Africa, there are a lot of funds allocated to Beyla and other towns of the coasts. Most of the work is starting to take shape now. Most of the projects that will take place include rebuilding homes and getting the fishermen new equipments (since most of them lost all of their equipments in the sea). There are also other projects being done such as road constructions. WFP also operates there (actually it no longer does because the foods for those people are being withheld by Pirates-shame on them)

2005-07-14T04:25:00.000-05:00

This man on the house came especially to greet us (the team that was evaluating the relief program). I though that it was really nice hospitality of them. The village is called Hindigale

2005-07-14T04:23:00.000-05:00

Women also waiting for us to interview. They are also ex-pastoralist. The interesting factor is that they the majority of them are either divorced or widowed. I though that divorce was something that happened to the Somalis in the Diaspora but unfortunately it is becoming a common practice here as well. We are losing our culture really fast.

2005-07-14T04:19:00.000-05:00

Men waiting for us to question them. Most of them are ex-pastoralist/nomads who have lost everything due to the drought. Pastoralism is really vulnerable occupation because you rely so much on the environment and have not really control over anything. If your animals die then basically you go with them.

CLAN/TRIBE

2005-07-14T04:18:00.000-05:00

This is a touching subject but it is something that must be tackled. It is extremely unavoidable to discuss clan in Somalia. It is part of everyday life and it is used differently by different groups.

In Somalia you see how negative clan has been used. People used it to cause harm to one another. If you want to get rid-off someone and they are in a place where they are minority clan, you could point to everyone who they are and before you know it they are leaving the city and going to another city where their clan is the majority (this is an extreme case but it can happen and I am SURE it did happed before).

Anyways, the people that use clan for the reason it was created for are the nomads (nomadism is actually endangered but this is another topic). If you are in a minority clan and you come to a nomadic household, they will welcome you and treat you better then their children or their clansmen because you are a guest and far from your own clan. Today, if you come to a city that doesn’t belong to your clan, you will not be welcomed, but be treated quite the opposite although no one will come to you directly in most cases.

Another way the nomads use tribe positively or the way it is suppose to be used is that, if your clan lives with them but you are a minority, they offer you their protection. They usually adopt minority groups into their tribe so that no one can mess with them. This has great implications. For example, here in Somalia, someone will think twice before they try to kill me because I have a clan. Why is this important? Well if I have a clan they will avenge my death and make sure that my killer is brought into justice (basically killed). This is the main reason why I am able to freely walk around the streets of Bososo and a foreigner can not. It is easier to kill a foreigner then a Somali because there is no government to hold you accountable and no clan to offer their protection.

Another positive aspect of clan is that it gives you a protection. As some of you know, if you don’t have a clan basically you can not call yourself a Somali. Your clan makes you a Somali and distinct from other nationality. Right now, if someone wants to find me, it will take them a very long time if they don’t know my clan. But if they know my clan and my sub-clan, they can easily within about an hour or so find out where I am exactly (I am not sure if this is a good or bad things yet, I like some privacy you know).

In addition, although many people claim that the civil war in Somalia was about clan, in reality, it had nothing to do with clan. Clan was the mobilizing factor used to get people’s blood boiling. The real issue was about power. Few men wanted to get on the seat from the time of independence but were not given the chance. Clan was not really a factor. But because the majority of the populations were uneducated and vulnerable to external influence, they were easily led to believe that the warlords were acting on the interest of their clan. Clan wars did occur even before independence but it never got out of hand. The elders from each clan resolved the issue after some time of fighting. In a matter of a year or so, the two clans were back as friends and they grazed their animals in the same lands. IT IS EXTREMLY SICK HOW BLOOD IS SHED IN THE NAME OF CLAN.

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How I am holding on thus far?

2005-07-14T04:11:00.000-05:00

I AM STILL ALIVE!! On a serious note, for those of you who are interested, I am doing fine. I am currently based in Badhan, Sanaag region. It is really nice here. A small time but nice. It is soo COOL here (in terms of weather conditions). I could actually breathe here. My brain is able to function better because it is not being attacked by the HEAT (BOSOSO is really hell, if you want to have a little idea of what hell looks like, go to BOSOSO).

On the other hand, I am getting a little tired of getting water from the barakat. Our house doesn’t have running water but it is fine. I am getting used to it and I like the experience of getting by own water. The people here are nice. They are welcoming and they know how to mind their business.

The food here is a bit problematic because you can’t find everything you need. As some of you are aware, all of northern Somali is basically a desert. Most of the fruits and vegetables come from either Ethiopia (for Somaliland) or Southern Somalia (for Puntland). There are some people who farm here (although most people are either nomads or city folks), but it is more expensive and hard to find good quality and quantity. This doesn’t mean that nothing is grown here but it is just that the weather and soil conditions are making it impossible. You could actually pant a lot variety of vegetable and fruits if you had good irrigation system, which Somalia doesn’t (this will requires a lot of money and government advocacy)

Other then that, things are A-OK. To clarify few things, there are no mosquitoes in the place I am at, no I am not sick nor did I catch some disease, yes there are flies bussing around, no I am not MARRIED, yes there are snakes and lizards around, no I don’t own an AK-47, and yes I am enjoying my self. Somalia is not as bad as some of you seem to indicate.

2005-07-12T02:08:00.000-05:00

A women peeking from her home. This is pretty much how houses in Somali look like. They are all build from bricks and in my eyes, they add to the heat that is already killing me. You tend to feel hotter when you see them. ~Sigh~

2005-07-12T01:45:00.000-05:00

Men on top of a truck in front of out car. I just thought it is funny how their MACAMUS was flying around.

2005-07-12T01:44:00.000-05:00

These house, as some of you might be familiar with them, are build for Somalis in the Diaspora. I think that the cost of them is something like $16,000US, really cheap when you compare them to their size.

2005-07-12T01:38:00.000-05:00

All of this money actually comes to around $40US. The inflation rate is ridiculously high. A bottle of coke cost around 10,000 SomaliShilings. This is due to lack of government and the fact that Somalia imports just about everything because educated Somalis, who could impact the country greatly, have left the country. VERY SAD INDEED.

2005-07-12T01:37:00.001-05:00

This is me in Ceelbuug. I wear no makeup, no nothing. I feel great about it. There is nothing for me to confirm to. My face feels free. I do not think I ever went to go back to life in Toronto were you got to worry about what you wear and being part of the �fashion scene�. It is really stupid how young ladies in the west put so much emphasis on their hair and makeup. It is a very superficial lifestyle.

2005-07-12T01:37:00.000-05:00

A newly-wed home. This house was created for 2 young nomads that were getting married. At the time of this picture, they have not moved in yet. As you can see this is a BIG house and it is really beautiful especially inside. An interesting fact about such homes is that they are destroyed after about 2 months, when it is confirmed that the women is pregnant. During this time, they disassemble the house and the woman builds a smaller ones. At the same time, the man goes and herds the animals and makes sure that there is enough food, i.e., goats, camels, etc, for his new family.

2005-07-12T01:36:00.000-05:00

This young lady is amazing. She was the only one who had the guts to pose for picture. Yes, girls here are thought to wear a JALABIB at a very young age. The sad part is that they are just told to do it and they don�t do it for God. That is a different story that I will not into right now.

2005-07-12T01:35:00.000-05:00

Kids going about their daily lives in Ceelbuug.

2005-07-12T01:34:00.000-05:00

There are so many different types of lizards in our backyards and probably in everyone�s home. My security guard, driver and co-workers make fun of me because I scream every time I see a lizard or an insect. (They are really scary when you are not used to them being around your home)

2005-07-12T01:33:00.001-05:00

More kids that I met. They seem to enjoy me taking their pictures.

2005-07-12T01:33:00.000-05:00

Girls in this country are very shy. I find it difficult to communicate with them because they are not used to giving out their opinion. It is realty when they get married and they find out that their husbands are useless that they learn to be opinionated and more open. This is because most married or divorced women work. Everywhere you go, you will always see that there are more women then men working. (More power to them!)

2005-07-12T01:32:00.000-05:00

More pictures of me interviewing recipients of Cash For Work program.

2005-07-12T01:31:00.000-05:00

This is me, in the brown, interviewing the local population. I was going around villages for the purpose of evaluating programs that are carried out by HR (this is one reason why I couldn�t return any emails nor update this blog). Some of the stories that these ladies told me were heart breaking. The majority of these people are ex-pastoralists who have lost all of their animals and belongings due to the drought that want on for 4 years in Sanaag region.

2005-07-12T01:30:00.000-05:00

Take a look at the future leaders of this country. These kids are really bright and wise beyond their years. I sometimes pity them because they do not have the support needed to expand their minds and channel their energies in the right direction. (they are a cute kids)

GUNZ

2005-07-12T01:26:00.000-05:00
There are a lot of guns in Somalia. However, you don’t really see them everywhere. So far, the only people with guys are security guards (those that guard houses/offices and those that guard individuals). I am surrounded by guys everywhere I go because I have to have security guards with me. This is because the NGO I work with has a lot of international staff that do not have the protection of a clan. Therefore, they need to be guarded 24/7. However, normal people on the streets do not walk around with guns. This does not mean that they don’t have one (they do trust me) but the idea is that if they want peace they must show they are willing to let go of their guns or at leas make it less visible.

I still can’t believe how safe this country is. When I am in Bososo I walk around freely without anyone. No one bothers me or harasses me (except for those individuals that have nothing better to do with their time but to keep telling me to put my gabasar over my head—THEY REALLY NEED TO GET A LIFE OF THEIR OWN).

One funny thing about guns is that you tend to be scared of them the first couple times you see them. But after some time they become normal to you. I never thought that I would actually have the courage to touch a gun after what it did to my people. During my first 3 weeks in Somalia, I was extremely against the idea of having a gun near me but after awhile especially during the last week or so I just can’t stay away from them. There is something about them that draws you near them. I just can’t explain it but it is an experience I am not willing to repeat.

Someone once told me that “Smart people make Guns. Stupid people use them”.

2005-07-12T01:22:00.000-05:00

AK-47. This is Somali�s favorite gun. I once asked a guard if he is willing to give-up his gun for $100US. He laughed at me because a) an AK-47 cost over $300US and b) if he gives up his gun, who would guarantee someone else with a gun isn�t going to rob or kill him.

2005-06-21T09:56:00.001-05:00

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 site consisting of beach house or something, would make a lot of $$$$. The water in this beach is very salty and very clean (Bososo beaches are not that clean; ppl throw their garbage there).

2005-06-21T09:56:00.000-05:00

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 it. They are dangerous because they actually go on top of parked cars and chew the leaves.

2005-06-21T09:40:00.000-05:00

Typical nomadic home. You see such houses when you go deep into the desert or remote areas.

2005-06-21T09:39:00.000-05:00

Poor children playing in front of their home

2005-06-21T09:37:00.000-05:00

In here you see ppl 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 ppl could come and watch a show or pre-recorded Somali riwayads.

2005-06-21T09:26:00.000-05:00

Typical houses in Bososo

2005-06-21T09:25:00.000-05:00

A man herding his sheeps.

2005-06-21T09:24:00.000-05:00

A normal day in a small street of Bososo

2005-06-21T09:21:00.000-05:00

A homeless Somali women on the street. Nairobi, Kenya

2005-06-21T09:20:00.001-05:00

A man carrying passengers. He is too poor to afford a donkey. Nairobi, Kenya

2005-06-21T09:20:00.000-05:00

Somalis going about their business. Nairobi, Kenya

2005-06-21T09:19:00.000-05:00

Somali ppl doing business. Nairobi, Kenya

2005-06-21T09:18:00.000-05:00

A Somali women crossing the street. Nairobi, Kenya

EastLeigh (probably not the cross spelling)

2005-06-21T09:13:00.000-05:00
EastLeigh is a place 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 a sewage area. The smell was horrific and it was too difficult to breath. However, the people were friendly, helpful and made 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

2005-06-19T13:43:00.000-05:00
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 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 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 if 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 are 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 coven 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. 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.)

2005-06-19T12:48:00.000-05:00

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 a cross from it- I took this picture from the roof of my home.

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This is a licence plate in the State of Puntland, Somalia.

Driving

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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 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 wheels of the cars are in the same position as those in the UK but the people drive the same 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 that 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 cause 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). Basically drivers are driving despite lack of roads and written laws. Because people here are creative and are survivors, they are able to develop their own, unwritten, un-enforced, 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 all odds and they are not complaining the slightest.

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This is the type of cars that we (the NGO I am working with) use. Unfortunately, Somalia lack infrastructures 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 pick-up 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)

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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 live in such �luxury�.

My first impression of Bososo

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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 bad, and 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 believe nor could I adjust to the heat of the city. All I did was 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 sociologically healthy if you know what I mean.

The good news here is that, you somehow, I don’t know how, but somehow you get used to it. One thing that amazing 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 week. I am more of the juice/pop person then water and milk (which are like heaven to ppl in 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).

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 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)

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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.

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

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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, they have managed with the help of others to build a place were they could worship their god.

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This is a typical house of Somali. I was told you go to Mogadishu, Hargeysa, Galkacyo, Bososo, or any other cities in Somalia, the houses look the same. This is true from what I saw because I don�t see different styles except for the hotels, which are very beautiful (the expensive ones at least)

2005-06-14T10:18:00.000-05:00

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 Bososo.

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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.

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This is a typical house for those Somalis that are not better off

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Pics 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.

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

Why is the country still RUNNING?

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Somalia is a country without any government, any police, 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, (50KM North of the city; a small, un-developed airport controlled by the United Nations and used by Somalis and the international community. Mogadishu airport, which still remains as the largest airport in Somalia, is controlled by 2 warlords). Anyways, moving on with my story, there were couple guys in the airport who lived in a village-it is actually more like a shantytown. I, along with the guys I was traveling with, decided to chat with them because we had an hour and 30 min 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 an 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 don’t 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 airline 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 couple guys who have never seen me before, 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 and 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 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)