children | Blue Lapis Road

SIWAN CHILDREN, Siwa Oasis, Egypt

2006.06.04.

During my short stay at the oasis, the people left me with the most lasting impression were the Siwan children. No matter how hot during the day, I could still find these kids outside their homes having fun. I often stopped my bicycle and asked these kids for directions. Some would point me towards the right direction, while others might introduce me to their friends from next door or show me their self-made toys. Sometimes I would ask if I could take a photo of them, and just holding my camera towards them would make them laugh for a long long time. It was June 2006, when Siwa was still a relatively unknown travel destination except for backpackers, and the world was far less connected before the emergence of iPhone and Instagram. The kids belonged to a much simpler world back then. It is interesting to look back at their photos. For me, they represent some of the warmest memories of my Egyptian experience.

I saw this kid at the back of the donkey cart more than once at the town centre.

I spent a bit of time with these kids on my way to the Temple of Oracle.

They were chasing each other in front of their homes.

Some stood by their door and couldn’t stop laughing when they saw me.

This boy was on his way to the town centre for grocery.

These kids ran behind my bike for a short distance just to say hello.

These three children spotted me on my bike from their front porch.

It is hard to imagine how their adulthood have turned out now.

I also met these kids who made their own toys with a rope, a few plastic bottles and sand.

The kid with the Real Madrid jersey showed me how his toy work: tying the sand filled bottles to their hands and running around with the rolling bottles.

December 12, 2020 | Categories: Africa: Middle East, Egypt, Middle East 2006, Siwa Oasis | Tags: cart, children, Egypt, kids, oasis, Siwa, toy | Leave a comment

AMMAN CITADEL & CHAMPIONS LEAGUE, Amman, Jordan

2006.05.17.

For thousands of years since Neolithic times, the “L” shaped hill known as the Citadel of Amman has been inhabited. Ruined temples, churches and palaces dated from the Roman, Byzantine and Umayyad period stand on the citadel hill today. Most of the site remains unexcavated, despite archaeologists have been working here since 1920. The most impressive remain on the hill is the ruins of Temple of Hercules, a Islamic palace and a modest archaeological museum, in which parts of the Dead Sea Scrolls are on display. After dropping off our dirty clothes at a laundry shop, getting ourselves some stamps at the post office, and having a peek at the 2nd century Roman Theatre through the metal gate, we turned to the Citadel hill. On the hill, we chatted with a group of cheerful girls who were playing on the street. They spotted us from afar and seemed pretty curious about the three of us. One of them spoke to us in simple English, and we ended up taking pictures with them in the midst of innocent laughter.

In the evening, we had dinner at a restaurant with a large balcony overlooking a busy street. After dinner, I had a short break at the hostel before returning to the restaurant that we had supper to watch the 2006 UEFA Champions League final on their live TV. There were 15 local men in the tiny restaurant watching the game. I sat down at an empty chair behind a man and ordered a bottle of coke. The large balcony window was opened and I could hear the noise and cheer from restaurants and tea shops down below. It felt like everyone in the city was watching the game. Almost all the other men in the restaurant were smoking cigarette or shisha (water pipe), and the place got pretty smoky. When Campbell scored the first goal for Arsenal, the restaurant owner came out and teased all of us. He yelled at me saying “Barca finishes, Arsenal good!” Throughout the game, the men around me kept on sneaking out to the balcony and yelled down to people on the street. I wasn’t sure whether they knew each other or they were just too excited about the game. Assisted by Henrik Larsson, at around 76th minutes Samuel Eto finally scored the first goal for Barca, and then the second came 5 minutes later through Juliano Belletti. It was the perfect night for the Barca supporters in Amman. As I walked back to the hotel, I passed by groups after groups of joyful locals coming out from tea shops and restaurants after watching the game. Some were walking home in laughter, while the others hopping on cars that packed both sides of the street.

The first impression of Jordan was clean and pleasant.

Amman is a popular Arab city for international visitors. It also receives the most medical tourists in the region.

Locals that we met in Jordan were all very welcoming and friendly.

At the Citadel, the uncompleted 2nd century Temple of Hercules was the most prominent Roman structure. Probably destroyed by earthquakes, it once housed a 12m stone statue of Hercules.

Lying mostly in ruins at the Citadel, the Umayyad Palace was built in the 8th century.

A new dome was restored at the entrance hall of Umayyad Palace in 1998, though not all experts have agreed on whether there was truly a dome in the old times.

Looking down from the Citadel we could get a good view of the Roman Theatre.

Situated at the foot of Jabal Al-Joufah opposite to the Citadel, The 2nd century Roman theatre could seat 6000 people.

The Raghadan Flagpole was once the tallest in the world. It is visible from allover the capital city.

As of 2015, the 126.8m Raghadan Flagpole is the 7th tallest in the world. It flies a 60 x 30m flag.

Mainly cladded with limestone or sandstone, residential buildings in Amman are limited to 4 storeys above ground.

At the Citadel hill, we stumbled upon a group of cheerful children.

The young girls were quite curious about us.

Amman is considered to be one of the most liberal cities in the Arab world. Many children have been exposed to the global commercialism since very young age.

One of the girls tried speaking to us in simple English.

I passed by Al-Husseini Mosque on our way to supper. Erected in around 640 AD, Al-Husseini Mosque was one of the oldest mosques in Amman. The structure was rebuilt in 1932 by King Abdullah I.

September 12, 2020 | Categories: Amman, Jerash & Dead Sea, Asia: Middle East, Jordan, Middle East 2006 | Tags: Al-Husseini, Amman, champions, children, citadel, flag, flagpole, football, Hercules, Jordan, kids, league, mosque, Temple, theatre, Umayyad | Leave a comment

THE SYRIAN CHILDREN, Damascus, Syria

2006.05.16.

Filmed and narrated by female Syrian journalist Waad Al-Kateab, the 2019 documentary For Sama followed five years of Waad’s life in war torn Aleppo with Hamza Al-Kateab, her husband who worked as one of the few doctors remained in Aleppo, and Sama, their baby girl who was born and raised in Aleppo during the bloody civil war. Her first person account of daily life in the rebel held Aleppo, and in particular, documentation of how warfare was affecting the innocent children in the city was heartbreaking. For Sama did generate some international attention at least in the film circles. It was critically acclaimed worldwide and won a number of the year’s best documentary award, including the BAFTA and Cannes. The documentary was a visual testimony for Waad to tell her story to her own child Sama, explaining to her what they were fighting for during the Syrian uprising, why they have insisted to stay in Aleppo to operate the only hospital left in the rebel territory, how they have attempted to support each other in the diminishing local community, how they have lived through the Russian and government bombardment in their neighborhood at a regular basis, and how they have witnessed death and desperation day in, day out for five long years. For Sama reminds me of the Syrian children we have encountered during our sojourn in Syria back in 2006. We could never fully comprehend and truly feel how terrible the situations must have been for each of these children during the decade long civil war. Our hearts go out to every one of them and their families, and hope that they can return to Syria and rebuild their homes as soon as situation allows.

* * *

Before hiring a Jordan-bound service taxi from Baramke Station, we wandered in the old city of Damascus one last time. In a narrow alleyway, we saw a group of school boys, all dressed in blue school uniforms, perhaps just finished their morning school. We soon encountered another group of cheerful school children, this time they were all girls. We followed the girls to a popular neighborhood ice-cream parlour. How lucky we were. After the girls picked up their cones, we got ourselves some of the best vanilla ice-cream we had during the trip, and each cone was only 15 cents USD. Another group of school children arrived at the parlour as we were about to walk off.

At Baramke, we hired a taxi to make the trip to Amman of Jordan. We picked a driver in his fifties. Wearing a grey blazer despite the heat, the driver drove between the Syrian and Jordanian capital regularly. It didn’t take us much time to go through the passport controls at both the Syrian and Jordanian sides. After 1.5 hour we were already arriving at downtown Amman. We dropped off our bags at Sydney Hotel, and headed off immediately to look for the guidebook-acclaimed Palestinian juice stand for a cup of refreshment.

Before leaving Damascus, we wandered in the old city one last time.

Houses that have stood for centuries might have gone forever after the civil war, especially for cities like Aleppo where even the UNESCO World Heritage listed old city was bombarded by explosives, poisonous chemicals, and missiles from Russian warplanes.

It is always the most innocent and vulnerable people would suffer the most during wartime. Seeing the deaths of families, the fleeing of school friends, and the destruction of neighborhoods, and living along with the deafening noises of gunfire and explosives everyday is just too much for the children to bear.

We followed a group of school girls to a neighborhood ice-cream parlour.

We were curious about the school children and so were they on us.

Scenes of cheerful school children buying ice-cream from a neighborhood ice-cream parlour was perhaps a regular daily scene in prewar Syria. Now it may only happen in a handful of government strongholds.

For us, the ice-cream was delicious and affordable, but the most essential thing was the joy that it brought to everyone of us, school children and curious travelers alike, at that particular moment of spring 2006, in one of the narrow alleys of old Damascus.

No fancy shop decoration or special ice-cream flavours, just simple vanilla ice-cream has brought out the purest happiness from the Syrian children.

Every time seeing news of devastating destruction and haunting human sufferings in Syria would make me worry about all the children that we met during our visit.

Despite our brief encounter might only involve exchanges of eye contacts and smiles, these simple smiling faces represent the most unforgettable and precious imagery of my Middle East trip.

I sincerely wish that one day all Syrian children may safely return to their homeland, and have the chance, resources and freedom to rebuild a better country for their next generation.

September 5, 2020 | Categories: Asia: Middle East, Damascus, Bosra & Maaloula, Middle East 2006, Syria | Tags: Amman, children, Damascus, documentary, For Sama, ice-cream, Jordan, school, Syria, Syrian, Waad Al-Kateab, war | Leave a comment

DAY 23 (2 OF 3) – TOWN, PARATY, BRAZIL

We walked leisurely in the pedestrian-only historic centre. Paved with large uneven stones, most streets in the old town were designed as a channel with its lowest point in the middle for drainage. We walked by a house at which its owner was painting the main doorframe in green, one of the several colours commonly found on doors, windows and shutters in Paraty, while the walls were mainly whitewashed.
We walked by Casa da Cultura (House of Culture) and saw some interesting figures wearing colourful masks standing on the balconies overlooking the street. Housed in a historical mansion, the Casa da Cultura serves as a small cultural hub in Paraty. We saw some displays of knitted art and photography. The big surprise came when we went to the upper level and found an exhibition of traditional paper masks and a school group just about to finish their mask-making class. The kids were having fun running around the room and putting on the masks they made. The mask display and the playful kids brought us a moment of brilliant colours in this rather greyish afternoon.