There’s something about riding along in the car, staring across the countryside of the countries that I visit, which stirs a certain thread of wanderlust in me most every time. The drive from Derik to the border was picturesque, and the weather had suddenly turned, leaving bright sun rays shining down on bright green, rain soaked grasses and hillsides, dotted with yellow wildflowers and intermittent herds of sheep. The rugged, snow capped mountains finally revealed themselves in the clear blue skies. A number of fields we passed had been recently tilled, a clear sign of spring as the farmers get ready to start planting. I was reminded that Syria is most certainly not in the poorest of the poor category- clearly there was evidence of tractors and decent farm machinery for example- but instead this was a region choked by the multitude of knock on effects of a terrible conflict just in the nearby vicinity.
I enjoyed the hour plus drive of just staring out the window- it’s so rare to be unplugged like that. My colleagues were casually chatting about data flows and distribution monitoring forms and infographics, and there was Arabic folk music playing on the radio. As we approached the river, we could see the flooding right away- a soccer field where we’d seen kids playing last Thursday was completely under water. When we finally rounded the corner and looked over the hill to the border crossing below, we could see the pontoon bridge attached and seemingly connected to both sides. So that was a good sign at least. Though as we got closer, we could also see just how fast the river was now flowing, and even splashing up over one part of the bridge, and we wondered if the border really would open or not. The evening before, we’d gotten word that it would be opened, so we all packed up to go. Hanna and I, plus 2 colleagues based in Derik headed out on personal leave, and one returning to the regional office in Amman.
When we got to the border crossing offices, the drivers took our IDs and passports and started the paperwork process, which they always handle. Meanwhile, we gazed over at the bridge and made jokes about whether or not anyone could really get across. We saw the engineers (I think?) inspecting it, and then they ran a couple empty test buses across. It seemed fine, but there was a section just beyond the middle that was slightly submerged, water flowing over it that each bus had to sort of wade through. It just didn’t seem safe. We all noted we’d much prefer to walk over it but it was clear that the border guards were having none of that idea. Of course, our papers were processed pretty fast, we handed off our suitcases and the next thing we knew we were being loaded in the bus. A bunch of foreigners- the 5 of us plus a number of other aid workers from other organizations, plus some Iraqi families returning home. We were all joking about whether we could swim with the current to shore if the bus went over, but after morbidly discussing a few scenarios, it was time to go. The total bus ride across is maybe 3 minutes, and it was fine, totally fine. A bit harrowing, but fine! And there we had it, back in Iraq and headed back to Erbil, no big deal.
The 4 hour or so drive back to Erbil was easy and went by fast, and we stopped mid-way for a bathroom break and a little lunch. We ate at a simple roadside restaurant with a fast food section, and had the most amazing chawarmas ever. Hanna got a piece of warm, handmade local bread with a light spice coating on it- so delicious. We are not starving in Kurdistan, that’s for sure!
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| The photos don't do the landscape justice....the mountains were beautiful as were the plains |
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| quaint herds of sheep :) |
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| See the bridge? upper left side, across the river. Below, video of the fast moving river but I'm not sure if the video uploaded correctly. |
When we got to the border crossing offices, the drivers took our IDs and passports and started the paperwork process, which they always handle. Meanwhile, we gazed over at the bridge and made jokes about whether or not anyone could really get across. We saw the engineers (I think?) inspecting it, and then they ran a couple empty test buses across. It seemed fine, but there was a section just beyond the middle that was slightly submerged, water flowing over it that each bus had to sort of wade through. It just didn’t seem safe. We all noted we’d much prefer to walk over it but it was clear that the border guards were having none of that idea. Of course, our papers were processed pretty fast, we handed off our suitcases and the next thing we knew we were being loaded in the bus. A bunch of foreigners- the 5 of us plus a number of other aid workers from other organizations, plus some Iraqi families returning home. We were all joking about whether we could swim with the current to shore if the bus went over, but after morbidly discussing a few scenarios, it was time to go. The total bus ride across is maybe 3 minutes, and it was fine, totally fine. A bit harrowing, but fine! And there we had it, back in Iraq and headed back to Erbil, no big deal.
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| On the bus, ready to cross- this is happening! yeah we were all a bit freaked out...luckily the whole thing takes about 3 minutes only |
The 4 hour or so drive back to Erbil was easy and went by fast, and we stopped mid-way for a bathroom break and a little lunch. We ate at a simple roadside restaurant with a fast food section, and had the most amazing chawarmas ever. Hanna got a piece of warm, handmade local bread with a light spice coating on it- so delicious. We are not starving in Kurdistan, that’s for sure!
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| MMmmmm fresh chawarmas! (not for Hanna, she's a vegetarian- too bad for her!) |
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| Making fresh, awesome bread |
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| Thankfully Hanna shared a taste of the awesome bread w/us |
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| and after you eat, you must have tea! heating up the tea kettle with hot stones. |
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