A day in Baghdad With almost 4 months in the capital city of Baghdad and with so much changing within and around it, I guess its time to speak a little how and what life is all about here. By the time I have had my morning coffee around 8:15 am brewed in the Italian coffee pot (yes, its not NESCAFE, as that is no coffee) the temperature outside is already hitting close to 40 C! A short and quick stroll to office, which is a mere 100 meters walk comprises exchanging pleasantries mainly with my Iraqi colleagues who around the same time are coming to start their work. Courteous and civilized as their history has taught them to be for over 5000 years; we exchange friendly moments at this rather hourly hour. Upon entering office, I exchange greetings with my fellow colleagues, trying to see who has been on time, and who for reasons such as checkpoint logger jam or closure of roads has not made it yet. It is normal to be late and get stuck in Baghdad; one just hopes that a man in love with God has not yet decided for a violent-departure for an early meeting with Him for the joy of a promised paradise, as it can delay arrivals to work for ever! Having taken the stock of the team, I hit the button to switch on my laptop, hoping that no surreal surprises in form of countless messages are awaiting my attention. There are few which warrant my urgent attention and another few upon whose subject I can chew my thoughts and articulate a response. I dread to open the link of wesbsite where I have news of what has passed in last 12 or so hours inside Iraq, as I know that nothing other than war, bloodshed and mayhem will greet my eyes. Somehow, I cannot put that off for too long and hence the news of mayhem and bloodshed has to be consumed! These four months have taught me about Iraqs geography, ethnic composition, political fixtures and much more, and yet I cannot and must not comprehend the mayhem and bloodshed, which showers itself on civilians, men, women, children, old and young alike! The day I will comprehend it is the day I will accept it; and I don’t want to do that! These past months have also taught me to respect and admire the warmth and affection of my Iraqi colleagues, who always seem to be smiling and cheerful, ready to take or make a joke. My rest of the office-day is spent in reading, analyzing and preparing for possible responses that the media may have with regards to the situation, there are some other important and mundane tasks to be accomplished. Come 6:00 pm I take the short walk back to my residence, change in sports gear to be followed by an hour of ping-pong and another hour or so of volleyball with colleagues; all done with 40 C on the scale! A hot shower (not intended, but there is no option) a cool drink, a hearty self-cooked dinner, some harrowing news about Iraq on Al Jazeera, BBC, CNN and the likes of it bring me closer to midnight. I walk out one more time in my little garden, listening to the sounds of military helicopters that continue to fly round the clock, and later when I hit the pillow and try to have some good-dreams; they appear 5,000 years away when the civilization was born in Iraq!
Posted on: Sun, 17 Aug 2014 20:17:33 +0000
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