reconstruction versus destruction

after five days in iraq i am finally settling in and figuring out at least where to get a meal. my job is going to be truly exciting as i get to travel all throughout the country finding and telling stories about life and progress in iraq. hopefully progress is just what we will find.

living in the international zone it is hard to think of progress in viewable terms such as new building or reclamation of historical sites. yesterday a few colleagues and i had the opportunity to hop in an suv and drive around the iz for some pictures and to be tourists. all throughout our journey we visited or saw buildings that had been bombed in the early days of the war standing as monuments to the power of a 2000 lbs bomb. beyond the bombed out buildings there is an air of decay in this part of baghdad (one i can only imagine is amplified in other parts of the city).

concrete walls are everywhere as protection for people like me. once beautiful neighborhoods now find themselves overrun by trailers for security details and new corner markets selling iraqi goods to foreigners. even the air feels as if it has stagnated for years.

this is where we are now. from this point forward the iraqis and coalition nations will have to decide whether this country witnesses actual reconstruction or continued decline and destruction. for our part (that role of foreigners especially americans) it is important to remember that if our presence was eliminated that iraq would essentially no longer exist. without protection elected leaders would be murdered and any structure of government would be useless. without training the less skilled workers that remain in the country would be unable to treat water, protect their cities, or educated their children.

and if the iraqis don't take the leading role in implementation of programs and running the country there would be no point in all of efforts of thousands of individuals here, soldiers and supporting nations.

there are rays of hope however. new programs are being implemented. new schools are opening. iraqis are standing up to foreign insurgents and progress is being made. it is hard to see any of this behind the front page of murders, bombings, and threats. god willing this nation and we will get through this time and move beyond reconstruction in iraq to a day where the nation thrives and the people flourish.

Good Friends the World Over

The one thing about being in Baghdad is that you are surrounded by great people. While in DC training to head to Iraq I had the opportunity to make some good friends that I would be able to rely on when I arrived. Now that we are here I am experiencing that reliance and am so thankful for the people I have around me going through the same things that I am.

Iraq is no easy place to be but life is much easier with some folks that understand what you are dealing with and tend to support you.

All through my life I have been lucky enough to have great friends and Baghdad is no exception.

The Journey of a Lifetime

I have officially made it to Baghdad and it was some journey getting here. I left the States late Friday night and had a couple of hours waiting in lines in Paris before heading to Amman, Jordan. Thankfully I had a colleague to travel with.

Once in Amman things started to get interesting. Flashback to two weeks ago when a Jordanian friend of mine asked me if I was Lebanese because I looked very Arab. At the time everyone thought it was a funny comment and joked during our training class. But actually being in the Arab world it turns out I really do look Arab - or at least the Jordanian people are trying to convince me. As Diane, she is the colleague, and I made our way to the hotel and around the city as tourists a number of people would come up to us and start speaking to me in Arabic. They would share my look of confusion when I would explain (in English of course) that I did not speak any Arabic. Our waiter even apologized saying he thought I was Arab.

Thankfully in Iraq I look very much like an American (at least so far) and I haven't had to use my Arabic vocabulary, or lack there of.

After the fun in Amman a team of us made our way into Baghdad Sunday into Monday. It has taken a day or two to get settled but I think I have things figured out and have moved into a livable space in the Embassy compound.

The real work is just beginning.