Yemen - Australians Arrested

Okay, so the day I get back from my most mindblowing adventure ever I received the news that several Australians, in their late teens, early twenties, from NSW (my region), were arrested in Yemen for suspected involvement in arms smuggling. Crazy aye?!

Yemen was phenominal, I highly recommend it. A mere seven days there has done an amazing job of reshaping my historical perception of the Arab peninsula, the role of modern media, what it is to be part of a global economy and still stay true to your cultural heritage... and also, to some degree raised questions about the role of the Modern Nation State... Yemen is still predominately tribal, even the President has strong links to his tribe...

Somehow I wish the stories of Yemen's hospitality and warmth made global headlines. These are the friendliest people I have ever met, also laughing, smiling, helping each other. I could not have felt safer while I was in Sana'a. The place is world heritage listed, and for a reason... the architecture has roots up to a 1000 years old.

It has been very easy for Yemen to gain a poor reputation... there are roughly 50 million guns in circulation. That makes it almost three for every man, woman and child. The country has had experiences with Al Queda terrorism (USS Cole bombing in 2003) and has suffered a crippling civil war (1994)... however the people are as warm as you will find. In a fair and just world Yemen's hospitality would be as news worthy as these other events...

It is strange... why are people so interested in reading about terrorism? Do these stories bring a greater sense of relief than stories about honest human kindness... The sharp contrast between my personal experiences and what I read in the paper make me question a lot of things... what else am I taking from granted... how many other stereotypes am I allowing to exist?



Yemen main destination for jihadists, source claims
Nick McKenzie, Sarah Smiles and Tom Allard
October 31, 2006

SMALL groups of young Australian men are going to Yemen for jihadi training, according to law enforcement sources concerned the country has replaced Central Asia as a destination for Australian extremists.
Article

Old Manama: Festival to commemorate the death of Imam Ali

The streets of old Manama, 4pm on a Friday. Later on these would be flooded with an estimated 100-150,000 people commemorating the death of Imam Ali. The streets of old Manama are sweet, they twist and wind, have old school-ey doorways, and have enough nooks and crannies to satisfy even the most curious of explorers.


Ali was one of the many to explain the goings on of the evening. We had many a cup of tea and plates of chicken/porridge-y stuff that I can never remember the name of. At night the streets came alive, flooded with people wearing black. Crowds moved in all directions and generated a strange carnival/funeral atmosphere. Really interesting.


One of the Persian matams (parade). These guys gave it their all. This group numbered around 200 men, and was one of many groups passing through the streets.


Another matam. It was always strange squeezing down the sides of these groups, the streets were that narrow that you could not help but be in close phyiscal contact with everyone around you. Once again: really interesting.

Yemen: 22nd-29th of October

The way I see it there will be very few opportunities for me to get to Yemen, nestled as it is between Saudi Arabia and Oman on one side and Eritrea, Somalia, and the almighty Djibouti on the other (across the Red Sea). So Lyna and I are taking advantage of the Eid holiday to whip on down for a week. I don't actually know all that much about the country, I am hearing mixed reviews that range from 'a beautiful untouched country' through to 'hmmmm... okay'

A good day

Today was a supremo day of victory. Today I saw a friend absolutely deliver on his hard work, bringing a powerful group of externals together to provide support for AIESEC. His efforts have bought: members of the royal family, representatives from multinationals, presidents of universities, and strong legal expertise behind our expansion efforts. My friend, I am proud of you.

Today is worthy of mention... at 3am I sat there with new friends having tripped out thoughts: I am in my 20s, doing a job I would happily do with no wage, sharing intense experiences with people I have known for less than 4 months. My parents are on the other side of the world in Australia... my friends cover an amazing range of countries... I am living my dream of travelling and working at the same time... all the time being put in positions that do nothing but develop me and those around me...

To paraphrase another friend: for all the stress, the pressure, the expectations... I would not change my job for the world...

Today has been a good day.

Today was a supremo day of victory. Today I saw a friend absolutely deliver on his hard work, bringing a powerful group of externals together to provide support for AIESEC. His efforts have bought: members of the royal family, representatives from multinationals, presidents of universities, and strong legal expertise behind our expansion efforts. My friend, I am proud of you.

Today is worthy of mention... at 3am I sat there with new friends having tripped out thoughts: I am in my 20s, doing a job I would happily do with no wage, sharing intense experiences with people I have known for less than 4 months. My parents are on the other side of the world in Australia... my friends cover an amazing range of countries... I am living my dream of travelling and working at the same time... all the time being put in positions that do nothing but develop me and those around me...

To paraphrase another friend: for all the stress, the pressure, the expectations... I would not change my job for the world...

Today has been a good day.

Ramadan

A lot of the joy of Ramadan comes from a month of purity, reconnecting with your religious beliefs and sharing time with your family and friends. As a result I haven’t been able to see too much of the details but here are some observations:

i) Food is scarce, as no outlet opens during daylight hours (no point) so I buy my lunches the night before and save them for the next day.

ii) Friends are tired: full respect to those that are fasting, it is sometimes hard to remember that they may not have eaten, and more importantly drunk water, in over 18 hours.

iii) Companies work less hours. People are less available and anything requiring a decision is postponed until after Ramadan.

iv) Music: several friends don’t play music in their cars during daylight hours, preferring instead to listen to radio broadcasts of the Qur’an. I actually quite enjoy this, and they often take the time to translate parts for me. The Qur’an plays 24 hours a day and some people often buy CDs of their favourite ‘readers’, in the same way that people purchase CDs of their favourite music artists.

v) All bars and alcohol vendors are closed: fair enough.

vi) Iftars, Ghabgahs and other food related events: for me this feels like the Christmas period. Companies hold gatherings for their staff, there is food aplenty, people are festive, very ‘company Christmas party’ feel, including prizes and games. Iftars are when the family break fast. I like the idea, the family coming together at the end of the day to celebrate and appreciate each others company. The strangest place I was invited to was: tent chilling in a shopping mall. A bank had set up a chillaxing zone complete with Persian rugs, cushions, tea, coffee and dates. Everyone was welcome to rest their feet and appreciate Arab hospitality at its finest, there was even a hooded falcon in the tent.

vii) No eating or drinking in public: it is illegal. Enforced by the police through being arrested and fined. Enough said.

Victory: The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle

Sweetness and lord! Victory for everyone. Today I stumbled across this awesome little vignet straight from 1968. To let you in on a secret: I have a thing for pysch rock made as close to 1967 as possible. That period was powerful because rock had finally entered into a solid period of 'albums' (rather than 'singles') allowing artists to create solid pieces of work that stood on the quality of multiple tracks rather than powering through a solitary 3 minutes piece... It was a great time with major bands releasing some of their most important albums: the Beatles, Hendrix, Cream, the Doors, the Who, Dylan, the Beach Boys, the Byrds, Love, James Brown, the Kinks, Jefferson Airplane etc. Songs began to embrace the studio, leaning on new tricks such as 'fading', 'stereo effects' and 'double tracking; etc... so today I found myself a new treasure to add to the collection: The Zombies - Odessey and Oracle.

Pristine British invasion era pop. Lots of harmonies, actually the entire thing is harmonies and mellotron. Wistful poetry spiked with off beat studio effects and backing vocals. Loving it.

Living in the now

The other day I heard a tale that made me laugh... it was about a man that was happy with his life because he spent a good four hours a day excercising, each day he would wake to a rigorous regime of health food and gym... he was proud to claim that it was adding a good ten years to his life. To which a close friend dryly noted that: 'yes, yes it does add ten years to your life, but it is added to the end of your life and you are missing out on 1/8th of your current life dreaming of the future...

It reminds me of an interview I read with Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) about his song 'Time'. In the interview he said that the song is looking at that period in your early 20s, a time 'post education' but 'pre adult'... that we spend so much of our time 'preparing' ourselves for tomorrow, educating ourselves, improving ourselves, working hard, hoping to reap the harvest tomorrow... but life can't be lived like that, at some point you have to appreciate what you are doing now. Waters' song looks at this grey area of life and questions how we are using it. I have a job I like, but I spend 60% of my time imagining that it is 'complimenting my university education and empowering me for something else', some great impact that is yet to come.

Another comment I heard recently is: if you are in the office dreaming of the beach you cannot possibly be efficient, but if you are at the beach worrying about the office you also won't be enjoying yourself... where your mind is at greatly affects how you appreciate your surroundings. How often do you concentrate on the now? How often are you wondering about things that are outside the scope of your immediate influence? Is it possible to find joy in everyday activities?

Pink Floyd - Time
Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain
And you are young and life is long and there is time to kill today
And then one day you find ten years have got behind you
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun

Max Westgarth: R.I.P. July 1990 - 27th of September, 2006

My dog Max passed away one week ago today. By his last days he was simply too old and would no longer eat. I was eight when he first set paw in our overgrown backyard. At that time everything outside of his immediate one metre radius was exciting and new, a world of potential to be explored post haste. He was a Kelpie/Blue Heeler, despite the store owner's claims he was pure bred, and was my friend and companion through 16 long years of my life. He was a city dog that dreamed of a pastoral farm life, until his late mid years his favourite game was to 'herd' basketballs and tin cans around the yard, dreaming they were sheep and cattle under his absolute command.

Max had personality, he was not for everyone, he responded to few, taking refuge in the familiarity of those he knew. He was loyal, very loyal. Every morning he would come bounding in through the back door, pumped with energy, feet skidding on the polished wooden floor, excited to greet the new day, excited to see me. I wish I could appreciate my days as much as he did... how often do you give the gift of unbridled energy at that time of morning? How often do you welcome all those around you with such consistency? The evenings would be a repeat show, welcome home.

Max, I will miss you, it is a problem when the life spans of Man, and his Best Friend, do not do each other justice.

Simple

Today was a great day. A spectacular day in fact. Good things will come from today.