the U.S.
---He turned to me in the cafe and asked about my computer. I noticed his thick middle eastern accent and politely asked where he was from. He told me, Syria. He was from a small city near the Mediterranean that is majority Al-Awite, though he and his family were Shia. He said he didn't speak to his family about the conditions or their concerns in Syria for fear of their safety. He anticipates, though beyond the mountains in Syria, his region will eventually be affected by the conflict. We spent a significant amount of time discussing the conditions in the region and even why his cousin stepped down as a reporter. He told me he had come to the states nearly 15 years ago to pursue his Ph.D. in bio-medical research. His focus started on cancer, but now he is working stem-cell research from Lipo Suction for patients whose tissue and blood cells are deteriorating due to Diabetes. He hopes to be able to bring good to the world, still trying to be proud of the country he came from.
In Turkey
---He sat in an office waiting to be paid for the work he did. He had acted as a translator and fixer into Syria and his work, regularly funded by foreign governments often included translation and training for other Syrians. We stood on the balcony and sipped over tea while he told me his story. He had grown up in Damascus - he loved it there, he never thought he could leave and then...he was forced out. Having been detained on several occasions for supporting protests in the city and questioned at various times in his life, it got to be too much, it got to be dangerous. So - he fled. A close friend of his, a commander and defector was chasing down Jihadis that would other interfere in what he called the revolution, often kept him informed on the latest inside Syria. I asked him when it is all over, if he thinks he would go back to live in Syria again. He told me, "When you've been forced out from something, it's hard to ever go back." There was definitely sadness in his voice when he said that, he lit another cigarette, looked over the main square. He was incredibly intelligent, knew Syrian history - knew his own and wants nothing more than the conflict to end in peace. He worries for his family and friends still there, but will do what he can to help push the revolution to completion.
Beirut
---She is from Syria, a town that has yet to be affected and the same town as my contact in the US, in fact. Her fiance, from another country. He told he would meet her half way, and they would get married, they would get her a Visa. So, they waited, toured the country, made new friends and convinced her relatives this was all for the better. She worries for her family and her sisters. The fighting hasn't reached her home yet, but she fears it will soon. She is glad she is finally joining her fiance, she's glad to leave Syria for now. But she hopes it will subside, she hopes to return. She misses home...the good part. She great up in an Orthodox home, largely unaffected by sectarian disputes, open to everyone, embraced by everyone: Christian and Muslim alike - teaching English and working with her father at his store. She's a movie buff: likes comedy, horror and romance. She wants stability. Her mother came to visit her and her mother says, she hopes the fighting will cease soon. Her mother said to me, "the Syrian people don't deserve this."
---Terrified of going back to Syria. He said he knows they'll force him to fight, whether it be FSA or the Government forces, he says, he knows they'll force him to pick up a gun and he says, he'll die. Mid-20s, he spent time in the army several years ago post secondary education. He's able bodied and young; they've threatened him, he's only wants to leave. But, he doesn't know where to go. He can't get in the United States, he doesn't know anyone and he feels hopeless. He doesn't want to die in Syria, but he jokes of suicide. He's scared, no motivation, no way way out. Right now, he says, he only smokes weed, but other drugs look appealing - trying them is a trip, an experience he says.
---She's only half Syrian, and it's in her name, but it's also her passport - and she can't get anywhere. She didn't grow up in Syria. She grew up in Saudi Arabia, the United States, Lebanon and around the world. Her father's business took them places and they frequented the U.S. - particular during college, back and forth her studies were in New York and Los Angeles. Her history shows very few visits to Syria, yet getting a green card or a Visa long enough work is near impossible. At this point she says, it'll benefit her to get a passport of another country under her mother's name. But even that is a long process, because in the Arab world, things take time. She told me about being questioned at the university for nearly 6 hours because the administration was confused by her name or why she changed majors several times...though, this is not uncommon for the majority of college students. She's frustrated. She wants to return to the States, have a steady job, a more consistant life. She'd even like to work in hard-news again, misses her pursuit in it, but it would be too dangerous because of her name, she tells me, because it cause trouble for family members still in Syria. Canada she said, is helping Syrians. She doesn't want to go to Russia. Hong Kong looks promising, but I could tell, she loves New York. If only it were a little easier for her to be there, stay there and work there.
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