I'm settling in here in Najaf...that is not to say I'm enjoying it, but I've gotten into a routine...go to bed around 2am, sleep til 9, get up and go in to the office and have a meeting at 11 (this week it has been the president of the Najaf Bar Association, the Director of Najaf's Ministry of Human Rights and the Director of Najaf's Commission on Integrity - they deal with governmental corruption cases.) After that I catch up on work email, research, etc and then get ready for my 5pm walk/run at the airport. Following that i get dinner and bring it back to my room and hang out in the room until I go to bed at 2 and then start all over again...not a very fun existence but I'm counting down the days until December vacation.
Here are my random thoughts on the above...
I go for a walk/run every day at 5 on the tar road that surrounds the airport right outside our gate. Well, ok, not every day becuz i can only go if someone with a weapon goes with me and I can't always find someone. The airport is fairly secure...it is surrounded by a big fence, but there are Iraqi Police posted every half a mile or so and there is concern that they aren't trustworthy. Most of the police here in Iraq are uneducated - to the point they can't read or write their own name - and were hired because of their religious/political affiliation (the two are inextricably intertwined) - most of them don't know anything about Iraqi law and have no police training. Also, most of them have probably never seen a western woman - especially not one running. I run in long track pants and a short or long sleeved t-shirt...i wouldn't dare wear shorts (did that once here in Najaf and will never do that again - you would have thought I was Lady Godiva with the looks I got!)or a tank top ...but I don't cover my hair and the mere sight of a female running must seem as preposterous as a giraffe craning his neck down to ask you if you have a light for his stogie. So I run within sight of someone who is armed...just in case. Yesterday when I was running a few of the police at the farthest point out got out of their tower and waived me down...I wasn't sure what they wanted until they pulled out their cell phones and said "picture?"...i posed for a few shots with them and went on my merry way. They must have gotten on their walkie talkies right away because by the time I got to the next guard post all the police were standing out there with their phones ready for pictures and this continued at every guard post the rest of my run. I ran part of the way with an Iraqi interpreter and he commented "If their wives see those pictures it could be grounds for divorce!"...I wasn't sure if he was joking or not.
Another thing I've taken to doing is bringing candy with me....or sometimes toys...to throw over the fence to the kids who live just outside the airport. I wonder what their mothers think....do they appreciate it? Lots of times there will be 8-10 small children and they will clobber each other for the sucker or beanie baby...do the mothers just wish we would stop causing chaos? Do they see me and think I am a whore for the way I'm dressed? Do they think I'm going to hell? Or do they wish they could join me...throw off their abayas and just run and run.
So I don't know if you've ever seen the website for the Stinky Meat Project http://www.stinkymeat.net/ I think it started with a guy wanting to piss off his neighbors so he put a bunch of raw meat in his yard and monitored its decomposition every day..its gross but entertaining..well,I have a new idea...the stinky decomposing camel project. There are lots of camels on the side of the road I run on (behind the fence outside of airport property)....well,one of the camel's just on the other side of the fence met his maker....the first time i saw him I thought he was sleeping, but the next day the smell made it apparent that something was terribly wrong. Each day since then I've watched him return to the earth...last time i saw him he was something like camel soup...would have been a good stinky meat project cuz he was one stinky camel.
So I was running yesterday and one of the military guys from our Civilian Affairs team ran next to me for a while - he just got back from a computer training class at a base in Baqubah (about 50 miles NE of Baghdad)...he was there for a few days and said that they got rocketed every day. Usually before lunch time because there is an ancient saying that if you give your life in the morning you will be having lunch with the prophet. I can't even imagine. I've been at the embassy a few times and had to duck and cover when sirens went off but I've never actually been somewhere that was actively being shelled. I guess I should count my blessings - the food here at this base is disgusting, the gym is in disrepair and the entertainment options are zero but at least we're not in danger. (Hear me knocking on wood). I guess I'm lucky - both my placements (Karbala and Najaf) have been in very holy provinces - both provinces are over 95% Shia and therefore there isn't the Sunni/Shia conflicts that cause so much violence in other parts of Iraq. Elections are coming up in January and if something goes wrong with these elections the country could destabilize but for now Najaf is a safe place. I'm sure you've all heard about the bombings in Baghdad....scary and so sad. The Ministry of Justice was hit - a place where my Rule of Law colleagues visit often and have close ties.
While I'm not happy on my new base, it is tolerable because I am counting down the days until December break. I was going to go to Germany and then meet friends in Wales for New Years but turns out I have job interviews in the states....one in NYC, one in Detroit and one in Seattle (I think...this one isn't scheduled yet)....hoping to get some more. I'm applying to be an Assistant U.S. Attorney - in other words a government prosecutor. Some of my friends have expressed surprise at this choice - they think I'm too free spirited and anti-establishment to do that job - but I really want some trial experience and the very fact I got some interviews is lucky for me...I have no qualifications for this job. I have loved working for DOJ so was planning on sticking with them if I can. Any thoughts on this?
Final bit of random news....I'm working on getting a judge I used to clerk for over here to Iraq to give some lectures on the importance of an independent judiciary - I don't know if it's gonna happen yet but it would be great if it did...who would think I would get a chance to see my mentor from years ago in Iraq??
Other random news...
* First Women Only Bank In Iraq's Holy City of Najaf: "Through this bank, women customers can unveil and exercise complete freedom in dealing with bank employees."
http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-43475520091027
* Iraqi Searches for Brothers in Najaf's Ancient Cemetary: The graves stretch 10 miles into the desert in what some say is the world's largest cemetary. This is a glimpse into a personal story of loss that is common among Iraqis and the struggle to find closure.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091026/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq_the_missing
* Burial in Najaf for Baghdad bomb victims:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2009/10/iraq-burial-in-najaf-for-baghdad-bomb-victims.html
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