No Where at Africa
My Experience
Chapter 1
Introduction: Dated: 14th September, 2008
I am nowhere at Africa.
The place called Somaliland. First, let explain why I called it NOWHERE AT AFRICA
I have to say that. It's because this country is not internationally recognized yet. They made themselves independent from Somalia 18 years ago. But still they are not internationally recognized. There is a deep international politics related to this issue, let’s not go to that part.
So, the Somalilanders have to use the passport of their rivals Somalia’s, so they need dual passport, one from Somaliland government another from Somalia. If you are a Somalilander and you went to abroad you will be known as people from nowhere, ha ha, is not it interesting.
But fact is that they have government and laws, courts, police forces, education board here of their own. Let’s end the early talks here.
MY JOURNEY STARTS NOW:
From Dhaka to Dubai:
It was worse than Saidabad bus terminal at the boarding gate of Zia international airport of Dhaka. I thought, as Emiretes is a famous airline, so the passengers would be smart, good looking, more respectful to maintain discipline. My bad, all the labors are traveling at economy class at emirates, fucking pain. They push you like you are here for 11 no. bus at our Dhaka Street, even worse than that. At the emigration I was afraid because I have had my hard time to make them understood why on earth I have to travel to Somaliland, they even do not know any country named by Somaliland. Ha ha. With my outlook, they also could not believe that I can be a lecturer; I do not complain them about that, ha ha.
O dear, I have to say the stewardesses of emirates are …………………uhhhhh………all sexy and tall and beautiful. You could pass your life by just watching them. The meal at the plane sucks. I do not know how that could be the award winning cuisine, which was written in the menu of food list. I do not know guys, how peoples eat those. Except watching the stewardess passing through the corridor regularly, the plane journey seems to me very boring. Forget it.
Dubai international airport:
Friends, this is an airport, I think everyone should visit for at least once in a life time. You will never knew from where the time passes away just observing the duty free shops inside the airport and all sorts of beautiful passengers from west east south north from all over the world.
At the transit counter of emirates, I collect boarding pass for Dijibuti. The officer was African I guess, he asked, are you going to Dijibuti? Looking at me with full of surprised. I answered, actually I am going to Hergeysa and Ddijibuti is my another transit. He seems to fall from sky. He asked, why? I answered, I am going there as a lecturer for Eelo American University of Borama. He replied, my friend I gotta tell you, this is a dangerous place to go. Do you know that? I answered with a smiley face, let’s see. He asked, by the way what are you going to teach. I replied, chemistry. He said, my friend you looks very younger to be a lecturer. I answered with a huge smile that, you r not the first one saying that. He smile be back and show me the good luck finger and said, have nice journey sir?
Being a passenger of connected flight I had to walk, sorry actually run because I had only 2 hours in my hand to catch my flight for Djibuti at Dallo airlines, I could not find any signboard anywhere for my flight information i.e. where is the departure gate and counter for dallo airlines. I asked some ground stuff there, none but a stewardess (very beautiful and tall) showed me the way to Dallo airline counter, Lucky me.
At the departure gate of emirates the security made me open my shoes and belt only. Lucky that the person in front of me was a European and I do not know why on earth they are making him open his bag, he was showing his anger for that with bad words, ha ha. When I reached at the Dallo airlines counter, I saw it closed. I got feared so deeply that I felts my legs are shaking. I found no one at the counter and its closed. I have by that time only 1 hour and 10 minutes to catch the flights. I asked one ground stuff, he replied, I do not know. I am standing there like I am in a dream. Was the boarding for the flights finished? I was asking myself. What do I do now? What will happen to me now? After a long 10 minutes I saw an officer to come nearby the counter and take seat at the counter. Immediately, I went to him and asked about my flight, he replied the departure will start shortly and I am not late. I got relieved. Then after some time I saw very few passengers came by to the counter with duty free shopping bag at their hand. I felt what on earth I did wrong for not to visits one of those shops. I felt unlucky there. I moved to a nearby counter to buy a Pepsi can, it costs me 2 dollars.
Then there came the most beautiful girl I have ever seen at the counter to check our ticket and let us in, I think she might be Egyptian, friends I know what I saw, she is …………I do not have any words to describe her.
The air journey from Dubai to Dijibouti was some sort of boring, just that I was excited to see the Dijibouti. At the dijibouti airport I saw US air base. And the boarding I saw two US armies (men) and one US army person (women) smoking cigarettes under the sign of No smoking…ha hah ah. Any ways, my flight to Hergeisa (the capital city of Somaliland) got late for 3 hours. What do I do? Just sit back at boarding. After 2 hours a Boeing of Air France landed, I was surprised to see more than 100 foreigner going to the exit gate of.....................
To be continue
Dated: 17-5-2009After Long time i am writing, I have to say it is because of Tanvir from Batch 03 of Chemical Buet. Thanks for reading Tanvir.
Djibouti Airport Terminal Building, a very small building, I wondered why, it is only two stored which is not the fact; actually it is small in lengths too. I went for wash room……..oooohhhh…. u can imagine I did not get a good impression about wash room’s there…. Hahah hh.
At the boarding while I was waiting for my connected flight for Hergeisa, I started to check out the other passengers those who were also waiting for the same flight. Hmmm, the African’s are taller than Bangladeshi peoples, it’s understandable. But there were some ladies wearing hizab. The women’s seems very tall to me and not only tall they looks big, you what I mean, I mean more wider and big breasts (not good looking big!!) and back side is very fatty, may be because they were at their old age. The men were also very wider and big and taller and also with fatty back (most of them). They seem to like shiny color coats and trousers.
However my waiting hours were over, I followed all the other passengers, some security guards showed us way out of the terminal building to the bus which was waiting for us. That bus took us near to the Fooker of Dallo Airline which was about a 3-4 minutes drive from terminal building. My eyes got stuck to the foker plane, Can it fly? Oh it was a horrible dirty looking foker from the outside. I did not know that the worst is the inside of that foker. Haha ah ah……. Wait let me describe u the inside.
I went up the stairs to the inside of the foker, it was just the inside of 11 number buses from azimpur to shabag of Dhaka city………. Haha hah ah ah ha….. Truly friends believe me, oily smelly seats, most of the handles of seats are broken, some of them left with the skeleton of steel structure and writing in the wall of the plane. I was thinking where to seat, there is no seat number regulation, find out your best one first!! I found a cleaner seat to sit, I started to feel hot. Then the pilot came by to serve each of us a 500ml bottle of mineral water as a air hostess, hahahhoohoh…Across the corridor a passenger sits who asked about my whereabouts? I told him I am from Bangladesh and I am going to borama, I am a teacher at Eelo American University. He greets me then. Then what he did, I could not imagine that and certainly I will never forget in my life. He opens his shoes and shocks and starts to wash his feet with the water pilot gave him, I was watching him, so he smiled me back and says its Africa and its ok, there is no problem to this, and not only that because I was not lucky to see the cattle!! My god, they do transport goats and chickens in this foker. That’s what that man told me. I could not believe what I heard at that time but it was understandable from the condition of the inside of that foker.A true African Experience I had in that foker.
Any ways our foker took off the runway and starts its shaky flight towards Hergeisa of Somaliland. The flight was very shaky, up down and inclining left and right all the time, I started to feel vomiting and also the smell was bothering me so much. I asked that feet washing man that how long it will take to reach to Hergeisa, he told me that it will took 35 to 40 min. I start to look from the window to outside; it was a day time so I got the chance to see outside from the window of the foker. …….. THE AFRICA …. AFRICA……AFRICA……. All I saw a vast terrain more of desert like, later I learned that east Africa is desert like and not green, jungle you should not expect, you will understand if you look at the world map, the nearby countries are Egypt, Sudan etc ……. West Africa and South Africa is full of jungle and east Africa and North Africa is more of desert. Anyways whatever it is but let me tell you watching a vast terrain from the sky will make you feel how big this world is. I am about to land at the Egal International Airport, Hergeisa. So buckles up…….oh sorry there is no seat belt in the foker to do so …..hah ahha ha haha hah h h……
- ! ! S O M A L I L A N D ! ! -
Oooooo the foker is going to crash, no no actually it jumped suddenly to land. I really felt the landing of that foker. In case of emirates you would not feel anything except the gravitational force and weightlessness but in case of this foker you will be able to hear the sound of tire fractioning the runway which is not paved, lots of sound. Oh, the foker stops, and everybody stands up and move towards gate, me too.
Wind, wind, when I came to doorway of the foker the sun hits my eyes with blazing light so hand it was tough to keep my eyes open and the wind is trying to take to away flying. My tie is flying over my shoulder. I came down stairs from the foker and set my foot to the soil of East Africa, horn of Africa, Home of modern day’s pirates, to an unrecognized part of the world – SOMALILAND.
I saw passengers to go near to the belly of foker to collect their bags. So, I also followed them and waiting to get some roam to be closer. I look behind me to the Airport building. Holy God, it’s a one storied building of at most 1200 sq ft. Fantastic. I collect my bags and move towards the gate of that building. I entered the building (better to say I entered in a room) and looking around, thinking what to do. I remember I am supposed to be receipt by our Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr. Ahmed Hashi Abib. But I guess he is waiting outside of the airport exit. I have his cell phone number. All I see in that room is a counter where all other passengers crowding together. I decide not to rush through, let them finish first; I will go after the rush. I look for my passport and contract agreement in my pocket. Then I saw a young guy twice the size of me coming forward looking at me. He asked me, Are you Faysal Ahmed Khan? I replied yes. Then he gave me his cell phone and told me please talk. I took the phone and someone introduce himself as Dr. Ahmed and told me that he is sorry because he got stuck with something and he could not receive me and he told me to give my passport to this man and he will go through all the procedure and there is nothing to be worried, he will meet me at the town. After that I gave my passport to him and he told me to wait. He left and went towards the counter. I found some plastic chairs nearby and sit there holding my bags. After about 10 minutes he came back and said lets go. I asked where my passport is. He said he has it and he will return me later. I started to worry a bit. He took one of my bags and starts to walk towards a door, exit gate from that room. I followed him. Outside of the building he stops and called someone and talking. This man does not look like a good host. I started to feel alone and do not know what to do and he is not clearing me out and not acting friendly. He went inside the room again holding the cell phone in his ear leaving me alone outside. So I do not know what to do. Some other peoples outside come to me asking where I want to go they have taxi. 2 persons took my bags and run to a jeep and starts the jeep and asking me to come. Everything was so fast I got afraid; I was looking behind for that man who had my passport. I told the taxi drivers that leave my bag, return my bags. They were saying they will take me anywhere, do not worry, and come. I told them I am waiting for someone, I will go with him. The other taxi drivers are shouting with each others in Somali, May be they were fighting over me that who will take me. O god.
Then that man came by, he even did not introduce himself to me and again the cell is in his ear and he is talking to someone. He came to me and told me we have to walk a distance our driver is waiting for us a little distance away. I asked him why he cannot come here. He said my flight was late they were waiting for me from the morning; just a while ago he went to some place. He starts to talk with the taxi drivers and I saw some peoples to take my bags from the taxi and starts walking to someplace. I followed them. Suddenly a car stops besides me and the driver (Jamal) came and take the bags I was having in my hands and showed me the front seat to sit. I saw other peoples having my bags putting those to the back seat of the car. So I seat in the front seat of the car. Oh thanks god it was having AC, because I was feeling hot due to tension and the early suspension. The driver starts the car, I was looking outside for that man having my passport, and I do not see him. I asked jamal that I need my passport. He says Ok OK. He starts the car and went towards the terminal building and I saw that man holding my passport, Jamal stops and he gave me the passport and says goodbye. I look into my Passport and I see a visa of seven days. Ok. I got relief, because it is very important that in foreign land you do not lost your passport, where will I get if I lost it.
Watching Outside:
I asked Jamal where is Dr. Ahmed Hashi. He said he will come.
Ok, I decided to look around. It’s so dry. No green. The sun is hot and too much shiny. Inside the car is comfortable because it has AC and window is black to protect the sunlight. I felt our car is going down a small hill and in my right I can see a whole town with lots of buildings but in far and in my left I came across a big hotel “Hotel Ambassador”. It’s big and in the hill. After 10 minutes drive we entered into the capital city Hergeisa.
Jamal gave me his mobile and told me to talk. Again Dr. Ahmed, he told me that Jamal is his driver, he will take me to a hotel where I will freshen up and Dr. Ahmed will meet me at 12:00 in the hotel, and he is busy now. I said ok. Jamal told me Dr. Ahmed is in shopping with Somaliland President!!!! I said it’s Ok.
I did not have any charge in the mobile so I could not take photos of outside. But to tell you, it was not bad in a way it was different. More of desert likes. In the town I saw lots of cars mainly land cruisers which is understandable because the road is very bumpy and rough.
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