Starting Over?... Again?
After few months of working to my new company, things started to change and security situation started to be very bad. New terms entered our Iraqi life, terrorism, bombing cars and more terms that brought nothing but slow death to my job as to my own country.
My boss and the expatriates started leaving the country after many foreigners were killed just for being foreigners and to some radical narrow minded people that is alone a crime. We as locals were exposed to same level of danger had anyone know we were working for multinational company, therefore we had to rent a small office with a local company as undercover even though my company is a civilian multinational company that has got nothing to do with any kind of military issues ,still we were not safe.
Gradually after months I found myself with a quite lot of extra time, duties started to be less and less until I ran out of finding new ways to fill my day. I started feeling this huge emptiness inside my heart having to go to work every day at 7:30 Am seeing burned buildings on my way, burned cars, beggars, American military hummers and tanks and then leaving at 5 pm going back home passing through all that again. I saw once a dead body thrown in the street with people standing away from that young dead man’s body afraid to go near it, I guess that made me feel that that’s it. I have to move on.
The time I used to spend at office was very difficult on me. There was nothing to do and I was very tired of trying to invent things to make myself feeling productive, I used to gaze at the files I worked with my own hands, thinking of everything around me, amazed how things can turn around in little time. Since my job is my life and I can describe myself as workaholic, what happened with my career killed my soul and affected my health. I started to feel depressed and started losing weight.
A dear person to me out of his concern about the conditions I was living started advising me to get a job outside Iraq. I have never thought of living outside Iraq before even during Saddan’s ruling period.
Comprehending the thought of leaving my country, find a job and settle down consumed a lot of my friend’s time. Since he knows the system in UAE/ Dubai he spent weeks explaining it to me, how to find a place, how to find a job, how to write the resume, how to approach companies.. He taught me everything!
Since I had long hours of nothing to do at the office I made me a small operation office from there and started sending my resume to every single site I can find on the internet, posted uncountable Ad’s, participated in forums and chat sites to find a way.
Wherever I turned my head to , I found someone telling me that my path was hard.. Why? I am Iraqi and Iraqis are not very welcomed now since our country is invaded and its doors are open for all kind of terrorists to destroy and kill everything that was living then must be a question mark next to the word Iraqi on every single visa application. Never heard of such thing but this must be how it’s done.
The UAE embassy in Iraq did not have authority to issue visit visas for Iraqis but only transit visas so I had to travel to Amman and try through UAE embassy there, I have looked for traveling agencies in Iraq and in Jordan that were specialized in getting visas to many Arab countries. For a whole year I tried everything that I could easily become an expert in that field. Things were so hard and there was no way to get a visa since I am:
1- Iraqi
2- Woman
3- Single
During that year I had many offers, job interviews via phone and internet but it always reached to a dead end when it came to the physical interview to finalize the final step.
There were a lot of times when I lost hope and felt I hit the bottom of that dark hole I was living in and thought that my fate is to stay in a war zone. Suddenly a door was open to me and a guy I do not even know issued me and my mother two visit visas to UAE.
The single visit visa cost me $1200 US, that’s $2400 US for both of us. Visit visa to UAE cost other nationalities less than $100 US.
The guy did not ask me for the cost of visas he issued but also for the deposit money as well which is about $550 US/each visa. Since we are Iraqis the sponsor that this guy deals with who is of UAE nationality did not want to hold responsibility so he made us pay this money which usually get returned back after leaving UAE before the visit visa expired, that’s in three months.
Another dilemma, this guy wanted me to transfer him the whole sum which became $3,500 US from Iraq before even seeing the visas.
I spent two weeks inquiring about that visa which he said it was issued by the internet city. I thought it was a scam and I was an easy prey for this guy.
Another door was opened to me and a guy I knew from college who happened to live in Dubai since three years helped me and met with him and then traveled from Abu Dhabi to Dubai to officially make sure that there are actual visas by our names.
After I made sure I transferred the money while all kind of tiredness were starting to show on my face, anxiety made me lose a lot of weight and even though I was sent the two visas I was not sure what would happen. Almost all my savings were put in this project. I have studied every single step I should take. Housing, food, transportation..etc. Despite the huge amount I was paying just to set foot in UAE, I was optimistic for getting a job with my qualifications should cover all the expenses paid in less than 6 months.
Taking a leave from my company was not a hard job since my annual leave was due.
My boss already had knowledge of my plans of leaving Iraq and he was very supportive even if it meant to work for another company.
I booked the two flight tickets from Baghdad to Dubai and again, I was ready to start over again..
To be continued……………
My boss and the expatriates started leaving the country after many foreigners were killed just for being foreigners and to some radical narrow minded people that is alone a crime. We as locals were exposed to same level of danger had anyone know we were working for multinational company, therefore we had to rent a small office with a local company as undercover even though my company is a civilian multinational company that has got nothing to do with any kind of military issues ,still we were not safe.
Gradually after months I found myself with a quite lot of extra time, duties started to be less and less until I ran out of finding new ways to fill my day. I started feeling this huge emptiness inside my heart having to go to work every day at 7:30 Am seeing burned buildings on my way, burned cars, beggars, American military hummers and tanks and then leaving at 5 pm going back home passing through all that again. I saw once a dead body thrown in the street with people standing away from that young dead man’s body afraid to go near it, I guess that made me feel that that’s it. I have to move on.
The time I used to spend at office was very difficult on me. There was nothing to do and I was very tired of trying to invent things to make myself feeling productive, I used to gaze at the files I worked with my own hands, thinking of everything around me, amazed how things can turn around in little time. Since my job is my life and I can describe myself as workaholic, what happened with my career killed my soul and affected my health. I started to feel depressed and started losing weight.
A dear person to me out of his concern about the conditions I was living started advising me to get a job outside Iraq. I have never thought of living outside Iraq before even during Saddan’s ruling period.
Comprehending the thought of leaving my country, find a job and settle down consumed a lot of my friend’s time. Since he knows the system in UAE/ Dubai he spent weeks explaining it to me, how to find a place, how to find a job, how to write the resume, how to approach companies.. He taught me everything!
Since I had long hours of nothing to do at the office I made me a small operation office from there and started sending my resume to every single site I can find on the internet, posted uncountable Ad’s, participated in forums and chat sites to find a way.
Wherever I turned my head to , I found someone telling me that my path was hard.. Why? I am Iraqi and Iraqis are not very welcomed now since our country is invaded and its doors are open for all kind of terrorists to destroy and kill everything that was living then must be a question mark next to the word Iraqi on every single visa application. Never heard of such thing but this must be how it’s done.
The UAE embassy in Iraq did not have authority to issue visit visas for Iraqis but only transit visas so I had to travel to Amman and try through UAE embassy there, I have looked for traveling agencies in Iraq and in Jordan that were specialized in getting visas to many Arab countries. For a whole year I tried everything that I could easily become an expert in that field. Things were so hard and there was no way to get a visa since I am:
1- Iraqi
2- Woman
3- Single
During that year I had many offers, job interviews via phone and internet but it always reached to a dead end when it came to the physical interview to finalize the final step.
There were a lot of times when I lost hope and felt I hit the bottom of that dark hole I was living in and thought that my fate is to stay in a war zone. Suddenly a door was open to me and a guy I do not even know issued me and my mother two visit visas to UAE.
The single visit visa cost me $1200 US, that’s $2400 US for both of us. Visit visa to UAE cost other nationalities less than $100 US.
The guy did not ask me for the cost of visas he issued but also for the deposit money as well which is about $550 US/each visa. Since we are Iraqis the sponsor that this guy deals with who is of UAE nationality did not want to hold responsibility so he made us pay this money which usually get returned back after leaving UAE before the visit visa expired, that’s in three months.
Another dilemma, this guy wanted me to transfer him the whole sum which became $3,500 US from Iraq before even seeing the visas.
I spent two weeks inquiring about that visa which he said it was issued by the internet city. I thought it was a scam and I was an easy prey for this guy.
Another door was opened to me and a guy I knew from college who happened to live in Dubai since three years helped me and met with him and then traveled from Abu Dhabi to Dubai to officially make sure that there are actual visas by our names.
After I made sure I transferred the money while all kind of tiredness were starting to show on my face, anxiety made me lose a lot of weight and even though I was sent the two visas I was not sure what would happen. Almost all my savings were put in this project. I have studied every single step I should take. Housing, food, transportation..etc. Despite the huge amount I was paying just to set foot in UAE, I was optimistic for getting a job with my qualifications should cover all the expenses paid in less than 6 months.
Taking a leave from my company was not a hard job since my annual leave was due.
My boss already had knowledge of my plans of leaving Iraq and he was very supportive even if it meant to work for another company.
I booked the two flight tickets from Baghdad to Dubai and again, I was ready to start over again..
To be continued……………
posted by Rejected @ 1:14 PM
13 Comments:
Hi... Welcome to blogger.com
i from thailand
Thanks Jeab :) and you're most welcome!
You have quite a story Rejected. Very humbling for those of us who have had it so much easier. So what happpened next?
Arriving Dubai.
It's quite funny that many people take for granted the right to travel.. and having the 'right' passport allows you to move from one country to another, quickly and painlessly, while others have to queue hours and days in front of embassies, and in the end be turned down like you did and have to pay a lot of money just for the sake of being let in a country...
It's a crazy world...
Good luck, dear Rejected.
The funny thing dear mohamed that before the war Iraqis never had such problems but once the so called freedom and democracy was brought to us invaders, the reputation of every single Iraqi citizen was just damaged.
We were judged by other's mistakes and I can understand that when it comes from courtiers like USA for example but from Arab countries! That's hard.
My heart goes out to you. It angers me when someone willingly make money out of another misfortune. I really do hope that your story has a happy ending. I wish you all the best and a safe journey.
secretdubai, thanks a lot!
elle, thank you so much for feeling for me.
I think you are full of shit! I don't feel sorry for you, stop playing the sympathy card!
You are responsible for you and nobody else!
This is too big for your brain to comprehend. It is neither about sympathy nor attracting the scum like you to my site. Go have some 7asheesha, that's the best you can do, judging by your language.
Rejected said...
The funny thing dear mohamed that before the war Iraqis never had such problems but once the so called freedom and democracy was brought to us invaders, the reputation of every single Iraqi citizen was just damaged.
Dear Rejected, I have to correct you here, regarding the pre-saddam and post-saddam era. After the 1991 war, most of Iraqis fleed to Jordan because it was the only country allowing them to enter without a prior visa arrangment, and they were allowed to stay for six months. After the six months they have to leave, or a fee will be put on for every single extra day. During that time, no single embassy was issuing visa to Iraqis. Lets be specific, except for Thailand or some east Asian countries.
In other words, Iraqis were doomed regarding their right to travel freely since 1991. In fact, Iraqis were not having this freedom since Saddam launched the war against Iran. Only scholarships or special reasons for travel (word or study) has been granted to Iraqis.
anonymous said...
I think you are full of shit! I don't feel sorry for you, stop playing the sympathy card!
You are responsible for you and nobody else!
What a low level soul!!! you don't have the courage to face your own people and government and blame them for the slaughtering of thousands and thousands of innocent people.
No one is asking for your sympathy because people like you should be put in a rat cell and scientists should make experiments on you to figure out the reasons behind human behavior when it comes to selfishness, cruilty, and poisoness attitude.
Dear MixMax, quite true walla! Iraqis were and still doomed but what I meant is that at least before the war if you had money you can flee to any country, as far as I know but of course you know better since I just hear from my friends but you have already gone thru it. I remember Saddam put a penalty of 400,000 ID to be paid to government when leaving the country which was very hard on most of the Iraqis. My cousin did that and he's settled down in UAE now to immigrate to Canada following his family. Walla such a mess. You know since I was like all of the Iraqis during Saddam’s era locked in a jail called home and isolated from the world I did not know all that except from the people I know who managed to escape. Now things turned even harder and Iraqi’s reputation is smothered with mud
As for that anonymous, you didn't have to waste your energy at all dear MixMax. There will always be such ignorant kids on line who do not think with their brains while using their keyboards.
Dear Rejected (find it hard to call you that, to be honest), it is exactly my point and I am glad that you agree with me.
Please keep on writing your story, don't stop!
Post a Comment
<< Home