6 July Beirut, Lebanon
The politics of modern travel.
Having to fly across the Sinai, over Cairo and out over the Mediterranean to get to Lebanon adding one and a half hours to the flight.
Coming in over the azure waters of the Mediterranean Sea Beirut’s high rises and mountains appeared out of the haze.
Small fishing boats bobbed in the rocky bays as the plane glided down to a bumpy landing.
There was a smattering of applause from some of the excited passengers coming home to celebrate Eid, the end of Ramadan.
The airport was chaos as the Lebanese seem to think that any form of queuing is a quaint English pastime.
An hour and a half later my turn came to approach the desk.
The young immigration officer eyed me with a sense of boredom.
I quietly say a prayer that having got this far I could not face falling at the last hurdle over some beaurocratic semantics.
“What is the phone number of where you are staying” he asked, sending me rummaging through my pile of printed out papers.
I handed him the print out which he took, noted the number, scanned my
passport and handed everything back with a wry smile and a “just playing with you” expression on his face.
“Welcome to Lebanon”
The baggage carousels were chaos with so many flights coming in that none of the flights posted on the board matched the carousel numbers.
After running past all the conveyors I finally spotted my bag amongst the mountain of others slowly circulating like an old game show game.
Walking through the Nothing to Declare channel an Officer stopped me
“Where have you come from?”
“Australia” I replied
“You are good keep going”
I staggered out to the waiting throng outside desperately searching for a piece of A4 with my name on it and there was Elie waving at me.
I apologised profusely for the delay but he smiled and said no worries I will get the other guy and meet you outside.
We made it across the car park, loaded up the car and then battled our way out of the airport and past the military checkpoints.
The guards looked in the car, saw two westerners and waved us through.
“They love you here” Elie said with a great grin on his face “They are only checking for Syrians”.
The traffic was crazy with cars veering all over the road.
Welcome to fast and furious Beirut Drift.
The only rule is that there are no rules.
Use an indicator and you will cause an accident
Talking on the phone whilst driving with your kids hanging out of the back windows of the car
as you go past a police check point – no worries all is good mate.
We climb up through the hills and over the Italian-built bridge, a symbol of Lebanon’s co-operation with the European Union,
which the Israelis destroyed in 2006 claiming that it was a terrorist target and the Italians returned to rebuild afterwards.
After more traffic jams and checkpoints the valley drops away before us revealing the Lebanon Mountains
rising up to over 3000 metres and then even higher in the South as the three borders of Syria, Lebanon and Israel converge at Mount Hebron.
We enter Zahle – welcome to my new home for the next two weeks.
6 July
It’s 4am and the only sound somewhere off in the distance is the beautiful call to prayer lyrically serenading the sleeping town.
There is something mystical and timeless about this.
The muezzin finishes and silence descends on the valley.
A very special moment.
Welcome to the orient.
Eid Mubarak to one and all
Salaam
First Contact
It’s taken me a while
To finally put into words
The experience of the first visit to a camp
You can smell them before you even see them
The sickly sweet smell of human excrement
Seeps slowly into the car
We arrive down a dirt road and enter into a white tarpaulin jungle
When you get out of the car
The stench hits you like a sledge hammer
It sticks to you and constricts your throat
As it tendrils envelopes you
Crushing the air out of your lungs
And then the true horror hits you
As you realise that men, women and children
Have to live with this 24 hours a day
There is no escape
Emotionally
No one gets out of here alive
7 July Camp Mercy, Zahle
We were invited in to Mercy Camp to share Eid al Fitr with one of the families.
A truly humbling experience where the overwhelming generosity of a family who have nothing yet welcomed us with open arms.
We sat drinking red tea, eating baklava and laughed and smiled as we worked our way through the language barrier.
Empathy, compassion and caring needs no translator.
Yes it is emotionally hard to process
No the camera is not a shield to hide behind
I have no words
Welcome to the emotional roller coaster
I am here to bear witness
This is something I have to do
7 July Camp Mercy, Zahle
When war, death and destruction
Is all you have as a life experience
Toy pistols and bb guns are just the norm
It is chilling and sobering experience
This is not a game of cowboys and Indians
This is the cold harsh reality of everyday life
of a child in a refugee camp
This is not fun and games
Welcome to the jungle
8 July Zahlé, Lebanon
Cameras at two paces watched on by a spectator.
8 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Mohammad escaped the horrors of Aleppo with his family.
He lives on a small strip of land near Camp Mercy
He is a wonderful, caring man
We call him Bubba (Father)
As a sign of respect
With his kind eyes and cheeky smile
He greets me with a firm handshake
A kiss to the right cheek, left cheek and right shoulder
I feel privileged
8 July Zahlé, Lebanon
There has been some chatter around security
Things have been very quiet
Almost too quiet
We travel and work whilst being constantly vigilant
Constantly scanning for trouble
On the way to Camp Mercy
We went to pass two boys riding a motor bike
At the last moment we see the pillion rider had a rifle
The chrome glints in the sun
You freeze
For that split second the only utterance is a profanity
Then we realised that it was just a toy
Later whilst photographing the goat herder
A truck pulled up beside our parked car
Four men jumped out asking if we were American
One is holding a meat hook
They just wanted a photo with us
You go out expecting the worse
Yet the goodness of human nature prevails
Alhamdulillah
8 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
As soon as you drive into the Camp Mercy
the kids all come running to the car.
Their laughter and giggles lift the mood.
Truly humbling.
What did they ever do to deserve this?
8 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Road to Baalbek
We travel north to the Roman ruins at Baalbek
To get there you have to travel through the badlands
Out here no one can hear you scream
Posters of Sayed Nasrullah mark the start
That you are entering Hezbollah country
The roads are virtually deserted
We get to see the magnificent ruins
We leave when the call to prayer starts
You photograph through the window of the moving car
There is no stopping around here
A statue of Grand Ayatollah Khomeini waves us goodbye
It’s good to get home
9 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Friday we have a day off
Think of it as a mental health day
We get in the car and drive south
But wherever you go there is no escaping
The reality of what has and is happening
We end up by a lake
Learning to breath again
9 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
The growing vulnerability and fragility of Syrian refugees in host countries has reached a critical point.
There are more than 8 million Syrian refugees worldwide, with almost two and a half million Syrian refugees in Lebanon.
In a recent report, the UN states that children not in education are likely to be exploited in child labour and at risk of trafficking.
Assessments show that 80% of Syrian refugee children suffer from emotional trauma.
As a result of this urgent need, the NGO Triumphant Mercy, has launched an English language program,
Hope, to be held in the refugee camps of the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.
Hope is the English education arm of Triumphant Mercy, providing a dynamic and safe learning environment for refugees
to reach language, literacy and numeracy goals.
9 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
When it comes to refugees
There is no more neutrality in the world.
You either have to be part of the solution
or you’re going to be part of the problem
Which side are you on?
10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
At work in the Bekaa Valley – photos by Kim Edwards
10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon.
There are an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees living in camps in the Bekaa Valley.
Many of the children have been without education for as long as 4 years.
Without an education they are at risk from the clutches of Daesh (ISIS).
Why are we not addressing this issue as a matter of urgency?
It cost $10,000 to build a school in a refugee camp
Every bomb dropped by Australia costs between $70,000 and $650,000
For the price of a couple of smart bombs being dropped in Syria we could provide all these children with a decent education.
Drop dumb politicians not smart bombs
10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
It was a great and rare privilege to photograph the old Syrian lady and her tattoos.
The tattoos are done by a Syrian Gypsies called the Dom and are now only seen on women over 60.
Due to wars the Dom have been scattered and have had to flee.
This is a dying art form and soon will be completely lost.
10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Ali was shot in the head and lost sight in both eyes when the war came to Aleppo when he was 18.
He is now 22.
Today was his first English lesson.
Something from today
When we interviewed Ali
The English teacher and Australian photographer
The other photo is of the spectators
A very special day10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Warda is deaf and has been unable to attend any education program or school.
She is smart, confident, and lights up a room with her smile. She fled Syria 3 and a half years ago.
Her father was killed when her home was bombed in Aleppo.
Today Kara Onions spent time with her assessing how to best help her.
10 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Kim Edwards looking after one of the Syrian refugee babies
12 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Two of the teachers at Camp Mercy Abdul Aziz and Abo Wesam Alali
12 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Lunch at Camp Warda put on by Wafaa and her family for us.
We are struggling to move we ate so much.
12 July, Zahlé, Lebanon
The farmer next door ploughed up his potato field to harvest.
After getting the best ones he allowed the camp to come in
and get the rest. They descended like a swarm of locusts mopping up the rest
13 July· Zahlé, Lebanon
Driving down the road
Up ahead three men armed with M16’s
Pulling a car over
We stop about 15 metres away
Kim backs up 10 metres quickly before other traffic stops us
“It’s about now that if it’s a car bomb they will detonate it” Kim says
We sit staring at the car ahead
Waiting, waiting waiting
The soldier waves us through
We hold our breath as we pass
It’s good to see the car in the rear view mirror
I unclench my buttocks
Benign one moment
Deadly the next
Welcome to Lebanon
13 July· Zahlé, Lebanon
John teaching Abul Aziz english at Camp Mercy
Abdul and his wife teach the children arabic in the camp school.
Every time we sit down for a lesson the obligatory red tea/short black coffee or soft drink are offered.
Everything is done sitting cross legged on the floor and by the end of the day you start to really feel it.
Abdul is a very talented artist and one of the nicest people you could wish to meet.
13 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
When you first go into the camps people are a bit reserved within a week that disappears and they just jump in.
“Sura sura sura”
“Photo photo photo”
Is their catch cry
I genuinely have no idea who these guys are
But getting in a photograph makes them happy
It breaks the tedium and monotony of camp life
Camp Warda
13 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
This is Musaa and his daughter Marian.
He was forced to flee Aleppo when his life was threatened by Daesh.
With his brothers, sisters their children and extended family that’s around 80 people.
They have been in refugee camps in Zahle for more than 4 years.
It takes many cups of tea and visits to gain the trust and slowly, slowly you start to get more of the story.
It’s like peeling an onion as each layer that comes off reveals more of the horror that this man has had to face.
17 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
There is no escaping the horrors of Aleppo
When your only contact with family is WhatsApp
The news that your nephew has been killed by Daesh
Comes in a message with a picture
Of the grieving parents
Heartbroken, distraught and crying at their child’s grave
That you can never visit
Another family member gone
A wasted life in a wasted war
Where there are no winners
Only the dead
17 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
End of another week
Beat down by the sweltering heat
The dust, smell and grime
Soaks into your bones
There is no escaping
The blazing sun
But at least we get out every night
Back to civilization
Thoughts go out
To those who cannot
Escape the camps
18 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
A soundscape of the last night in Zahle
So tomorrow it’s time to say goodbye to Zahle and head out of the Bekaa Valley back to Beirut
for 6 days and try to get access to some refugee camps there.
It’s been a truly humbling experience
The kindness and generosity of those with least to give will live with me forever.
My time here has been an emotional roller coaster ride of epic proportions.
To the people who have followed my journey here
Thank you from the bottom of my heart
I could not have done it without your support
To the people I leave behind stuck in the camps
You will forever be in my heart
Maybe one day we will meet again in better circumstances
This is not goodbye
I hope to return
Inshallah
20 July · Beirut, Lebanon
Beirut at night
21 July · Beirut, Lebanon
Mohammad Al Amin Mosque
Had the pleasure to visit the Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque.
I sat on the carpet and just soaked in the atmosphere and utter beauty of the architecture.
Whilst there the prayers were read out reverberating around the walls.
The only other sound was the whispered exultation’s of Aallahu Akbar as around me men knelt and prayed.
A very special and spiritual moment.
22 July · Beirut, Lebanon
Reflections of a photographer
Beirut Graffiti
21 July · Beirut, Lebanon
On walkabouts in Beirut
Pounding the pavement
Chasing the graffiti scene
22 July · Beirut, Lebanon.
Homeless in Beirut
22 July · Beirut Corniche.
Watching the sun set over the Mediterranean as the people promenade along the Corniche
enjoying the cooling sea breeze that washes away the heat of the day.
22 July · Beirut, Lebanon
Shatila Refugee Camp
Made it into Shatila Palestinian refugee camp today.
The majority of photographs are shot from the hip on the move.
Photographs were shot on a one hour walk around the camp.
Very few people venture out of the camp as they are undocumented.
There is still a palpable fear that another massacre may happen as did on 16–18 September 1982
when an estimated in 460 to 3,500 people were killed in the Shatila and Sabra Massacre.
“Inside the heaving refugee camp – originally built for 3,000 in 1949, but is now home for up to 22,000,
according to the latest estimates – more refugees trickle in every day, casualties of the Syrian conflict.
Electricity is intermittent at best, and the salty water that runs through the pipes is not drinkable.
According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), 10 percent of Lebanon’s population
is comprised of Palestinian refugees, but 56 percent do not have jobs and two-thirds live on less than $6 a day.
UNRWA describes environmental health conditions in Shatila as “extremely bad”,
including damp and overcrowded shelters with open drains.
This vibrant slum city has witnessed more bloodshed than its residents care to remember.
It was the scene of a brutal massacre 32 years ago, during which upwards of 3,000 residents died
at the hands of the Lebanese Christian Phalange militia.”
Al Jazeera
23 July · Beirut, Lebanon
Packing up and getting ready to fly home tomorrow
It’s been a wild ride
I’ve photographed everything I planned to shoot
Now it’s done the tiredness has really kicked in
The roller coaster of emotions has taken it’s toll
I’m exhausted and ready to come home
To my fellow travelers Kim, Kara and John
Thanks you for all the fun, laughs and good times
I feel I need to buy one more packet
Of goats ball cheese in your honour
To the great people I met in the camps
Musaa, Wafaa, Abdul Aziz and many others
Thank you for your kindness and generosity
It will live with me for a long time
You will never be forgotten
A huge thank you to Siara and Romain
For organising access to Shatila
Thank you to all of you back home
Who have followed the posts and come along for the ride
Thank you for riding shotgun with me
And finally thank you Lebanon and Beirut
It’s a crazy good country with crazy good people
You are my sort of crazy
Our demons play nicely together
I will miss you
As-Salaam-Alaikum
It’s over and out from me
Signing off
24 July · Zahlé, Lebanon
Facebook post from Kim Edwards
It’s been great to have an Aussie mate in Lebanon for the past 3 weeks.
Safe travels Brian Rogers!
Highlights include:
Having rocks thrown at us, getting sick, almost getting arrested, getting lost on the border,
eating mushy in refugee camps, being kissed by 100 year old gypsies, having a cold beer, and taking great photos.
It’s been one wild ride!
24 July · Beirut, Lebanon
View east to the hills of Beirut.
Thank you Lebanon
It’s been awesome
Much love