Still at home...

I've been enjoying spending time with my family in Florida. My son Yusef thinks we should be spending everyday at an amusement park (isn't that what Florida is all about), but who can afford that? Relaxing on the back porch, a walk along the beach, window shopping at the mall, communing with nature at the park are so much nicer in my opinion. 

In the shade of Southern Live Oak trees along the Pinellas Trail.

The end of my holiday is approaching and soon I'll be trying to figure out how on earth I will fit everything into the suitcases. I'm going to spend every moment I have busy with family and friends, but... stay tuned because there will be an interesting guest post on my blog soon. 

Home...

I'm back 'home' visiting my family and son in Florida for a while. Time to catch my breath and relax for a change, time to spend with family and friends.

The weeks up to my trip were filled with work and gettting things done around the house. We had a small house fire in the bathroom caused by an electrical short in the lighting of the bathroom mirror (most likely the result of a power surge). The damage was mostly from smoke and required a lot of cleaning. My husband cut his foot on broken glass from the mirror when he ran into the bathroom. It could have been a lot worse! We counted our blessings as we cleaned up the mess. 

For weeks and weeks there have been power outages all over Tripoli and the surrounding area and to top that off the water in the capitol was cut off. Thankfully, we have well water at my house, but it caused a huge amount of problems for many people. The water came back on two days after I left. I hope they get the electricity and water situation sorted out once and for all.

I'm trying not to read the news of what is going on in Libya, but everyday I check at least once. And news doesn't look good! It's very hard to remain optimistic about the situation there. It just might be time to look at other options...  but for the moment I'm planning on heading for the beach to watch the sun set. Time to chill out.

How's life?..... About the same.

No improvement in sight... but you can't see much in the dark, can you?

Making Predictions

I've been counting down the days until my vacation. Time seems to be going slowly and quickly at the same time. There is so much that needs to be wrapped up that my days are filled without much time to breathe. I have a list a mile long of all that needs to be done. Unfortunately, we've been having frequent power cuts and that isn't  helping me accomplish as much as I need to. In my neighbourhood we're having daily power outages that last four to six hours at a time. I head off to work and find there is no electricity there either. Often times I go out to run errands and find the shops, banks, and offices haven't got electricity either. Many companies and private individuals have invested in generators, but even so, Libya is slowing to crawl. It's the hottest part of the year with over 100F(40C) temperatures. Everyone is hot, grumpy and complaining. 

If I'm at home I usually just give in, go to bed, read a book, take a nap, relax and wait it out. If it's night time we don't even bother to light candles anymore. We've become so accustomed to walking around in the dark that candles are no longer needed. 

If I'm at work it's a different story. The heat is stifling no matter what you are wearing (and when you wear hijab that means you are wearing a lot!). Work piles up while you wait for the power to return and then you try to get all the printing, photocopying and other work finished. Tempers are easily ignited and moral is low. I keep reminding myself and others to look deep inside and count their blessings. 

There are all kinds of speculations about why Libya continues to suffer from problems with the electricity. There really isn't much anyone can do except grin and bear it..... meanwhile... the lights flicker, you look up and then they are off. Everyone lets out a sigh, then looks at their watches and tries to predict how long it will be until the power comes back on again.

It won't be long and I will be 'home' again. I've been watching the weather and checking in with the National Hurricane Center's website. I'm keeping my eye on that orange spot on the coast of Africa (see picture below).... it might be heading towards Florida too.

Making plans

Last summer when I was visiting my mother I promised her that I'd be back the next year. It's almost time to start packing. I'm excited!

Back to school soon in Libya - I'm excited!

Ramadan and Eid are over and people have started to get back to their regular schedules. In a few weeks the new school year will begin. This year it's supposed to start on September 1st. Even though it's right around the corner the shops haven't started the big school supply and uniform displays - maybe next week. I want to get all of that shopping out of the way as soon as possible so I plan on getting as much of the stocking up done this weekend. Uniforms will have to come later when we can find them.

The beginning of the school year is an exciting time. Kids will go back and see all their old friends, get new books and supplies, new teachers. But not all children in Libya will face an ideal learning environment. Schools in Libya leave a lot to be desired, even in the capital. Let's just talk about the buildings and facilities themselves: dirty classrooms, many without electricity (Yes! Even in the capital!), broken desks, boards and even windows in the classrooms. Do you need to go to the bathroom? Go ahead.... at your own risk. Don't expect to find a gym, media centre, or even a library... sigh...

Schools here are pitiful...  sad..... depressing.... and I'm just talking about the schools in the capital. I keep reminding my kids to count their blessings because the schools outside of the capital are much worse. 

Some schools don't even exist anymore as they were damaged or obliterated during the war. Some Libyan kids don't have homes or towns to go back to - many internally displaced refugees are living in camps with schools set up in tents.

A tent classroom in a refugee camp

A school destroyed in the revolution in Zliten, Libya

Damage to the University in Misrata from the war. Photo: Reuters

After the revolution the Ministry of Education did a study of Libyan schools to assess needs and pinpoint problems. They looked at 4,800 schools for their survey and reported that:

• There are about 5 pupils to one teacher (many Libyan females become teachers and are just on the payroll - not actually teaching.)
• Fewer than 1 in 20 schools have provisions for special needs children and there are significant shortages of psychological support and special needs staff - critical as many children are suffering from psychological stress since the revolution.
• A mere fifteen percent of schools have one unisex toilet per 90 students - not always functioning, and fewer than 1% of schools had a functioning toilet for children with disabilities
• Drinking water is often not available, nor is running water of any kind
• One third of the country's schools do not have a system for waste collection - garbage is just left to pile up
• Resources in most schools were found to be substandard, lacking in teaching materials and textbooks
• 40% of schools sustained damage during the revolution and are awaiting repairs
• there is a huge demand for teacher training and development

Educating Libyan children is essential to Libya's future. The entire educational system in Libya needs a make-over and many projects are underway. Last June the UN signed an agreement with the Ministry of Education and UNICEF to start up projects aimed at improving education and offer teacher training. 

One promising project that is just getting underway will create classrooms out of shipping containers. Libya has ports all along the coast and ports are stacked high with empty shipping containers which can be turned into classrooms, libraries, offices, study centres, media centres - you name it, the possibilities are endless!

These are empty shipping containers that were being used at a checkpoint along the coast road near Garibaldi during the revolution. Last week I saw something similar in Wadi Rabia.

Tommy Jordan, an American who had been working on infrastructure projects in Libya before the revolution (and who I know personally), was contacted to help work on projects for the new Libya. He is working on setting up these amazingly innovative classrooms. The project will also offer training to Libyans who will then be able to take over once it's underway. Along with the classrooms will be the introduction of technology to keep them running, provide educational materials and programs for teacher training and development. I'm really excited about this - this is something that won't take years - it can get underway in months! This is something Libyan schoolchildren will benefit from and thus push Libya toward a better future. 

They are calling this project: Project Phoenix - the name derived from the Greek myth of the Phoenix, a long-lived bird that obtains new life when it rises from the ashes of it's predecessor. 

• To learn more about how this project got started: The story of Project Phoenix
• If you would like more detailed information about all that the project entails, or would like to help out in some way - please visit Tommy's site here: Phoenix - Rising from the Ashes

Is the holiday over yet?

Another Ramadan and Eid are over. The time flew by this year. Now we have to get back to a 'normal' schedule again. 

I got up early this morning and found the girls still awake watching TV... they hadn't slept all night long! Now I suppose they will sleep all day. Soon enough they will start complaining that they never get to go anywhere and that they are tired of staying in the house. To which I will respond "Get out of bed in the morning if you want to get things done or go someplace!" It doesn't help that it's summer holidays and they don't HAVE to be anywhere. 

Oh to be young and free to sleep all day.....