Marshlands/ Iraq – Page 2 – Anne Verhoijsen

The House

Yesterday we came on the working place at around 10 o’clock. The frame of the Veerman house was already there. The Veerman house was built in the middle of houses build with bricks. I like the colour of those bricks. It is from light yellow to light brown. In the city of Al Amara a lot of new houses are built but the infrastructure is very poor I only saw sand roads. I spoke with the owner of a beautiful house just aside the Veerman house. His house was built in 1980 and he would really like to have a Veerman house. For this house he could have three of these houses. For every son there could be one house. I was allowed to see his house. First I was alone and then the women showed me full of proud her house. Big rooms nice and cool and a palm three was hanging like an umbrella above the patio. I wonder if she would like to change? This is a very poor region so perhaps by way of building more people can afford a house. Mr. Marsoomi was very happy and he sees a lot of possibilities for the people here.

Black Dress

Good morning. Around me in The Garden of Eden it is already very busy from working with the plants, building pavilions and constructing the fountains. I promise you an extra photo edition one of these days.

Yesterday Mr. Marsoomi came in with two big plastic bags full of real black Muslim clothing’s and a beautiful blue house dress. I have it experience a lot every body gets very happy when they see that you put on these cloths. Now you are a real Iraqi or even a real Muslima. I think it needs more to get there! But any way now I am allowed to got to the market one of these days together with a guard. But as a silent black bird. Not taking picture just looking. Finally I am behind my computer already dressed to leave the house. I am going to buy some telephone cards and I have to work on their PC. Apple and the provider here do not fit for getting connection.

Skype works.

Garden of Eden

Passing the border in Kuwait was not a big deal. But then we could walk to the border or paying for two cars. Mr Veerman gave him about 60 euro to drive us in 6 minutes to the Iraqi border. So that is a good business. There we where very happy to meet Mr. Marsoomi and Mr Hassan to help us with the Iraqi visas. And still it takes us hours and one of the reasons was that al our visa need to be handwritten in each passport. So it is really a very special document now. After that we were driven in four cars with police guidance. Imaging you see a very important person driving along the road every body has to wait for these cars can pass. So it was with us yesterday and perhaps even more if you see the pictures. These pictures are in order of the day. The last one is a picture with Thomas the cameraman and the director Mr. Al-Haj – Abd Hussein Jabbar Alsaediof the Park of Eden where we are staying.

the last things

Almost ready to go and with this type thelastthings

of car we will cross the desert monday morning to the Iraqi

border. I read

about this road in the book – Zwemmen in

Bagdad-of the Dutch journalist Tom Kleijn.
Ahmed send us this picture with the last details for the travel.

Travel

On the 31 of October we will leave for Koeweit.

travel

Then we will travel by car to the Iraqi border. Where our

host will wait for us. They will bring us to Al-Mahara,

our working place.

Article by Nies Medema about the project in Exponto

we go

The container with the pilothous has already arrived in Al-Amarah. This house is with a peaked roof. Unfortunately the pilothouse were already packed before this peaked roof was seen as a problem. At that time it was not possible anymore to change the construction. I really wonder how this house will fit in the Iraqi landscape. As you see in the still (out of my movie -A day in Bagdad-) people like to sleep on the roof especially in the extreme hot summers.

Ahmed sends us this morning a kind of behaviour instructions for Kuwait and Iraq. Very important no alcohol drinks. For me I have no problem with it for some others a relief. As we have got the stamp to confirm our visa, we go outside the airport and there hotel IBIS has send some limousines to bring us to the hotel. The next morning we will leave for the Iraqi border where Mr. Marsoomi will wait for us with the visa. Now two days of packing and organizing everthing.

Visa Koeweit

The visas for Kuwait have reached our email box. It appears that we are welcome in this country.

For the visa’s for Iraqi, we are still waiting. According to Ahmed that also will hopefully be solved before this Friday. Perhaps I told this before that there is no possibility to get the visa direct to the embassy in The Hague. Only in Jordan, Syria and Turkey they will give them out directly to us. So they will come either way, by email to The Hague or they will have them for us at the border with Kuwait and Iraq. Alexander The Great had no problems with visas on his way. Around 330BC he attack, defeated and became the hero of Babylon. Here is a map of his conquest of his rout in at that time in Persia.

Preparing ground

At this moment he Iraqis are busy with preparing the ground in Al-Mahara in the marshlands. Two pilothouses will be built also one house in Diwaniya. The opening of this project is on the 9 of November. So they have quiet a tide schedule. After that the so-called Veerman group (8)is going home and the Verhoijsen group (4) stays to research on a more profound level the live in the marshlands. Dorinde de Tempe is also going home and she will write over her experiences, observations in this project in of the first 10 days. This place on the picture is really in the city of Al-mahara. We will stay in this city and make trips to the marshlands. An over night stay whish I would like is probably not so safe. Till now it is not sure of Ahmed Faraj leader of the whole group will stay with us. preparingground

preparation

This morning in my studio

preparation

Future

How will the future of the Mudhif look in Holland? I have a lot of ideas. But first I have to go there, collect a lot of material and after that I am imaging the Mudhif will a rise out of the earth on the water like a sphinx. Last week we have bought the tickets and now we wait on the visa for Iraq. The minister of foreign affairs of Iraqi was outside the country so we have to wait because he is the only person who is in charge of this. For 14 days from now we have spent our first day in Al-Mahara. The pictures as you see to day are from the building up from the Mudhif and also the inside of a Mudhif. The soldiers are here the guest of the Iraqis.

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