From the 26th August to the 30th, we went travelling to these exact places.
My GCSE French was coming to good use!!
For the first two days, my parents, my big sister and me went to Paris. It was a short journey by EuroStar and I would recommend it to anyone. There we went to the Louvre but it was closed by the time we got there. But we still spent time walking around it doing impressions of the Mona Lisa and discussing why depressed faces become more famous than the happy ones. We went to this beautiful Masjid (Mosque) and prayed Maghrib Salaah (One of the five daily prayers) and I must say, it was beautiful. It didn't feel or seem like it was in Paris. More like it was in the Middle East somewhere. We visited the Notre Dame cathedral, Sacré-Cœur Basilica church, the Arc De Triomphe and finally as day turned to night, we went to the Eiffel tower, right to the top!!! (It really wasn't as scary as I thought).
The hotel guy liked me. He was a middle aged man with children, originally from Tunisia, but as soon as he heard my name was SALMA and that I'm Muslim, the hugs and kisses I received from him was somewhat weird but that's their culture. We should be like that in London. JOKE!!! Paris was full of handsome Arab brothers! Sadly, I couldn't get one back as a souvenir. =P
From Paris we took a train to Geneva, which was another short journey and we passed mountains and small houses. The view was breathtaking. Though I went to Switzerland already this summer for a conference, the experience with family was totally different. My leg was aching and cramping from walking around in Paris for only two days and now I had to do three more days in Geneva. We met my other three sisters and my brother at the station and the reunion was as though we hadn't seen each other in 48 years as opposed to 48 hours. (They weren't born 48 years ago)
Geneva was AMAZING and BEAUTIFUL and soooo Dahm expensive - unless you live there.
We went and saw so much that I don't remember half of what we saw. We visited loads of museums, Churches, Old towns, took a boat ride to Nyon, went skinny dipping... HARAM!!! We did not go skinny dipping. We just dipped our feet in the water and the swan ate it.
Okay. I lied. The swan didn't eat our feet.
We saw some famous sites and statues and my favourite part was... VISITING THE UN!!! THE UNITED NATIONS where all major discussions happen about the world. Each room in the UN had a history, an untold story and the delicacy of the art was amazing. I thought that I would find it boring because it is like the castle of politics but surprisingly, it was fun and there was a lot of meaning to simple pictures. On the last day in Geneva, we took a long walk to a Masjid and again, the beauty and the art of this Masjid was immense, the kind of art we should appreciate. We prayed Jummah (The Friday special prayer) and Zuhr (One of the five daily prayers) there, went to the UN, got our things from the hotel and went to the airport.
Now with eight people travelling together, it was not peaceful. It may seem like this trip was filled with peace and tranquility but Nehhh. We have our moments. However, this was the first time in sixteen years since 1997, that we all got on a plane together. Sadly, it wasn't British Airways or Swiss Airlines... It was EasyJet! But we got home safely, back to the streets of East London, in a mini van, where you can see dog mess on the pavements, litter everywhere, red spit down green street. This was no mountainous view and the sound was nothing like the natural sound of the waves of the lake crashing against the wall. But this was home!!!
The next places I go to have to be the Middle East, Palestine and Egypt in particular. Also Saudi & Makkah.
On my way from Paris to Switzerland I wrote a poem.
I don't often like showing my writing to people but i thought, hey why not?
So tell me what you think.
Oh Young Ones
Oh young ones, Don't fear.
Your cries, God can hear
From Palestine, From Syria, Egypt and Somalia
No one knows whats in your criteria
Oh young ones, Don't fear.
You will be safe even when your time is near
For you will only go to a better place
It could be today or in many days
Oh young ones, Don't fear.
The skies will get clear
The smoke from the grenades will disappear
And you will reunite one day up there
With your mother, father, brothers and sisters
Oh young ones, Don't fear.
You will grow up to be Freedom Fighters
Or the Lord's very own martyrs
Closer and closer to God you will be
Everything that happens, only God will see
Oh young ones, Don't fear.
Smile, laugh, don't shed a tear
You will get everything you need
Mother, father, family and the title 'Shahid'. (Like a martyr)
Peace out peeps.
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