A Woman's Life in Baghdad Part II

  Compare your childhood to the childhood of your children.

"My childhood was before Saddam rose to power, it was happy, I went to kindergarten, which my 6 years old daughter was deprived from, she hasn't been to a zoo, or a playing ground. I used to go cinemas a lot with my family, while all 3 kids of mine hadn't seen or went to a cinema. We can't even go in a family picnic, because of the lack of security.

"We started traveling around in 1965, we went to England and Lebanon regulary, we also visited Jordan, Syria and Turkey, compared to my kids who hasn't been outside Iraq. Right now traveling outside Iraq is possible only to some Arabic countries, and from there to other countries. But most countries treat Iraqis in bad manner, treating them as if they were.... Terrorists. My own father as an example, he tried to go to England last summer on a business trip, to go to England he had to go to Jordan first, then to the British embassy where he was supposed to get a visa, but they wouldn't give it to him. My father is 77 years old man, what kind of damage can he make there.

"Right now, there are no means of fun for teenagers, so they either spend their time in their neighborhood, and that is not a good thing, or they might bring their friends home, or spend their times indoors, on the computer or TV. My older son is capable of driving a car now, but we don't let him go out with the car, or use it to get to his university in fear of hijackers, or kidnappers, especially that my husband is a well-known architect all throughout Baghdad."

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