Reporters are having a hard time finding “exciting” news in Syria in the past few days, even weeks. This makes me happy. A strange thing for a journalist to say. Usually, we look for the action: a fire, robberies, something hot to catch our attention. But after seven years of war, boring is good. Sure, […]
Raja Salim
Posted inNews + Opinion
I ended up celebrating: My first year as a Canadian
People stood in the doorway, the hallways and, of course, the kitchen. Dozens of eyes and smiles greeted my sister and I with warmth and a touch of understanding. It was a party to celebrate our one-year anniversary in Canada. More than two dozen refugee sponsors were there—people who had been working hard to help […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Taxes are just another “culture shock” to living in Canada
The white wall in my room is always full of coloured sticky notes. Lots of them have new words I have learned in English, and some are notes to self: Do and do not. In the middle of last March, a new red sticky note has joined the others on the wall, it says: “income […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The perfect silence in Syria
I was in Grade Five when the teacher asked me, “What do you want to learn as a second language, English or French?” In some parts of Syria, kids had the chance to choose between the two. That was the first important decision I had to make. I felt joy at the idea of having […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
كسر جليد ثقافي
“ستنتقلين للعيش في أبعد مكان بالعالم, حيث الثلج طيلة أيام السنة”. هذا ماقالته لي عائلتي والأصدقاء عندما معرفتهم أنني سأنتقل للعيش في كندا. “أنتِ من سوريا، أعتقد أنها تجربتك الأولى مع الثلج، فالجو الصحراوي في بلدكِ قاس.” هذا ماقاله عدة كنديين، عندما علموا أنني جديدة في بلدهم. من الواضح أن الطقس يحتل حيزا كبيراً في مخيلتنا […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Cultural icebreaking
“So, you will move to the farthest place in the world, where it snows all year.” This is what friends and family told me when they found out I was moving to Canada. “You are from Syria? I guess this is your first experience with snow; the desert air in your country is tough.” This […]
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Greetings to a career I didn’t reach
[Image-1] In 1995, when I was nine years old and living in Al-Swaidaa, a city in the south of Syria, my oldest sister used to take me with her to the hairdresser once a month. My love, my dream started there. I would read fashion magazines during each visit. They were my window to a […]