Reality Drops In

Feb 18, 2011 Dubai Airport – 330am

My heart is hammering in my chest. I don’t know what it is about getting on the plane now for the final leg of the journey to Kabul, but suddenly it is real. For long moments passing the dozens of cultures represented in the faces in the passenger hallways of the Dubai airport, it almost felt like it was just another airport, going to just another destination. Just before reaching gate 134 my mind jumped to try and anticipate what the faces would look like of the passengers on my Safi Airways flight.

My eyes scanned the crowd as we approached and my mind did all the observing, processing and calculating within moments like Iron Man behind his mask. First it was the lighter skin, dark hair and a few fair colored eyes that I took in. Wearing suits or long jackets, jovially sharing bits of greeting and information that made them smile warmly and laugh out loud. Women with clear skin, scarf covered hair and dark eyeliner magnifying beautiful round dark eyes. The musical tones of their language sounds Persian. All of which reminded me faintly of the Uyghur people from western China that I became familiar with while living in China.

A handful of big, bulky, tanned, thick necked, rough-around-the-edges, maybe rogue, US Marine types (not your clean cuts from the Army ads) carrying huge backpacks containing things that I would love to investigate were the majority of Westerners lining up. Some of them carry expressions on their face communicating tiredness, wariness and an air of experienced acceptance (as opposed to ignorant excitement such as mine?), giving me a sense that this is not their first Afghan rodeo. Briefcase totting Western businessmen and a couple women sounding very Canadian made up the rest of the 8 or so foreigners in the waiting room.

Instantly I feel self-conscious with my head uncovered, so once settled in my seat I have draped my scarf, that was waiting at the ready around my neck, over my head. It is 330am here in Dubai and I am wide awake as it is 330pm in Canada. The British and American pilots just informed us of our route to Kabul and I hope the sun comes up soon so I can see the land we are passing over. Kabul is reported to have clear skies.