Beyond 2nd Circle

I recently visited several Somali refugees. They live mostly in Jebel Amman, right off 2nd circle. The closest main street looks surprisingly nice and middle class, with an assortment of clothing shops and restaurants. Every few steps there's a gap between the buildings that leads down many flights of steps into a labrynth of hovels that cling to the side of the hill. This is where the refugees live.

While it looks fine during the day, I've been told that the area turns into a sketchy prostitue hangout at night.

From what I've heard, the majority of the Somalis are moms and children. I don't know of any Somali men here, although I've only interacted with a handful of Somalis period. They all have very difficult situations, of course, complicated by a lack of Arabic skills, although the children are attending public school and usually speak Arabic well enough to translate.

Whenever I visit refugee families in their homes (whether Somalis or Iraqis), I'm always surprised by how open the parents are in front of their children. They tell the whole gruesome family story in front of everyone and I can't help but wonder if maybe the little ones should be asked to step out. One of the Somali families was no different. The mother's whole pack of offspring clustered around her on the sofa and on the floor at her feet while she answered questions. In fact, the children needed to be there to help with translation. The mother got through the parts about the missing father, the murdered relatives, and began to talk about her missing children who might now be dead. Then she started crying and the eldest daughter (a teenager) finished the story.