87

87

GPD CoO11 183
Continent of OriginM
GDP DC18 117
Destination ContinentE
Distancefar
GDP ChangeE
Home Changeim
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When I met Ali, he was wearing plastic gloves and pointing refugees in the right direction. I was happy to finally see someone who could communicate with Afghan refugees. When I asked which organisation he was working for he showed me his drenched ankles. He had arrived on a boat from Turkey a few hours before. My name is Ali, I am from Ahvaz, Iran. Next to me is the love of my life, Leili. We met at a hospital after I had a motorcycle accident in Tehran and we have been together ever since. I had a visa to go to Germany but to stay with Leili, I had to travel illegally through Turkey. This is the third time I am a fleeing my home. When we contacted the smuggler in Turkey, he promised to take us to Greece for 1500 USD. We thought that by Greece he meant Athens. We didn't expect to arrive on an island close to Turkey, on Lesbos island. We had no other choice but to trust them. One night we were told to wait near a highway, we were about 35 people. The smuggler came and put us all in his van. We drove all night. We arrived somewhere – it was still dark outside - and walked and walked.. and we finally could smell the sea. As we were walking, some people who could not afford the smuggler and who had been waiting in the woods for hours, joined a group after the smuggler left. We were suddenly 45 people boarding the boat. An Afghan man started the engine, and it was still dark outside. He opened a box full of life vests, which all disappeared in a wink.  There were not enough life vests for everyone. People started fighting and some tried to resell their vests for 50 euro. On the boat, every wave shook us like a mad cradle. I saw my life passing in front of me. We had so many fears: fear of the sea, fear of police, of entering Europe, fear not to make it. We danced with the waves of the sea and we all prayed to our gods. But I can tell you that our common language was fear. At some point the motor stopped. The boat was too heavy and the engine was too weak, but we made it start again. As we went on we started seeing an orang line on the other side. After an eternity that was hardly two and a half hours we saw that the orange line was a collection of life-vests left behind by other migrants on the shore. We finally made it.

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