The Hidden Magic in a Forgotten City

by Ebrahim Al Haidari (Yemen)

I didn't expect to find South Sudan

“It is going down; yes!… it started to go down, its orange-red mixed color is already invading the place”, this was me telling my friend to book us a spot in front of the most beautiful sunset scene I had ever seen. The red sun kept falling down slowly while infecting our souls with an addictive silence, just staring at it like as if it is a marvelous painting that was drawn by different colorful layers in the sky. Just at that moment, we would speak no more, loss the sense of time and enjoy the magic scene. The sun was laying down its beam over an abandoned town “Malakal”, a town located in the northern part of South Sudan, the newest country in the world. The town had many battles in the last few years between the government and the rebels, leaving it almost completely destroyed in the process. In Malakal, through the daily busy work routine, I would run and try to score a seat for myself in the morning trip just to get the chance to meet some of the town people and kids along the road. The little smiling eyes of those kids were shining like pearls in their faces and filled my soul with peace, love and joy for the rest of my day. Those little faces were teaching me how a human can start a day with a smile and positive tendency even if they live inside a destroyed town which carries heavy war traces in every corner. While I’m smiling back to their faces, fulfillment embraces me like a magic. In Malakal, some days I would have the chance to go for a boat trip on the Nile River. And I was lucky enough to get myself into the boat and travel on the longest River in the world. At times, the river could be so quiet, making my attention simply shift and focus on what surrounds me. I would see some small birds flying and playing alongside my boat beautifully. I would meet some families traveling in small wooden boats, moving slowly and closely to the river side to avoid getting capsized by the waves caused by bigger and faster boats as they pass by them. I would see the small children from the living villages on the river side running and trying to race us the moment they see us passing by, and once they cannot run any more, they would throw us with some kind greeting words, waving to us with wide smiles. Before starting our trip from the small harbor at the river side, we would wait for a while to get our stuck boat out from the other fishermen boats, which have already come in the early morning. The fishermen would start their day hoping for the best, hoping to have a good fishing day, and not to go back to their “strew houses” by the end of the day empty-handed. As the day trip finished, those magical moments flowed through my mind, overwhelming me, finally resting deep into my soul. My time in Malakal had finally come to an end, giving me an interesting perspective on the way I would see now different places around the world, and leaving me with unanswered questions: How is it possible to find such beauty in such place? How is it possible to see those magical details in each corner of this forgotten city? This city might not be currently attractive or even convenient for travellers to visit, to discover and to enjoy. However, this does not negate the outmost magic and beauty that could be always found in the unknown places and the forgotten cities which gave me one of the most heart moving visits that you could ever have.