An interconnected world

John Zahara tours the ancient Roman city of Palmyra in eastern Syria. Aramaic can be found on the pillars of the buildings.

Every exit is an entry to somewhere else. I keep this travel
philosophy written in all my journals and it propels me to explore this wildly diverse planet.

Travelling is about not only seeing sites but experiencing the world first-hand. I have come to the realization that everything has the potential to be interconnected globally, whether that is due to colonization, geopolitics or the spread of traditions and cultures through migration.

All over the world I discover how countries and cultures are interconnected in many amazing ways and it fascinates me how the degrees of separation can somehow play into a larger global puzzle.

Travelling can truly generate vast interests in topics and connections that people never realized existed. There have been countless occasions in foreign countries when I have learned about an historical event, political ideology or unique tradition that later led me to seek out its origins in another country.

Backpacking Iran opened my eyes to the ancient Persian culture and history but I also learned about the Armenian Christian neighbourhoods in Esfahan (central Iran) which sparked my interest enough to seek out their unique ancestry and way of life in Armenia.

The strict Iranian government allowed these Christian artisans to flourish in their neighbourhoods for decades so I had to travel to Armenia to meet these amazing people. While in Armenia, I learned about a horrific genocide that was perpetrated by Turkish forces, which naturally led me to Turkey to uncover the Turkish version of the story.

While in Turkey I met Kurdish people in the east who were trying to heal after years of brutal repression at the hands of the Ba’ath party and Saddam Hussein. Upon returning to Oman, I sat down with my Iraqi friend to hear his version of Iraq’s history.

My friend Ali confirmed the events (he lived in Kurdistan) and advised me to seek out the truth by meeting and visiting Iraqi refugees living in eastern Syria.

After meeting with Iraqis in eastern Syria, I stumbled upon an ancient city in the eastern Syrian Desert that had visible connections with everything historical, ranging from the Romans to Jesus Christ’s relatives. The ancient city of Palmyra in eastern Syria still has Aramaic writing on its pillars, which is a testament to its ancient Semitic linguistic roots.

Syria is full of incredible religious history, so continuing with my passion for history I packed my bag and set off for one of the oldest and most historically significant countries in the region, Egypt. While discovering tombs and mummies in Luxor, Egypt, I came across an old Jordanian man who told me about his home country and a mysterious indigenous group called the Nabataeans, ancient Semitic people who constructed some of the greatest monuments on Earth. The Jordanian trip found me sipping tea with an elderly anthropologist who informed me about the historical trade connections between Jordan and Yemen. That old, historically aware man in Amman, Jordan, led me to venture to the cradle of civilization on the mysterious edge of the Arabian Peninsula.

While in Yemen I discovered a country steeped in amazing history and beauty. I have yet to experience its equal. After some lengthy political discussions regarding the French Mandate in Lebanon with an United Nations worker from Italy, I left Yemen and set out to explore Lebanon and its rich history and recent turbulent past.

While in Lebanon I came across the history of the Hezbollah and its political ties to the neighbouring countries while learning that only the Lebanese would turn the Green Line in Beirut (epicentre of the civil war fighting in the ’80s) into the most stylish cafe and club scene in Lebanon.

The Middle Eastern pockets of Christianity later led me to Romania where I learned about Alexander the Great and the history of Gypsies. The Gypsies can be traced back to the great leader of Macedonia. The general had an honour code in battle and he always ordered his troops not to steal any possessions of the enemy.

The nomadic people of northern India collected valuables left behind after Alexander’s army demolished villages and towns and then they traded and sold the valuables along the Silk Road for profit, which ultimately led to their roaming caravan lifestyle. Those fascinating Gypsy stories I discovered led me to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, despite everyone’s warnings and concerns.

In Pakistan, I met the Kalash people, direct descendants of Alexander the Great. He and his men wed several wives while in the area and some of the Kalash people still have blue eyes and blonde hair.

Travelling the Khyber Pass to Afghanistan allowed me to experience the daily life of Afghans who fought a bloody, ultimately successful war against the Soviet Union. Near the border with Afghanistan, my guide took me inside an old shack along the pass to meet his friends and drink some tea. Huddled around a fire in the mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan, people with warm friendly faces told me stories of great generals and armies that had conquered the area and they spoke of war and its impact on their culture and way of life.

Those elderly men with worn faces and long grey beards knew their history better than any professor I have ever known despite the fact they received minimal education in their lives. After two hours of discussing the region’s history, several hugs, group pictures and countless cups of tea, I left with a new respect for the region’s people and their undeniable resilience.

After learning more about the Soviet influence in Afghanistan, I decided to backpack Russia and learn more about its remarkable history and impact on the world. While standing at Joseph Stalin’s grave in the Red Square in Moscow I witnessed an elderly woman crying next to the grave; it made me stop in my tracks and wonder what unimaginable heartache Stalin must have put that woman through in her lifetime.

That image of the woman sobbing over his grave on that cold, rainy Moscow morning made me want to visit his homeland in Georgia to learn more about his iron-fisted policies and how they affected his fellow countrymen.

Georgia later led to Asia and Asia led to Africa, and the journeys over the past few years were met with uncertainty and curiosity. The stories, associations and global connections continue to leave me in awe.

I will backpack Brazil this summer to learn more about its Portuguese colonial history as well as its African roots, and I am eager to find out where Brazil’s stories may lead me in the future. They may lead me to former colonial nations such as Angola or Mozambique, among others. It is that assured uncertainty that will lead me on winding journeys across the globe that I will treasure for the rest of my life.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Zahara is a native of Whitney Pier, Sydney, N.S., the son of Stewart and Barbara Zahara. He graduated from St. F.X. University with a degree in human kinetics and history, and from Memorial University with an education degree. He won the Allard Tobin European Travel Scholarship from St. F.X. which allowed him to travel in Europe for the first time seven years ago, igniting his passion for travel. He has visited more than 40 countries. He has taught at an international school in the Sultanate of Oman in the Middle East for four years and taught social studies last year in Abaco, Bahamas. He is currently living in Halifax, teaching history at Oxford school in downtown Halifax.