For Love of Country Military Policewoman (The Middle East) saga continues Buy at Amazon or silvaredigonda.ca (ebook available)

Our time for shopping was limited. Our tour guide charged us extra for taking us to a shopping area of his choice. He directed us to particular shops and it was obvious that he was getting paid by the shopkeepers, as well as the excursion. He also wanted all funds in American dollars. It cost us $5 each to go for a meal at a hotel of his choice. There were cats and dogs everywhere. I saw one cat jump on one of the restaurant tables, snatch a piece of chicken and run away without the couple at the table noticing. After that trip I suffered from diarrhea for ten days straight. My next tour was Tel Aviv. It wasn’t really a tour but a work weekend. Four of us booked into the Diplomat hotel. Suffice it to say I had the evening off (unofficially) to go to the Disco Coliseum, only to leave due to cramps. It must have been something I ate at the Plaza. There is something I didn’t like about Tel Aviv. It was not my first time there. When I first arrived I had a day off and went with some people who had to go to the Canadian Embassy. The driver, nicknamed “Cap”, and I roamed the city while the others conducted their business. The walk along the beach was fine. We walked through a prostitute area and then a market area. Soldiers and civilians blended as one. Their women and men have to serve in the military. These soldiers are walking around with rifles or sitting with their rifles loosely held. One man was sitting and watching me. He was tossing his rifle back and forth, his finger in the barrel. I was hoping he would not drop it in my direction. I have never seen a group of soldiers so careless with the handling of personal weapons. As the men stare at you and face you, so does the barrel of their weapons. My mind returned to a tour in Italy. There was a soldier aiming his machine gun right into my stomach when I approached him. I carefully spoke to him, while using my finger to move the barrel, which leaned against my stomach, away from me while quietly telling him I would be doing so. People in the market stank. Perhaps it was the various foods or perhaps the dust and surrounding trash that smelled. Perhaps it was a combination of it all. After two months in the Sinai, my room remained dusty and sandy regardless of how well I cleaned it. After a while I did not taste the sand in my mouth anymore. A few of our people suffered from lung infections or bronchitis. I did not have any problems except for diarrhea. I could swear that in two months in the Middle East, I had more diarrhea than I would have in my entire lifetime! They called it “gypo gut.” I had already travelled to Cairo, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and St Catherines. I found myself listening to everyone’s problems. Even an American came to talk to me because there was no one else. He told me that all they had were counsellors with two years of college training to help with specific problems. I cannot recall if it was drug use and alcohol abuse. He also told me that everyone knew everyone’s business at the hospital. So I heard him and others with all they had to tell, of their personal problems, their fears and their regrets. I kept it all inside me. It is a gift when someone trusts you with so much. Excerpt From: Silva Redigonda. “For love of country : military policewoman.” For your copy you may buy a book from Amazon or silvaredigonda.ca (e book available on website. If any problem occurs please let me know.