Return to Damascus: Our keys no longer fit any door
Syrian author Dima Albitar Kalaji, who lives in exile in Berlin, talks about a journey of wonder and grief: “So this is what the country looks like without a dictator.”
December 2024: A young woman poses for a photo with a Syrian opposition flag at a lookout point on Mount Qasiyun above the city of Damascus. Leo Correa/dpa
So this is how it would go: I would arrive in the city on a rainy night. The car would stop, I would get out, drag my suitcase across the asphalt, and immediately start smoking again. Finally, I would climb a few steps and unlock the door.
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Berliner-zeitung
