MEMORIES OF AN OLD HOME, HIGH HOPES FOR A NEW ONE

Refugees, fresh off the plane, discuss life in Syria and their hopes for their new life in Canada Story and photos by Amal Ahmed Albaz

“I don’t believe we’re here”

Kalar Tavit and Koko Kouren can’t believe they’re actually here. The couple, who have been married five years, applied to Canada eight months ago and were on one of the first planes to land. Here, they hope to start a new chapter.

“Syria, as you see on the news, is all destroyed,” said Tavit. “Everything is gone. Literally. All the houses are gone.”

“We used to live in comfort,” said Kouren. “Then life just became torturous.”

The couple, parents of 4-year-old Livon, were in Lebanon four months before embarking on their journey to Canada.

“It was so hard (living in Syria),” said Tavit. “Even if the situation gets better in Syria, I don’t think we will go back.”

“It’s bittersweet”

In Syria, when Natalie Boudakian left her building, she didn’t know if she was going to make it back home. Today, safe in Toronto, Boudakian is dealing with many emotions.

“I’m really happy and really sad,” she said. “It’s bittersweet.”

Boudakian, 25, has lost close friends and her uncle during the war, but still she says she’s excited for this new journey.

“I know there will be some difficulties here,” she said. “I realize that. But at least here I have chances. That’s more important: a safe life and a new beginning.”

Her parents and three sisters have accepted visas and are awaiting their flight. “I really hope they’re here before Christmas,” she said. “I don’t want to spend it alone.”

“I doubt I’ll go back to Syria”

Imad Sarji didn’t know what to expect. With only one friend here, was afraid because he was “coming to the middle of nowhere.”

“Now I feel more comfortable about things. I think it’s all going to be OK.”

Sarji, 29, was in Lebanon for five years studying computer engineering, so he didn’t witness the war first-hand. But with his visa expired, he was stuck. So he decided to come to Canada. Sarji hopes to bring his parents to Canada from Syria. “I worry all the time for them, of course. It’s a war.”

“I’m optimistic about finding a job, to be honest, but I don’t think it’s going to be perfect. I know there will be lots of obstacles.”

With high hopes for life here, going back to Syria is not on the table.

“My future is here”

Aren Assad knows it’s not going to be easy adjusting to a new place.

“The first few years will be tough, I know,” he said. “Getting used to things and making new friends won’t be easy, but we’ll get used to it.”

Assad, 17, plans on finishing school and studying computer science at university. For him, education and opportunities are much better in Canada.

The family of four escaped war and constant bombs, but now, Assad says he feels safe. “I’m relaxed here. You know, it’s not like at any moment you could die.”

He wants to thank all Canadians for opening their doors to him and his family. “We’re happy you took us in. Thank you. My future is here. I’m not going back to Syria.”

“I thank all of Canada”

Pauline Bytion (above right) didn’t know what Justin Trudeau looked like. She wishes that when she saw him Thursday as she arrived in Toronto, someone had told her he was the prime minister. She would have given him a big hug.

“I am so, so, so happy,” she said. “I thank all of Canada and the prime minister of Canada.”

Bytion’s sponsor and sister, Hannah, hasn’t seen her in five years. “It’s the first time she visits me after marriage,” said Hannah. “I’m so happy. It’s the first time she comes to my house.”

On Pauline’s first day in Canada, Hannah says they’re “going to party, dance, eat and talk too much.” She says her sister will stay with her at home. “I don’t let her go. That’s it — she’s stuck.”