Tell Brak

I'm still gathering evidence and pondering on the case. The idea of simply following the route to Chagar Bazar doesn't seem sufficient to me. What's my purpose in this project? My inspiration is Ms Christie's memoir about her travels and her life at Chagar Bazar and Tell Brak. Like Ms Christie, my main purpose is more anthropological than archeological, although I am interested in ancient times. Again, like her, I'm more intriqued by the ephemera of every day life, which provides more personal indications of the life of the people. Eye idols don't do much for me I'm afraid. Why 'eye' anyway? Again, like Ms Christie, when I hear archeologists confidently explaining about what a lump of clay would have been used for 4,000 years ago, I find myself wondering 'how do they know?'. I feel the same way about economics which relies on predicting behaviour of people, when one of the best qualities of people is that they behave unpredictably so often.

Back to the point of this posting. I want to retrace the travel section, if at all possible by the Orient Express although the cost seems prohibitive (perhaps another of my preparatory tasks must be to find a sugar daddy toute suite). However, I want to spend time at the two archeological sites to drink in every day life and live within the landscape that Ms Christie loved so much. I want to see if there have been changes and allow a 21st century audience to see beyond the 'axis of evil' and the general fear of Arabs that is prevalent in the West. Just two weeks ago, at a small village produce show, an elderly Norfolk man made a comment about a photo taken inside a mosque in Oman.

Cor, you wouldn't catch me taking a photo in a mosque. Probably get blown up!

If I am to spend time at Chagar Bazar, or nearby, I will need to do something, preferably a paid job. Well, I can type, write and take photographs. I can cook plain food, clean and do laundry (although I expect local people can do the same and need the job more than I do). So, my current quest is to investigate how I can find a job in Syria. Seems a daunting prospect, but with determination . . .

Futility, folly and foolishness

The depths of doubt are deep and gloomy and that is where I am residing after spending 4 weeks carrying out perfunctory research for the Project. I am going to come clean as no-one is reading this but me. I am a long-term writer-in-waiting. One of the many people out there who knows that they can write a good sentence every now and then and hopes that one day they might get at least an article published. The Project was going to be my Book. It might even be serialised on TV, although I'm neither attractive enough or sufficiently famous to be the presenter thankfully. Now I feel very foolish, because the Project, the Big Idea, the Book has already been done! Andrew Eames followed Agatha Christie's initial journey to Baghdad in 'The 8.55 to Baghdad', published in 2004. I have two weeks almost to myself as I house-sit for a friend in deepest Norfolk. My friend's partner has lent me Andrew Eames' book which I will read with gritted teeth. Not only has he written something that may make my Project redundant, but he was a well-known journalist at the time and has won a travel writing award for his endeavours. How can I compete? Should I compete? Is this all folly and foolishness? Does any of this really matter?

There is a glimmer of hope down here in the depths. His book does not cover the journey that I planned, which is from London to Chagar Bazar using the Orient Express to Istanbul, travel to Aleppo (still have to figure out how she did that) on to Beirut where I would need to find a driver to take me to Chagar Bazar. I've read somewhere that there may be another dig taking place there now. Could I get a job with them? I need some method of raising the money to do this journey and it looks extremely unlikely that any publishing or production company would be in the slightest bit interested. I still feel committed to this project. I'm very nervous about contacting her family and other people who have already written and published about Ms Christie. I would love to do the journey, but am I brave enough? It's encouraging that Mr Eames first thought of his retracing journey in the autumn of 1999, but didn't actually start until about 2002. These things take time.

Joanna Lumley's Nile

I'm overdue other blogs after an interesting, although disheartening week after more research and help from a friend. I'm just watching an ITV programme featuring Joanna Lumley travelling the Nile and have noticed the number of times that she has mentioned Agatha Christie. It seems that a Briton cannot think of Cairo, or the Nile or pyraminds without a connection with Ms Christie. I'm sure she would love it.

It's not the only time that Ms Christie has been mentioned in connection with something not altogether expected. I'm currently reading a Paul Theroux book (details later) in which he is retracing a rail journey from London to India and he has mentioned Agathat Christie in connection with the Orient Express. She is all pervading in such interesting ways.

Agatha Christie

Back at the Norfolk and Norwich Millenium Library to write this after a satisfactory shopping trip. Searching the Oxfam second-hand bookshop, I found Janet Morgan's biography Agatha Christie: A Biography (it does what it says on the cover)written in 1984. There were also several copies of Ms Christie's novels, including one of Death in the Clouds, but I decided to restrict my purchases bearing in mind that I'm transporting a week's worth of clothing and shopping on my bike tomorrow. What a find! I celebrated by buying a lemonade and bun in the cafe of one of the few family-owned department stores left in Britain.

I started to read the biography and was pleased to see that Janet Morgan was the 'official' biographer and had access to all of Ms Christie's personal papers and to friends and family. I hadn't realised how much she protected her personal life from outsiders, although I should have guessed. I wonder if she would have resented this personal quest of mine, but I hope not. I'm also feeling extremely out of my depth, as Ms Morgan has a very good pedigree for writing biographies while I have nothing at all, except writing blogs and sharing a fascination with the Arab world. This whole thing seems beyond my means and ability at the moment.

The plot thickens

This project seems to be progressing at a snail's pace, but that can't be helped. I'm now in Norwich, England, for 6 weeks during the academic summer vacation. I've just spent a wonderful few hours in the Norfolk and Norwich Millenium Library (also known as The Forum) reading a fascinating biography of Agatha Christie, rich with the information that I need to prepare the background. The biography is by Laura Thompson entitled Agatha Christie: An English Mystery, published in 2007. Foolishly, I'm sure, I was excited by the fact that Ms Thompson is from Newmarket, just down the road from Norwich and I've taken it as a Good Sign. If possible, I need to acquire my own copy of her book which answers so many of the questions about Ms Christie's personal circumstances before, during and after the period she writes about in Come Tell Me How You Live.

As I surmised, her trips to Iraq with Max Mallowan were very special times, although it wasn't because of the archeology. I hadn't realised how bruised she had been by the infidelity of her first husband and the subsequent divorce. According to Ms Thompson, Agatha and Max were not in love, but enjoyed a beneficial relationship which met their individual needs well. I hadn't realised that she was 14 years older than Max and feel great admiration for her. I hope that something similar could happen to me, but then I'm neither famous nor rich. No-one is reading this blog for example, so this all bodes poorly for a final outcome for this project. But faint heart winneth nothing (or something like that).

Reading Ms Christie's circumstances during this period was fascinating and I am convinced that I am meant to follow through with this, somehow. Two main obstacles at the moment - finance and the fact that Iraq is still so unsafe.

One more thing - I was quite right about Murder in Mesopotamia. It transpires that the first victim was based on Katherine Woolley, wife of Leonard Woolley who was running the dig at Ur where Agatha met Max in 1930. Ms Thompson thinks that some of Max's characteristics were given to the character David Emmott in the book. Now I also realise that the strange protagonist, Nurse Amy, who's narrative voice is so different to Ms Christie's other well-spoken characters, is actually a facet of Ms Christie herself. I believe it's a kind of foil to the beautiful and manipulative Louise/Katherine.

Much more to come. I need to read The Hollow and Death in the Clouds next. The Hollow is considered to be one of her best books and Death in the Clouds was written in Beirut en route to Damascus, so may provide another reflection of her mind at that time.