She thinks back to when she was a 16-year-old Syrian girl in a whole new country, with a new language and a foreign culture.
Had lost everything
Ten years have passed since Lilas Alzaeim came to Norway as a Syrian refugee with his family. She has now completed her medical education and will marry Ivar Christiansen from Nordstrand.
– MATCH: Lilas Alzaeim and Ivar Christiansen met on the first day of medical school. Photo: Per Haugen / TV 2
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– Had you imagined that life would be like this?
– No. When I came to Norway, life was pretty tough. I had lost all my friends and family who meant a lot. Then it was so tough that I had to take one day at a time.
Lilas’ only wish was to return to Syria and help those left in the war. But the 16-year-old did not have much to choose from.
She thus rolled up her sleeves and started the school work.
Brilliant at school
Three years after she came to Norway, Lila’s kav spoke the “siddis” dialect, and had 15 sixes on the diploma.
She applied to study medicine at the University of Oslo.
– I really wanted to go back and help people who needed it. Working for MSF has always been a dream for me, she says.
Now, ten years after she set foot on Norwegian soil, she is a doctor.
Helps patients every day
This summer she is relieving a major crisis in this country. As a GP substitute at Lørenlegene in Oslo, it is enough to hang your fingers in, enough people to help.
– CERTIFICATE: In June, Lila received the diploma she has worked for for six years. Photo: Private
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When TV 2 comes to visit, she has just finished her third shift. 15 patients have visited this shift.
The 26-year-old shows us the room she likes best. There are medicines, needles and scalps.
– I like to cut best, she says and laughs.
– Then you fix a problem there and then. It feels very good.
Felt she had worse cards
– DOCTORS: After six years of study, both have now completed their training as doctors. Photo: Private
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But it was not a given that she would complete her medical education after only a few years in Norway.
Lilas is aware that she has presented completely different cards than the typical medical student.
– I did not have much work experience that many other young people in Norway have. They have often worked in Dad’s doctor’s office or Mom’s hospital. I had nothing. In addition, everyone knew the language better than me.
Lilas felt she was thin.
– Must want it myself
Nevertheless, she now has one of Norway’s most prestigious educations, an apartment in Oslo and her fiancé Ivar, whom she met during her studies.
– What do you think is the key to good integration?
– You must want it yourself, be open and curious about the new society you have come to. One can not just say that “the Norwegian people are cold and they do not take much initiative”. Have you done it yourself?
But cultural crashes, she believes one must be prepared for.
– It is quite natural and understandable. Not because people dislike you or have something against your culture, but because it is new and everything that is new can be foreign, she says.
– Tough start: Lilas thinks the start of his medical studies was tough, but was determined to complete. Here she had a summer job at the ambulance station in Sandefjord. Photo: Private
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Met the first day of school
Lilas and her fiancé Ivar met on the tram on their way to the first day of medical school. He was the one who took the initiative.
Ivar tells TV 2 that as the tram emptied, and they moved up towards Rikshospitalet, he assumed that Lilas also had to be a medical student. Then he took courage and went to the stranger.
But the fiancé does not completely agree with the presentation.
– No, you recognized me! interrupts Lilas.
– Yes, okay then, I had seen her in the media before. I tried not to give so much of an impression of it, tried to “play it cool”. Then it went smoothly from there, says Ivar.
– I cooked Syrian food for him after a week, and then it was done! adds Lilas.
– Look at it as an enrichment
For six years they have studied together. Ivar is impressed with how Lilas has worked to succeed in a new country.
– I think it is very fascinating, everything she has been through. She has taken all the challenges she has faced head on. She has done better than most people can expect, better than I can expect, says Ivar.
Now Lilas has soon lived as long in Norway as in Syria. She is told that she “has become so Norwegian”. But it is important for her to also retain her Syrian identity.
– I am both, I am neither one nor the other. The important thing is that I see it as an enrichment, and not as if I have lost myself or my culture, she says.
Afraid to go home
The couple will now get married in August. But even though they will soon be married, Ivar has not seen the country Lilas comes from. She has not been to Syria since leaving the country in 2010 herself.
– I have really wanted to show who I am and where I am from, as he does when he drives me to Nordstrand. I think it’s a little cooler to go to Syria, but it’s not quite safe yet, so I’m been a little scared, to be honest. I am afraid of the consequences of that, says Lilas and adds that it is probably safer on Nordstrand.
– What consequences can it have?
– I am both a Syrian and a Norwegian citizen. I can never relinquish Syrian citizenship, fortunately. But then Norway can not do so much for me when I am down there, says Lilas.
– AFRAID: The couple would like to go to Syria together, but are afraid that Lilas will be refused to return to Norway again. Photo: Per Haugen / TV 2
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Lilas explains that there are several examples of people who have traveled to Syria and not been allowed to return home.
– I am very afraid of not being allowed to return to Norway. Not to come home to friends, family and people I have become very fond of. To lose the freedom I have in Norway which is something I value very highly, says Lilas.
Ivar is clearly touched when she talks about this fear.
– It’s sad, because I really want to go there and meet family members, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews, and taste Syrian candy that Lilas talks so much about, says Ivar.
Arabic and Norwegian in a blissful mix
– TOGETHER: Lilas and Ivar have been a great support for each other through six demanding years of study. Photo: Private
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Even though everyday life goes well together, they notice the cultural differences well when they talk about weddings. It’s not long until the big day, but they can not completely agree on the style. This is a topic that is discussed every day.
– I want a 100 percent Syrian wedding with lots of music and dancing, but Ivar wants to sit at the table, enjoy himself and talk to family and friends. So we disagree a bit, but we just have to find a place between the two, I think, says Lilas.
– Who usually gets his will then?
– Lilas! But we must try to meet somewhere in the middle. We will probably try to get Arabic and Norwegian in a good happy mix, says Ivar.
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