Greece - The Arrival

The second part of the photo series The Journey, from Refugee Story will follow the images of Lebanon and bring you to Greece. The Greek islands are the usual entry point in Europe for refugees after leaving Middle East.
The boat crossing from Turkey to Greece is one of the things that come to our mind when thinking about refugee crisis, especially after the very famous and tragic picture of the little Aylan meeting his fate on the Turkish coast. Of course, these tragic events happen, too often but once again, there is much more than tragedy and despair when arriving on the islands.
Refugees risk their lives and pay exorbitant amounts to cross on these dangerous boats and they do realize that when they land, a new life can start. Most of the time, arrivals of the boats make for scenes of celebration and the tears that you see are joyful.
Troubles are far from over for them though. Even if the crossing of the sea is sometimes the most dangerous part of the journey, the road ahead to reach their final destination is far from easy. Many of them have their hopes readjusted to the hard reality; Europe is not the perfect paradise they were hoping for and the start of the journey on the island is not always easy.
All these images have been taken on the island of Lesvos in Greece where the most important number of refugees arrive. They cover the area of Mytilini including the registration camps of Moria and Kara Tepe and the harbor as well as the Northern part of the island where the town of Molyvos and the camp of Oxy is.

*** VERSION FRANÇAISE ***

Just after arriving on the shores of Lesvos at Eftalou beach, a little refugee girl stares at the sea where she just came from. On a normal day, there can be up to 40 boats arriving, each filled with 50 people on average. 2 000 people a day on this small island is a lot of people to cope with.
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Refugees walking in the hills on Lesvos with Molyvos town and castle in the background. Lesvos is a magnificent place and relies heavily on tourism thanks to all the majestic landscapes. It always makes a sharp contrast to see such difficult human situations in these impressive sights.
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A boat full of refugees arrives from the Turkish coast. A man smiles while taking a selfie before reaching the shore. When everything goes well, refugees are happy to arrive and celebrate accordingly. The journey usually takes two hours and the boats are handled by a refugee which will have received very basic instructions on how to operate it and where to go. The smugglers do not care about well-being of refugees and will often threaten them at gunpoint if refugees refuse to leave when weather conditions are too harsh. It's not unusual to see injured refugees arriving on the island after confrontations with smugglers. Lesvos Island, Greece.
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A young refugee boy jumps off his boat on the shore of Lesvos at Skala Sikamineas while a volunteer helps others. Most arrivals are attended by volunteers that will spot the incoming boats and catch their attention on the shores, indicating where to land. Most refugees get wet in the process while going to the shore or from the water getting inside the boat and they need assistance. It's particularly difficult for older or handicapped people to get off the boat.
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Volunteers and journalists wait for a refugee boat to arrive on the shores of Lesvos. It is important to keep in mind that most boats are received by sufficient people. Dozens of volunteers are there trying to help, sometimes being too many. Photographers and journalists are also very present and often getting in the way of refugees and volunteers trying to help. Proactiva Open Arms, a group of Spanish lifeguards (in red and yellow) are doing an amazing job saving lives on the sea.
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Friends hug and cheer after arriving safely in Lesvos near the beach of Skala Sikamineas. Most arrivals go well and are the occasion for celebrating the beginning of a new life and leaving the dangers of the past life behind. Volunteers (and photographers) are often included in these celebrations and expressions of gratitude.
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Another group attending landings but for less charitable reasons are the engine smugglers. Often working in collaboration with smugglers on the Turkish side, these people rush to the boats and try to get the engine to send it back to Turkey, reducing the cost of the smuggling operation. In most cases, sea water and unsuitable conditions damage the engines and they should not be used ever again. This illegal operation puts refugees in even more danger and many volunteers confront these smugglers and try to prevent them from taking the engines.
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An incoming boat stops meters away from the shores and refugees are bringing it by hand. The engine of this boat which was probably smuggled back in Turkey died about ten meters away from the shore. Luckily for this particular group, they were close enough to manually tow the boat to the beach. It happens sometimes in the middle of the sea where they have to wait for hours in a sinking boat, hoping to be rescued by coast guard.
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A volunteer comforts a man that lost his wife minutes ago when she drowned getting off the boat on the shore of Lesvos. Not all boat arrivals go smoothly and incidents can happen in the panic of arrivals.
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A man carries his daughter in an emergency blanket while calling his family after arriving on the shores of Lesvos on Skala Sikamineas. After celebrating, the first thing refugees usually do on arriving is calling their family and friends back home or on the Turkish side to tell them that they are safe and in Europe. Most refugees have smart phones which are incredibly useful for them; reaching to family, searching for relatives online, looking up information about the road ahead and taking pictures that are not only souvenirs but can prove vital for them. It is important to remember that most refugees are not economic refugees and are thus from the middle class and can afford smart phones. They are not fleeing poverty, they are fleeing war and insecurity.
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Scattered personal items on the shores of Lesvos. Soon after arriving, many refugees get rid of personal items and even ID papers. Many abandoned passports can be found on the island, usually by non-Syrians. It is easier for Syrian refugees to travel and some get rid of their ID to be able to pass as Syrians, saying they lost their papers in the boat.
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A group of refugees walks in the touristic part of Molyvos old town while tourists eat their meals on the terraces. Even if the tourist season is over in Lesvos, some tourists remain and surreal scenes happen where on one side, people are enjoying their holidays while others struggle to survive.
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A group of Greek ladies stand watch on the shores of Lesvos at the Skala Sikamineas beach. They are regular witnesses and do everything they can to help the refugees, giving information and protecting them. It is not unusual to see them arguing strongly with other locals, trying to defend refugees.
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A family waits among the buses at the camp of Oxy near Molyvos. After landing on the shores, refugees are divided between the nearest camps and must wait for a bus to bring them to Mytilini where they can take the ferry to Athens. Big NGOs like UNHCR manage them which means they run on a very eclectic basis. There can be dozens of buses everyday as there can be days without a single one, making it really hard to manage for volunteers and a stressful situation for refugees who do not understand what is happening. On days where there are official visits on the island by high ranked officials such as Greek president or UNHCR high commissioner, buses usually stop completely to make some parts of the island look emptier and well managed, causing chaos elsewhere.
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A girl tries to protect herself from the rain under an emergency blanket in the registration camp of Moria. Before pursuing their journey to Athens, all refugees must register themselves. This can prove to be a hard time as waiting can be anywhere from a couple of hours to more than three days. Situation is always changing in the camp but when this picture was taken, it had been raining for three days and most refugees had barely any shelter from the pouring rain.
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A mother holds her daughter in Moria camp in front of the queue. Even in the pouring rain, refugees had to wait outside to register if they did not want to lose their turn. The conditions in the camp were inadequate for human dignity.
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A young boy carries his little brother in the registration camp of Moria while the rain is falling.
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Two children walk around the transit camp of Karatepe near Mytilini. The conditions in this camp are incredibly better than Moria camp.
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A man waits in the hills next to the shores of Lesvos island where he just arrived.
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Refugees board the ferry ship that will bring them overnight to Piraeus port in Athens. They have to pay the same price as anyone else. This means a very good business for the ferry company as it would otherwise be really quiet out of tourist season.
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