Congratulations to Steve Tunnicliffe (Ry 85-90), who has recently published a biography about his childhood, Somalia: The Land of Camel Milk and Honey.
The book contains reflections and recollections of Steve’s adolescent childhood years that he spent with his family in Somalia in the early 1980s, when his father was Cultural Attaché at the British Embassy at Mogadishu.
Steve succeeds in revealing a different aspect of a country – its traditions, customs and wild beauty – which has only been in the news for war and destruction over the last thirty years. In one section of the book, he writes: “The coastline south of Jazeerah Beach to Merka is a breathtaking sight to behold. Picture secluded bays unfurling one after the other along a ribbon of soft white sand that stretches as far as the eye can see. In places like the Maldives or Seychelles, this coastal beauty would be prime real estate, ripe for commercial exploitation. However, here in Somalia, it remains untouched, a pristine meeting point between land and sea.”
He also writes about Villa Somalia, overlooking the city of Mogadishu, which was inaugurated in 1936 when it served as home to the Italian governors. The villa became the official residence of the President of Somalia and Steve remembers visiting it to have a private audience with HRH Anne, Princess Royal, who stayed there before visiting a Save the Children facility.
Through sales of the book, Steve is raising funds for UNICEF’s East Africa Campaign to help families and children in East Africa.