The Syrian woman hastily woke her children, stuffed their belongings into plastic bags, and took them out into the cold to wait — worried about what was coming next after weeks of heartbreak being shunted from one squalid refugee center to another. The journey took them across the Mediterranean in an overcrowded dinghy to Greece, on a grueling trek north across the Balkans with hundreds of thousands of other migrants, and finally a last leg in a trafficker's minibus to the promised land of Germany's capital. The Habashiehs are among an unprecedented wave of asylum seekers — 800,000 so far with an expectation of 1 million by year's end — who have come to this rich country seeking a fresh start. Cities and towns across Germany are struggling to keep up with the massive demand for accommodation, and officials have been working overtime to handle the huge backlogs of asylum applications. Since their initial arrival in Germany, the Habashiehs have been put up in four temporary housing facilities throughout eastern Germany. The Paris attacks now raise fears of a backlash against Syrian migrants, even though, Reem said, she and other refugees thought of the perpetrators as "sick terrorists using their fake Islam as cover." The best news of all was that the two youngest kids would be able to start school, while Khawla Kareem, Reem and Mohammed would enroll in a daily intensive language class at the city's community college. With their new monthly living allowance of around 1,000 euros (1,100 dollars) they stocked up on the food they'd been missing for so long: zaatar spice mix from Aleppo, dried jute leaves for Mloukhieh stew, as well as sweet dates, stuffed eggplants and halal meat. [...] the family sat around the table to share a meal of tabouleh salad, yoghurt with cucumber, garlic and mint as well as a big bowl of rice mixed with minced beef and peas, followed by tea, fruit, Arabic coffee and cake.
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