Early morning hike

A few weeks ago I had a chance to go on an early morning hike up one of the mountains that surrounds the city.   I just discovered how to post pictures 

on my blog (just in time for me to leave Kurdistan)!  So I thought I would post some of these pics.   This was a fun morning.  In the pictures are Dr. Anwer who is head of the Law Department at the University, Azad, who is a trainer (he is the one that I went to a kickboxing championship with for those who are on facebook) and Jalal (another professor at the university).  After we hiked I went to a swimming pool with Dr. Anwer and Azad.   

These are 2 people I've actually have be playing soccer with regularly.   They say I'm rocket fast.  Hope you enjoy the photos!

Bath house

Wow, I realized how long it has been since I wrote anything here.  I had several cultural experiences this morning so I thought it would be a good excuse to update my blog.  

This morning a couple of my friends asked by to join them at 6 AM for a run at a nearby park.  This was so refreshing for me to get out and run.  We were going to go swimming after the run but the pool was closed so we went to a old Kurdish bath house instead.  This was quite an experience.  We went into the first room where we left our belongings.  As I enter the next room I was hit by a burst of heat.  I felt like I was entering a sauna.  Here each person was given a stool to sit on and had a sink with a hot water and cold water spigot and a bowl to dump water on oneself.  They had what looked like horse brushes to wash yourself and even had someone walking around to help scrub your back.  I noticed that this wasn’t something done quickly.  It wasn’t somewhere you just went in and out.  No,  this was a social time.  You might spend an hour or more in this whole experience.  Then when we were done we went back to the first room and just let ourself air dry in the cooler air.

After this long bathing experience we walked around the market and had a typical Kurdish breakfast of plain yogurt and bread and topped it off with mastow (watered down yogurt), and of course a couple of glasses of Kurdish tea.  We also stopped by what looked like a game hall. This hall was filled with smoke and men playing traditional games like dominoes.  We also eat some Kurdish desserts and a Kurdish drink (which I simply cannot remember the name), and of course I experienced all of these things without paying a cent.  Kurdish people simply refuse to let me pay for anything.

So that was my experience today.  Some of my days have been quite busy.  I haven’t left the city much but when I’m not teaching I am often doing something with friends I have made here whether it by playing soccer, going to the gym, walking around the park, or just watching the crazy chaos on the streets at night because of the upcoming elections.  It is during these times just being with the people here that I am sad about leaving.

I now have about 4 weeks left before I leave. We have 2 weeks of teaching the students and the last 2 weeks we are free. I want to soak in as much of this culture as I can in these final days. I’m not sure what is the next step in my life and when I will be able to return to this area, if at all.  I really do hope that in 4 weeks I will not be saying, “goodbye” to Kurdistan but simply, “see you later,” and hopefully sooner rather than later.

Newroz

I am realizing that keeping up with my blog is harder than I originally expected it to be.  It has been over a month since my last post.  Since my last post we had about a 3 week break from teaching because of the Kurdish New Year they call Newroz which is celebrated on March 21.  We got to experience much of the festivities including walking (and dancing) on Salim Street, which they close down to car traffic the night before Newroz, and going on the a couple of picnics in the mountains which is typical over Newroz.  Unfortunately I am still having trouble posting pictures on my blog although I do have some good ones posted on my facebook page (or have been tagged on them) which show many of our adventures.
Also over my break I walked over to a local soccer court several times and either kicked a soccer ball around with Kurdish players or played in actually games.  They have been quick to welcome me into their games.  This has been a lot of fun for me because I could both get a little exercise and I have been able to try to communicate with them with limited Kurdish.  I also had a few days trying to rest out some stomach problems which is to expected for the first few months living in a new culture.
Now it’s back to teaching.  I have been back for about a week now.  I was a bit surprised to find that part of me was looking forward to getting back into teaching.  I think it is because I know that I am here to teach.  I like having purpose for being somewhere and teaching (or building relationships with my students) gives me purpose for being here.  I even picked up a new class this week made up mostly of teachers and Deans at the school.  I taught one class with them and really enjoyed it.  They are a lot of fun to work with.  I was a bit intimidated at first since I never taught students who were older than me but they seemed to enjoy the class.   So, I guess I am now a professor to professors.
Thank you all for reading this and for being interested in what is going on in my life. I am truly blessed to have so many people supporting me and my life in Iraq.

Professor

I have now completed about 2 weeks of teaching at the University of Suli. The teaching itself has gone well but working out the schedule has been far from smooth. I still have one class that hasn't met yet and another that I've had to cancel because the classroom I was teaching in was taken over by another class. I also have another class that has just been redivided for me and another teacher because we were teaching all different language levels. I also just found out we may be starting some classes with graduate students and we are having new students we want to join the program everyday. Hopefully we will have a set schedule soon! So far the students have been extremely friendly and I have observed an enormous desire to learn English. I have especially enjoyed working with my intermediate students as they are at a higher enough level to have conversations in class and to participate in classroom activities.
On my days off I have had a chance to go to one of the mountains around Suli and even explore a cave. I woke up yesterday and saw snow up in the mountains and had a chance today to go up until the snow with my roommates.
Unfortunately I have been unable to post any pictures since I have been here mostly because of weak internet connections. I will post some as soon as I find a way to do it.

Heroes?

So, I have been in Suli for over a week now.  Probably the biggest surprise so far is the perception that people have of Americans.  We 5 teachers have met with some important people so far including the president of the University and the head of the student government organization.  The message that they give us is always the same.  They tell us how the Kurdish people love Americans.  That they regard us as heroes.  They talk about how great Bush is and because of Americans they have been liberated from Saddam Hussein.  

I have found that it is true that Americans are liked here.  The other day I took a taxi back to my house from the grocery store with a co-teacher.  After using limited Kurdish and hand motions we arrived at the house.  The taxi driver refused to let us pay him.  I had to insisted 3 times before he let us pay.  I have heard from another American that sometimes taxi drivers will not let you pay no matter how much you insist.

This is such a different message than we hear in the States.  Even though I’m sure we would hear a different thing in other areas of Iraq.  It is very interesting to get a different perspective.

As far as teaching,  we performed a written and oral exam for about 500 students.  We will divide the students into sections the next day or two and start teaching on Saturday.   The university itself is very nice.  I hope to send pictures soon as I should have an internet connection at home within the next week or so. 

Oh, Monday, Monday

  Well,  it looks like the waiting will soon be over.  Yesterday afternoon I got word that my airline tickets have been bought and the dates have been set for my time in Iraq.  I will be flying out of Harrisburg International Airport in one week on Monday February 9.  I will be traveling with Janine Leaman (who is from Lancaster and will also be on the team of teachers teaching in Sulaimaniyah).

  I also found last week that the project will still last for a full 6 months.  This means that instead of teaching until the end of June we will be teaching until the first week of August.  The semester ends for the students at the university at the end of June so they will need to take time into their vacation in order to finish the English course we will be teaching.   Janine and I decided to take another 3 days or so to spend in Istanbul, Turkey for a short vacation after we are done teaching in early August.   This leaves us with a return date of August 9.  Exactly 6 months after leaving. 

  So, yesterday I was very excited that my waiting is finally over.  Well... I guess things don't always go as we plan since I ended up having to wait once again but this time in the local Emergency Room.  

  A local church opens its gym on Monday nights to the community for a indoor soccer pickup games.  I was having a great night.  I had great control of the ball and our team was winning almost every game.  Then it happened... the soccer ball floating in the air waiting for my head to push it into the goal.  Unfortunately, my teammate had the same revelation.   I did get a head on the ball and I did score but also got a deep and long cut right above my left eyebrow from smacking heads with my teammate.  About 3 hours later I was finally getting it stitched up with about 18 stitches and was sent home to finally have my well deserved shower and meal.

  During the night I got up around 1:30 since I could not sleep and realized that my eye was very swollen.  This made me a little nervous so walked over to the ER (fortunately it is only a block and a half away).  They tight wrapped the wound to keep pressure on it.  This did keep the swelling down but it did not allow me to sleep much at all.

  Here I am the morning after.  The swelling in my eye is now down to a slight amount and I feel a little tired but good.  I look like I was in a boxing match since my eye has turned black and blue.  But the waiting is almost over.  The stitches come out this weekend and I will soon be in Iraq.  Oh, what a Monday.  

Waiting, waiting, waiting

  Well, I'm about to venture on a new endeavor... blogging.   I don't consider myself much of a writer, however, if I am ever going to start a blog now is the time to do it.  I keep running into people that say they have heard through the grapevine that I'm about to leave on another adventure.  It is true,  I am going to Iraq.

  I just got word today that I should be leaving in the first few days in February. It is nice to have a better idea in when I will be leaving although it can be quite difficult to wait.  I originally thought that I would be leaving early to mid January.  I delay was nice at first for it allowed me to get more organized, see friends, and tie up other loose ends.  Now,  I think I am getting anxious to leave.  For those of you that don't know what I am doing I will explain...

  About a month ago I accepted a job to teach English in a Kurdish area of Northern Iraq in the town of Sulaimaniyah.  I will be on a team of 5 teachers who will be teaching at a local university until the end of the semester which runs until the end of June or early July.  I am going through a NGO called Millennium Relief & Development Services (MRDS).  They have received a US grant to send teachers to this University to teach English to the students.  Apparently, these students have some materials in English since materials in Kurdish are limited.  Thus, learning English or improving English is very important in their studies.  

  Now I'm left waiting.  I'm waiting for this USAID money to actually come through.  When it does it sounds like they are going provided nicely for us.  My living arrangement is already set up as I will be living with a guy from Columbia who is working with a team already there.  Also, the flight cost and the visa will be taken care of by MRDS.  I will be given a stipend to live on and will be paid for my time there.

 From what it sounds like, there has already been good relationships established in this area of Iraq because of MRDS.  A woman's center was build there about a year ago.  They have already given classes teaching several things including crafts, sewing, computers and English. 

  I am very excited about this opportunity as I am sure I will learn a lot in the next half year, that is as soon as the waiting is over.  But for now,  that is where I am at.  Just waiting.