Kurdistan, Day 3

Day 3 we head out for the city of Sulymaniya, stopping along the way to walk through the bustling bazaar in Koya.

Men with weather-beaten faces sit playing backgammon, turbans snugly around their heads.

In an old caravanseri, a resting-place for travelers, we  explore the crumbling stone rooms.

Shopkeepers do brisk business in the days befere the holiday celebrations.

As we drive away we see an incredibly long line of white trucks waiting at the government-subsidized gas station, while practically across the street a private (and therefore more expensive) station sits empty.

In Sulymaniya, we are granted special admission to the museum, home of many beautiful and ancient artifacts from the cradle of civilization.

After lunch at the 'social club' we take a walk to the sobering Red House where Saddam tortured thousands of Kurds. In the basement, bathed in the glow of deep red lights, we see shocking images from the gas attacks on the city of Halabja.

 Outside, tanks and anti-aircraft guns gleam silently in the afternoon sunshine. Inside, a glittering cave serves as a memorial for those killed in various acts of violence.

The bazaar is jam-packed with shoppers buying everything from clothes to pots and pans to fruits, veggies, herbs, and some very fresh lamb. Much larger than the bazaar in Koya, this is a huge conglomeration of covered walkways and crowded streets that have been closed to traffic. We tail Balin slowly, trying to soak it all in without getting lost.  I've been to quite a few bazaars like this one, but they never fail to fascinate, perhaps because it gives us visitors a glimpse into the everyday life of the people. 

Day 4 was for exploring Erbil. 

 We started out the morning in the quiet citadel, exploring the hammam (public bath), as well as some gorgeous yet rather dilapidated houses that were for the citadel's more wealthy residents.

 We ventured down into yet another crazy bazaar before heading off for lunch....

 ....making the obligatory sign stop on the way, of course!

 We had lunch in a small enclave of western-ness, where we enjoyed pizza and met the owner of the tour company, an American who came to Iraq with the army years ago and has been there ever since. It was bizarre to sip my beer, overlook an empty go-kart track, talk politics and tourism, and even see some blackhawk helicopters fly over the city. We returned the next day out of boredom as we waited for our flight, where Kathy, Evelyn and I were the only women driving GoKarts as the sun sank over Kurdistan...

Meanwhile, as the sun was sinking on our last day with Balin, we drove out of Erbil, down a twisting road through delightful hills, to Saladin Castle... or what's left of it.

Built along a ridge with a clear view of the surroundings valleys, the castle wasn't very big but was at an advantageous lookout point. There is also the remains of a cemetery that contains some ancient gravestones, some with Cunieform writing. 

 Here we had a chance to watch the sun sink and contemplate our journey.....

Kurdistan... day 2

 Day 2 we headed the opposite direction, and soon after leaving Erbil we stopped for one of my favorite travel experiences, especially in the middle east: the road-side snack stop! Piles of nuts, dried fruit and sweets took center stage, while the processed crap stayed in the back (I was un-amazed at the presence of Pringles. We have decided they can be found anywhere in the world. Perhaps this is because of their cleverly designed container that protects against chip breakage. I digress....).  One unique product they had here was fruit leather: made-with-real-fruit,  sweetener-free, dried-in-the-sun fruit leather. Tart and delicious!  Sweet and sticky turkish delight, colorful piles of marshmallow sweets, wonderful nut-and-nougat concoctions.... mmmm.....

Occasional groves of golden aspens gave me that much longed-for sense of autumn, and I could almost smell the crisp scent of a Minnesota September day.....


Heading towards (but staying far away from!) the border with Iran, we entered into some stark and stunning scenery.  Rocky hills led us into a deep and shady gorge complete with waterfalls and rivers.

We stopped at the Gali Ali Beg waterfall,  which is pictured on the 5000 Dinar note, where we passed under rusty awnings while some guys played pool, clearly bored in the off-season, with no-one paying to take the inflatable rowboats close to the falls. In the spring and summer, however, this place is apparently alive with families visiting and picnicking away from the heat, renting out the gazebos that line the river.

The road along the river has been remade, widened, and repaved, but the original road along this river, the Hamilton Road, was a feat of engineering designed to connect Iraq and Iran through the mountains. We wound our way up to the town of Rawanduz and into the only resort in Kurdistan, Pank.

Pank provided one of those wonderfully and bizarrely random experiences that make one go "I can't believe I'm here"..... at a deserted Kurdistan resort on a mountainside with canyon views, Iran (a difficult country for those with a US passport) right over the mountains,  still and silent amusement park rides gleaming in the sunshine, a restaurant staff serving only us, a personal roller-coaster/alpine slide thrill in the fresh air.... .

.....and our tour guide, Balin, telling us his story. How he decided to escape his war-torn home, over mountains, through rivers and oceans, facing hunger and thirst and obstacles and border patrols, being sent back a stage time and time again in a game of "Chutes and Ladders" with way more than bragging rights at stake.

Descending, we encountered a herd of sheep and more breathtaking views. 

We stopped in the town of Shaqlawa, where we wandered through the bustling bazaar, full of residents preparing for the upcoming Eid celebrations. We also made a stop to buy some of the local wine... which was terrible. 

Locally brewed and sold in a recycled vodka bottle, we should have known.... but now we really do know. Don't buy wine from Kurdistan. 

Kurdistan... the Other Iraq

It’s always exciting to travel, and even more so when it’s to a place that few people venture to.

Iraqi Kurdistan is an autonomous region in the northern part of Iraq with their own culture and government, the KRG, centered in Erbil, the town we stayed in.  Understandably, they don't get many tourists there, but I felt completely safe the entire time, and the people we encountered made us feel welcome.

We flew into Kurdistan’s small but beautiful new terminal and entered the country with no problems – first stamp in my brand new passport! 

A sunny, beautifully cool morning welcomed us to our first day of Kurdistan road-tripping. Our tour guide, Balin, was a Kurd who lived in London for 8 years before returning to his homeland… more on that later! 

A rather barren landscape surrounded us this first day, low hills of winterized wheat fields and rocks in many shades of tan and brown contrasting with the cloudless and brilliant blue sky.  First stop, St. Matthews Monastery, a still-active monastery with a beautiful view and peaceful, blissful silence.  The head monk, wearing his traditional garb, told us about the monastery, a haven for persecuted Christians in the past.  He himself came to St. Matthews after his brother was killed during violence in a nearby town.

 

Stop #2 was just an empty field, but more than 2000 years ago it was the scene of an epic battle between Alexander the Great and Darius the King of Persia, where Alexander overcame great odds and Darius ran away…. as more recently portrayed in the movie Alexander. Soccer-playing boys, amused by the white people staring at a field, followed us around, giggling and posing for pictures.

And in the middle of another random field we find… an aqueduct. Complete with Cuneiform carvings.  The nearby flock of sheep seemed less impressed than we were.  

Our next monastery stop was the much more ancient, but just as blissfully quiet, St. Hormizd monastery. We explored the cave system that was the original home of the monks and Christian refugees.

Our final stop was an amazing village called Lalish, built into a cool shaded valley.  Barefoot beauties and wizened men moved everywhere as we walked into a dust storm, turbaned heads bent over twig brooms, sweeping the temple courtyard. Men, women and children are all taking part in the cleaning of the village. Stepping over the threshold, we entered the Yezidi temple, one of the most important for this small religious sect.

Swaths of brightly colored silk decorate the main room, and as the power flickers and dies we follow the flashlight deeper into the temple, our bare feet walking the same cool stone as countless pilgrims before us, past the tomb of a saint, into a room lined with jars upon jars of the fragrant olive oil used to light the lamps.

The sound of sweeping ushered us from the village as the sun set. It was so utterly amazing to walk in this little enclave of tradition.

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More to come!

Guilty

It's been a long time...

and I've recently been reminded that I'm a slacker.

Amy Leah managed to blog while ON THE ROAD in Africa, and I didn't manage a single post after our return, even from the comfort of my air-conditioned couch, waiting to be called for the dinner cooked by my mommy.

Time to backtrack a bit.

To last May.

When I took a weekend jaunt to Lebanon. Where I enjoyed the sparking Mediterranean, rode a cable car to the heights of Harissa

Explored the alleyways of Byblos after some delicious seafood

Visited the spectacular ruins of Baalbeck

Lunched at the lovely Ksara winery

Wandered down Gemayze street.... and saw Anthony Bourdain.
He smiled in our general direction.

It was definitely an amazing weekend...

So much history, such a lively place with wonderfully friendly people!