Terrorism in Erbil

Before I came to Kurdistan everyone was really worried about me. Frankly, I was a little worried as well. But then I came here and I met a lot of wonderful people, both expat and local, who helped me get used to it and realize that it's actually a really wonderful place full of opportunities.

Since I've been here, I've started a radio show. I help run (multiple) weekly fundraisers. I am working regularly with a volunteer organization. I have learned bits and phrases of both Arabic and Kurdish. I've learned to like music I never thought I would have. I've eaten sheep testicles and lamb spinal cord, absurd amounts of hummus and falafel. I found out that the Middle East is not just a big desert (it's surprising how many waterfalls I've visited in Kurdistan). I've gotten a really great new job. AND I've fallen in love and am in the beginning stages of planning a wedding. (Bet you didn't see that one coming, but that's a story for another time).

Kurdistan is not a bad place. It's not a perfect place either, but seriously, where is? There are some details missing (ocean, deciduous trees, 24/7 electricity and water) but it's a place with great potential. And it's for just that reason (the one that I'm learning to adore about this place) that there are others less fortunate and more close-minded in the world who hate what Kurdistan represents.

So Sunday when a group of terrorists bombed and attacked the Ministry of Interior and the general police directorate, I was terrified. 

It's only natural, and I suppose that's kind of the point of terrorism, eh?

Luckily, being a former journalist, reporter mode kicked in and I just went into over-drive finding information. I knew about the attack within 15 minutes because my fiance works for a security company. He told me to stay put. I was at work in a neighborhood about 15 minutes from home and probably the same amount of time from the blast site. 

I did as I was told. But given that I now work in an office where I'm all by myself all day, I had too much time on my hands and not enough info. It was then that I remembered how amazing Twitter is when it comes to up-to-the-minute info. Between Twitter and two FB groups specific to Erbil, I had heaps of information some of it more reliable than the rest.

By the time everything was under control again, I probably had as much, if not more, information than the fiance. 

Here's the thing, I've lived here for over a year and this is the only terrorist activity I've seen. This is the first since 2007. America has seen more terrorist activity in that time. 

So I was scared and now most of my family members are terrified again and tell me to get the hell out. It's not happening, at least not at this point. 

I realize I'm not from here, but dammit this is my home. I've settled in here. I live here. My life is here. My future husband is here. My two (gigantic) dogs are here. Would you up and abandon the city you live in because of a (currently thought to be) one-off bombing? Probably not.

So I'm in sit-and-wait mode. I'm under strict instructions (from the fiance) to call him every time I leave the office or go somewhere so he knows where to find me if something were to happen. 

But beyond that, life must go on, because if it doesn't, then the terrorists win.

Syrian Refugees in Kurdistan in Great Need

So there are more than 2 million Syrian refugees in the world. It is estimated that half of them are children. More than 250,000 of those refugees live in camps throughout the Kurdistan region where I live.

I said something awhile back about how some people I know co-founded an organization called the RISE Foundation. They're amazing. It's volunteer-only. Not a penny goes anywhere except for straight to things that are needed for the refugees.

Just yesterday, Dr. Amer (one of the co-founders) bought 800 small stoves which will be distributed to refugee families living in Qushtapa near Erbil.

I've kind of gone head on into fundraising and donation drives. We've got four locations set up throughout the city where people can donate food and daily necessities. We've got two weekly fundraisers. And yesterday I finally managed to set up an online donation system.

We're having another fundraiser come up soon. The local Oktoberfest celebration has a raffle and all proceeds go to RISE. Then we're having a beer pong championship a week later and all the entry fees go to RISE and we're taking donations throughout the night.

Our next goal is $6,000. We want make food packages to give to each of the families living in one of the nearby camps. We figure with the food donations we're getting plus another $10 family, we should be able to give them a pretty good package.

Please share and donate!

Fundraising and Charity Part 2: Find a Organization in Iraq to Support

I almost wish I could afford to quit my job and put all my time and effort into fundraising and finding sponsors and donors for local organizations who need help and support in order to do the outreach they really want to do. The outreach that they're really needed to do.

There are so many great causes in Iraq that could use the extra help. If any of you is ever feeling charitable or especially if you know of a company that would want to make a large donation, let me know. I have multiple organizations to choose from for which I can give you ample information and I can personally put you in touch with the people in charge who I trust and know are doing everything they can for their organizations.

Fundraising and Charity Part 1: Quiz Night and Orphans

It's interesting to me that I neglected to get very involved in my community until I moved to Iraq, but then again, I guess of all the places I've lived, this is the one most sorely in need. 

I did volunteer work here and there back home. And I would always put unwanted clothes in clothing donation boxes rather than simply throwing them out. But those were the easy things. The things that didn't take up much of my time or effort. (Because honestly back then I had very little time or effort to give...)

I'm taking it a little further here though. 

Passing the six-month marker and finally going on vacation!

So I've been living in Kurdistan for nearly seven months now. In the first six months, I hadn't been anywhere outside of Kurdistan and I had only left Erbil a couple of times.

This is highly unusual for me. Especially while I was living in Europe, I was constantly going to another country or at the very least leaving the city. I'm a little limited here. There are only so many places I can travel by car and all of them are in Kurdistan.

I'm surrounded by Iran to the east - somewhere I would have to apply for a visa first, the likelihood of getting one is low, and even if I got one, it's pretty certain officials would give me a lot of shit at the checkpoints.

Syria, to the west, is experiencing a mass exodus and you'd have to be crazy to go there on holiday. Which is a shame because I would love to go to Demascus. Maybe one day... Inshallah.

Iraq to the south is forbidden, a) by my contract with my company, b) by my visa which only allows me in Kurdistan and not the rest of Iraq, c) by my boyfriend who swears the moment it's safe he will take me to Baghdad and Babylon. Seriously want to go to both.

Turkey is to the north and while it's generally safe to go to Turkey, the part of Turkey just north of Iraq does experience a lot of rebel fighting from Turkish Kurds wanting their own state.

So that leaves me with plane travel only. Planes ain't cheap.

However, we managed to get five days off the Newroz, the Kurdish New Year, and while I would normally want to stick around to experience a celebration like that, it's literally the ONLY vacation time I have until my contract ends at the end of August.

So my boyfriend and I went to Beirut. Now yes, I'll be the first to say that things are not perfect in Lebanon either. They have Syria and the rebels bombing each other at the border in the north-east and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is always causing problems in the south.

That said, we were in a safe area. Beirut is fine. Beirut is one of the oldest cities in the world. That said, there's not much by way of touristy stuff to do because the city has also been destroyed and rebuilt eight times. So we pretty much went shopping, eating and walking along the sea.

This was fine by me. I needed the relaxation. And I appreciated that I could go to places with quality customer service and products. Kurdistan isn't the worst place I've ever been for these things, but it's certainly lacking and it wears on you over time.

That and the Mediterranean Sea is gorgeous. Oh and boyfriend had never seen the sea before. After all the only country he's been to outside of Iraq was Syria and that was a few years ago.

So it was a vacation of firsts. His first time seeing the sea. His first time eating sushi and actually liking it (because he had always had terrible sushi before). My first time going on a vacation and not doing historical sight-seeing. My first time vacationing in a Middle Eastern country (because living in one is not the same).

We both loved Beirut and had a great time. I would explain it as a Paris of the Middle East. After French influence from occupation, the people there speak Lebanese-Arabic (which has a distinct French influence) and French. Most also speak English perfectly as well. So it was interesting because signs would be in two of the three but rarely all three. Menus were in all three. I mostly got by on being able to understand written French. (I never studied French, but having studied Spanish and been around lots of people who are obsessed with French *Flannery* it makes it a little easier).

Everyone always greeted my boyfriend in Arabic and me in French. I was constantly being called mademoiselle if I was alone, or madame if I was with him.

Probably the only hitch we experienced was when we first got there. I booked the hotel under my name. A double room, single bed, because that's what normal couples do. We got there and they were like, uhm, you're not married, you're supposed to have separate rooms.

Turns out, if we had both been American, they wouldn't have cared, but because my boyfriend is a Muslim with an Iraqi passport, they wanted to push their ideals on us. I refused to allow it. He told them we were engaged and they relented. (We're not currently engaged.) When we got into our room, he looked at me and said, "We're going to have to get a fake marriage license put together if we want to travel together in the Middle East... at least until we get a real one."

Soooo, now we know. Anyway, I highly recommend Beirut, especially for those wanting a shopping/beach vacation.

On the Radio

I don't know how it happened or when, but I'm becoming a well-known personality around here. 

I started becoming rather involved in fundraising and things (more on this awesomeness later) and then somehow ended up with a once-a-week radio show with a friend. 

It's called the EPIC Power Hour and it's every Thursday at 5 p.m. for one hour. It's a request hour and between songs we tell people about what's going on around Erbil. My co-host, Jeremy, started a Facebook page a couple of years ago that now have nearly 1800 members and we use it to create events, talk local businesses into providing sponsorship, and then keep people interacting. 

Because of this Facebook page, we have essentially got our thumb on the pulse of Erbil. 

People come to us asking us to create events at their restaurants or bars. 

The best part is we've co-opted many of those events to double as fundraisers. (Come to Quiz night. Pay $5 to play; it all goes to the Erbil Orphanage.)

And somehow in all of that, Jeremy managed to get himself on the radio. He did the first few weeks alone but quickly realized it would be a way better show if he had someone to talk to. And somehow I became that person.

People keep telling me that I have the perfect voice for radio and that I sound very natural. Who knew? But hey, I think we all knew I could probably one day make a living out of talking.

That said, right now it's on a volunteer basis and only once a week. We're looking at finding sponsors and once we do we could start getting paid and then consider expanding to more days of the week... Everyday perhaps?

Maybe eventually I'll become quite the radio personality around here.

Anyway, if you every happen to be near the Internet at 5 p.m. Iraqi time, tune into our show which you can find live-streaming here: babylongroup.info/radio/

Only on Babylon FM!

I miss pork.

There are a lot of things that are different about Kurdistan, but probably one of the hardest things for me to get used to, especially after having lived in the Czech Republic, is the severe lack of pork. And by "severe lack of" I really mean "complete non-existence of." 

Pork is "haraam" which basically means it's forbidden by Islamic law to eat pork. 

In Prague, you couldn't walk two feet without smelling some kind of pork. My niece and I spent all summer eating sausages and ham with cheese and bread for picnics in various cities across Europe. I may not have always eaten pork chops but dammit I miss bacon. 

Luckily, I have friends who often leave on R&R. That and I had a visitor from the Czech Republic over Christmas. So I've stocked up a little bit on pork. 

In my freezer you'll find Spanish chorizo and three Czech klobasa. We've already eaten the other three klobasa, and two links of Macedonian sausage that some friends gave us for Christmas. We're also halfway through a chunk of ham I was given (which I loved making mini-frittatas out of). I also have a package of bacon on its way from another friend.

Point is, there have been a lot of things over my years of living abroad that are difficult again. Normally, they're things I can live without or that I don't find particularly difficult to have shipped over (like the gigantic bag of spices my friend, Flannery, just sent me!). 

But pork, man, who was I kidding, I love that stuff. It's also a huge pain in the ass to get shipped over. Not impossible, but considering the mail system here is even less reliable than the one in Czech... oy vey.

The boyfriend and I are heading to Beirut in March for a long-weekend holiday that we have coming up. I'm told I can buy pork there. It's very likely I'm going to bring back half a suitcase full...

Don't take bacon for granted, people.

Christmas in Iraqi Kurdistan

Just before Christmas I received an e-mail from a friend wishing me a Merry Christmas and gently chastising me for not having blogged more since I've been in Iraq. I've just looked back and was surprised to find that I had actually managed to blog no less than five times since I've been here. Honestly, I was surprised. I was certain I hadn't even managed that much.

I had promised to makes some posts over the Christmas break since I would have ample time to sit and do nothing, which I then did not (more on that later). But now that I've been sitting at home with bronchitis for three days and I have the weekend ahead of me during which I do not plan to go out at all, I thought I may as well give it a shot. (In reality, I've already watched everything on TV at least once and I'm a bit over it...).

So I thought what better than to back track a bit and discuss my Christmas in Iraq. 

As you all know, I'm a Thanksgiving person, really, but I don't shun Christmas as long as those celebrating have their heart in the right place. I enjoy the holiday festivities and I'll certainly never turn down an excuse to make a badass meal.

Oh by the way I have a boyfriend...

This year was no different, even despite being in the Middle East. 

In fact, here in Ainkawa, we had the tallest Christmas tree in the Middle East. I bet you weren't expecting that, eh?

The only picture I can find of the Big Tree.

It said "Merry Christmas" in English, Kurdish, Arabic and Assyrian.

It also wasn't the only super tall, out-in-the-open Christmas tree in the area. There were plenty of them.

Much like Eastern Europe, Christians here celebrate their Christmas on Dec. 24th rather than on Christmas Day. However, my friends and I decided to continue to celebrate on our usual Dec. 25th. 

I made desserts and my Jamaican-Floridian flatmate made us a Jamaican-style dinner. 

Then the night turned into the usual party. Honestly, there wasn't much to it. The only reason I'd really call it Christmas was that I had put up decorations (i.e. We had a Christmas tree and some lights strewn up on the balcony...) 

It was a rather modest Christmas tree.

There weren't really any gifts (unless you count the alcohol people brought or the pork I was given, which I certainly do), but it was rather informal as a Christmas among friends tends to be. Still, it helped take the sting out of what could have been a really sad, lonely, boring day without my family around.

A Piece of Rural Iraq

When I was heading over here a lot of people kept telling me they thought I was crazy. While most of those people were talking about the cultural differences I would experience, a few thought I was nutters because they assumed I was moving to the middle of the desert and would probably mark my address in relation to which sand dunes I was stuck between.

Fact: Not all of Iraq is a desert. In fact, there are mountainous highlands, valleys, marshes, and grasslands in addition to the desert which lies in the southwest part of the country.

I was lucky enough to be invited to a friend's family home in a small village in the mountains near the Turkish border. We all know how much I love villages.

This is a man's world... and other observations.

I've been in Iraq just over a month and I have to tell you, it's nothing like I thought it would be.

All of those assumptions you or I or pretty much any Westerner has made about living in the Middle East, most of them are complete crap fed by the media (sometimes the mass journalist media, but also movies, etc.)

There are only a few ideas I had about Iraq before I got here that are left standing:

1. This is a man's world. That said, Kurdistan is fairly progressive. Women can be doctors and vote and drive and take care of their bodies in the way that they see fit. Also, in the event of a marriage, apparently any and all things in the bedroom belong to the woman. Keep that in mind guys. However, women are sometimes treated like second-class citizens. There are still rather rigid gender lines, especially among the older generations. I can actually see a clear distinction of this when talking to my older and younger students. The thoughts surrounding gender are definitely changing and you can see it happening.

Safety and Security in Kurdistan

There are a million and one things I could blog about already and I've not even been here two weeks. From food adventures to taxi rides my first few days in Iraq have certainly been interesting. Alas, I don't want to give away everything all at once, so I'm going to just pick a topic and stick with it.

I know one the the major concerns of my family and friends when I told them I would be moving here was my safety living in Iraqi Kurdistan. That's part of the reason I simply said Kurdistan in the beginning. "I'm moving to Kurdistan" doesn't quite have the same jarring effect as "I'm moving to Iraq." But of course that's with good reason. That said, this is still Iraq even if it is an autonomous region of it.

However, I am safe. Honestly, I'm very safe.

There are two security guards outside my villa at all times. I use the same taxi driver to and from work every day and I believe he has been told he must call or text our reception whenever I get in the car with him. He seems trustworthy enough, but I think they just want to know whenever I leave my workplace so they know how long it should take before I get back. This way, if for some reason I don't turn up, they are on it.

Seriously, I am pretty sure someone always knows where I am. I don't really think anyone is keeping strict tabs on me, but it sort of seems that way.

Thursday is the new Friday

It's Friday! Well, actually it's Thursday, but here Thursday is Friday and Sunday is Monday. It's really tough to keep straight right now and I keep telling me students we'll start something new on Monday, but I mean Sunday.

Anyway, my first two days of teaching are down. I really like my new students and I'm excited. They're in an archaeological program for the conservation of heritage and antiquities. In other words, they're learning to preserve artifacts that are found in their regions, especially those that would preserve Iraqi or Kurdish history. It's a pretty interesting program and since it was originally funded by the U.S. Embassy (and now the University of Delaware) the students are also required to make an effort to improve their English. 

I've moved to Iraq.

I know. Not exactly where I or anyone probably thought I'd be. 

I left Prague Saturday night in full tears. (I'll be writing a post with a proper goodbye to Prague later.) Unfortunately, my flight left an hour late so I missed my connection in Istanbul. Fortunately for me, that means I got to spend a day in Istanbul courtesy of Turkish Airlines. More on that in another post.

I finally arrived in Erbil (also known as Arbil or Hawler) at about 3 a.m. on Monday morning. My boss met me at the airport and helped me get my 40 kilos of luggage (for which I did not pay an extra cent because of a really amazing friend) up to my room in the female teachers villa. I was already exhausted but I was too wired to sleep. So I was up until 6 a.m. and then proceeded to sleep on and off the rest of the day until about 1 p.m. when I decided to get up, get dressed and go across the street to the office.

Problem: I had no water. I couldn't flush the toilet or use my shower upstairs. Downstairs there was the tiniest bit of water so I was able to wash my hands and face and brush my teeth. Great first morning, eh?

Seventy Miles in Rome

So at the beginning of summer, in July, I met my sister, her husband and her kid in Rome. This was the beginning of what would be basically two months of travel for me and her kid, Madi. What better place to start than Rome?

Back Entry: The City of Lights

Remember that time I went to Paris with one of my very best friends from university? Oh, you don't? That's probably because I never actually posted anything about it here. Whoops.

So for the sake of catching up, here is a not-so quick version of our four (ish) days in Paris. (Warning, this is the LONGEST POST EVER!)

First of all, we took a stupidly early flight. As in, Flannery arrived in Prague on Friday night and then we turned around and got on a plane that left before 7 a.m. on Saturday morning. However, arriving in Paris (not so bright eyed and bushy tailed) early in the morning, was great. It gave us a little sense of what we were getting into. 

It took us like 30 minutes to figure out where to buy tickets for the train and then where the train was to get into the city from Charles de Gaulle airport, but we managed. Then the train proceeded to get hella crowded. (We found out on the trip back to the airport that this is just a thing. This train is always crowded. Get a seat while you can.)

We were honestly super excited about the hostel we were staying in. It's website is super stylish. They have an active Facebook page (as any good hostel should) and breakfast is included. (!!!!!) Add in that it's literally a three minute walk from the base of the hill below the Sacre-Coeur and it was pretty much gold. 

So naturally we made it to our hostel and took a nap. (It was now like 11 a.m. and we got up at like 4:30 a.m. after spending most of the night catching up on girl talk. It was a much deserved nap.)

I (Still) Hate Moving

I started out rather ambitious this week, but of course that ambition has dwindled as the days go by.

Here's the thing, I haven't got any work this week. I've got absolutely no where I have to be. At all. This leads to a lot of sheer laziness.

I have been getting out of the house a bit and running errands. Buying this or that for my upcoming trip. Deciding not to buy stuff because it's more trouble than it's worth.

On Monday, I was totally ready to make this a productive week. I started out by going through every piece of clothing I own. I managed to fill up to small trash bag with clothing I'll donate (or let my friends rummage through) and then another bag with clothes I will just trash. No one needs a pair of jeans with holes in them.

But here I am with a huge box still full of clothing, my carry-on bag full of clothes which I think I might want to take on holiday but realize I'll have to minimize before I actually finish packing plus a bunch of other clothes.

I Talk Funny

Now that I've been living abroad for three years, I've picked up some oddities in my language. Some of it's pronunciation but most of it is vocabulary and some is even grammar.


When you're an English teacher, you tend to simplify your language as much as possible and also really enunciate. Now, believe me, I still talk hella fast when I'm not talking to students (or to higher-level students), and I do not enunciate if it's not necessary. I'm from the South.


That said, I never truly sounded like a Texan. Sure, there are moments when I'm drunk or talking to my mother (and certainly when those two things occur simultaneously) that I sound like a true Texan. And yes, I've always said "Y'all."


It's a really convenient word. So gender neutral and all encompassing.


Anyway, over the years, and particularly while I've been living in Europe, some slight differences have slipped their way into my every day conversations. Some of my friends tell me that I sound more "European." I have no idea what that means since 90% of Europeans are not native English speakers.


So below is a list that might help you decipher what the hell I'm talking about next time we have a conversation.


flat - What the British and most Europeans use to refer to their apartment. I currently live in a 5-bedroom flat with 4 other people, among them a British guy.


flatmates - After referring to said British guy as my roommate he hastily corrected me and clarified that we're merely flatmates. I was confused. Apparently in these parts those are different things. To me, this is like saying apartment-mates and seems unnecessarily convoluted. However, I now comply so as not to confuse. God forbid anyone think I share my bedroom with someone.


have/has... got - In America we would say, "Do you have a pencil?"  or "I don't have any change on me." Now all of a sudden I find myself asking, "Have you got a pencil?" and saying things like, "Oh, I haven't got any change on me." This is what happens when you teach a British English curriculum.


football - This is probably the most difficult for me to admit to. Nowadays, I find myself saying football when I actually mean soccer and clarifying with 'American football' when I'm talking about a sport I actually care about. The Texan spirit inside of me feels like this guy:

See Me in Action

If you've ever wondered what I do all day, well, today is your lucky day.

I've decided I'm willing to bear the embarrassment for your entertainment information.

Check out this ridiculous video I made as in invitation to our summer camps.

Drinking in Public

So when I first moved to the Czech Republic two years ago to do my TEFL course, I remember being really surprised that you could drink in public.


You can walk into a corner store, buy a beer, ask them to open it for you, and then walk out the door drinking it. Walking down the street with a beer in hand, no problem. Chilling out at the park with a beer in hand, no problem. Walking between bars with a beer in hand, no problem! This is pretty much how Europe in general operates. Drinking just isn't seen as a major vice or issue. Do what you want.

- photo jacked from The Rudy Report

Coming Up: Sept. 1, 2012 - A New Location

I was re-reading some of my very first blog posts last night.

The ones in May 2009 when I was merely anticipating my move to Taiwan and talking about all the mixed feelings I had.

The one in early June when I actually got on a plane to leave Austin and bawled my eyes out.

The one recapping my very first day in Taiwan on June 11, 2009, when I was a) exhausted from 12.5 hours of flight and b) completely and totally overwhelmed and in shock at how different everything was and c) completely in awe and ready to persevere.

It's amazing how, three years later, things have changed so much and yet so little.