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.