Homeward bound

And speaking of airports, I arrived at Erbil International Airport this afternoon to catch my Austrian Airlines flight to Vienna. Security is extra tight, as you might imagine at any airport in Iraq, but everything went smoothly until I arrived at passport control. "You did not check in with the residency office," the passport man said accusingly, pointing at a stamp in my passport. Sure enough, it said: Contact residency office within 10 days. Apparenty, every visitor to the Kurdish-controlled north is supposed to register with officialdom but this was the first time I'd noticed that stamp. And, as I told the man, customs officials hadn't bothered to point it out when I first arrived. He still seemed angry, and I had visions of being forced to miss my fllight and go back to Erbil. Then, I pointed at "United States of America" on front of the passport, smiled and said, "I'm American. Americans are friends of the Kurds." He grinned and let me go. I'll leave you with one of my favorite photos of the trip - a beautiful, peaceful view of Iraq that Americans rarely see.

Up, up and away!

After years of isolation, Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq now has two modern airports with international flights - one in Erbil, the Kurdish capital, and the other here in Sulymeinyah near the Iranian border. This family of eight was waiting to board a Friday night flight to  Istanbul - this was  the first time anyone in the family had ever flown.  They were going to Turkey to seek medical treatment for the elderly woman in the wheelchair. All domestic flights are handled by Iraqi Airways, which is usually hours late because of a shortage of planes. 

Lunch on the road

Today we stopped in the city of Qoya (aka Koya) to see Ali S. Ali, a prominent local resident who's big in the oil/gas business (I'll be writing more about Kurdistan's oil wealth in the paper).

Mr. Ali insisted we stay for lunch, and took us to a hotel on a hill just outside of town.

I could have sworn the place was closed - not a car in the parking lot, not a door unlocked, not a light on - icity - but after a few minutes a man came out
and escorted us into a dark, completely empty restaurant. ("Is there food here?'' I whispered to Avan, my interpreter).

But lo and behold, the staff - and there actually was a good-size serving staff - hustled together a delicious lunch of salad, lamb and chicken, followed by watermelon and, of course, tea.

Afterwards, Mr. Ali insisted we all pose for a photo together, which we were glad to do.

Qoya/Koya, by the way, is the home of Jalal Talabani, Iraq's president. Then it was on to Sulymeinyah (aka Slemani, Sulaimany and many other  variations), a major Kurdish city near the Iranian border.

High-fashion in hejab

The Kurds are Sunni Muslims but they tend to be more liberal in matters of dress than Muslims in other parts of Iraq. In Erbil, the Kurdish capital, you see many women in western-style clothing including snug-fitting jeans and tops. But many women still wear the traditional hejab, or head scarf. I found this display at the Qasary Market, the big covered bazaar in the center of Erbil where most people do their shopping.

In Akre

On our way back to Erbil, we took detour to  the lovely Kurdish city of Akre. With its narrow, winding streets and homes built into the hillside, it is remisicent of old European villages. The waterfall draws folks from all around; there's a little restaurant where men drink sweet tea while a little girl sells home-made date candies.

Looks a bit like Kansas ...

Sunflowers are a major crop in northern Iraq, where they are prized for  their oil and tasty toasted seeds. (This scene reminded me of Kansas, the  "Sunflower State,'' where I used to spend my summers as a child.) As you might be able to tell from the photo, it's been very windy, and the dust almost totally blots out the sun. The men in the background were working on an irrigation system.

A wonderful bird is a pelican...

his beak can hold more than his belly can!