June 8, 2009 Istanbul to Erbil/Hawler/Arbil

We had switched hotels in favor of a handicapped-accessible room that I had lost at the Yasmak Sultan when we arrived a day later. The hotel we had on our last night in Istanbul was part of the same chain, Yasmak and only a block away. The new hotel was equally well staffed, and its bathroom made showering safer for me. Air-conditioning is over-done in hotels in the Middle East I would discover throughout my travels.

We found a great taxi driver, Ali Erkin, who drove us to the airport at a reasonable price. If you are traveling to or from Istanbul, I recommend emailing him at alierkin19@hotmail.com or telephoning him at 05334102664 . He also works at the Romance Hotel in the afternoons, so he is available for morning arrivals or departures, but he could also find another driver if you need taxis while he is working at the hotel. His taxi service is separate from the hotel. It is important that you only speak to him by mobile telephone or discreetly when he has a shift at the hotel. He speaks English very well,

Having secured our tickets for Iraq on the morning of our arrival in Istanbul, we found clearing customs very easy when we prepared to leave Turkey on Atlas Airlines. One disappointment was having to pay a baggage supplemental fee for our heavy luggage. Atlas is a subsidiary of Turkish Airlines. The service is excellent, but Turkish is the language you will need aboard the airplane. The flight to Erbil lasts 2 1/2 hours. I regret having taken a wheelchair with me to the Middle East; it is useless here. Nevertheless, everyone was very accommodating. When foreign travellers arrive in Erbil, they are screened for flu symptoms by some new device which tests the temperature of the forehead. My wheelchair, however, was taken by another traveler. The Bangladeshi who work at the airport haven't bothered to learn Kurdish or any other languages as far as I can tell, so they made no attempt to identify to whom the wheelchair belonged. Hosein explained to a Kurdish airport official that it was my chair and recovered it. Security throughout Kurdistan, Iraq is intense as I would discover. Travelers approaches the airport only by bus. The University of Duhok offical who met us at the airport for the two-hour drive to Duhok had to meet us at an external parking lot. After 45 minutes we finally learned that we need to board a bus to meet him. Once in the car we traveled through a very arid topographical region. Our driver stopped for delicious, refreshing water. We drove on a highway passing within 15 miles of Mosul, the Christian center for Iraq now populated by Baathists chased out of their southern Iraq home by the military. I learned that the Kurdish military has formed several perimeters around the region to control who leaves the region and to control violence. I would learn later how effective the Kurdish military is as they are everywhere on streets, at the homes of important officials, in stores, etc. I must say that I have never felt as safe as when I was in Duhok and Erbil.

Upon our arrival at the University we were introduced to Dr. Dawood Atrushi, Vice President for International Relations at the University of Duhok (UoD) - Kurdistan Region of Iraq. As is the custom, we were served tea and water. Hosein and I presented the domains of work of the Kurdish American Coalition for Friendship - Education, Economic Development and Infrastructure Improvement, and Human Rights. As the Education Team, Hosein and I were the first to arrive in Duhok followed by Dr. Nancy Boyer and Darlene Farnes who will teach at the university in July and August; Nancy and Darlene arrived just after Hosein and my departure from Kurdistan. In addition we hoped to prepare the way for the next two teams who would travel later in the summer.

Dr. Dawood hosted a luncheon at one of the city's premier restaurants, Malta. This is a msut visit reastaurant in the city. Duhok enjoys pleasant summer weather, so we opted to eat outside on tables arranged on an expansive lawn. The flies outnumbered the customers twenty to one and were determined to fly off with our food, so we moved indoors followed by one enormous and persistent pest determined not to be outsmarted. This buzzard-sized pest (I promise to limit my hyperbole to humorous images.) was promptly dispatched by a waiter using an electrified badmitton-sized racket. We consumed our delicious meal in peace. The traditional end to a meal is a yoghurt and water drink that is an acquired taste for many not raised in the region

We returned to the University's beautiful new Cultural and Social Center where we met key faculty and administrators. The main room on the lower floor is plushly furnished, marble floors, leather couches, rugs, paintings, and coffee tables where all users enjoy refreshments before getting down to work. The facility was almost empty since we arrived just in time for examinations. But as we were introduced to modern lecture halls, we can see that the University enjoys at least one facility equal to the world's most well-endowed universities. Once again photos... We were then joined by the university's president, Dr. Asmat Khalid,who escorted us to a beautiful second-floor reception room lined with plush couches and chairs. This room is palatial, and in this I am not being hyperbolic. We explained once again our plans for the summer to the president, and then were escorted to the dining hall where we served a regal meal including a local fish whose name I did not learn. Elevators have not made inroads in much of the Middle East apparently, and to the dismay of the handicapped, most offices and meeting erooms are on upper floors. Indeed to access the first floor almost always involves stairs. We continued our quest to meet more faculty with whom we could collaborate Dr. Mohamed Ahmed Ramadan of the Center for Democracy, Dr. Asma' Ameen Hussein, chair of the English Department, the evening faculty for the Kurdish Language Department and others. Seven meetings in seven hours always with the niceties of tea and water.

But the evening was not over. After leaving the university, we traveled with Hozin, our driver for the day, to his father's summer home where we were joined by family friends for tea and refreshments and conversation.