Glorious (Kurdish) springtime

Salahaddin, Kurdistan, N. Iraq
Saturday, March 28, 2009

Since arriving Monday evening in Erbil, we have experienced all possible aspects of Kurdish spring weather--with the exception of snow. Tuesday saw driving rain and strong winds. Wednesday was moderately cool and overcast. On Friday when we took a drive in the countryside, the sun was blazing (but still with a gentle breeze) and dozens of families were picnicking along the road side.

Today brought lightening, rain, and a dust storm "from our Arab brothers in the south." The dust created fog-like conditions all day--and added a sort of orange-ish haze to the air. And the finest dust imaginable covered EVERYTHING...

With another week to go, who knows what weather delights are yet in store...

Dolma, Kurdish-style

Salahaddin, Kurdistan, N. Iraq
Saturday, March 28, 2009

Many of you have probably eaten dolma before, but Kurdish dolma are something special, indeed. Wikipedia informs us that "Dolma is a family of stuffed vegetable dishes in the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire and surrounding regions, including Turkey, Libya, Egypt, Albania, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, the Balkans, Greece, Cyprus, Iraq, Iran, Northern Sudan, Central and South Asia."

Although I generally consider wikipedia.org to be a great source of information, I find its entry on dolma to be sadly lacking in that it fails altogether (until my recent addition) to mention the contributions of Kurds to this delight of Middle Eastern cooking. You can refer to this entry for good general information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolma.

Yesterday I dined at the center of dolma heaven: the home of D's mother. Kurdish dolma include stuffed grape leaves, yes, but the stuffed grape leaves are just the beginning--there are also stuffed tomatoes, onions, cabbage leaves, eggplant, squash and zucchini. The stuffing generally includes rice, bits of ground meat and a variety of spices. Bits of chicken (or beef) often dot this great mound of delicious food. Dolma are usually eaten warm, but they are still delightful at room temperature as leftovers. On the side there is often a cucumber & yogurt "raita"...

Dolma heaven, indeed--

Guns & Chocolate

Erbil, Kurdistan, N. Iraq

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Since arriving in Kurdistan five days ago, one of our biggest challenges has been keeping A "entertained" as we go on our visiting rounds. Lots of unfamilar people and places can be a challenge, especially as A's internal clock is still resetting to local time--which can make her very tired at odd times.

Thursday night we drove in to Hawler (Erbil) to have dinner with a Kurdish friend and her extended family. Almost instantly, it seems, my friend's 3 year-old nephew took a liking to A. Having a new friend to play with made all the difference on this visit.

The first token of the nephew's affection for A was a toy gun. As he presented it to A, the nephew also carefully tried to show her how to "cock" the pistol. Kurdistan is a place where real guns are EVERYWHERE, so my first thought was to check to make sure that it was, indeed, a TOY gun. Nonetheless, as a symbol of affection, a realistic-looking toy pistol caught me a bit off guard.

Next, the nephew brought out a stylish rapper hat and gave it to A. "50 cent", in case you don't know, is a big name in the American rapping scene. A immediately popped the hat on her head and kept it on, despite the warm indoor temperature.

Following these gifts, A was presented with a rather tired-looking nightgown, which turned out to be the boy's "blankie", an item which we learned he could not sleep without. After being showered with such treasured gifts, A was then bestowed with a small chocolate--and two toy cars.

Finally, the nephew grabbed A somewhat roughly by the shoulders and planted a kiss on her cheek.

Somewhere in Kurdistan is A's first beau...

As if you had room

Salahaddin, Kurdistan, N. Iraq

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Last night Frank and I enjoyed a lovely dinner with friends. All the food was wonderful but two
things stood out: several delicious Iranian and seasonal Kurdish dishes. The Kurdish dishes were based on several plants that are only available for 2-3 weeks in the brief (but glorious) Kurdish springtime. One of my favorites was ganggruk which are the shoots of some kind of thistle plant. Preparing these can be murderous on the fingers, but they are delicious when cooked and prepared as a kind of raita.

Even though Frank and I paced ourselves and only tried modest samplings of the various dishes, we were completely full by meal's end.

But then.

We had forgotten the delightful Kurdish tradition of "evening fruit". After dinner, the family
gathered in the sitting room and out came the fruit--and nuts--and sweets. As if we had room!

This tradition is common to most Kurdish families, whatever their station in life. The variety of fruits, nuts, and other items varies according to season, a family's resources, and, I think, the "status" of the guest.

Last night it was apples, bananas, oranges, cucumbers (always a popular item), dates, giant pistachios (festaq), mixed nuts--and a new one for me: tamarind. Although I know tamarind as a drink and a flavoring for cooking, I didn't know that you can eat them. Longish, brown pods that are broken open to reveal irregularly shaped seeds covered with a dark, chewy fruit. Delicious, really! Also on offer for those with super strong teeth were the dried flower pods from the ganggruk thistle plant (mentioned above).

We sat, we watched Kurdish television (which features endless Kurdish dancing especially in the Nawroz season), we nibbled from the trays of fruits and nuts, and we "chatted" in a mixture of broken English, Kurdish, and Farsi. A thoroughly pleasant tradition.

Even if we didn't have room for more.

In Defense of Airport Sprawl

SEA-IAD-VIE-EBL: 48 hours, door to door
Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Having just completed our first major overseas trip with a toddler, I have a new appreciation of the value of airport sprawl. Prior to this trip, I looked with disdain on many of the major airports that I have passed through in the past 10 years. No more. I have gained a new appreciation of large, sprawling, glass & chrome airports with all of the amenities...

The Toddler Test: Try spending 8+ hours in your local airport with a toddler and see if it's up to snuff. Oh, and make sure you have an umbrella stroller to help pass the time.

Sea-Tac: Yes, the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport passes the test! We spent 10 hours there on Saturday when the gas gage on our airplane broke. The plusses? Long walkways for pushing the stroller (both for the parents to push and for the toddler to push), lots of glass windows for baby to pound at and through which to watch endless airplanes & trucks of all shapes and sizes. Spacious bathrooms and endless expanses of carpet for sitting and lying down on. (Okay, so the carpets were pretty dirty, but in my opinion it's better to sit on dirty carpets than on the cold, hard, dirty floor!) Quiet corners of carpeted areas for napping (or a discrete diaper change). Escalators, elevators & people moving trains... Spacious food courts for wandering (I have no idea about the quality of the food). And lots and lots of space...

Oh, and a kind note for the Seattle TSA people --they "passed" our bottles of milk through screening and even put together the stroller for me!

Dulles International: Dulles only had to pass the 4+ hour test, but it came through with flying colors. Long walkways, lots of glass for viewing tarmac activity, quiet & spacious (& carpeted) waiting areas. Yes, Dulles came through for us.

Vienna International: Sorry, guys, this place majorly fails the Toddler Test. Admittedly, we were stuck in a particular section of the A Concourse but there were no seating areas (unless you count the cramped area next to the glassed-in cancer box, where people can "smoke" without ever having to light up...), no carpet, bathrooms that could only be accessed by long flights of stairs (what about all those wheel chair passengers we saw lined up in the corridors?), and absolutely no place for a quick diaper change.

And, worst of all: after emerging from hours of dry-throated flying, there was nary a water fountain in sight! Finally, in parched desperation, Frank withdrew 100 Euros and bought a bottle of water for $4.50. And then learned (ha, ha) that despite the fact that we were deep in the bowels of the airport, he would have to drink it immediately or be forced to throw it away--in order to pass through another layer of security. Total time in airport: 1 hour and 40 minutes. Vienna: you are not a developing nation. Get some water fountains!

Erbil International: We were not at this airport long enough to have to give an opinion--just time enough to gather luggage and be on our way. Al-ham-dulillah!