English is Fun!

English is Fun!

Posted by Mita on December 15, 2014 in english, kurdistan, language,

Yes, English is fun in Kurdistan and the people get the message :)

Before & After, Sulaimaniya Saleem Street

This is Chinese food only 

Herbs specialist 

Coffee & Restaurant

Housewares

Desk Lamps

Baran Beauty Salon

Kurd's Heritage Museum

Create your own pizza

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Glamour Salon

Glamour Salon

Posted by Mita on November 19, 2014 in hair cut, salon,

My hair is getting a little too long and I decided to have a hair cut. I told my hubby that it's going to be a challenging experience. I don't know how to tell the hair dresser for the desired hair style. However, my hubby had a good idea about finding a model that I like on the internet and print it out (what a smart husband!). It would be much easier for me to show a picture rather than trying to speak in Kurdish on how I want them to do my hair.

Another challenge is, I need a special place for women as I feel more comfortable and also because I wear hijab (head scarf).  In Jakarta, Indonesia, it is quite easy to find one. Most salons provide two places, one for gender mixed (for those who don't mind to be handled by male hair dresser/interact with male staffs), the other one is a room special for women.

So, I decided to do a bit survey. I went to the Ramada Salon (near Ramada Hotel in Saleem Street). The staffs speak English. They have male and female hairdressers (I think working in a salon is quite okay for males here, the same as in Jakarta). Unfortunately, it only has one mixed gender room. The price is 30,000 Iraqi Dinar, a bit expensive for a hair cut.  The second place I asked was  Glamour Salon in Bakhtiary Taza. This salon is close to the pshyiotherapy center where my hubby got treatment for his injured back. The place is quite small, located on the second floor building.

Glamour Salon

A stair to the salon

When I got inside, there were a male and a female hairdressers with 3 female customers. They don't speak English at all. I used a hand sign to let them know that I wanted the female staff to cut my hair. The lady asked me, muslim? I nodded. Then, she prepared a panel to cover me when I had my hair washed.

A panel to cover me

Inside the salon

After washing my hair, she took me to a smaller room next to the main room (I forgot to take a picture of the room, sorry). It is actually a place for facial care but it seems they can use it for any purpose. I showed the model picture and she started to cut my hair. The result is ok, a little bit different from the model though, but I don't mind. I am fine with it. It costs 20,000 Iraqi Dinar...I am happy and the mission accomplished !!! 

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My Hubby is My HERO!

My Hubby is My HERO!

Posted by Mita on November 05, 2014 in hubby, life, plants, Sick, winter,

I come from a tropical country where it is warm and the temperature is very stable throughout the year. Well, yes, it is a bit struggle for me living in a four seasons’ country.  I have new friends whenever winter comes, flu and a hot water bottle. So, this week, I have been sick and just lying around feeling useless at home.  Thankfully I have a wonderful husband.  I told him “I am so sorry that I get sick and make you taking care of me while you have so many works to do.”  He replied, “Well, taking care of you is the best thing I want to do”. 

On a very cold winter morning, the wind swept away my plants from the ledge of our balcony (we live on the second floor). I woke up from the bed hearing the sound of my plants fell down. From the window, I saw five pots of plants lying on the ground helpless.  I starred at them, thinking that I should wait until the light come (and the day a bit warm) to collect my plants. In the mean time, silently, my hubby woke up; changing his clothes and went downstairs. Within five minutes he already had all of my plants on his hands and brought them back to me. “These are your plants, I hope I got them all, one pot is broken”.

My hubby does a lot of things that seem little to him but matter to me!

My hubby is a tall, big man and has taekwondo black belt, but actually he is a very loving gentle person!

Peshy, a little kitten crawled into my hubby's arm and fell asleep! 

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Going to DHL

Going to DHL

Posted by Mita on October 04, 2014 in postal service,

Just in case you need to send an important document/package abroad quickly, I think that DHL Express service in Sulaimaniya is quite reliable. I realise that the address on their website is not valid (the one located around Abo Sana Hotel has closed).

The current office is on the Malik Mahmud Ring Road in the direction to Zargata. A nice man helped me to give a direction on a piece of paper (which I cant read..LOL).  I showed it to the taxi driver and he knew where to take me. It worked well :-)

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Physi Oh Therapy

Physi Oh Therapy

Posted by Mita on October 03, 2014 in life, mondar mandir, physiotheraphy,

Last month was a quite worrying time. My hubby hurt his back and we didn't know what to do with it. We tried to do many things, put the hot water bottle, hot pad, muscle balm, pain killer on his back but they didn't do any good at all. Finally, we got an information from a colleague that there might be a chiropractor or physiotherapist practice around Bakhtiari. So, I did a survey to find the place and voila, I found this banner on one of the buildings.

I got inside  and met a lady at the reception, unfortunately she didnt speak English. I was so confused until finally there was a patient that was able to translate my words. I made an appointment for the next day.

Reception desk

On the next day, my hubby was barely able to walk. I decided to find a taxi and pick him up. We didn't  expect so much for the visit, however it turned out to be a good experience. The therapist is a very kind Kurdish man. He stayed in Germany for about 18 years and got his education there, he speaks Germany, Kurdish, a bit of Arabic, Russian and English. His office looks simple but its quite comfortable. 

My hubby told him about the problem and after that, the therapist  examined my hubby's muscle system. It seemed that my hubby's muscles were a bit tense. So, he did a massage and gave some exercise tips to keep muscle and bone healthy. The best thing was, he didn't even offer any crap drugs like those offered by the doctors in the hospital.  We made four times visits and after that my hubby feels much better. 

If you hurt your back or have problems with muscles and nerves. I would like to recommend you to come to this place. The name of the therapist is Mr. Zana Kadir. His office is the Physiotherapy Center of Sulaimaniya, Bakhtiari Taza (new Bakhtiari, approximately 200 meters from the Talary Hunar/cultural center building). You need to make an appointment prior to the visit and the cost for each visit is 20,000 Iraqi Dinar. In the second floor of the building, you can find a small gym with various health equipments that you can use. If you are interested in doing fitness and  want to have an instructor you can make an arrangement with him. The equipments are quite advanced. 

Detail information in the card

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Brush Your Teeth With Sewak. Uhm, Brush With What ?

Brush Your Teeth With Sewak. Uhm, Brush With What ?

Posted by Mita on June 14, 2014 in hazardous substances, nature, sewak,

I often heard the benefit of brushing our teeth with Sewak or Miswak. In Islam, it is known from hadith that the Prophets had practices of using the Sewak. So, there must be something special of it.  My problem is, I didn't really know about Sewak and I had never seen a real Sewak in my life as it is already replaced by 'so called plastic modern toothbrush and toothpaste' which contains harmful substances such as triclosan and fluoride!. Until finally, several days ago, I went to Bazaar and voila, I accidentally found Sewak! My heart was pounding! It cost 1000 Iraqi dinnar (less that 1 US Dollar or equal to 10,000 Indonesian Rupiah) much cheaper than a toothbrush and paste!.

My First Sewak

So, what is Sewak? Sewak or Miswak is a root of Peelu tree (Salvadora persica) or Arak (in Arabic). The Sewak is natural, safer and more effective toothbrush compared to the synthetic toothbrushes. We don't need to add toothpaste when brushing our teeth with Sewak. Sewak contains natural minerals such as potassium, sodium, chloride, sodium bicarbonate and calcium oxides which are able to whiten and strengthen enamel. It is also known for its ability to remove stains from coffee or tobacco.

My Sewak still in the wrapper

How to use Sewak? Well, just scrape of or peel a half inch bark from one of the edge. You can wash it with a clean water or just directly chew it. A Sewak stick is similar to a paint brush. The bristles are hard and it able to scrub our teeth and get them clean. After finished chewing the stick, put it back in its wrapper. If you want a new brush, just cut the top of the stick that has been used, scrape the new edge and chew again! The stick can be used until it is 2 inches long but  actually, with a longer stick it is easier to brush the back of our teeth. There are a lot of advantages of using Sewak that you can  read from this link. Sewak can be used to heal cavities as shown in the video below:

I am so excited brushing my teeth with Sewak, let me know if you want one!

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The Amazing Aleppo Soaps

The Amazing Aleppo Soaps

Posted by Mita on June 14, 2014 in Aleppo, environment, hazardous substances, shampoo, soap,

Do you know that a lot of our personal care products (e.g. soaps, cosmetics, shampoos) are containing hazardous substances? Well, I have written about this in my last post entitled: Hazardous Ingredients in Personal Care Products

I am trying to be more careful when I buy personal care products.  The modern soaps, cosmetics and shampoo are not only contain dangerous substances for your health but also the environment. For example, palm oil that is used to make the soap structure hard, is coming from palm plantation in Indonesia that destroy Orangutan’s habitat. Paraben that is used to preserve the products (in a cheap manner!) can disrupt the function of estrogen and cause cancer. Once paraben is released to the environment it is so difficult to remove plus it affects  aquatic ecosystem, it can turn male fish into females. Further, we can end up consuming paraben in our own drinking water and food!

Thankfully, in Sulaimaniya, I am able to find good and safe products: ALEPPO SOAP and SHAMPOO. After a bit of research, I really surprised to find how great these products are. Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. This city is very famous for the traditional shop producers. Although there are different (family owned) companies producing the soaps such as Lorbeer  and Shefaa, the products are often called as Aleppo Soap.  

My Collection: Aleppo Soaps and Shampoo

Aleppo soap known as savon de'Alep, laurel soap, Syrian soap, or guar soap, the Syirian word for 'laurel'. It is made of olive and laurel oils, water a a bit of sodium hydroxide. Olive and laurel trees are common in the Middle East region. The olive oil is an excellent antioxidant and effective in removing fats from scalps. The Laurel oil is a good natural disinfectant and can kill bacteria on the skin. The soaps are not instantly made just like the modern soaps. It takes about 3 to 12 months to produce them. You can see the process of the making the soaps from the video below: 

Yes, I have replaced my so called “modern” and hazardous soaps and shampoo with Aleppo products. I would like to suggest you to do the same. These products are safe and locally made. Plus, we can also preserve the old tradition that is becoming to extinct. 

Blooms laurel liquid shampoo, Khaeish Lorbeer, Lorbeer Square Soap,
 Lorbeer Hotel Soap, Shefaa Soap, Shefaa Oriental Treasures

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Nawroztan Piroz be !

Nawroztan Piroz be !

Posted by Mita on March 22, 2014 in festival, kurdistan, nawroz,

Happy Nawroz ! Nawroz (New Day),  is often referred as a Persian new year and is rooted from Zoroastrian religious tradition. It marks the first day of spring, which usually occurs on 21 March or earlier/later day depend on where it is determined based on the astronomical Northward equinox or March equinox. This year, Nawroz was on 21 March, people went for a family picnic in mountain area or gathering on that day. However, the big celebration of Nawroz was a day before. People gathering in the same place and light Nawroz fire. 

Wishing you a happy Nawroz

It was a warm, sunny Thursday when my hubby and I joined the celebration in Sulaymani on 20 March. Around 3.30 PM, we walked with the crowd  from the Khasraw Khal Bridge to the Palace Hotel and then return to Khasraw Khal Bridge again.The main street/Saleem street was partially closed for cars, so our walked was so comfortable and safe. I think we marched around 4 kilometers!

Most of the people wore traditional Kurdish clothes (Jili Kurdi). Men's clothes are generally a bit simple. The men wore baggy pants with a plain full sleeves shirt and vest (worn over the shirt) and tied at the elbow. Elder men were likely wore turban on their head. 

Two gentlemen with traditional clothes

Beautiful Kurdish Women with Traditional Clothes

Women's clothes have so many different styles (I would say, millions styles...LOL). Their dresses are very colorful and sparkling. There are various accessories with gold color to wear with (traditionally it is made of gold but for children or for people in general they may use the imitation). Some of the accessories are  Sheelena, a long gold necklace with amber and Lira belt, a gold belt from the connected gold Lira coins or dangling gold Lira's. 

A Kurdish family with their traditional clothes

There were so many things to see along the walk. The men dancing traditional dance in the street, a group of artists singing in a stage, people sitting down and resting in Nali Park, street vendors selling horns, food and drinks, oh what a busy street! 

Dancing

Resting in the Nali Park

Finally, we reached Palace Hotel. There were a big stage and a bon fire. The media were very serious covering the event (ehm, you might see us  in the local television.....LOL). 

Do you see the cameraman?

After spending sometime around the Palace Hotel, we walked back and ate. Around 7 PM, the fireworks started to mark the Kurdish New Year 2714. It was wonderful to experience Nawroz celebration. I hope I will have a chance to join the Nawroz celebration next year :-)

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Hanging Out in Hawler

Hanging Out in Hawler

Posted by Mita on March 01, 2014 in mondar mandir, northern iraq, weekend,

This weekend, I joined a day trip to Hawler organised by AUIS. I was so excited as I have never been there before. So, on Friday at 7.30 AM the university bus picked us up in Bakrajo and then went to Pak city to picked up some staffs living there. It was around 20 people joined the trip.

Hawler known as Erbil (or Arbil), is the capital of Kurdistan Region. There are approximately 1.3 million people living in the city. Hawler is the 4th largest city in Iraq after Baghdad, Basra and Mosul. It took about 3 hours from Sulaymani to Hawler and we passed several check points along the way (so make sure that you have your residency card when you go to Hawler!). We crossed mountainous area which is so dry and full of rocks. It is so much different from the mountain areas in Indonesia which mostly look so green and full of trees. Well, every place is unique.

On the way to Hawler, view from our bus

We arrived in Hawler around 11.30 Am, we strictly went to Citadel. Citadel is an old settlement built in 6000 BC, it rises approximately 30 meters above the ground level of the lower city and located in the heart of Hawler.  Citadel has been said as the oldest continuously inhabited town in the world. 

View of Citadel from the lower part of the city

Right now, the High Commission for Erbil Citadel Revitalization (HCECR) is working on the revitalization of this historical place. When we got there, most part of the Citadel was closed and it started to rain. However, it was good to be able to see the old building and be there in a moment. I am not sure how long it will take to finish the work. It would be good to visit another time after they have done revitalised it. 

Information board regarding the revitalisation work

Some part of the Citadel's settlement

View from the top of Citadel

Since there were not so much to see in the Citadel, we went back to the lower part of the city (city centre) and heading to the Bazaar. I love to see Citadel from the Bazaar. 

Citadel and the local shops

View of Citadel from the Bazaar

We had big lunch in the Bazaar. After that,  we continued our journey to the Family mall. We did some shopping there and went back to Sulaymani around 7 pm. We arrived in Bakrajo at 11.30 pm. It was a long trip but fun. 

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What Statue? Donkey?

What Statue? Donkey?

Posted by Mita on January 04, 2014 in arts, kurdistan, park,

One of the reasons I love Sulaymani is because it has alot of parks, and every park is special. Nali Park is located in the city center. The name is  taken from the name of a famous Kurdish poet, Nali, who was born in 1797 in Khakukhul village in Sulaymaniyah and died in 1855. He wrote a poem about donkeys (Himari). 

A Sign of Nali Park

If you walk around the Nali Park, you will find a Donkey Statute. So what is the story of this donkey?

Bronze Donkey Statue

The statute is made of bronze with a size of  1.8 by 1.1 meters. It shows a donkey in a suit, shirt and  tie. Zirak Mira, a Kurdish sculptor took seven months to create the 2500 USD statue. The idea is to remind people about the importance of donkeys and treat the animal with respect. Donkeys played  important roles to help Kurdish armed struggle against the former Iraqi government as well as in the Kurdish liberation movement, it carried logistics (e.g. weapons  food supplies) from the villages to the mountains. Donkey has been called as the Kurdish fighter's only friend.

The statue was officially launched in April 2012 by Omar Klol who represented the Donkey Association. The Arabic name of the party is Jamiat Al Hameer Al Iraqiya (The Iraqi Donkey's Association, also known as the Abu Saber Party). The philosophy is we should live like donkeys, because they don't kill one another for power, money or politics. They don't lie either.

I like the philosophy. Donkeys don't pollute and since I don't drive, I don't mind riding a donkey.

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