Ethnographic Museum

Ethnographic Museum

Posted by Mita on January 31, 2017 in bazaar, kurdistan, museum,

There was an Enthographic Museum in Sulaimaniya. Yes, there was, because it has been closed for about 3 years. Lynn and I tried to find the (closed) museum weeks ago. With a help of Sardar, our taxi driver, we found it in the middle of nowhere in the Bazaar. The security guard said that, they plan to move the museum to Sara Square (Bardarki Saray) in the Bazaar. Unfortunately the Sara Square itself is still in the rehabilitation process, so, they don't know when they are going to move there and open the museum. Below are the pictures of the (closed) ethnographic museum.

Banner in front of the museum building

An abandon small fountain

An abandon museum building

The building looks like a historical building. The architecture is quite unique, it may be one of the buildings from the past that still exists. Unfortunately, it is abandoned. 

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It Snowed !!

It Snowed !!

Posted by Mita on January 29, 2017 in cold, snow, winter,

I woke up in the morning and the ground was white. Oh, it snowed last night! I was so excited, it looked so beautiful. My hubby laughed at me to see my excitement.  He grew up in this kind of weather..LOL..

Ginger on the cold balcony

A path to university

Small garden in front of our apartment, can you spot on a grey tabby cat?
 

The snow did not stay for a long time, only a half day though. But still, it was so special for me. I am coming from a tropical country, so you know why snow is a big deal for me. 

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Visiting Zheen Archive Center

Visiting Zheen Archive Center

Posted by Mita on January 15, 2017 in books, culture, documents, kurdistan, library,

Zheen Establishment also known as Zheen Archive Center is located  on the Piramygran Street No. 11, Baranan District 107, next to Shekh Farid Mosque, opposite to the  Metro Supermarket, Sulaimaniya. Lynn and I decided to visit this organisation to find  out about it. We arrived there in the morning (around 10.45 am).  There was a friendly security guard greeted us and took us to one of the offices. We talked to Mr. Sadiq Salih Ahmad (supposedly the head of the institution). We introduced ourselves and then, Mr Sadiq gave us a short introduction about his organisation and took a for a little tour in the building (his English is quite good).

Zheen Establishment Building

So, what is the Zheen Establishment? It  is a non governmental organisation. It was founded in 2004. Zheen means life in Kurdish. It works to preserve the Kurdish history by documenting them in various forms such as microfilms, recordings, clippings, and printed publications. It also restoring Kurdish old manuscripts.

Interpreting old manuscripts

The old manuscripts  glued in a special paper and then dried

Dried manuscripts

Aha, Pepsi Cola advertisement in the old Kurdish Magazine

Perhaps, it is the only organisation in the world that documenting the Kurdish history in four regions (Kurdish in Iraq, Syria, Iran and Turkish) and has significant amount of collections in various languages (Kurdish, Farsi, Arabic, English, French and Germany).

The library

Some collections in the library

They really do a very important work. Although they face difficulties in funding (no government subsidy unfortunately), they try to keep going and it seems they are able to get some support from overseas. I do really hope that they can survive and get more attention from international organisations such as UNESCO and funding agencies. It is a really worth visiting this place. We may come back again!

Links which relate  to Zheen Archive Center Activities:
Old Kurdish Handwritings Found in Saddam Hussein's House 
Sulaimaniya: Saving the Dream City of a Kurdish Prince

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