I am currently sitting in the highly impressive and modern Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar, waiting for our connecting flight to Sulaymaniah, Kurdistan. I am ecstatic to be returning to Kurdistan this summer, and have planned a six week trip full of trips to historical sites, war crime museums, forests, mountain resorts, modern architectural wonders, lots of time with family and friends, and most of all, to volunteer at a refugee camp for displaced Syrians that fled after the gruesome war. Most of the refugees are still living in tents, with the few possessions they managed to carry across the border. Going from vacation time to volunteer time will surely be a shock each time, and will hopefully remind how good I have it.
It is very exciting that our visit falls on the last two weeks of the Holy month of Ramadan, where Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. It will be wonderful to hear the Athan for all five prayers, eat the specialty Ramadan snacks, and attend prayers at the many beautiful Masjids.
For this trip, my parents and little brother stayed home in the US, so it will just be my sister and brother and I. It will be a little difficult to navigate Kurdish customs, etiquette, and language without my parents' help, but thats precisely why they even let us go. They want to make sure we have a stark sense of where we came from, without them being there to explain and simplify everything for us.
It was definitely a little nerve racking to be coming at this time. As many people know, the terrorist group ISIS or ISIL has take over large parts of Iraq, and have plans to conquer more. So far, they have not attacked or attempted anything on Kurdish soil, and it will likely stay that way due to the power Kurdish forces protecting the borders. But still. Do keep our safety in your prayers please.
It is very exciting that our visit falls on the last two weeks of the Holy month of Ramadan, where Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. It will be wonderful to hear the Athan for all five prayers, eat the specialty Ramadan snacks, and attend prayers at the many beautiful Masjids.
For this trip, my parents and little brother stayed home in the US, so it will just be my sister and brother and I. It will be a little difficult to navigate Kurdish customs, etiquette, and language without my parents' help, but thats precisely why they even let us go. They want to make sure we have a stark sense of where we came from, without them being there to explain and simplify everything for us.
It was definitely a little nerve racking to be coming at this time. As many people know, the terrorist group ISIS or ISIL has take over large parts of Iraq, and have plans to conquer more. So far, they have not attacked or attempted anything on Kurdish soil, and it will likely stay that way due to the power Kurdish forces protecting the borders. But still. Do keep our safety in your prayers please.
Doha from the sky
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