An American in Araby - blog

You should check this one out. Short musings over travel in various places around Iraq.

On Kurdistan, see what Nate has to say about

Travelling to Dohuk, and the crazy ride there, shopping in Suli, and a sobering trip to Halabja.

This is probably one of the best blogs I've seen which covers current political and economic issues about present-day Iraqi Kurdistan.

post-war festival

This last weekend there was an art festival in Sulaymaniyah called post-war festival:

A partnership between ArtRole, UK and Khak Press and Media Centre, Iraq-Kurdistan

A 3-day celebration of Art and Culture in The Red Jail, Saddam Hussein’s security building in the city of Sulaymaniyah will include seminars, talks and a symposium. The festival will introduce and exhibit artwork by Iraqi, British and US artists and host presentations by British arts organisations.

These agencies will present the history of contemporary art in the UK and Europe. Curators from Iran, Turkey, UAE, Palestine, UK, USA and Asia will be invited to attend to offer their perspectives on contemporary art practice and the development of Iraq.

Academics and politicians i.e. directors of universities, colleges and art Institutes, ambassadors, local and international officials will also be invited to contribute. An internationally acclaimed installation, 20:50, by renowned British sculptor Richard Wilson R.A. will be shown for the first time in the Middle East. the installation will be in place for 3 months. This event will create a unique platform and opportunity for Iraqi and British artists to experience working and exhibiting together. It will provide a highly visible venue for Iraqi people to engage directly with contemporary art. ArtRole will positively encourage young
people and their teachers from schools and colleges across the country to attend
the event.

The website also has a page on the Red Jail and also on Sulaymaniyah itself, which kindly linked to us here.

Recent travel notes

Some very helpful travel tips from Jo, who was in Iraq in June:

Getting in from Iran at Haj Omran border crossing, no problem, is open to foreigners and visa on arrival for Kurdistan and the other way round no problem either, but need Iranian visa in advance. Possibility to take 1 or 2 minibuses(10000 Rials) from Orumiyeh bus terminal to Piranshahr (or like i did via Oshnavieh first one left at 6:00am then on to Piranshahr after a one hour wait 5000 Rial each, less than 1 euro total ) and hitch with trucks to the border from there, not far less than 10 KM or take a taxi for the last bit ( but i did see a few minibuses waiting on the iranian side of the border, maybe possible) or there are quite a few direct buses, 35$, from Orumyeh to Erbil. I got a free ride from Piranshahr to the border on one of these luxury liners but don't count on it, a friendly guy at the bus office smuggled me on. From Piranshahr they wanted still 30$ to Erbil! To Erbil from the border post you can hitch with Trucks or take a (shared) taxi to Erbil, 15000-20000 Dinar. It cost me 20000 as I took 2 different cars...

Erbil Hotels i stayed at the Al Zhur hotel look for the Shahraban Tourist Hotel sign on the corner, its opposite, nice tea house next door, and ok internet up the stairs next door too, you called it Al Thur, in the 4 bed dorm for 7000Dinar, had attached bath and satellite TV, have been in much worse. But not for everybody. My 2 room mates were older men from Baghdad and I went with one of them to Slemani, really nice and sheperded me around and put me on the minibus to go to the center of Slemani. The Yezidi managers were really friendly. There is a great BBQ stand out in front with delicious liver on a stick, 5000 dinar for 4 with a plate of salad, not bad. The textile museum in the Citadel of Erbil is very good and free. Around it, north, are some burned down mansions and some restored ones and some abandoned ones which are lovely to explore [I agree! - bpi]. Everything else is off limits really, lots of military presence in the citadel.

Erbil to Slemani took a Minibus, called Coaster, skirted the suburbs of Kirkuk, on the outer ringroad, never entered, but at the checkpoint I had to get out across the road to be questioned. a little risky maybe to cross there in so obvious a target. But went well, took 3.5 hours and cost 8000 Dinar.

Slemani got off at the big crossroads before the turnoff that gets you to the garage ( between Malik Mahmood Ring Road or 60 meter circular and Salim street), has a huge new overpass running over the crossroads (a traffic circle) took a minibus 350 Dinar to the center of Slemani(along Salim St) got off at the municipal park.

Slemani hotels asked around and found a real rough little cheapy (love them) the Salahudin, 3000 Dinar for a dorm bed ( no attached bathroom, toilet at end of corridor and shower costs extra if I understood right, haven't tried it yet. No sign, only in Arabic, up a little all white staircase white and red sign over the door, just 5 meters south of the red sign for Paris or Peris Internet, can't miss it. It's on Kawa st, northern third, just after the crossroads with Mawlawi St. First hotel I checked was hotel Sheren or Sherin Hotel just 50m south of that crossroads on Kawa St. 100m north of the Salahudin Hotel.

travel blogs, backpackiraq on twitter

, A great travel blog from Joe, a Canadian who recently travelled through Iraqi Kurdistan. There are some fantastic photos from the various cities and the countryside around Halabja too.
His directions to the Red House Prison, aka. the torture museum, aka. the Amna Surka is "about 5 blocks west and 2 blocks north of the main pedestrian market street."

Importantly, he says "A recent law change ensures that it is now impossible to visit Arab controlled Iraq with the Kurdish issued visa. Much to my disappointment."

Even though I understand Baghdad and many parts of southern Iraq are generally safer than they were (that is, it's less likely you will get hit by a bomb), Mosul and Kirkuk still seem quite dangerous according to news reports.

For the Spanish speakers out there, there is a blog that describes a trip to Iraqi Kurdistan. But for the non-spanish speakers, it has a ton of great photos from Kurdistan. Worth a look.

You can now find backpackiraq on twitter. Other twitters related to Kurdistan and Iraq are:

American Voices, a group doing music/arts projects in Kurdistan among other locations,

Barham Salih, the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, taking democracy to the people via twitter,

Salam Pax, the blogger from Baghdad.

health

According to this article from the Kurdish Globe, there has been a cholera outbreak in Suleymaniyah and Kirkuk. This is extra reason to be very careful about the water you drink and the food you eat while in Kurdistan. Be sensible.

Sulaymaniyah

Sulaymaniyah (see map) is a beautiful city, encircled by mountain ridges. Locals will tell you that it's the most modern city in Iraqi Kurdistan, the place where new fashions and trends are adopted first... that sort of thing. It has a population close to one million, and like every city in the region, growing quickly. Taxis around town are between 2,000 and 5,000 dinar, depending on the distance. There are also minibuses that ply various routes.

Hotels- I don't have much info on Suly's hotels, as I didn't stay in any, but thanks to Usva Auer I have the following info:

Hotel Chrakhan- On Salim Street, next to Ashti Hotel. Normal price for a double around 25 USD. (Special price: Double 20 000 / 15 USD, this price was fixed by a friend of the owner: I was lucky to share a taxi with him).

Probably the cheapest hotel in this, the better/newer side of the city. A little bit worn out but still OK. Private bathrooms (unlike the budget rooms in the city). The front rooms come with a balcony (and some street noise) while the rooms at the back are quieter but no balcony. Electricity in the morning and in the evening till the midnight. The owner, if in Iraq, speaks some Swedish. There's a very nice salad bar downstairs the hotel.

Mewan Hotel- Pyramed Street, Bazaar. Triple 10 000 dinars (7 USD).

This is the cheapest hotel I found in Kurdistan. The hotel is a bit gloomy and rooms are very basic but considering the price better than one can expect. There's a fridge on the corridor, don't recall if there was an A/C or TV in the room. Bathroom shared between two rooms. Electricity only in the evening. The young staff was very welcoming and knew some English! A cheap lunch restaurant around the corner.

Bukan Motel- Pyramed Street, Bazaar. Suite for two 26 000 dinar (20 USD). Cheaper rooms were not introduced to me. The old fashioned suite shares the bathroom with another room. What makes this hotel special is the kitchen guests can use. Staff was very enthousiatic selling the room.

Hotel Tara- Pyramed Street, Bazaar. Single 20 000 dinar (15 USD), double for one 25 000 dinar. Nothing fancy but OK. Doubles are better value than singles. The batroom is shared between three rooms. Matresses are not the best quality. Singles facing the street can be noicy.

Hiwa Hotel- 15,000 dinar ($12). On Kawa Street. Friendly. Will find a roommate for you, to reduce the price to 13,000 dinar.

Mawlawi Hotel- also on Kawa St, right at the main intersection. I'm told it's quite cheap.

There are quite a few hotels on Kawa Street, near the bazaar.

More expensive hotels are the Sulaymaniyah Palace Hotel (the tallest one on Salim Street) and the Ashti Hotel, also on Salim St.

Museums- not sure exactly where these are. There is the Sulaymaniyah National Museum (closed Fri, Sat, Sun), and a separate torture museum, often called the 'red house prison', detailing the horrors of Saddam's regime (ask for 'Amna Saraca'). Walking distance from the bazaar.

Bazaar- very large, in the centre of town, with some US army surplus available.

eating- Have an awesome Suly-style kebab on Mawlawi Street- it involves bread, kebab, tomato and onion all separate, and you put it together yourself into bite-sized rolls. Delicious! Also eat at a regular workmen's restaurant (ie. #12 on the map), having some quality rice, chicken, soup, fasulye (baked beans) and probably a fun conversation.

drinking- For chay, there is a great men's chay khane (teahouse) at number 6 on the map, where people will be eager to talk about your country's possibilities of investing in Kurdistan and such ambitious topics. There are numerous tea stalls at various intersections on main roads, and it's always worth having one.

I only know of one bar, whose entrance is on the side street to the left of the Ashti Hotel. The bar is on the first floor, and I saw no women inside. Imported Turkish beer and spirits available. Inevitably you'll end up enjoying some local hospitality.

Post office- This is just off Mawlawi Street. It's 1,250 dinar (US$1) for a letter to Australia, so I doubt anywhere else would cost more.

Airline offices are on Salim Street, near the Ashti Hotel. Suleymaniyah airport is to the west of the city, not too far away.

Azmar mountain- If you look up in Suly you'll see the ubiquitous PUK-TV tower on Azmar mountain. You can take a taxi up here, but it's not cheap. Something like 15,000 dinar. Great views of the city, and also over the ridges towards more mountains, and Iran to the east.

Halabja-

Getting to Halabja is easy for a day. You go out of Hotel Hiwa and go left, take the first right by all the fruit and veg sellers and there is a garage down there on the right. Take the Shahedun bus to the Halapja garage (250) and from there take a bus to Halabja (2500), they leave when full or evey 30 mins it seemed. Make sure you go to Old Halabja (Shaheed Halabja), not the new city (Taza Halabja), its only 80kms and takes about 2 hours.

There is the damaged monument to see there (damaged in protests last year), if you go, go to the visitor's centre next to the monument, the guys in there are surviors of the chemical attack and speak good English and will show you around. You also get a free information book on Halabja, a pin badge and a CD-ROM. Go to the visitors office before you start taking pictures etc as there is a police station opposite who map pick you up. I spent about 40 mins in the police station and in another down the road, they were really nice and no problem but best avoided (they even gave me an armed gaurd for the day to follow me about the city, just a bit OTT!).

The last bus back to Suli leaves about 3.30ish.

(thanks to George a.k.a. scubamonkey69, and Usva Auer)

Getting around between cities

The main form of public transport between the major cities in Iraqi Kurdistan is shared taxi. Cars are generally white and orange sedans, some large, some quite small. Some newer, some older and beat-up. The roads between cities are not very safe for driving, with usually just one lane in each direction, and over-taking a dangerous activity. I witnessed one head-on collision.

Security:

Taxis seem to only travel on roads controlled by Kurdish forces. There are LOTS of security checkpoints, probably 10 or more on a 3 hour journey, usually before and after towns. You have nothing to fear at these checkpoints, in fact you should be grateful for them keeping Iraqi Kurdistan safe from terrorists. At some the soldier will just wave the taxi through, but at most ID will be checked. Have your passport ready. At some checkpoints, they'll want to check on foreigners more carefully, and you may end up being questioned by the head official. Just be honest and open and you should be fine. But, if they're suspicious of you, it helps to have a local Kurdish contact who can vouch for you.

Details:

Generally there is a normal price for one car, and this price is divided by the number of passengers. Usually you will end up waiting until enough passengers come to fill up all the seats.

In Dohuk, the taxi offices are next to the Hotel Birjin. In Erbil, get in a local taxi and ask for the "Suly Garage" if you're going to Sulaymaniyah. In Sulaymaniyah, "Erbil Garage" etc.

Zakho border - Dohuk: $45 per car, approx 1 hour.
Zakho border - Erbil: $90 per car, approx 4 hours.

Dohuk - Erbil: 20,000 dinar ($16) per person. 80,000 dinar per car. Approx 3 hours. The road goes close to Mosul, but doesn't actually pass through. Apparently the road is controlled by Kurdish forces, but a few soldiers I saw had Iraqi flags on their shoulders...

Erbil - Sulaymaniyah: 15,000 dinar ($12) per person. 3-4 hours. The cartel at the 'Suly Garage' in Erbil were shifty guys, constantly changing prices and 'extra charges' for having a large bag. Be firm in your negotiations. The road between Erbil and Suly passes through the north-eastern suburbs of Kirkuk. I heard that this road is safe, and controlled by Kurdish forces, but the vibes weren't good. Thankfully it only took around 30 minutes to pass through Kirkuk.

Sulaymaniyah - Erbil: 15,000 dinar ($12) per person, 3-4 hours. Takes the same route as above, through Kirkuk's suburbs.

If for some reason you think travelling in a 4WD/SUV would be safer, think again. They are more likely to be targeted for attacks. I sat next to a VIP in one taxi. He said he travelled like this to stay safe.

And if you are bloody crazy you can get a taxi or even minibus from Erbil just to Kirkuk, or even Baghdad. Seriously, you would have to be a foolhardy dunce with a death wish to do this as a foreigner.

CITY MAPS

Dohuk

Erbil

Sulaymaniyah

General Kurdistan maps - from the Kurdistan Corporation, mainly schematic or regional maps.

Kurdistan region map - from vbgood.com's Iraq map page, which includes numerous useful maps.