travel in Kurdistan Iraqi (northern Iraq)

Hi travellers!
quite soon I'll be travelling alone by public transport from Turkish
Kurdistan to the Iraqi one (Erbil and Saulaymana),
I really need some info:
- is the climate bereable in april/may in the Iraqi Kurdistan?


- do you know any good guide book?


- to get to Erbil do I have to pass through Mosul?


- is there some interesting place you suggest me to visit?


thanks


alby


PS: please answer me olny if you've really travelled there and not
to tell me that you have seen at the news that in Iraq there's the war


if you love to travel: www.albytravel.com

Hey, I'm actually, as far as I know, one of the first guys ever to
backpack Iraq post-war. I did the Kurdistan bit exclusively. If you ask
anybody in Kurdistan, the first thing they'll tell you is to make sure
not to go south of Kurdistan.

Check out my blog entries for my story. I hope you have as much fun as
I did.

www.xanga.com/iwsfutcmd

Not so sure about the climate--I was there in December and it was damn
cold (think below 0)

And there are no guidebooks for Iraq. There is a tiny, worthless
section in the Lonely Planet Middle East and a way outdated (and
heavily Saddam-biased) Bradt guide. You're gonna have to make your own
way. The great news is that almost nobody is gonna screw you over. The
bad news is it get's pretty expensive. Much more so than Turkish
Kurdistan.

You don't have to go out of Kurdistan at all in order to get to any of
the cities. Nobody drives through Mosul to get to Hewler (Erbil). You
will pass a rather creepy sign telling you you are heading to Mosul,
but don't worry about it. Just make sure your driver is Kurdish. I'm
not kidding about that. I'm not racist or anything, but whenever you
need to trust anybody, especially drivers, make sure they speak some
Kurdish. An Arab driver would just be too risky for a foreigner. By the
way, try to speak as much Kurdish as you can. Arabic works, but it's
just not polite. In fact, if you meet a Kurd in Turkey and just say
"Rojbash" (Good day) s/he'll love you for life. It's like a preview of
Kurdish hospitality in Iraq.

Prepare for the most hospitable people on the planet as well...read
some of my entries. Also, if you're in Dohuk, do me a favor and stop by
the Dohuk University. Look for a guy named Hardy there. He's a skinny
guy in the College of Arts. If you tell him Ben said "Hi" it'd really
freak him out. He's a great guy, and if you're into philosophy
(especially existentialism) he's a great conversation partner.

Stuff to check out...well, the best thing to do is ask around. Nothing
is too impressive--don't expect any sound-and-light shows. The castle
in Hewler is fun to explore, as well as the mountains around Suleymani.
I've heard good things about Amadiyya, but I didn't make it out there.

Oh another important consideration--there are NO ATMs in Iraq. None.
Bring as much currency as you need and exchange it as necessary. US$
are the best, as you can spend them in Dohuk and Hewler, but not
Suleymani. But you might as well just change them for Dinar, as it
seems to be pretty stable and you can use them anywhere in Kurdistan.

And please, tell me more about your trip / trip planning.
benayang(at)gmail.com

Ben


On Jan 19, 12:58 pm, albstrop2....TakeThisOut@alice.it wrote:
> Hi travellers!
> quite soon I'll be travelling alone by public transport from Turkish
> Kurdistan to the Iraqi one (Erbil and Saulaymana),
> I really need some info:
> - is the climate bereable in april/may in the Iraqi Kurdistan?
>
> - do you know any good guide book?
>
> - to get to Erbil do I have to pass through Mosul?
>
> - is there some interesting place you suggest me to visit?
>
> thanks
>
> alby
>
> PS: please answer me olny if you've really travelled there and not
> to tell me that you have seen at the news that in Iraq there's the war
>
> if you love to travel: www.albytravel.com