The broken minaret, Hawler

The Mudhafaria minaret was constructed for a Kurdish prince in the 12th century. The top section was not destroyed in a war but just collapsed. Mud brick is not the most lasting material. 

Tea time

Right below the citadel is this lovely chixana (tea house). I like to think that in some form or another people have been sitting here for 9000 years drinking tea and talking rubbish.

Women sit inside and men sit out in the street. While no one would object or cause a fuss if women sat outside, they would not be considered 'respectable'.

Inside the citadel

Partially restored buildings line the main street linking the north and south gates of the citadel, although all work has now stopped.

The South Gate. 

Hawler Citadel

The Hawler citadel at sunset. People have lived here for over 9000 years, though the building currently occupying the summit are unlikely to be more than 300 or 400 years old. Unfortunately all restoration has now stopped as the money has run out.

Street food

This meat is being prepared in the street with no refrigeration even though it is about 35c. However, food is never kept from one day to the next and word quickly gets around about the quality of the food. No street stall would last with a bad reputation. 

Klash

 Kurdistan has never been wealthy so most crafts are limited to practical everyday objects rather than any type of 'high art'. Even these crafts are today rather marginal as most production ground to halt after the destruction of Kurdish villages during the Anfal campaigns and few have been revived.

One craft that still remains very popular is the traditional Kurdish shoes or klash. Still handmade in the Hawrami region in the southeast of Iraqi Kurdish, klash are made entirely from scratch. The base of the shoe consists of thin strips of rubber tightly drawn together from which the sole is then cut and covered in cloth. This is held together by a piece of leather which is then cut when first worn. The pieces that hold the leather are supposed to be made from dried bull penis, and although everyone tells me the same story, I am not convinced. The uppers are all hand stitched from string much like macrame but much finer. There is no left and right and they don't do well in wet weather.

 These men in the bazaar are repairing klash, whitening the uppers and recovering the soles.

Of course next to the klash repairs are men selling traditional clothing.

Trusting folk

In the bazaar the money changers display their money on small counters showing what currencies they can change and in what amounts. Not sure how long that would last in New Zealand !