Caving In

As part of the sightseeing near the border with Turkey (see post "There are mountains beyond mountains"), we also explored a cavernous area with two interesting caves.

The first cave (above). Mullah Mustafa, the Kurdish nationalist, reportedly hid in this cave some time during the various struggles against the Iraqi state. 

 Nearby we visited another cave which houses an Assyrian (Syriac) church built into a mountain side.

 Some members of our sightseeing group lit a candle.

 The Montessori school I visited in Barzan (see previous post "Hotel for Cows") graciously organized a special field trip for Grades 1 and 2. I had requested to see the Shanidar Cave, mostly so I could have bragging rights next time I am a TA for an introduction to anthropology course.  Here's the Wikipedia article on the cave: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanidar_Cave

Approximately thirty children, ages 6 and 7, piled into two mini-buses and a pickup truck. They were ecstatic,although I doubt they understood the significance of where they were going. No matter, they were going on an adventure with snacks tucked in little plastic bags. On the thirty minute drive along the Great Zab river bank, they clapped along with Kurdish songs the elderly driver played on an old cassette tape. He smiled a very toothy grin back at his happy passengers. At one point he abruptly pulled over on the shoulder of the road and ducked into a small convenience store to buy a bottle of water for me. Already I'm caving into the Kurds' famed generosity and hospitality. (Sorry, I couldn't resist the pun.)

 I was charged with keeping watch over four bright-eyed Kurdish girls who bounced alongside me and bounded ahead only to be told, "Wara, wara!" (Come, come!) They were adorable.

 Here we are exploring the cave and picnicking at the entrance. Of course, we didn't attempt to wrangle 30 kids through the narrow passages to see more of the cave. Loading the vans, hiking up to the cave, and keeping watch over the herd was adventure enough.

 Cliff swallows (birds)!

 A view of the cave from below. You can see a similar photograph (below) on a page of a KRG Ministry of Education issued Kurdish textbook. I wonder how many Kurdish children actually visit the cave, which seems to have little to no security and is covered in graffiti and litter.