Reflections over the blog title

Restlessness lingers, I just want to get the wait over with and be on that airplane to Kurdistan.
If you're wondering about the name of the blog, I thought I'd explain it later on. Lingering peace is positive peace, and we can all agree on the fact that positive peace is non-existent in Kurdistan. Maybe I should write more about negative and positive peace. They are very interesting phenomenons, but if you have any objections, please feel free to comment.

BagoMania for SulyMania

The world's most ridiculous airline is the one we've chosen to fly us to Suly. We can only bring 20kg (which I think is about 44ibs) ,of luggage with us. I will be gone for three months, and I am of the female sex. One can imagine my fury. This meant a lot of confusion, anger and perhaps someone cursed at the airline during her packing. My accomplice C and I just have to adapt, I guess. Everything is packed and ready for tomorrow.

It's officially the 31st and at 5.25 pm we'll fly to Berlin, upon where we'll check in at the hotel. Our flight for Suleymania leaves at around 6am, but I am of course expecting some serious delays as I have no idea if it's 6am German time, or Kurdish/middle eastern time. If it's the latter, then I'm afraid that we wont be arriving at noon, as the ticket so wonderfully promises but much much later.
I'm not sure if I'll be able to blog from Berlin, but I shall surely try.

Tuesday morning, September 2nd, is my first day at "People's Development Assosiation"; my local organization of choice.
/H

Wait

The preparation time is over, we have finished our reports that we're supposed to present to the local organization. We're going to work in Suleymania for approximately 3 months, and later have a three week post-reporting period in Lillehammer Norway. (For those who don't know where this town is, it's about 2 1/2 hours north of Oslo and it's also where the 1994 winter olympics were held.)

I am leaving in 9 days, and have not come close to finishing all practical things I need to have done. In a way the preparation time in Lillehammer was better, it kept us away from the fact that we will be working in a completely different environment, using a language we're not used to. In a professional context, that is. I wont even begin to discuss the cultural dissonance between the generation that migrated and the one that stayed in Kurdistan. That's a whole blog for itself.

I will leave you with this picture of beautiful Lillehammer. Enjoy../ H

First

This blog will be shared by two individuals. We will later decide if we wish to share with you our identity. At this moment we find it more important to share with you more critical news. Set aside all your doubts, all your pessimistic thoughts and believe that some people are engrossed in developing a civil society in Iraq. This is supported by others in a priviliged part of the world and this is where we enter the scene.
Follow us on our journey to one of the many needed NGOs in Iraqi Kurdistan as they work in diffrent fields that further democratise a post-war,conflictfilled country.
We will reveal more in due time.