When I first moved to Erbil 15 years ago, it was becoming a small city. Most people who could afford it were buying or building new, modern homes. There was a neighborhood called English Village where Western/American style homes were the trend and where everyone assumed I lived. I did not. My house was in [...]
The biographies of the chefs in The Kitchen without Borders: Recipes and Stories from Refugee and Immigrant Chefs featured several common themes. Many of them started cooking by growing up watching or helping loved ones cook in their home kitchens: mothers, grandmothers, and even uncles. Several also hope to pass down their cooking and cultural [...]
Last time, I explored both my familiar grocery store and an unfamiliar one to get all the ingredients to make a few Middle Eastern dishes. Now, let me tell you how those ingredients are being put to use as I (attempt to) cook. This post is not a “how to make” the following dishes, but [...]
Equipped with The Kitchen without Borders: Recipes and Stories from Refugee and Immigrant Chefs, I was tasked with creating two to three dishes from different places. Over the next three posts, I explore what it was like to find the ingredients, make the dishes, and experience the reactions toward the food as well as the [...]
Between Iraq and a Hard Place: Episode 62 We're back with Erik! And he shares a more thorough walk through the old history of the Kurds. Learn more over on our Iraq page! And send us questions and comments to Hannah@servantgroup.org. Here's a bunch of links for resources and people Erik mentions for Kurdish history. [...]
I love to be cozy. Snuggled under a blanket on a cold day, good book in hand (or a nice social media endless scroll), and nowhere to be. It’s one of my favorite things to do. But there comes a point when it is not comfortable any more. Lounging around too long makes my body [...]
A first-hand account from one of our team members who served in Turkey! For two weeks in April I went to Adiyaman, Turkey to participate in building temporary housing for victims of the catastrophic earthquake that occurred in February of 2023. I had heard of the climbing death toll and saw pictures of [...]
Between Iraq and a Hard Place: Episode 57 Hannah and Colleen talk about Hannah's trip visiting our team in Iraq. Where we used to be the ones who were visited, now we are the visitors. And we love taking care of our team members! Learn more over on our Iraq page! And send us questions [...]
Sustainable Living in Iraq This isn’t about what you think it’s about. Sorry? Too often we associate “sustainable living” with recycling, cutting emissions, gardening, and getting rid of single use plastics. But what about living in a way that we are mentally, emotionally, and spiritually able to sustain for the long term? One of the [...]
Hannah and Colleen have a conversation with Victoria, who spent 28 days in Kurdistan on our teacher training trip back in August of 2021. Hear her reactions, culture shock, what she learned, and whether or not she'd ever go back! Also find out about what to do when you break your ankle on a mountain [...]
