I made it!! I have been up for over 30 hours. I don't want to have jet lag, so I stay up on their time. I have had great success avoiding jet lag if when I arrive somewhere to join their time.
My friends asked if I wanted to go out for dinner, I said sure!!!
This restaurant makes a real statement from the outside. It is very attractive and bright with beautiful architecture. Then there is the aroma!!
You walk up to the restaurant and right outside they are grilling the fish.
As appealing as it is on the outside, it is just as beautiful on the inside. It light and bright with nooks and crannies. There is even a water fountain inside.
I am amazed at all the food you get as the Kurdish restaurants, and people think Americans waste food and eat a lot. I get it that they want to provide all the food you want, and it would be shameful if you did not get enough food, but I never came close to eating the food I was served.
We ordered one fish, Carp, to spilt. Then they bring out the extras. You always get all these appetizer items in Kurdish restaurants. Some of the items vary, but a lot of them are the same.
We got a salad (no lettuce)- cucumbers, tomatoes and onions. This was served at EVERY Kurdish Restaurant we went too, as well as hummus, naan, red beets, a cole slaw of sorts, and an eggplant salad.
There were also a few other things we were given as well.
This meal was around $26 for all 3 of us- to help give you an idea of food prices. This is one of the nicest places we ate at.
Here is the fish. It was good, really good. The grilled skin was incredible.
There was also crispy rice with fish as well as onions and arugula.
We did have to watch for the bones in the fish, it was worth it though.
I didn't realize that you were not supposed to throw all the salad items together to make one salad, hahaha. I asked how to eat it, should I just get creative. They said sure, so I just added a little bit of everything together...Opps!
Okay, now is what I love...the tea!!! Every Kurdish meal ends with tea. Yep, tea is huge here. I was made to be here and enjoy the tea.
Tonight's tea was served with dates.
I can't believe how much sugar is added to this tea. It is a lot!!
Here is what I have gathered about Kurdish Tea while visiting...
Tea here is called Chai. It is a black Ceylon tea with cardamon.
A teahouse is the second most visited place in Iraq, just after the mosques.
Tea is the number one drink in Iraq.
There are tea houses all over Erbil and some are for men only. The men sit around- drink tea, play games, talk business, and politics.
Tea houses in Iraq are called chai khana.
It is becoming more acceptable to women to be allowed in some teahouses.
Iraqis are said to drink 1 pound of tea a month. In 2021, Iraq was the largest importers of Ceylon tea.
Tea is for rich and poor, old and young. It is a part of the culture in Iraq.
In the 19th century the governor of Bhagdad turned all the coffee houses into tea houses.
But tea really gained it's popularity when the British army came to Iraq.
I've heard that people will start their day with Kurdish tea too. That if they don't they believe they will often have headaches and become dizzy.
If you buy tea along the streets here it is less and .50
Iraqi tea is served in a small cup made of glass called “Istikan” and this word means “East Tea
Can”. In other countries, I have heard them called Tulip cups, because of the shape.
Tea is made in a Samovar. The bottom kettle has the hot water, the top, smaller kettle has the stronger tea concentrate. You would fill the cup up with around 3/4 of the black tea and then the rest with hot water. You try to fill the cup up as full as you can.
When tea is served it comes on a saucer, with the cup and a spoon. The spoons can stick together. If a man receives two spoons that means he will have two wives.
To cool the tea, some pour the tea in the saucer to drink it. Some also keep the teacup in the saucer and lift the saucer up to drink from the cup, since the tea can be so hot.
There are a few things that can be added to this tea...a cinnamon stick, a rose bud, saffron, and even a tea perfume.
Tea is served with dates, sunflower seeds, pistachios, cookies, and other sweet treats.
The teaspoon is left in the cup when the tea is poured, if left out they think of you as inferior to them. (I also read that you never serve the spoon in the cup. It all depends on what part of Iraq you are from. When served in Erbil, it always had a spoon in the cup when it was brought to me. Yet, when I went to a Kurdish home, he made the tea without the spoon in it.)
People love the clinking of the teaspoon along the teacup as the sugar is stirred in. The clinking sounds are heard all over shops and bazars.
You will find kiosks of tea sellers on the side of streets, in the bazar, and all along the roads in villages.
Picnics always includes tea. People will grill their food over wood and charcoal and then put the kettle on. Some say tea over wood or charcoal is the best.
If you go to someone's house, it is rude for them not to offer tea. And you usually will have at least 2 cups.
This tea was a little more bitter than I expected. I assume that the tea was steeping longer than I am used to in the top teapot. But I do still like the tea. I get the black tea with notes of cardamon.
I prefer this tea hot rather than cool. The tea comes out super-hot, too hot to drink right away for me. I let it cool a bit, but not too much.
I cannot believe that tea is served so often here. I am in tea heaven!
On the left is the tallest building in Iraq. It seemed every night we were out the light display was different on the building.
I have been up for over 30 hours, and I am still doing great. This was a great way to start my trip here. My belly is full, my tastebuds have been satisfied, and I am with great friends I have not seen in over a year and a half. I can't wait to explore this area...and drink more tea.
10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
