I'm still alive

Hallo!

(German Hello) :)Since April 3, I have not written anything and I really miss my blog. I have been in Germany for four months now. I miss Mosul and really everything about Mosul. I just love Mosul. My family, my friends and my heart are there.

I have much to tell. I have been through so many things. I went through the classes of the first semester immediately after my arrival ..and the17th of July was the last day of the classes. The first and last two weeks were the hardest. I have done some of the exams and will do the rest on Sept..

I want to write a long post and mention everything I have been through, everything about Kassel and the university. I also want to write some post in German. I think it's good way to practice. :D

It's really a hard language and I don't have time to foucs on it. I have to foucs on my study because this is what I come here for.

Anyway my favourite German words are:

Ach so: I see

(اخ سو)

Genau: right or exactly :)

(كناو)

krankenversicherung: :D

I got 1.7 in the exam I have A1 and A2 now. ;)

Well I have not understood the german greading system...Umm but 1.7 can be converted to 88-92%. :)

I will go to Berlin tomorrow. :)

.........

My sister in law has written a book. B-)

Yes, she is really cool. Her book is all about her life in Iraq. she says:

I forgot what peace looks like. What the street looks like. What the sky in the night look like. What my relatives look like. Sometimes I just think that if you could see what my eyes see, if you could hear what my ears hear, you would be able to understand what I mean.

Reading the book would also help to understand what she means. :)

The beginning of the rest, and the best, of my life.

The single most beautiful thing in life must be to love someone who loves you back.. It changes everything; the world is suddenly pink, you feel happier and safer than ever, and want to live every moment forever.

I am now engaged to the nicest and most fantastic girl in the world, The lovely and wonderful Najma. The girl who I am TOTALLY sure that I want to spend every single moment of my life with her.
I am so incredibly happy.

Sorry

First of all, I'm sorry for not writing for so long...and MUST apologize for not replying to emails. I am really very sorry.


I have been too busy... SO much has happened since my last post. I have been accepted and will receive a scholarship to do my master in Germany. I went three times to Baghdad to apply for the visa. I still can believe how easy and smoothly everything went in Baghdad but I do not want to bother you with all the details anyway. :)
I got the visa few days ago and will be leaving next week Inshallah.

I am so so happy...You have no idea of how happy and thankful I am now. I did not know that life could be so nice and sweet. I will tell you why I feel like this tomorrow inshallah.
Now I will ask you to keep me in your prayers. :)

سمك مسكوف

على ضفاف نهر دجلة سمك مسكوف

I rarely eat fish. I do not like it and detest its smell but really enjoyed eating it for the first time today .

Rambling

"It does not matter to whom you are going to vote, just make sure to vote and take part in the elections. It is our responsibility toward our city to choose good people or at least avoid the bad ones."
Mohammed, my friend, says this to me.

"Please, don’t tell me you believe that nonsense and you are going to vote."
Another friend.

" Well, I took part in the previous elections and I chose people I thought they were good and honest but they were not. I have felt so guilty "

"I know good people and I am voting for them."
"go to the elections because......"
"do not go to the elections because...."
"Vote"
"Do not vote"

I can not make up my mind and I am not sure if I am going to vote or not. My friends had very different opinions when I asked them and actually I felt in agreement with the one who was talking at the moment.
Anyway, my vote is not going to make any difference, is it?. :)
...................

Yesterday, I phoned Mohammed and asked him if he would like to go with me to the market. He replied that he was already in Al-Dawassa. I told him that I would join him. It was about 9AM and because of the terrible traffic jams and because I had to pass the old bridge on foot , etc.. we met at 11:30 AM!. :)
We bought some stuff then he invited me to lunch at a very famous restaurant. Well, It's only about1.5x2 meter so I am not sure we can call it a restaurant. It's near the old bridge and offers only fried fish. It's not clean (indeed dirty) but there were many people standing outside trying to find a room.!!!
the service is too bad (actually look likes self-servied restaurant !) and to cap it all, I hate fish so much. I just could not refuse his invitation. :)

Mohammed himself has arranged with many friends to go and have fish for lunch at Al-Gabbat tomorrow. They cook fish in a special way there.
Yes, I detest fish but I will go because there are many friends have been excited about the idea and will gather there, it might be a sigh of relife to me. Yes, I am still disappointed and depressed. :)
...................

Bashar is a journalistic photographer. He sometime comes to our college and takes photos for students and gets paid for doing so. few weeks ago, he came to me( some people had told him about me) and asked me about the settings of his camera. (he also asked me to recommend a camera for him)
Yes, I am good at whatever has something to do with photography now. :)
I have read about five fully books about photography. I have read tons and tons of tutorial pages. :)
I explained to him and asked him to have a look at my photos (actually I showed him only the good ones). He admired them (and first did not believe there were mine) and asked me to join The Association of Photographers. He is in charge of issuing the licences and I will receive mine tomorrow. I am official photographer now.

I have been thinking of upgrade to DSLR for so long now. I have read tons of camera reviews and after deep considerations, I first decided to go for the Canon 40d but it costs 1400$ here while its actual price is about 900$. So I cancelled this option.
When I last went to Erbil I searched and found Nikon D40 at 440$ (with the kit lens). I had already had read about it so it was love from first sight. I know it's not a professional and out-of-date but I think it is the best choice for me now. It is one of the smallest and lightest DSLR cameras. I can put the rest of money into good lenses.
...................

My nephew is acting so nicely but he is still not allowed to enter my room and needs my mother permission to enter our house. we do not know when his next mischief will be. :)

Disappointed :)

On Saturday, at late afternoon we heard shooting and then we knew that two iraqi soldiers were killed. Next day I went out to buy something for breakfast and saw many armed vehicles wandering in the streets. Then, they started ordering people through loudspeakers to stay at their houses and that there was going to be a curfew in the neighbourhood.

My mother asked me not to go to work but I had to go. Adham has not completely recovered yet so if I skipped any day , the lab would not be opened. The soldiers stopped me on my way out of the neighbourhood. They asked to see my ID then this conversation took place with one of them.

He: Why did you kill them?
I: But we did not..
He: You did...What are we going to tell their families? we are here to protect you and.... what have they done to you? They have not hurt anyone.
I: I know..

He did not let me talk and nodded for me to pass. Many other came trying to find way out. The soldiers shot that only students were allowed to pass!.
Then, they searched all the houses and shops in the neighbourhood. They told my father that they had found missiles in the nearby parking garage. They arrested the owner of the garage, the guy who works there, the operator of the neighbourhood electricity generator( we did not have power yesterday but now we have, maybe they released him) and others.
Now, everything is okay but we have only one entrance to the neighbourhood, they have closed all the roads.
.........................
Last week I went to Erbil but I did not like it. I did not take my camera with me so we used my friend's.
..........................

I am disappointed and feel depressed 24 hours a day- 7 days a week. Well, it is about 20 hours to be more exact. Indeed I feel a bit better when I eat. :) when I read your comments :) and also luckily they have been showing two episods of "The Simpsons" on Fox series everyday.

Hyedr was a colleague of mine. He had a very famous theory back when we were students. His theory says that every person, no matter what he/she is, go through happy moments and sad moments in the course of his/her life. I know you know this but the most important (and interesting) part of the theory says that the period between the birth and the death fluctuates EQUALLY between happiness and sadness, depression and cheer, and etc for everyone. Female or male, the president of some country or a simple worker at that country, and etc.

I don't clearly remember it but if anyhow he was right, the rest of my life would be very promising. :D

Frustrated

There was a curfew in Mosul this morning. All the roads were closed. We heard a heavy shooting yesterday. The situation has been fluctuating between chaos and relatively calm indeed. !!

Four explosions occurred almost at the same time in Al-majmoa' last week. Two doctors and a student in the pharmacy college were killed yesterday, the dean of the medicine college was attacked and seriously injured few weeks ago and etc.

It is really unbearable. Please pray that our suffering would be ended.

.............

My friend Adham had to go through an operation yesterday and because we both work in the same lab. I was not able to be with him. I planned to pay him a visit but look what has happened. Planning is almost impossible in our circumstances.

Once my friend, who is doing his master in Germany, told me that he finished his classes early that day. The professor of Digital Comm. did not attend the class and he had notified them about that three months before the actual date of the lecture!!.

.............

Well, I am depressed, disappointed, absent-minded and really frustrated. Please help me to get over this negative feeling. :(
.............

I had insomnia last night. I tried hard to sleep but till about 3:30 am it was in vain. I sent an SMS to Mohammed at about 2 am. :)

Here's the message

"والله ما وظعية

الكل نيمين وانا عدسمع عبد

"الحليم الوجعان

He also was not able to sleep and rplied. LOL

" احسن مني لأن انا عدسمع صوت

الكلب مال بيت الجيران يتكاون مع

كلاب المنطقة"