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Erbil/Arbil, Kurdistan Iraq
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sanpedro72



Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
Location: Earth

PostPosted: Tue Sep 27, 2011 4:16 pm    Post subject: Erbil/Arbil, Kurdistan Iraq Reply with quote

Hi everyone, I noticed there wasn't a forum for Iraq or Kurdistan region in Iraq. There international (or similar schools) popping up in Arbil and I wonder if anyone is familiar with working in this part of the mid east or at least know about the schools. I have been hired for $2100 per month by a school called American International School - Kurdistan aka AIS-K. Any thoughts or comments are welcome. I am not too familiar with this part of the world and would like to feel confident with my decision. Thanks to all!
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eflnoil



Joined: 08 Nov 2008
Posts: 23
Location: AKTAU

PostPosted: Tue Sep 27, 2011 6:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

according to my chum who is there on leave, pay ain't great but it's around what competitors there are paying in the english language schools there.

What benefits are they offering. ex housing, transport, flights etc ? Might help to know.

Is this crowd quite new, then ? they have a web-mail.

chum seems to be impressed. loads of constrction work going on. in case you're wondering, he says kurds are not strictly arabs and it's supposedly a melting pot of religious diversity and working well. some parts of city unkempt but not too bad in general.

take taxis everywhere.

eno
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sanpedro72



Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
Location: Earth

PostPosted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 4:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

hey elfnoil,

thanks for follow thru. yea, i am not sure if $2100/month is that good but the flat is free - on school grounds - with all new electronics (flat screen, etc.). paid uts, paid flight (i'll be flying in from central java), normal paid western and muslim holidays (not sure about summer). this is the school's first year in running and in fact, i was contacted 1 month ago but hr is super disorganized and i only received a contract yesterday. that's as good as i could come up with. any thoughts?

cheers,

sanpedro72
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eflnoil



Joined: 08 Nov 2008
Posts: 23
Location: AKTAU

PostPosted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 6:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

comments from my chum:

probably as good as you'll get. i'd take it. kurdistan is on the up so being there, on the ground, for better opportunities when they arise is something you might want to add to your consideration.

give it a couple of years and there will be salaries there on par with the likes of UAE and Saudi Arabia (without its stifling cultural and religious baggage).

right now its the only 'country' (which it practically is) with any sort of positive future in the whole region (bar oil-rich azerbaijan and kazakhstan)

enjoy

eno
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sanpedro72



Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
Location: Earth

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 5:56 am    Post subject: other stuff Reply with quote

i lived in istanbul for close to 3 years and one of the occurrences that annoyed me the most was over-loud calls to prayer that would often interrupt my concentration at work and my peace at home. is this an issue in Kurdistan? warning: loud, close by calls to prayer may cause indigestion while eating. seriously.

on some blogs, i read that kurdistan is the most expensive place in the mid east. is that true? any tips on saving on a modest salary?

i googled for a price index on things from smokes and beer to clothing and electronics but couldn't find anything. any ideas?

cheers!
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veiledsentiments



Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 1:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you are bothered by the call to prayer, I suggest that you avoid working in Muslim countries. Not to be rude, but you won't be able to avoid it. Many of us consider it one of the nice memories of our time there.

VS
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eflnoil



Joined: 08 Nov 2008
Posts: 23
Location: AKTAU

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 4:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

[color=darkblue]
Quote:
If you are bothered by the call to prayer, I suggest that you avoid working in Muslim countries


After all, what would you say to a person intending to come and work in your country who said they couldn't stand or tolerate the ringing of church bells and it made them ill ? Give it some thought, my friend.

eno





[/color]
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sanpedro72



Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
Location: Earth

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 5:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

if projected over loud speakers, yes Smile like i said noise is noise and has nothing to do with religious belief Smile
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eflnoil



Joined: 08 Nov 2008
Posts: 23
Location: AKTAU

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 6:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

my old man used to think black sabbath was noise; i thought it was music. what is noise and what is music ? debateable.

Muslims don't believe the call to prayer is a noise.

honestly, i think it tends to be a racket (just like gamelan) but that's my view only but i can deal with it.

signing out of this thread. getting nowhere.

eno
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Middle East Beast



Joined: 05 Mar 2008
Posts: 836
Location: Up a tree

PostPosted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 9:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

veiledsentiments wrote:
Many of us consider it one of the nice memories of our time there.

VS


I'm not one of those. And by the way, church bells don't ring at 4-5 am and several times during each day and every day of the week.

I've worked for years in the M.E. and the only way to get away from it is to live on a western compound in KSA. I found that some compounds are intentionally built away from mosques. You'll hear it faintly, but not enough to wake you at 4 o'clock in the morning. That's when it bothered me.

MEB Cool
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veiledsentiments



Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA

PostPosted: Fri Sep 30, 2011 2:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I never lived on a compound. I lived in Cairo (many different flats), Oman (3 areas), Kuwait (one flat), and Abu Dhabi (2 different flats). It was never a problem. Kuwait got overly loud during Ramadhan, but really... not a big deal. Light sleepers might like ear plugs. I have always used a white noise machine as I am a super light sleeper.

The biggest noise issue that I had in the Middle East was the packs of feral dogs in Cairo.

VS
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It's Scary!



Joined: 17 Apr 2011
Posts: 823

PostPosted: Fri Sep 30, 2011 2:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I have always used a white noise machine...


WHITE NOISE POWER!!!

It's like, I got nothing else to add! (Be nice, VS!) Laughing
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veiledsentiments



Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA

PostPosted: Fri Sep 30, 2011 2:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Laughing

I had much noisier neighbors in VA... and that is why I bought the little white noise machine in the 70's. They are very useful for traveling too... noisy hotels are the worst.

VS
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Middle East Beast



Joined: 05 Mar 2008
Posts: 836
Location: Up a tree

PostPosted: Fri Sep 30, 2011 2:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had horribly noisy upstairs neighbors (Emirati family), 24/7 street noise, and the call to prayer to deal with in the UAE.

MEB Cool
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It's Scary!



Joined: 17 Apr 2011
Posts: 823

PostPosted: Fri Sep 30, 2011 2:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Middle East Beast wrote:
I had horribly noisy upstairs neighbors (Emirati family), 24/7 street noise, and the call to prayer to deal with in the UAE.

MEB Cool


What? You actually found an Emirati family that only thought about themselves? Image the rarity of those! Evil or Very Mad

"It's my country and I can act any way I please, plus the laws don't apply to me!"
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