TEDxErbil Part I

Hellooo Loyal Blog Readers,

Before I begin I shall take a pause. I actually met three Loyal Blog Readers this week. How amazing is that? One in Yoga (gosh she was so sweet) and another two in TEDxERBIL on the weekend (you know who you are!). I guess all three were surprised to see someone so tiny to be the face behind this blog. Note to self: Add my height and weight to the bio. Haha! Anyway....

TEDxERBIl is always a lovely event, this year was no different. Of course, you can't be in Kurdistan if the mic doesn't cut or growl a few times - at any event you're in, and this was no different. But overall all the volunteers who had helped to organize the event were more than great!

I wanted to share with you, my dearest reader, some of the faces that were on stage.

Dastan and Eman


Left Dastan, Right Eman.

These girls are just super super super sweet, I spent a good few hours with them the day before the event and won't talk too much about them, keep an eye for a blog post on Wednesday all about these two 18-year-olds who created a bomb detector. The youngest speakers on stage and they received a standing ovation from the audience, these two were on top of the world and spoke so passionately. They are knowledge, emotion and beauty mixed together to create two genuine souls that you want to pack in your bag and take home with you. I have not seen girls this kind and sweet. Okay Saza, stop here. As I said, full blog on both these sweet hearts in... let's say 24 hours?!

Naji Asafiry

Naji Asafiry

His story gave us all shivers, and inspired us beyond words. How amazing to have a young boy on stage giving a personal story of his journey with drugs, the turning points in his life and the day he decided to stop using weed. His talk finished with a rap/ song tribute to his mother (which I actually enjoyed!) I hope to get Naji involved in our peer education program so that he inspires young people who are in the phase that he went through.

Omar Ali

Omar Ali

Omar was such a confident speaker, and I wanted him to stay on stage for hours and hours on. His presence was simply enjoyable. He is also a great inspiration. From the hidden, unseen boy to the one who makes everyone smile. I wished I could speak to him after the event and just say: Hey, you're great!  He didn't stop smiling and the performance was so smooth, so natural, so... Omar!

Hiwa Osman

Hiwa Mahmood Osman

I have been following the work of Hiwa Osman for a while now, so it was no surprise that his talk will be interesting and there was no doubt he will have an immaculate presence on stage. The talk was calm, and flawless. But listen read this: As soon as  I got to work the next day I read an article about ISIS; One of the points made about them was so interesting. I took out a quote  from the article and was tweeting it when the bells in my brain rang! I remembered Hiwa's words and then deleted the entire tweet. Want to know why? Wait for the video to be uploaded and my friend, you shall see.

Hamko

Hamko

I have heard about Hamko so much, but it was the first time I see him. I think a lot of the audience members left saying this was their favorite performance. He grew up as a poor child, without a mother, in a cemetery. He spoke of his tough childhood journey - almost had me in tears - and where he is today. Typical, as a comedian, he made us laugh too. I think I want to go to one of his shows soon. If I do, I will blog it, don't worry!

Dashne Morad

For those who don't know, Dashne was a former TV host who later recorded an album labelling  her as the Shakira of Kurdistan. This was a very interesting performance. Dashne's presence on stage and the way she spoke was with no doubt engrossing. However there was a lot of contrast with what she said in her talk and other interviews she had given before. Maybe it's a new Dashne, or maybe this is the real Dashne. Not sure. Her opening words to me showed she is going through a lot of pressures and is being attacked heavily. Her eyes teared as she said "you don't know me...I am not a bad person."

There were some great speakers (including Reber Jaff) but will cover them in another post.

For now lots of love from
My Nest in Kurdistan,


Sazan,

(pictures: Some are mine others taken from TEDxERBIL Facebook page and other photographers)