Hi Trie,

Thanks for your comment and your questions regarding me in Philly.

Philly is a very nice and diverse city that being in it does not make people like me feel like a stranger. I meet a lot of people from different countries and that helped me a lot settle and love the city.

Being an Iraqi in a university is a very interesting experience. When people hear I am from Iraq, they ask me a lot of questions regarding my life and how I went through the war and the invasion. I am always glad that people ask although sometimes I believe it's too much like when I try to have fun with my friends and people keep talking about the war and the atrocities. That's the only thing that makes me feel sad because when I want to have some happy times, there will always be something reminding me of all the horror I went through in Baghdad.

Most of those who ask me are older than me. Most of my classmates do not really ask me about Iraq. My professors and other employees of the department where I work at on campus as a grad assistant.

It was weird at the beginning to be in the US. I am more used to it now. It's homesickness and the usual bad news that are not making me completely happy here. I miss everything in Iraq starting from food and ending with every single thing that I cannot find here.

Hope that answers your questions!

BT