To Mesopotamia and Kurdistan in disguise : with historical notices of the Kurdish tribes and the Chaldeans of Kurdistan

The narrator sets out from the bustling train station of Constantinople, his first steps into a city where Ottoman, Greek, and European worlds collide. Guided by a modest French pension in Galata, he watches horse‑drawn trams and mud‑splattered streets, feeling the pull of the East after years in the West. From this noisy gateway he begins a measured trek across Mesopotamia toward Baghdad, keeping a detailed journal of the landscapes and peoples he meets.

Along the way he gains enough Persian to blend in with local merchants, and the diary soon records vivid encounters with Kurdish tribes who welcome him with unexpected generosity. The author weaves these personal scenes with rare historical notes supplied by tribal leaders and Chaldean scholars, offering a glimpse into a culture often painted as harsh and remote. Listeners will find a rich tapestry of travel, language, and early scholarship that brings a little‑known corner of the Near East to life.