Spring Break in Iraq
A definite positive sign out of Iraq this weekend - the first official western tour group entered Iraq last week to visit historic and religious sites. The group was made up of five Britons, two Americans and a Canadian.
Having been to Iraq twice in the last four years, I can say there are very few places I'd like to see again, though that's not to say there isn't plenty of interesting history in the country. On my first trip, I stayed at FOB Danger in Tikrit, a base of over sixty palaces that Saddam Hussein had built for himself and his family. While the town itself was dusty and in shambles, the palaces were ornate and surrounded by fountains, lakes and Hussein's monuments to himself. We turned that base over to the Iraqis in 2006, and if some enterprising hotelier wants to sink a few hundred million into renovations, I imagine that Tikrit could become a resort town for the rich and famous.
Samarra has the famous golden-domed Al-Askari mosque that I got to see in 2005. Unfortunately, not long after that, the 700-year-old mosque was blown up by Sunni extremists, touching off a severe bout of sectarian violence that would have destroyed the country had it not been for the tireless efforts of U.S. troops on the ground. What was left of the mosque was blown up in 2007, but there still remains the spiral minaret of the even-older great mosque, slightly worse for wear after being hit by an RPG or two.
In Babylon, there are the ancient ruins of the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, which would be of interest to any fan of ancient biblical history. The only problem is that the site is now covered by the crumbling remains of a new, albeit poorly built palace on top of the original site. It was put there in 1982 by Captain Ego himself -- Saddam Hussein. Sigh.
I hear there are new shopping malls opening up in Baghdad, so maybe our intrepid tourists will enjoy a little shopping. But we have shopping malls here in Beckley, West Virginia where I live. We also have hotels, which are very, very sparse in Iraq. But as long as the peace holds, I'm sure that will change.
The upside? Iraq is now safer than some places in Mexico. But don't worry about getting crowded out by alcohol-soaked college kids -- that won't happen in Iraq. After all, the whole country is a beach, there's plenty of room for everybody.
Hey, I think I'll forward that slogan to the Iraqi ministry of tourism.
Chuck Holton