In have visited the country 4 times all being in december and ending in febuary. the first 3 times i stayed with family an friends. However in 2011 i stayed at Cristal Grand Ishtar Hotel, one of iraqi's finest hotels located in the heart of baghdad, Firdos square. The hotel had excellent services and was a pleasure to stay in. on average the cost per night is $145 with breakfast.
During the first day i went on a tour with my fiance starting with Mutanabbi Street located near the old quarter of Baghdad; at Al Rasheed street. It is the historic center of Baghdad bookselling, a street filled with bookstores and outdoor book stalls. It was named after the 10th century classical Iraqi poet Al Mutanabi. This street is well established for bookselling and has often been referred to as the heart and soul of the Baghdad literacy and intellectual community. The books i found at this street were so old and so special to iraqi communties. they told us that some of the books are not found in anyother place in the world but only in Mutanabbie Street.
image ref: http://aawsat.com/2011/04/05/images/daily1.615739.jpg
After visiting the Mutanabbie Street we headed to AL Shaah Bandar cafe, one of the oldest cafes in baghdad. it is famous for its traditional iraqi tea, cold drinks and the old style Argila "hubbly bubbly". the people that i found at the cafe were mostly iraqi Intellectuals. those people where amazing, they try their best to help visitors and explain important sities in baghdad. being at the cafe gave us a rest but also time to understand more about the different locations near by and people's traditions in the area.
image ref: http://www.uobaghdad.edu.iq/uploads/Baghdad-landmarks/Baghdad%20landmarks2/%D9%85%D9%82%D9%87%D9%89%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%B1%20%D9%81%D9%8A%20%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B9%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%A8%D9%8A.jpg
After having our break we headed to Baghdad Traditions and Culture Museum which was suggest by one of the iraqi Intellectuals at the cafe. The museum has different sections about different types of iraqi traditions for example in one area there was dolls dressed in tradition cloths women wear when going to a wedding and one doll was dressed in the traditional bridal cloths. The museum is a must go to by every visitor coming to baghdad as it clearly explains the old traditions.
image ref:http://www.ro7ma.net/up/uploads/12948580993.jpg
image ref: http://gdb.rferl.org/837DAD66-0BE4-4E4C-9693-F49616CF54A1_w640_r1_s.jpg
We ended the day my having our lunch at Al Samad resturant in baghdad, Al Mansour city. This resturant has the best quality Iraqi food with great prices. Main meals range from $25-40. The food we ate was great and still left memories of the traditional food Iraqi families have.
I hope you guys enjoyed reading about a tour in baghdad and now maybe include baghdad as a destination for your next holiday.
No comments:
Post a Comment