I'm Dan and I'll be your tourguide today!
Hello and Welcome to Baghdad! It will be a pleasant 113 degrees Farenheit today with a gentle breeze from the northwest. And like always this time of year - SUNSHINE! So put down your umbrellas, grab your waterbottles and sunscreen and follow me!
On our way to the landing zone, we're going to make a couple of stops to orient you to key aspects of the city. Now this is our first stop - the radio tower. Now, as far as radio towers, it's fairly normal, but, with it's blue ball on top, it makes for a great reference point from the air. You will be seeing it later! What I like about this view is that it tells you a lot about Baghdad. You see that haze in the air? It is always here! It too is visible from the air! What is also visible is construction. Lots of it. Things are going up, things are coming down - this is a vibrant city! And the wires. They are everywhere! Now if we can just get juice through those wires for more than 4 hours a day, the city would be really rocking!
Like any well known city in the world, Baghdad is full of surprises. Just as you can turn a corner in London and say to yourself, "That's Big Ben!" or you can catch a glimpse of the Capitol as you drive through the streets of Washington, D.C., Baghdad too has its moments. Like the Swords of Qadisiyah here. Otherwise known as the Hands of Victory, built to celebrate Iraq's victory over the Iranians (remember the Iran Contra scandal? we played both sides in that one), I bet the last time you saw these were in some image with a U.S. tank in front of it. Well, now we have commerce and Mercedes shipping trucks. That's progress!
Now that we're airborn, the views are going to come quickly. Here's a view of downtown Baghdad, dense with Iraqi Ministries, offices and apartment complexes.
And if that didn't remind you of a traditional American city, check these out? These do our interstate highway system proud. Squint just a bit, and you'd think you were in Arizona! The temperature is about right!
On the far side of this lake is a palace surrounded by water. That's the palace where Saddam was held during his trial. Didn't quite work out for him, did it? Though I hear the palace is really, really nice. Somehow, I think the price of staying there is a bit too high for me, if you know what I mean.
Now if you look straight down below us, you'll see a typical Iraqi suburban residential neighborhood. They may have walls instead of fences around their yards, but we're pretty much alike. Iraqis love their trees and outdoor gardens just as we love our yards.
As we turn here, take a look south down the Tigris River. Since it's end of summer, the river is low, but you can see it's the heart of the city. The Rusafa and Karadah neighborhoods are off to the left, and the Karkh neighborhood, where the International Zone is located, is off to the right. As I noted earlier, you can see the haze is obscuring the horizon. However, as the sun is setting the haze starts to take on this lovely pinkish glow, which you can just barely detect here.
And what did I tell you about the radio tower? I told you that you'd see it again! Easiest landmark from the air! If you look a bit beyond it to the left, you'll see the al-Rahman mosque under construction. It is over 750 feet across and occupies 11 acres. When it's completed it will be the second largest mosque in Iraq. If you see a tall crane in Baghdad, odds are it's building a mosque.
And as we approach the landing zone, you can see the Presidential Palace, the site of the old U.S. Embassy before it moved to its current location. As you can tell, the Presidential Palace has a commanding view of an elegent bend in the Tigris River. Many old State hands lament leaving the "Palace." I think they just wish the new embassy had an outdoor pool like the Palace did, but who am I to say?
Well, I hope you enjoyed your tour of Baghdad. Please give your thanks to our pilot, Captain Ann on your way out and please watch your step!