Traditional Meal

Another treat in Dhi Qar was the traditional Iraqi food that was served. On the last evening of our trip we had a huge spread of food served in traditional fashion....on the floor! As we entered the room that was covered with beautiful rugs, we were invited to remove our shoes and take a seat. There was a long sheet of plastic placed over the rugs to protect them from all the food that was brought in by 3-4 Iraqi boys. The food was spread all up and down the long sheet of plastic as shown in the photograph.

You'll find it interesting if you look closely in the picture, there are no spoons, forks or knives. Again, this is the traditional manner for serving food in the Middle East. And, the meals are generally served "family style"....large bowls or platters with many servings. There was plenty of traditional bread, called "khoubiz". You eat in the following manner: Take a piece of bread, which is usually the size of a dinner plate. Tear off a smaller piece, maybe the size of the palm of your hand, and use it to dip into the common platter or bowl. If the bowl has a more 'liquid' food, you just dip it in and pull it up and take a bite of the bread with the liquid. If the food is more of a solid, you use the bread to grasp it and then eat it. It's a different experience for us Westerners who are accustomed to using utensils!!!

The food was delicious!!! The plate at the bottom shows a traditional fish dish. The fish is carp, which we consider to be a 'trash' fish in the States. It's a delicacy here! We also had a tremendous amount of vegetables, boiled eggs, olives, hummus, and on and on! Our Iraqi host was one of the local politicians, and he treated us like visiting royalty!!

Poetry in Dhi Qar

We really got the cultural treatment in Dhi Qar, including some poetry. It was delivered in Arabic, with a translator providing English translation. I felt like the guys at the United Nations with the little speaker hanging on my ear while listening to the translation.

Here is an example:

Destinies by Mahmud Al-Braikan

The liner is at anchor beside the dock
It rests with its decayed hulk,
Within its interior it hides
The rust of the eras.
It was by sailors left long ago,
And it sides are re-enameled,
It is decked with lamps lined
Up in the air,
And coloured paper birds.
And it reposes at the dock
A restaurant afloat,
It is here where the no-comers
Rejoice at the smell of the sea
From within the smell of the delicacies,
And they cast across the tables
Their looks at a sole life-buoy.

**********************************

Music in Dhi Qar

Another joy from our trip to Dhi Qar Province was the local music! We were entertained twice by a group of Iraqi musicians. They were all male, and the group must have had 8-9 men playing. We were familiar with some of the instruments...electric keyboard, violins, tambourines and drums of various types. Others were more exotic....a strange dulcimer-like instrument and a very small metallic drum.

There was a man playing something like a penny-whistle. It appeared to be made from white PVC pipe, maybe 20" long. He also played one made from a cane or reed type plant (which is abundant in this area). There were 3 drummers....playing tambourine, and drums typical of the Middle East and Africa.

However, one drum stood out from the rest. It was a very small drum, and at first I couldn't figure out what it was. The gentleman playing it had a black leather belt around the bottom of his ribcage. That leather belt held a small metallic drum that was placed sort of under his left arm, just about under his left elbow. The drum itself appeared as a metal cylinder....you could almost say it was the size and shape of a soft drink can. The "bottom" end of it pointed forward, and that's the end that the drummer "played". I couldn't see how long this metal cylinder was.

He played it with the tips of his fingers, while playing another drum placed between his knees with his hands...he just moved from the bigger drums to this small, metal drum....back and forth.

The sound of the small drum was very metallic, almost "tinny"....and loud!! He'd start playing on the small drum and it sounded like a machine gun off in the distance!! I can't imagine that his fingers didn't hurt from the impact of playing!! He was really whacking that drum!!! I found all of the music pleasing to the ear, with the exception of this little metal drum.

The music was outstanding!! We were all asking to purchase a CD of the music, but they had none! I guess there's an opportunity for some economic development!!!

Later in the day, they entertained us again. During one of their numbers, a singer entertained us. Of course the song was in Arabic, and I don't have an idea of what was said, but it was very pleasant.

Again, it was great to see this expression of artistic talent in Iraq. So often we see only the big T-walls, poverty, litter, drought, etc. etc. This was a welcomed adventure into the hidden Iraq!

Ziggurat of Ur

I'll have several stories to share from my recent trip to Dhi Qar Province, I hope you enjoy them all.

Today I visited the ancient ziggurat near the ancient city of Ur. "What's a ziggurat?", I said as our hosts told us that we were taking an archaeological adventure before leaving on the plane. Here's the answer from Wikipedia:

"Ziggurats were important to the Sumerians, Babylonians and Assyrians of ancient Iran and Mesopotamia. The earliest examples of the ziggurat were simple raised platforms that date from the Ubaid period during the fourth millennium BC, and the latest date from the 6th century BC. The top of the ziggurat was flat, unlike many pyramids. The step pyramid style began near the end of the Early Dynastic Period. Built in receding tiers upon a rectangular, oval, or square platform, the ziggurat was a pyramidal structure. Sun-baked bricks made up the core of the ziggurat with facings of fired bricks on the outside. The facings were often glazed in different colors and may have had astrological significance. The number of tiers ranged from two to seven, with a shrine or temple at the summit. Access to the shrine was provided by a series of ramps on one side of the ziggurat or by a spiral ramp from base to summit. Notable examples of this structure include the Great Ziggurat of Ur and Khorsabad in Mesopotamia.

The ziggurats had no internal chambers. they were almost always square or rectangular, where one side was upwards of 170 feet (50 meters) long.

The Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public worship or ceremonies. They were believed to be dwelling places for the gods. Through the ziggurat, the gods could be close to mankind, and each city had its own patron god. Only priests were permitted on the ziggurat or in the rooms at its base, and it was their responsibility to care for the gods and attend to their needs. The priests were very powerful members of Sumerian society.

There are 32 ziggurats known at, and near, Mesopotamia. Twenty-eight of them are in Iraq, and four of them are in Iran. "

We visited the ziggurat near Ur, in the southern region of Iraq. It was a hot day, and the landscape around the ziggurat looks like the moon, devoid of vegetation. Standing on top of the ziggurat gives one a view of some remains of structures in the immediate vicinity. It was so quiet and lonely, and difficult to imagine that thousands of people must have worked on this site some 4,000 years ago! Yes, this ziggurat was built around 2100 B.C.!!

Locals claim that the prophet Abraham was born in this very location, but that's unproven, of course. Regardless, this is an awesome, historic site that reflects the intelligence of this ancient civilization.

Top photo: Ziggurat of Ur, see the man standing on top? That gives you an indication of the size of this....all made from mud bricks!!

Middle photo: Me, standing on top of the Ziggurat of Ur.

Bottom photo: A photo from the top of the ziggurat of Ur, looking down to the next level, with the surrounding terrain in the background.

Warming Up!

The temperatures have been warming up a bit in the Green Zone. April 15th was the first day of the year to exceed 100 degrees! Since then, we've had a few days when it only hit 90, which seemed like a very nice day!! I'm guessing that as the temperatures continue to rise, we'll look back on these days of "only 100 degrees" and regard them with fond memories!

Singing on our Knees

I've already described church here as a very different experience, and that continues to be true. Last night proved to be an exceptionally "different" night. Last night, May 4th 2008, we had the pleasure of hearing Canon Andrew White, with St. George's Episcopal Church, here in Baghdad. He grew up in Great Britain, and is a huge man. He must be about 6' 4", with a booming voice. Ten years ago, he came to Baghdad to serve at St. George's Church. I can't imagine the culture shock that he has experienced! His church is only about a mile outside of the Green Zone, so he lives and works in the heart of Baghdad. He told us a little about his church, and the wonderful Iraqi Christians in his congregation. Sadly, he informed us that he's lost 58 members in the last 2 years. They were victims of all kinds of violence from suicide bombers, to car bombers, to just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He didn't say it, but I suspect that some were killed because they were Christian. I was calculating that and it comes out to an average of one death every two weeks, just in his congregation!!! Yet his faith, and his congregation's faith remains strong in the face of such adversity. His church has guards working there around the clock. After all, Christians are not well loved by most of the remainder of the Iraqi population. These folks have experienced life like we can't imagine. Well, as sad as that news was, it was still a highlight to have him visit our chapel, and to tell us that his church loves us, and sends us their blessings.

As special as his visit was, it was just the first event of a special night. Lately, the International Zone has come under rocket and mortar fire. It started on Easter Sunday, and I suspect this wasn't a coincidence, but an expression of disdain for Christians. Regardless, things have been a little "on edge" lately.

Whenever there is an alert for an in-coming rocket, we hear this loud WAAA-OOOO-WAAA-OOOO-WAA-OOOO over the speaker system. Standard protocol is to head to the nearest concrete bunker, or to simply "hit the dirt". Earlier in the service last night, we sang a new song, "No, Never Alone". It's an upbeat, "gospelly" song that makes you want to clap your hands or tap your feet. Last night, a few minutes after Canon White had spoken, we were just starting to stand up to sing this song again, when the alert went off.....WAAA-OOOO-WAAA-OOOO-WAAA-OOOO!!!!! The chaplain (who's an army colonel) instructed us to get on the floor. So, we all got onto the floor, most of us simply got on our knees and tried to "hide" behind our chairs. My friend, Manilka, was sitting in the row of chairs in front of me and we were like a couple of school boys peeking at each other between the chairs. As we settled into this position, listening for any explosion, someone started singing the chorus to that song. Within an instant..... spontaneously, we were all singing...... as best we could given the position that we were in....on our knees with heads lowered. At that moment, I don't think there was an ounce of fear left in the building. Here we were, on our knees, but singing a song entitled, "No, Never Alone". How could we fear anything? We continued singing, finishing the song while still on our knees. Then we stood up and continued the service. It was a very surreal experience!!!! A few of us who were there last night have mentioned how the events of May 4, 2008 will always remain with us. I know that I'll always remember the night we sang on our knees in church in the International Zone, just a mile down the street from our Christian friends at St. George's Episcopal Church. I'll always remember the fear that they have to endure daily, and pray that they know the words to the song "No, Never Alone".

To read about St. Geoge's Episcopal Church, go to: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81799_94311_ENG_HTM.htm