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I recently returned from spending two weeks in Iraq (plus a 3 day layover in Qatar afterwards). Much of my travel is to the less popular corners of the world (see past trips reports to Afghanistan, west Africa, central Asia & Mauritania), so this wasn't that unusual of a destination for me. To be honest, Iraq was actually a last minute decision after some pandemic related chaos made my plans to visit Chad fall apart just weeks before hand. Despite that, the trip went quite well, and I experienced a decent chunk of Iraq. The trip was arranged by a tour company based in Erbil, Kurdistan, with half the trip in southern (Arab) Iraq, and the other half in Kurdistan. I had a guide and/or driver throughout, although my time in the evenings was free to do as I wished.

Getting to and into Iraq was a relatively painless experience. I flew on Qatar Air (via Doha) into Baghdad, where Iraq recently started issuing visas on arrival (for many nationalities) earlier this year.

My time in southern (Arab) Iraq included:

• seeing sites in and around Baghdad, including Ctesiphon, the Iraq Museum & Martyr's Monument
• the old mosque and spiral minaret of Samara
• the ancient city of Babylon and Saddam's old palace
• the holy city and shrines in Karbala
• the shrines and cemetery of Najaf
• the ancient city of Ur
• exploring the marshes of southeastern Iraq

After southern Iraq we drove back to Baghdad from Nassiriyah, and flew on Iraqi Air up to the capital of Kurdistan, Erbil. Baghdad's airport has some crazy bonkers security (possibly more than Kabul before the Taliban re-took the country earlier this year). We had to clear 4 layers of security, starting 2km away from the terminal, and ending at the gate. The flight itself was a non-event, departing a few minutes late and landing early. It was a relatively recent 737, with drinks and a snack for a barely 90 minute flight.

My time in Iraqi Kurdistan included:

• the old town of Akre
• the Yazedi holy town of Lalish
• Amediya, and Saddam's Gara mountain estate
• Barzan gorge and Shanidar cave
• Sites in and around Sulymaniya, including the museum documenting the torture of the Kurds
• Halabja (where Saddam gassed the Kurds) and Ahmed Awa waterfall (where Iran captured 3 Americans for supposedly crossing the border)
• The Koy Sinjak caravanserai
• Sites around Erbil including the citadel
• a day trip out to Mosul, which was occupied and largely destroyed by ISIS

The differences between southern Iraq & Kurdistan were often quite stark. There's a lot of money & development flowing into Kurdistan (especially Erbil), and it shows with western chains, excellent roads and a much higher standard of living. Southern Iraq still feels very much stuck in time, struggling to escape the effects of two US invasions and decades of Saddam's rule. Lots of security checkpoints (and heavily armed police) everywhere, and I was even detained by Iraqi secret police for 30 minutes outside of Nasariya, where their limited English made the interrogation more amusing than effective. Despite this, people were generally friendly and welcoming everywhere, even if English proficiency was limited outside the major cities. Iraq is a fascinating country with millennia of history, and some gorgeous scenery (particularly in Kurdistan).

What follows are some of the photographic highlights of the trip:


the martyr's monument in Baghdad

the minaret and original grand mosque of Samara

what remains of Mosul, following air strikes on ISIS

The ruins of a 19th century Mosul church, after ISIS intentionally destroyed it

the ancient city of Babylon

Najaf shrine

the holiest Shia muslim shrine

Gara mountain, Kurdistan

driving west to Sulaymaniyah

Koy Sinjaq thousand year old caravanserai

pilgrims at the shrine

world's largest cemetery, Najaf

Ukaydir fortress

Ctesiphon

Al Zubara fortress, Qatar

I have many additional