Then Engel wrote about the sacred city of Najaf and how Najaf was, aside from Mecca, the holiest city in the world to millions of Muslims. You might remember Najaf -- the city that Bush and Rumsfeld endeared themselves to in the hearts of Iraqis forever (NOT!) by bombing the heck out of it? But now the officials in Najaf are building an international airport there so that pilgrims can come from all over the world to pray at the holy shrine to Ali.
Here's an excerpt from Engel's book: "When General Cardon walked into [the governor of Najaf's] office, the governor wanted to talk about one thing: the airport. He said Najaf needed an international airport to receive pilgrims and tourists from around the Shiite world. For centuries, Najaf has lived off caravans of Shiite pilgrims who come from Iran, India, Lebanon, and the Gulf to worship and bury their dead.... 'I want to open flights from Najaf to New York,' the governor said. 'They should be direct flights.... We're expecting six or seven million visitors.'"
So. Pilgrims are now pouring into Najaf -- directly from NYC. That's good news. That's news I can use. I want to go on a pilgrimage to Najaf! At last, here it is -- a quick and easy way for me to safely go to Iraq and actually meet real Iraqis, which doesn't happen too often when you go over there as an embedded journalist. So I immediately googled for information on tours. Apparently, you can join a tour group in Britain, Dubai, Kuwait and Jordan. Tours originating in Iran were also mentioned. But I couldn't find any tours from New York. Maybe the international airport hasn't opened yet. But if a tour of Najaf is anything like a tour of Mecca, there will probably be a Hilton Hotel involved -- at the very least. Hot dog!
Now all I got to do is figure out how to pay for this tour -- I could apply for a grant, get sponsored by Fox News, win the lottery or something and I'm there! Maybe Bush will send me over on a fact-finding tour -- because its clearly obvious to me after reading Engel's book that Bush could definitely benefit from being exposed to some REAL facts about Iraq.
*****
Here's an eight-day tour leaving for Najaf from Tehran. It sounds interesting and includes Qom and the grave of the poet Omar Khayyam:
MASHAD-QOM, ZIARAT TOUR (PILGRIMAGE) 8-DAY ITINERARY
Day 1 Tehran: Arrive at the airport meet & transfer to Hotel. PM city tour including Saad Abad Palace Museum ziarat of Emamzadeh Saleh and shopping. O/n at hotel
Day 2 Tehran: Morning H/D city tour. After lunch ziarat of Hazrat Abdul Azim. Continue towards Qom, en route visit Emam Khomeini's shrine & Jamkaran Mosque. Ziarat of Hazrat Masoomeh. O/N at hotel.
Day 3 Qom: Drive to Tehran to fly to Mashad. On arrival, meet& transfer to hotel. Excursion to Tus to visit tombs Ferdowsi, Ghazali & Harunieh. PM ziarat of Emam Reza's shrine. O/N at hotel.
Day 4 Mashad: Excursion to Neishabour, visit tombs of poets Khayyam and Attar & Qodangah. PM ziarat of Emam Reza. O/N at hotel.
Day 5 Mashad: Day at leisure for ziarat. O/N at hotel.
Day 6 Mashad: H/D city tour & ziarat. PM fly to Tehran. O/N at hotel.
Day 7 Tehran: Excursion to Qazvin City tour for ziarat of Emamzadeh Hossein (son of Emam Reza ). O/N at hotel.
Day 8 Tehran: Excursion to Bibi Shahrbanoo (Emam Hosssein's Wife). PM city tour & shopping. Late evening transfer to the airport for return flight. click here
Stillwater is a freelance writer who hates injustice and corruption in any form but especially injustice and corruption paid for by American taxpayers. She has recently published a book entitled, "Bring Your Own Flak Jacket: Helpful Tips For Touring Today's Middle East". According to Ms. Stillwater, "It's a fabulous and entertaining book. I loved writing it. And I hope that you will love reading it too." It's available at http://www.amazon.com/Bring-Your-Own-Flak-Jacket/dp/0978615719 or you can special order it at any independent bookstore.
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