High temperatures in summer are common in Iraq. Growing desertification — where fertile land turns dry — is pushing temperatures up. The Iraqi government has announced yesterday a two-day mandatory official holiday beginning today due to a heat wave as temperatures are soaring above 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Iraqi capital Baghdad.
A wetland in southeast Iraq, thought to be the biblical Garden of Eden — the Ahwar of southern Iraq, has now become a UNESCO world heritage site. Fed by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the marshlands of Mesopotamia are spawning grounds for Gulf fisheries and home to bird species such as the sacred ibis. They also provide a resting spot for thousands of wildfowl migrating between Siberia and Africa.
Kleicha is a well known Iraqi cookie, made typically on occasions such as Eid. It is considered to be the national cookie of Iraq and no feast, religious or otherwise, is complete without it. It is loved by all Iraqi groups, including Muslims, Christians, Chaldeans, Assyrians, and Kurds. These cookies are called “kileche” in Assyrian, while they are known as “kleicha” in Arabic.
Although far apart, Mutanabbi Street and College Street have striking similarities — some crowd bookstalls on the street; others watch poets reciting to their friends as they sip tea in a coffeehouse.
The world’s oldest paycheck has apparently been discovered and it was cashed in beer! Beer is one of the world’s oldest prepared beverages, possibly dating back to the early Neolithic or 9500 BC, when cereal was first farmed and is recorded in the written history of ancient Iraq and ancient Egypt.
It looks like a natural miracle. It is called as 22° halo. It is formed around the Sun or the Moon. It was a white circle around the moon. That breathtaking vision in the night sky is the result of ice crystals refracting the light of the moon. The halo rings the moon when high, thin cirrus clouds made up of millions of these crystals cover the sky.
One month ago, we encountered twin-car bomb attack on our office building. The Incident is still fresh in my mind and I feel sad for those poor families, who lost their near and dear ones. I fail to understand the purpose, the logic of terrorists, who kill innocent people in the name of their faith. They’re cowards. Do they think that they will reach the Heaven? NEVER! They will never find peace.
