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Ten Random Observations About Iraq
While traveling in Iraq I noticed some interesting things that didn't fit into any of the articles in my series. Some of these observations may be obvious to those more familiar with the country, but odd first impressions are one of the fun things about travel!
1. The traffic police have these cool kiosks that imitate their uniform. Looks like this guy left his tie at home.
2. Spongebob Squarepants is popular here. The best photo I didn't take was of a woman in an abaya at Kadamiyya shrine, one of the holiest spots for Shia Islam, carrying a Spongebob balloon. No child was in sight!
3. The TV commercial for Vaseline Healthy Soap shows a mother washing her son in the bathtub. In an almost identical version the child in the tub is a girl and she's wearing a bathing suit.
4. None of the hotels I stayed at had plugs for the sink, but the caps for the mineral water bottles fit perfectly.
5. There were many imitations of Western snacks, such as Mountain Rush soda and Wrinkles potato chips. Oddly, these were made by Western companies and distributed by regional ones. I suppose that was a way to get around copyright infringement.
Gallery: Roadtrip Iraq
6. Most restaurants only serve the same half-dozen meals: lamb or chicken kebab, chicken tikka, roast chicken with rice, and roast chicken without rice. They'll often have a nice long menu listing lots of other meals, but you won't be able to get them.
7. The various security services have a bewildering variety of uniforms. Nearly all of them are available for anyone to purchase in the various shops in the Baghdad souk.
8. Arabic music videos have credits.
9. Iraq uses three types of outlets. Most are UK style, some are EU style, and there's a third plug that's unlike any I've seen anywhere else. You can see one below.
10. No Iraqi I met thinks Obama is a Muslim.
You might also be interested in my ten random observations about Ethiopia and Greece!
Don't miss the rest of my series, "Destination: Iraq," chronicling my 17-day journey across this strife-ridden country in search of adventure, archaeology and AK-47s.
Coming up next: "Visiting Iraq: The Practicalities!"
[Photos by Sean McLachlan]
7. The various security services have a bewildering variety of uniforms. Nearly all of them are available for anyone to purchase in the various shops in the Baghdad souk.
8. Arabic music videos have credits.
9. Iraq uses three types of outlets. Most are UK style, some are EU style, and there's a third plug that's unlike any I've seen anywhere else. You can see one below.
10. No Iraqi I met thinks Obama is a Muslim.
You might also be interested in my ten random observations about Ethiopia and Greece!
Don't miss the rest of my series, "Destination: Iraq," chronicling my 17-day journey across this strife-ridden country in search of adventure, archaeology and AK-47s.
Coming up next: "Visiting Iraq: The Practicalities!"
[Photos by Sean McLachlan]
Filed under: Arts and Culture, Learning, Iraq, Middle East
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Alex J. Cavanaugh Dec 13th 2012 12:51PM
So most of the items on the menu are just to taunt you?
Not sure I'd use that plug at all - looks like one step away from a fire hazard.
Thanks for all the insights on Iraq!
Steve Dec 17th 2012 2:03AM
That is a common multi-prong adapter so you can use a variety of 220V plugs. The center is for bare wires (used more often than you think) when the plugs break.
Ali Dec 17th 2012 2:36PM
am from Iraq, it was kinda funny to see what looks interesting in Iraq.
but booy you missed a lot else haha
but na yaa liked the outlet seen it before but you know its explain it all