Don't mention the war!
Posted Sunday, November 19, 2006, 3:33 PM by Lonely Planet
Austrian Airlines have seized on the all-important Baghdad red-eye and launched regular connections from Vienna to the Iraqi capital. Touted as a lifeline to the still quite rogue-like state, Austrian doubtless have their eyes on the travel budgets of the dozens of NGOs whizzing in to 'The Dad'.
Slightly more optimistic is the Kurdistan Tourism Board, hoping to tempt us into northern Iraq with our buckets and spades. A California-based communications company seeks to sell us this dream by shattering our preconceptions. "You think of bombings and this is peaceful, you think of desert and this is mountainous. You think of camels and you are more likely to see sheep." Don't fumble for your wallet just yet... although you may be desperate to go and confirm whether there really are sheep in northern Iraq another quote from the press release dangles tastier bait: "Westerners walk around freely and there is an active nightlife." All the ingredients for a holiday of a lifetime! But let's not be too harsh - if Iraq can attract tourists there's one reason to keep those well-hidden WMDs well out of sight.
Labels: Breaking travel news, Middle East
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1 Comments:
Fly to Baghdad?! You must be joking! Austrian Airlines is flying to the regional capital of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Erbil.
If you actually did some "research" you might find that there are actually sheep, mountains, and the only place since World War I that WMDs were used, (not hidden) against civilians. The Kurdistan Region is the only part of Iraq that has been personally secure for years, even before hostilities began in 2003, and not one multinational soldier has lost their life here for any reason.
I challenge anyone to come to the Kurdistan Region and see for themselves.
Rather egregious of you to make such an error, its like saying the airline is flying you to Korea, but lands in Pyongyang (although some would like that)!
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