Like most countries, Iraq requires a visa for entry. Unlike most countries, an Iraqi visa is actually fairly difficult to obtain, especially for an American. I tried my luck applying at the Embassy of Iraq to not much of a surprise: "REJECTED". Then, I found an alternative way to enter Iraq. A traveler without a visa can cross the Turkish boarder into northern Iraq at a mere fee of $80 USD. This is my only available option, so I took it.
I went on Kayak and booked the first available flight to and from Gaziantep, Turkey. The round-trip ticket from United came out at $1,517. Not bad, I really hope that I actually get to use the return ticket though.
I paid my 25 euro fare and boarded the train heading to Mosul, Iraq. The trains had been discontinued for the past two decades, only very recently returning to a weekly service. The route will take roughly 17 hours through Turkish, Syrian, then finally Iraqi territory. As a looked out to the desert horizon, the vast emptiness made life seem so calm and peaceful. Nonetheless, I quickly brushed off that thought as images of violence, poverty and unrest returned. How could anyone live here in the desert? I didn't think anyone could, but I know that people do, for centuries. The steady sound of the spinning wheels carried my mind to the train attack scene from Lawrence of Arabia. Does my God exist in Iraq? I prayed for a safe trip.
At 2 pm the next day, the train halted in Mosul. A major city nearby is Arbil, in the province of Arbil. After a further 2 hour drive there, under heavy protection of course, I checked into the Divan Erbil (interchangeable with Arbil) Hotel. Where is the Iraq I know from CNN? None of the buildings are blown up? What? So many questions shot through my head. Nonetheless, I was too tired at the moment to concern myself with those matters. The hotel is 5 stars, the rooms are lavish, and I was ready to sleep away in this clone of the classic Western styled hotel room. Cheers to globalization.
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