Fun things to do in Iraq

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Saddam Hussein had over 40 palaces across Iraq and was said to not have visited all of them. He had staff at all of them and they were required to make breakfast, lunch and dinner at all of them. He didn't announce his travel plans out of fear. So if he randomly showed up at one them, food had to be ready in case him and his companions were hungry. The palace I visited was destroyed during the Kurdish Uprising.

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Shanidar Cave is located in the Barzan area and about 125 km north of Erbil. When looking at it, Shanidar Cave is nothing exciting. It's what they found here which makes it interesting. It's one of 3 places in the world where they found Neanderthal remains. The excavations began in 1951 and led by Professor Solecki. There is a nice parking area here and I think it was about 600 steps up to the cave.

Lake Dokan is the largest lake (270 km2) in Iraqi Kurdistan close to the city of Ranya. It's a reservoir lake on the Little Zab river. I saw some houses around it and a small "developed" area for tourists. When I took a dip in the lake for a while, there was little fish that kept on biting me.

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Amedi (also known as Amadiya) is a town in Iraqi Kurdistan in the Governate of Dahuk (also known as Duhok) that lies about 17 km from the Turkish border. When you see pictures of Amedi from the sky, it's very beautiful as the entire town is on a plateau. Once inside it, it's pretty much an average town. The Bahdinan Gate on the west side of the town is interesting to see as it leads down to ground level and is from the 2nd to 1st century BC. There is also a mosque from the 15th century AD that has a minaret that is 33 metres high.

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Halabja would be an insignificant little place if Saddam had left it alone...but no, in March 1988, he dropped bombs on the town. Not just any bombs, these didn't explode causing mass destruction, but instead let off an odour of apples. Minutes later, up to 5000 people lay dead or dying in one of the worst chemical attacks on mankind.

Today, Halabja is a forlorn place where rows of white tombstones and mass graves commemorate the dead. On the outskirts of town, the Halabja Monument explains the tragedy in more detail, with guides showing you horrific photos and video footage taken shortly afterwards. This could be a very moving experience, but unfortunately it is all a bit farcical and tacky, with shop mannequins twisted into odd positions in a ghastly recreation of the day's events, guides who laugh and giggle in front of photos of the dead, and a cafe plusher than anything else I've seen in Iraq. A few years ago, the people of Halabja rioted and set the monument on fire...and I can sort of understand why.

Still, if you've come to Iraqi Kurdistan and want to try and understand the country a bit better, Halabja and its survivors deserve a visit.

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Slemani (Suleymaniyah in Arabic) is the third of the three big cities in Iraqi Kurdistan. The bazaar here is huge, but although a fascinating area to explore, it isn't the main attraction...Amna Suraka in the newer part of the town holds that title. Meaning "red security", Amna Suraka is the former security prison under Saddam's rule, now just a bullet-holed shell of a building standing as a reminder of the region's past. It has opened as a museum, and contains photos of the victims of Saddam's chemical attacks against the Kurds in the 1980s in a darkened basement. More upbeat are the tahouses, with one in particular standing out...the Sha'ab Chaikhana, where Slemani's intellectuals, poets, novelists and artists gather to slurp tea and slam down dominoes. Also a great base from which to visit the mountains, and if you're up to it, Halabja.

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If you're Kurdish, you call it Hewler, if you're not, you'll know it as Erbil...either way, it is one of the oldest cities on earth. Erbil's citadel has been inhabited for millennia, and up until 2006 it was crammed full of refugees from more volatile regions...now it is like a mini ghost city as UNESCO set about restoring it to its former glory. All around it spreads the Qaysari Bazaar, a mix of covered markets and shopping malls, with an impressive set of fountains in a busy square in the middle. Further afield, signs of old Erbil still exist, a row of mansions here, a minaret there, but Erbil has aspirations to become the Kurdish Dubai, five star hotels and shopping malls stretching off into the distance. Parks are a big feature too, huge ones with fountains and lawns and crowds on Fridays. But the best thing about Erbil? The tamarind ice-cream!

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The highlight of my trip was the town of Akre. Arrival wasn't great...the hotel was miles from anywhere and very weird, and on my first outing into town, I was spotted by security police and taken in for questioning. It was all very civil and involved drinking tea mainly, but proves that not too many camera-toting foreigners set foot in this area. Once set free to roam about, I discovered old Akre...a bustling bazaar at the bottom of a mountain, with houses piled on top of each other reached by narrow stairwells. Twenty minutes of climbing later, I was at the summit, with fantastic views of the rooftops below, and entertainment in the way of Kurdish dancing among the ruins of a Jewish holy site. Back down in town, the tea flowed fast and I wasn't allowed to pay for any of it...Akre...I'd go back there...