Yesterday I did want to celebrate the first day of the school year here, so I took a break from posting pictures from the ruins of one of Saddam Hussein’s palaces. My Monday picture post was popular enough that it seems only right to let you see a little more of the view.

These were the only other people visiting the site, and they arrived as we were leaving.

Iraq isn’t a place that sees a lot of tourists these days. before my trip I looked at the website for the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and read the travel advisory. I made the trip anyway.

I didn’t expect to see anything to do with Saddam. The business associate who drove me to the top of the mountain didn’t tell me where we were going, just said he thought I would enjoy the view from our destination. I did.