February 23, 2021 by

‘It Was Like Magic’: Iraqis Visit Babylon And Other Heritage Sites For 1st Time

Visitors with the Bil Weekend tourism company take photographs inside the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon, in the area around the Ishtar gate. The animal on the walls ins a dragon-like creature associated with the Babylonian god Marduk.

Domestic tourism has been strong in Iraq’s northern Kurdish region, but sites in more impoverished, insecure areas tend to be visited less. A few Iraqi tourism companies are trying to change that.

(Image credit: Alice Fordham for NPR)