IRAQ: A slice of normality returns to Baghdad

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By Caesar Ahmed in Baghdad

It is a place tinged in nostalgia for Baghdadis of a certain generation.

Many remember happy evenings strolling along Abu Nuwas Street, taking in the elegant homes, gardens and art galleries, and stopping at one of the many cafes for grilled fish, fresh from the Tigris River.

The riverside street, named after a respected Arabic poet, used to be famous for its nightclubs, restaurants and bars. In its heyday in the 1970s and early 1980s, it was a favorite nightspot for tourists from the Persian Gulf region, who enjoyed visiting Iraq because of its relaxed attitude toward alcohol.

But as Iraq’s war deepened with neighboring Iran, the security services forced most of the businesses to close. They were afraid the crowds they drew would provide cover for an attack on Saddam Hussein’s Republican Palace, on the other side of the river. By the 1990s, the street was basically dead.

After U.S.-led forces invaded Iraq in March 2003, Abu Nuwas Street became a war zone. After repeated bombings, the entire street was blocked off with concrete barriers to protect several large hotels and what was to become the heavily fortified Green Zone on the other side of the river.

For some time now, however, I have been hearing that Abu Nuwas Street has come back to life after a major renovation effort by the Baghdad municipality and the U.S. military. With violence declining in the city, I decided to go see for myself.

There are still some concrete barriers, but artists have decorated them with scenes from Iraq’s past. Access to the street is controlled by two checkpoints on either end. The security guards welcome you, give your car a quick search and wave you through to a parking lot. From there, you are free to wander through the park that runs alongside the river.

I found four men sitting on the riverbank, drinking beers and eating nuts across from the new American Embassy complex, which people say is as large as the Vatican.

‘We are happy to be gathered here enjoying ourselves,’ said one of them, a 29-year-old truck driver who asked to be identified by a traditional nickname, Abu Gazwa Shimari. ‘Eight months ago we could never do this. Security was terrible. People were lying dead in the streets. But now it’s a different story. We can feel the improvement.’

He was particularly pleased to see municipal works cleaning the streets and repairing the famous statue of Scheherazade recounting her tales to her husband Shahryar over ‘One Thousand and One Nights.’

‘We really feel that the government is functioning, making us feel secure to the point that we can actually sit here and drink alcohol without fearing someone will shoot us from behind our backs,’ he said. ‘We want to take a break -- enough with the politics, bombs and killings.’

From there, I walked past nice flower beds and a brightly painted playground where children played on the swings. Here I found Mahdi Haydar, an 18-year-old who was sitting on a fancy bench studying for his high school examinations.

‘I chose this place because it is quiet, nice,’ he said. ‘The nature here is amazing, the river, the trees all allow me to concentrate on my studies.’

Anwar Fatlawi arrives at the park every day at 9 a.m. to take photographs of visitors, which he will frame for about $5 apiece.

‘Whenever there is a party or a school trip, I get invited and take many pictures,’ he said. ‘The place here is very protected, which attracts locals to visit.’

One man told me he had brought his wife and 3-year-old son all the way from Hurriya, on the other side of Baghdad.

‘A few months ago this place was deserted,’ said the man, who gave his name only as Hussein. ‘But now I can bring my family and actually see the river. We thank God for this. I am optimistic for more prosperity for this country.

After years of violence and fear, I am just thankful to be able to do something normal again.’

of Scheherazade and her husband Shahryar from ‘One Thousand and One Nights’; friends enjoy drinks and snacks in the riverside park; Mahdi Haydar studies for his exams on a park bench; Anwar Fatlawi makes a living taking photographs of park visitors. Credit: Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times