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KADHIMIYA: THE JEWEL OF BAGHDAD
Undeterred by the continuing violence, Islamic Tourism’s Iraq correspondent, Walid Abdul-Amir Alwan visits Kadhimiya the city of domes and gilded minarets. This city shelters 70 historical symbols. It is part of Iraq’s rich cultural heritage with a school of calligraphy, architecture and science academy. It is also a city where various doctrines coexisted peacefully and convivially. There are beautiful traditional souks, old houses with their pretty, wooden, balconies and Iraq’s largest gold souk. Holy Kadhimiya is the jewel of Baghdad and its lung.
Islamic Tourism Magazine publishes in the new issue (issue 23) its first article on a South American destination: Paraguay. The country has more than 20 forests and nature reserves. That is why it was called the "Garden of the World". There are many rare plants, such as orchids, native trees like the Lapacho, the Quebracho and the Palo Borracho, different species of palms and exotic fruits: an eco tourists and nature lovers dream come true.
The Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, entrepreneur extraordinaire and the driving force behind most of Dubai’s grand projects, is quoted as saying: “What I achieved for Dubai is only 10 per cent of my vision. I like challenge. If I see something impossible, I want to make it possible. We have to approach the future, not wait for the future to come to us." Consequently, the construction boom is expected to continue transforming Dubai into one of the leading tourist destinations of the world. Habeeb Salloum goes on a tour of the Emirates winter sports facilities, underwater hotel, magnificent shopping malls etc. Islamic Tourism also profiles Sharjah: a truly modern, 21st century emirate where the old and the new co-exist in a happy symbiosis, complimenting each other and ensuring visitors have a wonderful time.
After 20 years of restoration, 22 sites selected from over 500 existing forts and castles in Oman offer diverse glimpses of a powerful, wealthy Arabian culture living in turbulent times at the crossroads of Asia and Europe. Alison Gardner reports.
Traditions based on Islam and ancient culture governs business and society throughout the Middle East. Sincere attention to these details is important to Western businesses seeking to increase its dealing with the Middle East. Tharwat Abouraya, CTIE, founder and president of Travel Business CPR, consulting to the travel industry points out that success in the Middle East business world demands cultural sensitivity particularly in the hotel and travel industry where welcoming clients to a “home away from home” is so important.
Dr Abdul-Salam Hassan Rajab has created Pharaoh's Village where 70 actors re-inact ancient Egyptian life: papyrus making, sculpture, house-building, on a island in the Nile about five miles south of Cairo.
Mounir El-Fishawy interviews the Algerian Minister of Tourism and learns that tourism and agriculture are Algeria’s development alternatives. The Minister also traces the history of tourism in his country and emphasizes that the focus is on inbound, European tourists.
Derick McGroarty visits Konya, in the heart of Anatolia, the home of Sufisim and renowned persian mystic Jalal ad-Din Rumi (1207-1273).
In Asia we describe the delights of a drive through Tibetan mountains and Davao a unique destination in the Philippines. Shangrila Tours has week-long Toyota Land Cruiser expeditions from Lhasa, Tibet, to Kathmandu, Nepal, that can detour en route to visit the base camp used by climbers wanting to scale Mount Everest from its Tibetan side. Dominick Merle continues his tour of exotic Asian destinations and discovers that a 30-minute drive from Davao in the Philippines can bring you to an exotic rainforest where there are giant eagles with eight-foot wingspans that whisk away small monkeys for food, and plants that eat meat!
Motaz Othman travels to Qingdao, the Chinese coastal city selected to host the 2008 sea Olympics. It is famous for its handcrafts, beautiful beaches and green mountains.
Following the successful launch of the German edition of our magazine we continue our survey of the country’s main tourist attractions. Johannes Bardong visits Potsdam whose unique park landscape, with its various palaces, was designated a world cultural heritage site by UNESCO in 1990. Particularly during the summer months crowds of tourists visit the Sanssouci Palace and Gardens and the Dutch Quarter.
The publisher of Islamic Tourism Magazine, Mr A.S. Shakiry once again defines the concept of Islamic Tourism and suggests the establishment of an Islamic Tourism Academy. The Editor-in-Chief, Dr Abdul-Rahim Hassan emphasizes the need for Muslims to respect Islamic heritage sites and points to the tragic destruction of some of these sites due to an incorrect interpretation of religious duties.
Our regular reports on exhibitions continue. A brilliant exhibition has been put together under the name 1001 inventions. It is being showcased at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester before being continued in other venues. The unique content of the exhibition has been planned to generate awareness and appreciation of scientific discoveries Muslims have made over a time-span of 1000 years.
Motaz Othman reports on the East-Mediterranean International Travel and Tourism exhibition. Mr Othman also describes the Indian Ministry of Tourism’s competitions to win free trips to India.
On the 40th anniversary of the International Tourism Fair (ITB) held from 8 – 12th March a new exhibitor record was reached: 183 countries with 10,856 exhibitors participated this year in the world’s largest tourist fair. Islamic Tourism’s German correspondent, Johannes Bardong reports from Berlin.
The two day Middle East Travel & Tourism Summit 2006 held at the King Hussein Bin Talal Convention Center on the Dead Sea in Jordan between 26th and 27th February 2006.
Nour-eddine Saoudi visited the seventh edition of the international Meeting of Pan-Arab Tourism and Umrah held on 29th – 30th March, 2006 in the Sheraton Casablanca hotel.
Reed Travel Exhibitions is planning the largest Mediterranean Travel Fair to date with some 200 exhibitors representing 40 countries and over 4000 travel trade delegates. The first international conference on food and tourism was held at the Cairo International Conference Centre from the 1st - 3rd March, 2006.
Munir Al-Fishawy visits Australia, the state continent at the end of the world with 140 nationalities and describes the sites of Sidney: the famous opera house, the zoo, China town and the magnificent revolving restaurant with splendid views of the city. He also traveled to Biskra in the Algerian desert for the unique festival of desert tourism and reported on the most important meeting of companies and institutions concerned with religious tourism held in Cairo from 24th – 26th March.
Islamic Tourism is a magazine published in English, French, Spanish, German and Arabic. Its website (www.islamictourism.com) publishes five weekly news bulletins in the five languages. You can browse the news free of charge and read past issues of the magazine. Your comments are always welcome and will be gratefully received.
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