(Stock Internet footage)
The dinner was great and General Babakir was an outstanding host. Iraqi hospitality is more formalized that in the United States ... at the same time the interact is more relaxed. The evening started by entering the reception room, which was lined with large comfortable couches. The conversation moved between current events, military business, and family. My boss and General Babakir know each other so the conversation quickly advanced. I enjoyed greatly the conversation between these two very power men. In many ways, the conversation between powerful men is just like the conversation between regular people - just trying to find a way to make it all work for the best. Tea was served, as it Iraqi custom. The tea was very tasty.
After a while we were directed to the other side of the house for dinner. The table was completely covered with food and there was no way we could eat it all. In fact after we finished, it looked like we didn't really make a dent. It was family style with a lot of choices. The expectation is to eat a great deal. I was a good guest. The bread was incredible. They also has lamb, fish, and this really good chicken kabob. A number of dishes were vegetable based - I particularly liked this grape leaf wrap and had about 4 of those. A good host in Iraq will personally serve food on the plate of guests. Fortunately I was over on the end. The Chief of Staff, though, was right next to General Babakir and the general kept loading up his plate. We all thought he was going to burst after the meal.When dinner was finished is was back to the reception room for more conversation, tea, dessert and fruit. One of the desserts was an all natural fresh pistachio ice cream. That was to die for. I gave myself a dispensation from my Lenten sacrifice as I did not want to cause an international incident by being a poor guest.
(More stock footage, but this was one of the great desserts we had too!)
Eventually the evening ended and we came back to the NEC. On our way out, the general gave all of the guests one of his coins. I have it on my desk. All-in-all a great evening. The Generals coin is the green one. The other two are a USF-I coin and an American Embassy Coin.
As to the rest of the week, the elections were a big success. While Pres Bush made many mistakes in Iraq, he was correct to assume that people hunger for freedom and will stake their lives on the establishment of freedom for themselves, their families and their communities. By and large the terrorists were completely ineffective in deterring voters from turning out. They were also ineffective in killing large numbers of people. Unfortunately, they did succeed in killing some people - a hope is that even that skill/capability will diminish with time as well. For long time the Iraqi people have rejected violence. What is changing is the increase capability and will of the Iraqi police to act on tips from the population and protect all - regardless of ethnic/religious (which are intimately connected) backgrounds. The next question for Iraq, is can they effectively govern their country.
This a tough question and will necessitate significant US government support, if we are smart, for a very long time.
Lastly, I have confirmation from my sister that my I-phone made it safely to Milwaukee and is back on its way to Iraq. The sleep/wake button on the phone broke and I sent it to her since Apple has no mechanisms to deal with military personal living at APO addresses (a major company weakness). Regardless of the company's short coming, I do miss my I-Phone and hope to have it back soon.
Peace,
Chris Culver
