Iraqi Ministry of Tourism

What’s currently the toughest job in the world? Try working for the Iraqi Ministry of Tourism. Talk about a tough sell!

And yet, such an organization exists.

Convincing tourists to come back to this war-torn country–albeit not an immediate goal–is going to be very difficult over the next number of years. Nothing quite puts a damper on tourism like war does.

The sad thing is that Iraq has so much to offer history loving tourists. This was the cradle of western civilization, where the gates of Babylon and the minarets of Baghdad held enormous wonder and sway for so much of man’s existence on this planet.

Unfortunately, today the museums are looted and the tourist sites are car bomb targets.

The Ministry of Tourism isn’t discouraged, however. According to a recent article in USA Today, officials are busy selling the travel benefits of their country at trade fairs and exhibitions (most recently held in the Green Zone). They are focusing, however, more upon securing donations to help with historical sites, than trying to convert cruise ship passengers to take a chance in the deserts of the Middle East for their next vacation.

When this eventually happens, I think we can all breathe a little easier.