This article in the Guardian today, about the halted auction of an Iraqi relic on eBay, reminded me of something I saw recently (I somehow missed the news when it was first reported):

The Defense Department will issue decks of playing cards to deployed troops starting July 31, but not for Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments. The cards are training aids designed to help the servicemembers understand the archaeological significance of their deployed locations. […] Each card has a picture of an archaeological site, artifact or a brief statement about actions that should be taken upon discovering an archaeological site. They explain what constitutes an archaeological site and what to watch for before carrying out missions near these sites. […] The enemy has been known to use these historical sites and artifacts to their advantage, as evidenced by the recent destruction of the Golden Dome Mosque’s minarets in Samarra, Iraq. “The enemy may use cultural properties — including ruins, cemeteries and religious buildings — as firing points,” a pocket guide that’s part of the training materials warns U.S. military personnel.

It could be straight out of The Onion - but it ain’t.

Weary is the only word to describe how I am feeling right now.

I just chanced upon this site which sells vintage postcards. They classify them both by subject matter and by country; there are just a few from Bahrain, but plenty from other countries in the region (I haven’t looked outside the Middle East yet). Some of the titles are as interesting as the images themselves, telling you a lot about who was taking the photos and what they chose to see.

‘Persian tailor smoking a qalyan’ - which I assume is the same as shisha.