4: Travel to Iraq

Bismillah hir Rahman nir Rahim

Travel to Iraq-

Reciting Dua at the train station

2 feet and falling

As it snowed 2 feet the day of our flight from Mashad to Tehran, all flights going out were cancelled. We had to get to Tehran before our connecting flight to Iraq and there was absolutely no option of catching a later flight as this was beyond a busy time to travel to Iraq.We quickly cut short our farewell to the grandson of Imam Husain(as) packed and made our way to the train station, in hopes of catching a 12 hour train back to Tehran before the Iran Air flight to Najaf.  A feeling of helplessness fell over us as we realized that we may be denied the invitation that once seemed secure and safe.  With my sister in law handling the negotiations, we could only recite dua and ask Allah(swt) to grace us with some kind of divine alternative to get us to Tehran. We were going to have to prove our sincerity that day, our love and desire to be near Imam Husayn(as) on Arbaeen, marking the 40th day after his martyrdom.

By the grace of Allah(swt) our dua were accepted and we were permitted to sit on the train, in the staff chambers.  My dua to the train staff who gave up their quarters for us, we also prayed for them on our ziarat in Iraq, which is all they requested of us, mashAllah.

After our 12 hour train ride back, we had to catch a cab to the airport- all of which we were running with bags in toe.  Eventually, after a few hours wait at the airport we got our boarding passes for Najaf al Ashraf airport, alhumdulillah.  When booking an airport in Iraq, choose Najaf not Baghdad, as its safer and also not as chaotic.

Visa
Your group should organize your visa for you but if travelling on your own, as we did, you have to make the arrangements before. We were told we would get our visa upon arrival. After paying an extra $100 on top we were then issued the visa as they were to be organized beforehand.

Lodging
If making your own arrangements, organize them well in advance as Arbaeen is seriously the largest gathering in the world. If you plan on winging it, you are mistaken.  We made some last minute arrangements to stay at a Husaineyia but they were quite a distance from the city center and the haram itself and we would have to take a cab every time we wished to go.  Also when you are sharing a space with other pilgrims, its hard to have any privacy or keep your luggage safe.  There was also no place to have a shower, except with a bucket and a hole. These are all minor issues, as we are all gathered together for the same reason and should be considered blessed to even have gotten this far, especially considering I wasn't expecting to make it.

 We came to agreement that we would call a family member who was studying in Najaf and ask them if we could come and stay with them, which thankfully they insisted. They live within a stones throw of the haram as well.