Sometimes, your mind writes checks your body can’t cash any more. And this happened to Ann, and it almost happened to me. I barely got to the top of Mt. Nimrud this time. There were a variety of factors involved besides the age of Ann and myself. For one thing, there was a 30+ mile an hour wind on top of that 7,000 ft. mountain and there were no railings to help one make the steep climb. For another thing, after the nearby earthquake, there were small loose rocks everywhere on the upper part of the path, and some slippery big ones too. And then there was the altitude, breathing was hard during the climb. I had to stop along the way. At least there were some benches periodically to make that possible. So much for lamenting. Here’s what there is on top of Mt. Nimrud….
Yes a pile of small rocks is at the top of Mt. Nimrud, under which is the burial cave of Antiochus. But in addition there is an east and west terrace of deities, and of course Antiochus with them, talk about dreams of grandeur.
The west terrace is equally interesting.
But before we go there, the statue of Aslan is prominent on the east side,
And as we go around from the east to the west, there is a brand new replica in living color of one of the statue heads..
And yes down below in the gift shop you can buy replicas to take home, or even a brooding poster. Mt. Nimrud is closed during the winter months because it gets lots and lots of snow.
The west terrace on the whole is less impressive. Tourists like to come up here on a summer day to see the sun rise or set on the mountain.
My personal favorite is the statue of Antiochus with his party hat on shaking his tamborine…
Whose that guy who snuck behind the ropes!
Mt. Nimrud is well worth visiting, but something needs to be done to make the climb much safer, and more accessible to older climbers….like us.
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