IRAQ: "What you hope to find in the Garden of Eden is lush plantation, bucket-loads of fruit and a cold beer," said Sgt Andy Eddy of 23 Royal Engineer regiment.
Before him stood a makeshift tree of life, the last tree bearing that illustrious name having been cut down and sent to a museum in Baghdad 16 years ago. This one looked decidedly dead, secured at its base by great chunks of concrete.
Around the little enclosure that marked the historical setting for the Garden of Eden, the poverty stricken town of al- Qurnah had fared little better under Saddam's rule.
"It's a little sparse isn't?" said Sgt Eddy. But though the garden had lost most of its joys, Sgt Eddy and his men, part of the regiment's diving team, had sampled some if its magic.
Sent to investigate if weapons had been thrown into the riverway where the Tigris and Euphrates join, denoting the Garden of Eden, they found instead that the water was about 24 degrees and "very refreshing".
They were joined by an Iraqi man who claimed to be the Tree of Life's official photographer. "It was a very magical tree where we used to take newborn babies to be blessed," said Hussein Hassan. "It is one of the many things that Saddam took away from us.
"He left nothing behind except this one piece of fruit from the tree," Hassan added, holding up for inspection what looked like a shrivelled tomato.
"Maybe the seeds of this fruit will help us create a new Eden here, with date and orange groves and a new tree of life."
"The only thing that's going to grow out of that is a tomato plant," said one British soldier dubiously.
"And of course tourism," Hassan added, clearly a natural entrepreneur, "tourism is very important." His dream appeared to be already begun at al-Qurnah guest house, where efforts were being made to clean the building. A sign on the door read: "This used to be property of government but now belongs to Mr Qais. Please do not break."