Of course Ur is real - haven't you read Gilgamesh?
The Euphrates used to flow near the city walls. It was the center of Sumerian worship of Nanna, the moon God (replaced by Sin, the moon Goddess, in Babylonian tradition). While there is no archaeological evidence of Ur being the ancestral home of Abraham, Ur of the Chaldees is cited in Gen. 11:27-32 as being where Abraham was from. The Chaldeans, however, only settled in Ur around 900 BC, but lets not bother with biblical nitpicks here
Ur itself is ancient - founded around 4000 BC - and was one of the most prosperous ancient city-states and heart of the Sumerian civilization (often viewed as the birthplace of modern civilization, although the Indus river civilization was equally ancient, as were several Chinese civilizations). It began its decline after falling under Persian control; by the 4th century BC, it was almost forgotten.
You are standing, in the picture, in front of the Ziggurat of Nanna. It was discovered and partially excavated in the mid 1800s by the British; they resumed and finished earlier this century (naturally, before the Iraqis kicked them out
).
I didn't know you were over in Iraq. Take care of yourself out there!
"Illuminant light,
illuminate me."