July 2011
1 post
Another Change of Scene
Once more I find myself thrust from my life in England and placed into another society with different customs and different habits to that of my own. Having spent a lot of time in Syria I don’t think Spain can be any more foreign than Syria was to me, but there have been certain things which I’ve noticed whilst spending time here.
After leaving Syria I came back home and did a few...
March 2011
2 posts
Rumours and Exaggerations
Living in Syria this year has certainly opened my family up to a lot of stress, mainly due to the current upheaval of Middle Eastern governments in a bid for democracy.
Syria’s modern history is very much like the surrounding Middle Eastern countries where they have a facade democracy that’s been put in place for a long time and people are used to it. When Bashar Al-Assad’s...
Feeling at Home
I guess if you spend enough time in one place you grow a sort of attachment to it and you feel a sort of loyalty towards it. I suppose that’s what has happened to me in Damascus. I walk the streets now with my mind a few paces behind me as I don’t really have to concentrate on where I’m going now, my feet know the way as they’ve walked the route so many times. Trips that...
December 2010
6 posts
Northern Iraq Part 6: Gali Ali Beg, the Amidiya...
The final leg of my journey begins with a trip to Gali Ali Beg: A place which is highlighted in Lonely Planet as being the highlight of Kurdistan…
We were more than slightly disappointed.
We woke up at 9ish and got ready for Ahmar to pick us up at 10, this involved showering and grabbing a quick bite to eat. Then we all hopped in his car and went on our way, with Adam and Will complaining...
Northern Iraq Part 5: Erbil
The next morning we had a slight lie-in until 11 due to the small party the night before, then we freshened ourselves up and headed off to the Erbil garage to catch a taxi. This time we decided to brave it and go via Kirkuk as the road didn’t actually go inside Kirkuk it just passed the outskirts of it. The landscape was pretty boring though we saw a few oil refineries and three different...
Northern Iraq Part 4: Halabja and Ahmadawa
Our next trip was to Halabja, the scene of one of the worst atrocities to be committed by humans. Halabja is one of the sites in Kurdistan that really imprints itself onto the memory of those who visit it. On March 16th, 1988, over 5,000 people were killed and 10,000 people horrifically injured by chemical bomb attacks conducted by Saddam Hussein’s regime after orders were given by...
Northern Iraq Part 3: Sad times in Sulemani
The next day we left the hotel as soon as possible. Adam claims he heard gunfire during the night which was probably fireworks. I decided to… borrow one of their blankets which was really nice and comfortable, Adam, albeit accidentally, stole the room key and Will stole part of the curtain rail which fell off in the morning. The girls left at the same time as us as they didn’t want any...
Northern Iraq Part 2: Lalish (and a bit of Erbil)
By far the biggest highlight of my stay in Kurdistan was our visit to the small town of Lalish, which is the holy place for the Yazidi faith. The Yazidis have the reputation to be devil worshipers as they believe that God created the world and left seven angels in charge of it, the most important being Melek Taus, the peacock angel, whose other name is Shaytan, which is the name the Koran has...
Nothern Iraq Part 1: A Long and Cold Journey to...
My next holiday came round quickly, and this one I had been waiting for. This was the holiday where I’d be venturing where many tourists would fear to go… Iraq.
Now whenever Iraq is mentioned people instantly think of Saddam Hussein, war and the quest for the “WMD”s. The fact is that Iraq is a gradually changing country, and as the birthplace of civilisation due to...
November 2010
2 posts
WatchThe call to prayer from the Ummayad Mosque
A Love Affair with Lebanon Part 2: Beirut
We woke up for breakfast again the following day and packed our bags ready for our trip to Beirut. We still weren’t sure how were were going to get there, as in whether we were going to take a bus, taxi or service, but it was with excitement that we paid our bill at Hotel Koura for our rooms ($60 each for 3 nights including breakfast - bargain!) and headed down the stairs towards the central...
October 2010
4 posts
A Love Affair with Lebanon Part 1: Tripoli &...
Damascus University gives us a week off after every month to spend doing whatever we want to do.
I decided to use this opportunity to escape Damascus and explore a part of the Middle East I’d heard a lot of good things about: Lebanon.
I’d extended my Syrian visa by a month the week before so there would be no problems on the border, as we knew this trip wasn’t going to be easy...
University Life
So I’ve now had a good month at the University of Damascus and it’s been an interesting experience.
From what I can tell it’s not just me that thinks the placement test that we took at the start of the term was a complete waste of time, as they had to do a new one because everyone was complaining so much about where they’d been put, most likely because the test was...
Never Accept Free Massages
Recently I enjoyed my first hammam experience in the Middle East. It had been a long sweaty day walking around in Bosra in the stifling heat and I felt sorry for the person who had to sit next to me on the bus back from Bosra. However I’d arranged to meet a friend at Hammam Malik Al-Zahir next to the Umayyad Mosque.
The hammam was easy enough to find as it was on my map of Damascus and it...
September 2010
11 posts
Bosra and Beyond
Had a pretty good weekend last weekend: It was the first one where I actually ventured out of Damascus to another town, this being Bosra: an old roman town with loads of ruins.
However the weekend really started on Thursday night, as in Syria the weekend is Friday and Saturday, but Sunday is a working day, which is really hard to get your head around when you first get here. Anyway, Thursday...
Taxi!
Right, time I did some sort of informative post, and given today’s events I think I’m going to explain the transport situation in Damascus, or what I’ve worked out so far…
Taxis are by far the best way of getting somewhere if you don’t know where you’re going, just make sure you don’t come straight out of your hotel and grab a taxi from there because...
And So To Work...
I’m not an organised person at all, so it probably will come as no surprise to those that know me that I only just got my AIDS test done in the last two days. I got my results yesterday which were dispensed from the back of a building in a rather bizarre fashion. I still have no idea whether or not I have AIDS or not as my Arabic is rather limited and deciphering the results letter would...
Let The Games Commence
So I began the week with a very early start… well, not that early, 10am. Unfortunately Alex and I didn’t feel too great, maybe due to the adjustment to the Syrian cuisine. In any case we got up reasonably early so Alex could sort her Syrian phone out and I could finish off sorting my phone out, as there were some small things left over from sorting it out the night before.
The day was...
Facebook
Facebook is IMPOSSIBLE to get onto at the moment so can people PLEASE not taunt me by writing messages on my wall as all I get are mail notifications which, although they tell me what you’ve written, don’t let me reply or get on Facebook.
In response to your question Laurence: No I haven’t tried climbing to the top of the highest Mosque to perform a “Leap of Faith”...
A Weekend in دمشق
Friday morning I woke up at 10am and went on a little wander around the streets with my camera, just to see what I could see and to sort of orientate myself and work out where I was in the city.
First I walked down a few of the streets coming off the main square next to where I’m staying and I looked around at the different shops. Thing is this was kinda hard as none of them were...
Arrival to a stange place
So, here I am, sitting in an internet cafe at 1:43am in Damascus and what a day it has been! I woke up this morning at 5am and couldn’t get back to sleep, possibly due to the excitement of the coming day. Anyway, I got up, sorted a few things out for my trip, then I watched “Quantum of Solace”, which is a pretty awesome film, though not as good as Casino Royale.
Bond aside, I...
So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye!
So this is my last full day in England. I’ve had a nice long lie-in (until midday) and now I’m going to go and make myself some brunch, which I’m slightly worried about as I don’t think my mum’s bought any bacon… error.
Anyway, I’ve done all my washing and today’s the day I’m going to try and fit it all into my bag. I’ve decided to go...
August 2010
2 posts
7 Days...
In a week’s time I will be, touch wood, fast asleep in a room in Damascus. I still haven’t booked a hotel or a hostel yet so my mum is having a bit of a freak-out, which is fair enough, but I need to get that sorted out soon… I’ve found a few places but I just haven’t gotten round to actually setting it in stone. Probably should do that tomorrow… :/
Anyway,...
My Plans
So, it’s 12 days and 15 hours until I leave the shores of Great Britain to go travelling for the first time in my life, going somewhere with a completely different culture and a different style of living to the one I’m used to.
Most people reading this will probably know me quite well, however for those who are unsure, or who haven’t seen me in ages then this is me:
...