Wednesday, May 10, 2006

I made it to Syria!

Today I made my way to the Syrian border from Amman and waited for three hours until they issued me a visa. Officially, Syrian visas are not available at the border unless there is no consulate in your country, and I had asked in Cairo, but they had turned me down, so I was disappointed. However, I had heard from other travellers and even the hotel clerk in Amman that many people were able to get their visas at the border, even Americans; so, I gave it a try and it worked!
Syria is cheaper and the infrastructure is dirtier than Jordan; Damascus reminds me more of Cairo than Amman. There is an old city near the center, which claims to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities, which is full of narrow souqs. There are more people in Damascus than in all of Jordan. I feel really happy to be here. I can't believe my luck.

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