Saturday, May 13, 2006

Moat around the citadel


Moat around the citadel
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

There is a citadel at the old city, but it is off limits as it is being restored.

Saladin's statue


Saladin's statue
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Western women covered up


Western women covered up
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Western women have to wear these brown robes at the mosque.

Polished floor at the mosque


Polished floor at the mosque
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Inside the Umayyad mosque


Inside the Umayyad mosque
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Saladin's mausoleum


Saladin's mausoleum
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Saladin ("Restorer of the Faith") was a Kurd, who successfully led the Muslims against the Crusaders. He was also portrayed in the movie "Kingdom of Heaven".

Massive khan door


Massive khan door
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

These doors were large enough to allow heavily-laden camels to walk through. The small door is what people used.

Looking up at a dome


Looking up at a dome
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Khan, medieval mall


Khan, medieval mall
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Martin, a Flamand, showed me this "khan" in a souq. They were multistoried storage areas, stores, and motels with a single entrance that could be locked at night. This one was empty, being restored, but had photographs in display from the Centre Culturel Francais.

Courtyard at Azem palace


Courtyard at Azem palace
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Azem palace


Azem palace
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Built in 1749 by the governor of Damascus, As'ad Pash al-Azem.

Remains of the Temple of Jupiter


Remains of the Temple of Jupiter
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Muslim service


Muslim service
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

I heard this great choral singing in this mosque and dropped in for a peek. Immediately, room was made for me and I was seated and served some freshly squeeze orange juice. I stayed for about 20 minutes, also listening to this Iman speaking in Arabic. When I left, they gave me some candy-covered almonds as a gift. Syrians are so warm and friendly. "Axis of evil", my a%#!

Seating area


Seating area
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Roman theatre at Bosra


Roman theatre at Bosra
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Only a couple hours from Damascus is Bosra. There are Roman ruins here, including a 15,000-person capacity Roman theatre.

Ice creamier


Ice creamier
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This is like Turkish ice cream, beaten and beaten into a light mixture and dipped into pistachio seeds. It isn't very sweet and only costs 50 cents.

Vine-covered walls


Vine-covered walls
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The old city alley at night.

Mezze dinner


Mezze dinner
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

I met a couple of travellers at my hostel and we went to get some dinner in the old city. The old city is filled with homes that have been converted into beautiful restaurants. They have open courtyards with fountains and are not very expensive. We went to a Caffe Restaurant in the Christian Quarter (there is also a Jewish Quarter in the old city) and had a mezze, a few appetizers, to share. The food was fantastic and only came to $2 a person.

Minaret at night


Minaret at night
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The three minarets at the Umayyad Mosque are all constructed in different styles.

National Museum


National Museum
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

They've transplanted the facade of a desert fortress (Qasr al-Heir al-Gharbi) to the National Museum in Damascus. The museum isn't that interesting, but it has a nice garden filled with Roman remains. There are some interesting rooms in the museum, and if you use a internationl student card (like I did), the 150 Syrian pound (SP) admission prices goes down to 10 SP. Now THAT'S a student discount! Most of the sights are priced similarly. $1 = 50 SP.

Narrow alleys in the old city


Narrow alleys in the old city
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Second story enclosed balconies are typical of the alleys in the old city.

Umayyad Mosque


Umayyad Mosque
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This mosque dates from 705 AD. It is the main mosque in the old city. It was converted from a Byzantine Church, which was built on the site of a Temple of Jupiter.

An interesting banner at Souq Al Hamidiyya


An interesting banner at Souq Al Hamidiyya
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Damascus has large souqs, or shopping areas, in its old city. There was this interesting banner hanging up in the Al Hamidiyya Souq.

Entering Syria


Entering Syria
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

It only took three hours to get through the passport control on the Syrian side compared to the five hours to get to Israel.
If you have an Israeli stamp in your passport, you're banned from almost all Muslim countries except for Morocco, Turkey, and Jordan, but if you go across at the King Hussein/Allenby Bridge like I did, you can try and convince the Israeli immigration not to stamp your passport. Fortunately, at this border crossing, the Jordanians won't stamp your passport because they still consider the West Bank part of Jordan.

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.

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Yemenite Quarter


Yemenite Quarter
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The Yemenite Quarter has a nice bustling open market with cheap eats.

View of TA from Jaffa


View of TA from Jaffa
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Old city alleys


Old city alleys
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Fishing near Jaffa


Fishing near Jaffa
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Jaffa is an old port just south of Tel Aviv. Actually it's just about a mile south of downtown TA. It was a port during the Crusade period and has a small quaint old city that has been, expectedly, into an upscale tourist area with art galleries and fine dining.

Surfin' TA


Surfin' TA
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Tel Aviv buildings


Tel Aviv buildings
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Tel Aviv, a beachside town, only an hour from Jerusalem, reminded me of Miami's South Beach, and not just because of the architecture. It is a pleasant city, with an excellent promenade. Beautiful people exercise along the promenade all day long. It has a good bus system, but it is easily walked as well. There are nice pedestrian areas lined with cafes and shops and corner grocery stores. It is almost like a New York City neighborhood placed on a warm climate on the water.

The Saturday night crowd


The Saturday night crowd
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

By midnight, however, the streets, especially around Zion Square were packed. I was told it would be like that until 5 am.

New Jerusalem at night


New Jerusalem at night
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

We ventured out after sundown, when the Jewish weekly shabbat was over. It was pretty empty out at night for a Saturday at 9 pm.

Hanging out in the Muslim Quarter


Hanging out in the Muslim Quarter
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

A couple travellers moved into the hostel after a couple nights of being the lone tourist. Ali and Shaz hailed from the UK and had been travelling alone in the Mideast. Ali had spent the last three months in Syria, Iran, and Israel. Shaz had visited Egypt and Jordan and now was on a pilgramage of sorts to Jerusalem.
My hostel, the Golden Gate Inn, was a great place in the Muslim Quarter, but the long-term residents in the dorm were a bit off. There was a 65 year old Palestinian who muttered to anyone who would listen and had a habit of speaking angrily in the dark in the middle of the night, sometimes shouting. There were a couple older blind guys, and a guy who claimed to be an American but kept quiet, to himself, but had a off-putting smirk on his face. A very strange group.