Today TJ is even worse and if he isn’t any better tomorrow we might be making a trip to the doctor. While TJ spent the day resting and trying to recover, I went site seeing.
I was very discouraged this morning as I walked a long way without getting anywhere. This city is seriously very difficult to navigate! I wandered around for several hours then went back to check on TJ to see if he was feeling any better. He wasn’t so I headed out again, this time determined to see something! I actually had a very productive afternoon. I entered the Old City and actually found my way to the Temple Mount, only to learn that it was closed again and no one was sure when it would open again. I then walked the Via Doloroso – the route that Jesus is believed to have taken as he carried his cross to the Calvary. After that I hiked up the Mount of Olives, which according to the Book of Zechariah, is where God will start to redeem the dead when the Messiah returns on the Day of Judgement. 150,000 people are hoping to be good candidates for redemption by being buried on this mountain! While the climb was a bit ambitious for my knee and was more cardio than I was interested in, it did provide nice views of the Old City, the Church of All Nations and the Russian Orthodox Church with the shiny golden domes.
From the Mount of Olives I made my way to the City of David. This city is the oldest part of Jerusalem and was the Canaanite settlement captured by King David 3000 years ago. Checking out the City of David was probably worth an hour or so on the stair master so by this point my angry knee was throbbing. I wanted to see and appreciate the Via Doloroso again so I re-visited this famous path on my way back to the New City.
Today was a very strange day to be in the Old City. Due to the recent events in Gaza between Israeli troops and the Palestinians, the Old City was shut down but hundreds of soldiers and police officers were stationed inside and on the perimeter of the city. All of the restaurants and shops were closed, which created an eerie, unnatural calm in the Old City. Only tourists and residents were permitted to wander around and while it kind of nice to avoid the masses, it was a bit creepy to walk through a vacated city. I think (and it is very likely that I am wrong) that the government required the businesses to close because the soldiers could keep an eye on the trickle of tourists, but it would be impossible for them to monitor the activities of the swarms of locals who flood the Old City on a daily basis. I asked one soldier why they stationed so many troops around the Old City and his response was, “If someone wants to make a point, they will make it in Jerusalem.”
I made my way back to my room to check on TJ. His condition hadn’t improved at all and may have even deteriorated. Hopefully he is better tomorrow or else I may try to get him to a doctor. I left again to pick up laundry, buy TJ some fruit and find dinner for me. I was still a bit sketched out from the Old City and found it perplexing that there was some sort of a bar mitzvah celebration taking place in the square outside of our hotel. While the Old City was vacant with an influx of soldiers, people were singing and dancing in the streets in the New City. I began to wonder if I was the only one watching the news? It is hard for me to understand how people can be singing and dancing when missiles are being launched in their small country. Gaza is located 48 miles from Jerusalem. Unfortunately the recent events are not anything new or surprising to Israeli’s. The people here are so familiar with political turmoil and war that, according to my Israeli friend they have adopted the motto, “Life goes on.”
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Jerusalem, Israel
We arrived in Jerusalem on Friday evening, which was the beginning of Shabat (Sabbath). Shabat starts at dusk on Friday evening and ends at dusk on Saturday evening. The origin of Shabat is the book of Genesis, which said that God created the world in six days and on the seventh he rested. The fourth of the ten commandments says, "Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. On it you shall do no work" As a result, Jewish people worship, study and spend time with their families during Shabat. They do not work, go to school, study, do chores, cook, shop or do anything that would interfere with their obligation to obey the fourth commandment.
There is a long list of things that it is forbidden for Jews to do during the Sabbath. Jewish people who keep the Sabbath faithfully will not go to work or to school, do any housework or homework, use public transport, cook any food (all food for the Sabbath will be prepared before sunset on Friday) and will not go shopping. The Sabbath will be seen as a time to worship, study and enjoy time with family. I wish I’d known more about Shabat before we arrived in Jerusalem during this period!
We didn’t know that we’d arrive in Jerusalem at a time where public transportation wasn’t running and shops and restaurants were all closed. Thankfully we’d called our hostel in advance and gotten the access code as the reception desk was closed for the next 24 hours. We didn’t realize that we’d have to wander the streets searching for water and something to eat. After roaming the streets for awhile we came across a little market where we bought water, bread, turkey, cheese and yogurt for dinner then called it an early night.
The next day we headed for the Old City, which is jam packed full of historical sites, shops, cafes, residences and more. The Old City is a fascinating place. I’d expect even the best navigators would find themselves turned around in the convoluted maze of streets and alleys. We’d think we’re on the right track to a destination and then would wind up exactly where we started. I didn’t mind being lost though. Every turn had something interesting and unique to offer.
We entered the city at the New Gate and wound our way through the Christian Quarter to the Citadel (Tower of David). The Citadel was Herod the Great’s palace in the 1st-century and then changed hands several times in with future occupants including Muslim Armies and the Crusaders. Unfortunately, my tumble down the Citadel stairs in Aleppo is still fresh in my mind, so we admired the Citadel from a safe distance then sought out the Temple Mount, which is home to the Dome of the Rock.
The Temple Mount has too much history for me to even begin to explain, so I recommend you Google it. While we were en-route to the Temple Mount, we inadvertently wandered across the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This Church is claimed to be the holiest Christian site in the Old City as it is believed to be the place where Jesus was nailed to the cross, died and rose from the dead. This Church had an unexpected captivating and enchanting effect on me. The Church itself was rather simple on the exterior and stunning on the interior. The intricate mosaics that adorned the walls were especially impressive. The Church was filled with extremely passionate people who shed tears, said prayers and stood in awe as they considered what happened to Jesus at that very site.
We exited the Church and set off again to find the Temple Mount. This time we stumbled across the Western Wall en-route. The Wall was built 2000 years or so ago as a retaining wall to support the Temple Mount, but over time it has become a religious shrine for Jewish people. Today the courtyard attached to the wall serves as an open-air synagogue with segregated areas for men and women. Again, it is a long story so you can Google it.
After seeing the Western Wall we finally found our way to the Temple Mount. We got very close until we were turned away by soldiers as the site was closed for Shabat.
TJ was feeling really crappy again so we found our way out of the Old City and headed to the New City where we are staying. Everything was still closed at this point. It is very strange to be in a city that feels like a ghost town because everything is closed.
There is a long list of things that it is forbidden for Jews to do during the Sabbath. Jewish people who keep the Sabbath faithfully will not go to work or to school, do any housework or homework, use public transport, cook any food (all food for the Sabbath will be prepared before sunset on Friday) and will not go shopping. The Sabbath will be seen as a time to worship, study and enjoy time with family. I wish I’d known more about Shabat before we arrived in Jerusalem during this period!
We didn’t know that we’d arrive in Jerusalem at a time where public transportation wasn’t running and shops and restaurants were all closed. Thankfully we’d called our hostel in advance and gotten the access code as the reception desk was closed for the next 24 hours. We didn’t realize that we’d have to wander the streets searching for water and something to eat. After roaming the streets for awhile we came across a little market where we bought water, bread, turkey, cheese and yogurt for dinner then called it an early night.
The next day we headed for the Old City, which is jam packed full of historical sites, shops, cafes, residences and more. The Old City is a fascinating place. I’d expect even the best navigators would find themselves turned around in the convoluted maze of streets and alleys. We’d think we’re on the right track to a destination and then would wind up exactly where we started. I didn’t mind being lost though. Every turn had something interesting and unique to offer.
We entered the city at the New Gate and wound our way through the Christian Quarter to the Citadel (Tower of David). The Citadel was Herod the Great’s palace in the 1st-century and then changed hands several times in with future occupants including Muslim Armies and the Crusaders. Unfortunately, my tumble down the Citadel stairs in Aleppo is still fresh in my mind, so we admired the Citadel from a safe distance then sought out the Temple Mount, which is home to the Dome of the Rock.
The Temple Mount has too much history for me to even begin to explain, so I recommend you Google it. While we were en-route to the Temple Mount, we inadvertently wandered across the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This Church is claimed to be the holiest Christian site in the Old City as it is believed to be the place where Jesus was nailed to the cross, died and rose from the dead. This Church had an unexpected captivating and enchanting effect on me. The Church itself was rather simple on the exterior and stunning on the interior. The intricate mosaics that adorned the walls were especially impressive. The Church was filled with extremely passionate people who shed tears, said prayers and stood in awe as they considered what happened to Jesus at that very site.
We exited the Church and set off again to find the Temple Mount. This time we stumbled across the Western Wall en-route. The Wall was built 2000 years or so ago as a retaining wall to support the Temple Mount, but over time it has become a religious shrine for Jewish people. Today the courtyard attached to the wall serves as an open-air synagogue with segregated areas for men and women. Again, it is a long story so you can Google it.
After seeing the Western Wall we finally found our way to the Temple Mount. We got very close until we were turned away by soldiers as the site was closed for Shabat.
TJ was feeling really crappy again so we found our way out of the Old City and headed to the New City where we are staying. Everything was still closed at this point. It is very strange to be in a city that feels like a ghost town because everything is closed.
Aqaba - Eilat
The following morning we set off to cross the border into Israel. We heard it took about an hour to take a taxi to the border, walk across, go through the checkpoints, then take another taxi to the bus station in Eilat. There was a 10am bus in Eilat we wanted to catch so we set off for the border around 8:30. We were lucky that there weren’t any lines! We exited Jordan quickly and thought we’d get into Israel in a timely fashion as well. We were wrong.
It took a little while for the Israeli guards to take out and inspect each individual item in our backpacks. We thought that would be the most time consuming process until we got to passport control, where our passports were taken from us.TJ and I were interviewed separately and then we were put in a holding room. We watched other Americans breeze through the checkpoint but we were told to sit and wait for up to 3 hours while we were investigated and then someone would let us know if we could enter Israel. I couldn’t imagine that they would reject us and send us back to Jordan, but I guess it was possible. When we asked why we were being detained we were told it was random. We are inclined to believe it is because we’d been in Lebanon and Syria – two countries that are hated by Israel.
We played Nintendo and caught up on magazines before our passports were returned and we received permission to enter. We cruised Eilat then boarded a bus to Jerusalem.
It took a little while for the Israeli guards to take out and inspect each individual item in our backpacks. We thought that would be the most time consuming process until we got to passport control, where our passports were taken from us.TJ and I were interviewed separately and then we were put in a holding room. We watched other Americans breeze through the checkpoint but we were told to sit and wait for up to 3 hours while we were investigated and then someone would let us know if we could enter Israel. I couldn’t imagine that they would reject us and send us back to Jordan, but I guess it was possible. When we asked why we were being detained we were told it was random. We are inclined to believe it is because we’d been in Lebanon and Syria – two countries that are hated by Israel.
We played Nintendo and caught up on magazines before our passports were returned and we received permission to enter. We cruised Eilat then boarded a bus to Jerusalem.
Wadi Rum, Jordan
We left Petra early in the morning and headed to Wadi Rum. I still have not quite formulated an opinion of my stay in Wadi Rum. Wadi Rum offers “extraordinary desert scenery” and was made famous by Lawrence of Arabia. Visiting Wadi Rum provides an opportunity to experience a protected desert area and learn about the Bedouin people and culture. Bedouins are predominately Muslim, desert-dwelling, Arab nomads. What isn’t advertised is that there aren’t very many Bedouins still roaming the desert and that most have traded their tents, camels and nomadic lifestyle for concrete block homes and jeeps. So, I am not sure if I should appreciate my opportunity to learn about this historic nomadic lifestyle or feel duped into an over-glorified camping trip in the desert.
Our desert trip began with tea at our guide’s house. Mohammed, our guide, didn’t end up taking us through the desert as the birth of his 10th child required his attention at home. So, we set off in our rickety 1970’s Landcruiser with an English couple, a gal from Singapore and a girl from Egypt, into the desert to check out the sites. Our 6 hour jeep tour included many stops, although whether or not they were noteworthy is up to debate. Our Landcruiser made me pretty nervous. I kept my fingers crossed that it would start after each time it was turned off and that its fumes wouldn’t silently kill us along the way. Our trip ended at the “Sunset Camp” where we would camp for the night. TJ and I chose our tent then explored the small camp. First on my agenda was checking out the facilities. Let me just sum it up by saying the bathrooms were foul and I knew a 2nd visit could result in me barfing. What absolutely baffled us was a young, French-Canadian couple was volunteering at the camp for two months. Every day they used those facilities, endured the freezing weather and slept in the goat-hair tents. TJ wanted to call their parents to get them on the first Landcruiser out of there. While camping in the desert was a highly unusual way to spend Christmas Eve and an interesting experience, one night was plenty for us!
Watching the sun set over the desert was nice and then we played a few rounds of Rummy before dinner. The dinner festivities began with a “Bedouin” fellow playing music. It turned out this guy had pitched a tent over a nearby cave and called it home. Dinner followed along with more music and a bit of dancing. The sky was impressive with a bright array of stars. We retired to our tent, crawled on our mattresses on the sand and under our blankets in our layers of shirts, jeans, hats, gloves and coats and tried to go to sleep, even though we were in a tent in below freezing temperatures.
We managed to sleep and when we woke up it was Christmas! We had breakfast at the camp, then headed out with our new English friends in their rental car to Aqaba.
Aqaba was pretty nice. It was nicely situated on the Red Sea and had a lot more Western influences than the places we’d been. Trust me, if your options had been mostly limited to Arabic cuisine for a few weeks you might welcome the sight of the golden arches too! Plus, we he had a tradition to keep after dining at Mickie D’s last year with Carrie on Christmas Day in Cairo. Should you ever find yourself in the Middle East on Christmas day you should consider partaking in our tradition:)
Aqaba is popular with Jordanians from the North and Saudi’s. There is currently a ton of construction going on and it looks that Aqaba is heading in the direction of becoming a destination for those who are looking for high-end 5 star resorts. Aqaba offers a beach, waterfront, sunshine and water sports. Diving and snorkeling are major attractions, although a few people I met in Amman said all of the garbage in the water detracted from their experience.
We strolled along the waterfront, checked out the city, then planted at and English Pub for Christmas dinner and a beer or two. While we had a nice time at the Pub, we would have happily traded our meal for some good home cookin.’
Our desert trip began with tea at our guide’s house. Mohammed, our guide, didn’t end up taking us through the desert as the birth of his 10th child required his attention at home. So, we set off in our rickety 1970’s Landcruiser with an English couple, a gal from Singapore and a girl from Egypt, into the desert to check out the sites. Our 6 hour jeep tour included many stops, although whether or not they were noteworthy is up to debate. Our Landcruiser made me pretty nervous. I kept my fingers crossed that it would start after each time it was turned off and that its fumes wouldn’t silently kill us along the way. Our trip ended at the “Sunset Camp” where we would camp for the night. TJ and I chose our tent then explored the small camp. First on my agenda was checking out the facilities. Let me just sum it up by saying the bathrooms were foul and I knew a 2nd visit could result in me barfing. What absolutely baffled us was a young, French-Canadian couple was volunteering at the camp for two months. Every day they used those facilities, endured the freezing weather and slept in the goat-hair tents. TJ wanted to call their parents to get them on the first Landcruiser out of there. While camping in the desert was a highly unusual way to spend Christmas Eve and an interesting experience, one night was plenty for us!
Watching the sun set over the desert was nice and then we played a few rounds of Rummy before dinner. The dinner festivities began with a “Bedouin” fellow playing music. It turned out this guy had pitched a tent over a nearby cave and called it home. Dinner followed along with more music and a bit of dancing. The sky was impressive with a bright array of stars. We retired to our tent, crawled on our mattresses on the sand and under our blankets in our layers of shirts, jeans, hats, gloves and coats and tried to go to sleep, even though we were in a tent in below freezing temperatures.
We managed to sleep and when we woke up it was Christmas! We had breakfast at the camp, then headed out with our new English friends in their rental car to Aqaba.
Aqaba was pretty nice. It was nicely situated on the Red Sea and had a lot more Western influences than the places we’d been. Trust me, if your options had been mostly limited to Arabic cuisine for a few weeks you might welcome the sight of the golden arches too! Plus, we he had a tradition to keep after dining at Mickie D’s last year with Carrie on Christmas Day in Cairo. Should you ever find yourself in the Middle East on Christmas day you should consider partaking in our tradition:)
Aqaba is popular with Jordanians from the North and Saudi’s. There is currently a ton of construction going on and it looks that Aqaba is heading in the direction of becoming a destination for those who are looking for high-end 5 star resorts. Aqaba offers a beach, waterfront, sunshine and water sports. Diving and snorkeling are major attractions, although a few people I met in Amman said all of the garbage in the water detracted from their experience.
We strolled along the waterfront, checked out the city, then planted at and English Pub for Christmas dinner and a beer or two. While we had a nice time at the Pub, we would have happily traded our meal for some good home cookin.’
Petra
Petra was amazing. Petra boasts ruins of an entire city that 30,000 people are believed to have inhabited. When Petra was constructed is up to debate, although the 6th century BC seems to be the most consistent claim. The city was home to residences, a theater, temples, 500 tombs, a church, markets, a monastery and more with the majority of the structures being carved out of the rock face by The Nabataeans – Arabs who dominated the region in pre-Roman times. Many of these structures remain in excellent condition today making Petra a magical place to visit.
The most impressive site in Petra is the Treasury. The Treasury was carved out of the sandstone to serve as a tomb for a Nabataean King, but it got its name from the story that an Egyptian Pharaoh had stashed his treasure there. The approximately 141 ft high Treasury is a truly a spectacular site.
The city is in remarkable condition considering it has withstood several earthquakes, has been invaded by the Romans and the Crusaders and gets trampled on daily by eager tourists.
All in all, Petra was very impressive, especially considering only 5% of it has been excavated! We really enjoyed hiking and wandering around this ancient city and I am excited to watch ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ to see how what I’ve seen has been pictured on the big screen!
The most impressive site in Petra is the Treasury. The Treasury was carved out of the sandstone to serve as a tomb for a Nabataean King, but it got its name from the story that an Egyptian Pharaoh had stashed his treasure there. The approximately 141 ft high Treasury is a truly a spectacular site.
The city is in remarkable condition considering it has withstood several earthquakes, has been invaded by the Romans and the Crusaders and gets trampled on daily by eager tourists.
All in all, Petra was very impressive, especially considering only 5% of it has been excavated! We really enjoyed hiking and wandering around this ancient city and I am excited to watch ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ to see how what I’ve seen has been pictured on the big screen!
Amman, Jordan
We spent a couple of days in Amman and didn’t really accomplish much. Quite honestly, I didn’t find the city to be very inspiring and TJ was very sick so we laid pretty low. There were a couple of things in my guide book that I found to be rather amusing. First, we were warned not to trust anyone who told us our hotel had been burnt down. Second, we learned that one of our biggest challenges in Amman would be safely crossing the street. The drivers pose a “serious hazard to your health.” “They have “no desire to run you over; they just want to get to their destination as quickly as possible.” Back in ‘Nam I learned that when the situation looks bleak it helps to find little old ladies crossing the street and follow closelyJ This strategy came in very useful in Amman as well!
Our favorite site was the Roman Theater. We also saw the citadel, the historic downtown area, mosques and markets. We spent the better part of a day lounging around coffee shops in a swankier part of town.
The following day we caught a mini-bus to Petra. After enduring our depressing accommodation in Amman, we decided to skip the backpacker’s joint we’d planned on staying at and upgraded to a 3-star hotel. We arrived late in the afternoon, too late in the day to see Petra. Since the town had little else to offer we settled in to our nice digs and watched movies all night. I know it sounds strange, but sometimes you need a little break from your vacation!
Our favorite site was the Roman Theater. We also saw the citadel, the historic downtown area, mosques and markets. We spent the better part of a day lounging around coffee shops in a swankier part of town.
The following day we caught a mini-bus to Petra. After enduring our depressing accommodation in Amman, we decided to skip the backpacker’s joint we’d planned on staying at and upgraded to a 3-star hotel. We arrived late in the afternoon, too late in the day to see Petra. Since the town had little else to offer we settled in to our nice digs and watched movies all night. I know it sounds strange, but sometimes you need a little break from your vacation!
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Amman, Jordan
We arrived in Amman this evening. From what I’ve read people don’t come to Amman for its markets and bazaars or mosques. People come to Amman to see a modern Arab city. There is definitely a massive amount of construction going on with new shopping centers, condos, hotels and even a university scheduled for completion. The downtown area we are staying in, however, is far from modern. Agreed, it is not as old as Damascus and other major nearby cities, but I wouldn’t classify it as modern…
We dropped our backpacks and set out for our first meal of the day. Again, we found very few choices that offered anything other than traditional Arabic cuisine. After a less than mediocre dinner we headed back to our “hotel.” My trusty Lonely Planet book raved about the hotel we are staying at. In fact it is listed as “The Author’s Choice” and the author goes on to say, “The Palace is definitely the best budget and lower midrange option in downtown and is worth a little splurge. The rooms are clean and large, all renovated in 2005, and some have balconies with good views of the street. There’s a wide range of rooms with satellite TV and fridge. It has laundry service, free local calls, internet access, a café…” Doesn’t it sound nice? I am feeling very deceived right now because it is a depressing dump! The carpet must be several years older than me and the rest of the room is in a state of despair. I have been carrying around a bottle of wine that I bought a week ago in Lebanon and corked it tonight to ease my depression over this room. TJ is in bed shivering because it is so cold in here as there isn’t a central heating system. I must be getting snobby in my old age because drab rooms seem to have more of an impact on me than they used to!
Tomorrow we’ll explore Amman and will hopefully meet TR here for lunch the next day before continuing on to Petra.
Throughout the three countries we have been to so far I have been discouraged with my Lonely Planet book for advertising some sites as “must see” or unmissable experiences.” I’ve taken the authors raves and recommendations seriously. However, in several instances I have been disappointed with what was promoted. I’ve arrived at “must see” sites and thought, “Uhh, why did I ‘have’ to see this?” I have learned a few lessons here. First, authors have to do their job of writing a book and promoting an entire country. We are visiting countries that are truly off the beaten track to the extreme that there only seem to be a handful of tourists – in the entire country. The authors cannot create sites to see or things to do, so they are left with the challenge of promoting what exists. And, I need to remember that how interesting something is can vary tremendously from one person to the next. The sites promoted may be truly fascinating to some people. My lessons have been to take into consideration where I am in the world and realize that my expectations cannot be too high. I also keep in mind that the journey is often as interesting, if not more interesting, than the destination.
We dropped our backpacks and set out for our first meal of the day. Again, we found very few choices that offered anything other than traditional Arabic cuisine. After a less than mediocre dinner we headed back to our “hotel.” My trusty Lonely Planet book raved about the hotel we are staying at. In fact it is listed as “The Author’s Choice” and the author goes on to say, “The Palace is definitely the best budget and lower midrange option in downtown and is worth a little splurge. The rooms are clean and large, all renovated in 2005, and some have balconies with good views of the street. There’s a wide range of rooms with satellite TV and fridge. It has laundry service, free local calls, internet access, a café…” Doesn’t it sound nice? I am feeling very deceived right now because it is a depressing dump! The carpet must be several years older than me and the rest of the room is in a state of despair. I have been carrying around a bottle of wine that I bought a week ago in Lebanon and corked it tonight to ease my depression over this room. TJ is in bed shivering because it is so cold in here as there isn’t a central heating system. I must be getting snobby in my old age because drab rooms seem to have more of an impact on me than they used to!
Tomorrow we’ll explore Amman and will hopefully meet TR here for lunch the next day before continuing on to Petra.
Throughout the three countries we have been to so far I have been discouraged with my Lonely Planet book for advertising some sites as “must see” or unmissable experiences.” I’ve taken the authors raves and recommendations seriously. However, in several instances I have been disappointed with what was promoted. I’ve arrived at “must see” sites and thought, “Uhh, why did I ‘have’ to see this?” I have learned a few lessons here. First, authors have to do their job of writing a book and promoting an entire country. We are visiting countries that are truly off the beaten track to the extreme that there only seem to be a handful of tourists – in the entire country. The authors cannot create sites to see or things to do, so they are left with the challenge of promoting what exists. And, I need to remember that how interesting something is can vary tremendously from one person to the next. The sites promoted may be truly fascinating to some people. My lessons have been to take into consideration where I am in the world and realize that my expectations cannot be too high. I also keep in mind that the journey is often as interesting, if not more interesting, than the destination.
Damascus - Bosra – Jerash – Amman, Jordan
This morning we set off for Amman, Jordan with stops at the ruins in Bosra, Syria and Jerash, Jordan en route. Our first stop, Bosra, boasts “one of the best, preserved Roman theaters in existence” and it was very impressive!! We cruised around the fortress halls and saw the massive theater, which remains in excellent condition. Consistent with most of the other tourist attractions in Syria, we had the place to ourselves. It was quite a spectacular site to see the dramatic stage and the steep rows of seating where 9000 people enjoyed performances since the 2nd century AD.
We checked out the remains of the old Roman town and then got back on the road and headed towards Jordan. The border crossing went rather smoothly. We bought our Syria departure ticket at a food stall (what the heck?), went through several check points and exited Syria where the official tossed our passports at us. That was not the nicest farewell. Entering Jordan was a little more involved. We had to take everything out of our car so the officers could do a semi-thorough inspection. They didn’t manage to find all of the packs of cigarettes our driver had purchased at duty-free and mischievously stashed throughout his vehicle. It was a fairly slow process but thankfully we were crossing on a weekend and there weren’t any lines!
Our first stop in Jordan was Jerash where the ruins are one of Jordan’s major attractions. According to my Lonely Planet book, the ruins are “one of the best examples in the Middle East of a Roman provincial city, and is remarkably well preserved.” We found it amusing that we saw more tourists at Jerash in the parking lot than we saw the whole time we were in Syria. We are turning into ruin snobs because we weren’t as impressed by Jerash as we have been at other sites, but it is still fascinating to imagine what 15,000 – 20,000 inhabitants did in this city on a daily basis 2000 years ago! We checked out the site then continued on to Amman.
We checked out the remains of the old Roman town and then got back on the road and headed towards Jordan. The border crossing went rather smoothly. We bought our Syria departure ticket at a food stall (what the heck?), went through several check points and exited Syria where the official tossed our passports at us. That was not the nicest farewell. Entering Jordan was a little more involved. We had to take everything out of our car so the officers could do a semi-thorough inspection. They didn’t manage to find all of the packs of cigarettes our driver had purchased at duty-free and mischievously stashed throughout his vehicle. It was a fairly slow process but thankfully we were crossing on a weekend and there weren’t any lines!
Our first stop in Jordan was Jerash where the ruins are one of Jordan’s major attractions. According to my Lonely Planet book, the ruins are “one of the best examples in the Middle East of a Roman provincial city, and is remarkably well preserved.” We found it amusing that we saw more tourists at Jerash in the parking lot than we saw the whole time we were in Syria. We are turning into ruin snobs because we weren’t as impressed by Jerash as we have been at other sites, but it is still fascinating to imagine what 15,000 – 20,000 inhabitants did in this city on a daily basis 2000 years ago! We checked out the site then continued on to Amman.
Damascus, Syria
From Palmyra we headed to Damascus, Syria’s capital. We said good-bye to Abdul, dropped our packs off and headed (I hobbled) off to check out the city and get some dinner. It was rush hour on a Friday night in Damascus and the city was bustling with people coming and going. Our first impression of the city was that it was old, dirty, loud and smelly (imagine the smell of garbage combined with raw meat and urine). Unfortunately, first impressions are often lasting impressions. And gain, it was hard to find anything to eat other than a shwarma! We found a couple of restaurants serving Arabic cuisine but the meat hanging in the window with the organs and intestines exposed and the food that had been sitting out at room temperature all day encouraged us to keep walking. We finally found a juice bar that served sandwiches too. TJ was feeling really sick and my knee was in pain so we headed back to our hotel. We had a huge room with high ceilings in a funky old house. It was spotlessly clean and nice, except freezing! We got in bed early because it was too cold not to!
On our 2nd day in Damascus we wandered around the Old City and saw the Citadel, the Umayyad Mosque, “one of Islam’s most notable buildings” and the souq (market), which sold everything from wedding dresses to perfume and kids toys. TJ was still feeling terrible and my knee pain had escalated to excruciating. Damascus has a rough terrain to navigate with a not so functional knee. My knee had started giving out and as a result I feared I’d done more than bruised it. I felt like I’d damaged my knee’s support system. So, we called it a day and headed back to our digs to take it easy. It is kind of nice to be forced to sit still sometimes. I’ve read a lot, caught up on the news, played my Nintendo DS and have actually relaxed a bit.
On our 2nd day in Damascus we wandered around the Old City and saw the Citadel, the Umayyad Mosque, “one of Islam’s most notable buildings” and the souq (market), which sold everything from wedding dresses to perfume and kids toys. TJ was still feeling terrible and my knee pain had escalated to excruciating. Damascus has a rough terrain to navigate with a not so functional knee. My knee had started giving out and as a result I feared I’d done more than bruised it. I felt like I’d damaged my knee’s support system. So, we called it a day and headed back to our digs to take it easy. It is kind of nice to be forced to sit still sometimes. I’ve read a lot, caught up on the news, played my Nintendo DS and have actually relaxed a bit.
Palmyra
The following day Abdul took us to Syria’s main tourist attraction, the Palmyra ruins. We made a couple of brief stops on the way at ruins of a castle and beehive houses. These little houses looked like they were straight out of a Dr. Seuss book. The structures are constructed to keep the houses cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Today used for food storage more commonly than they are used for homes.
My knee hurt and my ankle was weak, but I was able to hobble around pretty well especially with all the help from T.J. Our itinerary on this trip is a bit ambitious and I didn’t want to miss seeing Palmyra, “one of the world’s most splendid historical sites” that date back to the 2nd century AD. The ruins were very impressive and TJ and I enjoyed strolling through the site. The ruins are like the Las Vegas strip – from a distance it is hard to gage how massive they are in size. It isn’t until you are looking up and walking through the site that you realize and appreciate the magnitude of each structure and contemplate how it was erected so long ago.
My knee hurt and my ankle was weak, but I was able to hobble around pretty well especially with all the help from T.J. Our itinerary on this trip is a bit ambitious and I didn’t want to miss seeing Palmyra, “one of the world’s most splendid historical sites” that date back to the 2nd century AD. The ruins were very impressive and TJ and I enjoyed strolling through the site. The ruins are like the Las Vegas strip – from a distance it is hard to gage how massive they are in size. It isn’t until you are looking up and walking through the site that you realize and appreciate the magnitude of each structure and contemplate how it was erected so long ago.
Dead Cities – Aleppo
Yesterday we met up with our dapper driver, Abdul, again and set off on another day trip. Our first stop was Serjilla, one of Syria’s Dead Cities. There are approximately 600 sites in the Dead Cities and while the remains look like ghost towns, it is easy to envision how the villages thrived 15 centuries ago. Our next stop was another village in the Dead Cities, Al-Bara, and then we headed north to Aleppo.
I was pretty excited to see Aleppo as my guide book made it sound like a very interesting city with many areas to explore. Commentary such as “Aleppo retains the air of an Arabian bazaar city” with “the most vibrant and most authentic souq (market) in the whole middle east” excited me to check out such a unique city. Aleppo and Damascus both claim to be the oldest continually inhabited city in the world. I don’t really care which city is actually entitled to make that claim – I was just excited to experience a place with so much history.
Our driver dropped us off and pointed us in the direction of the Citadel and market. The Citadel was a massive fortress that was used to protect the city and ward off intruders. We hiked up the stairs and crossed the bridge. In the past, invading forces were subject to being shot with arrows, having boiling oil poured on them and fire shot at them while attempting to cross the bridge. We wandered around the Citadel and admired the panoramic views of the city offered from the top.
It was a nice sunny day and I was finally starting to feel better… Until I fell down the cobble stone stairs when leaving the Citadel. Nope, it was not a very graceful exit at all. If I wasn’t in so much pain I might think it was funny. I rolled my left ankle on one of the uneven stones and fell- down the stairs. My right knee slammed into the corner of a stair to break my fall and jamming my palm on the next stair and jarring my shoulder brought me to a halt. To make things better I managed to land in what seemed to be the only mud puddle in the city. So now my right ankle is swelling while my right knee is bruising and I now have two bad legs and can barely walk. My shoulder made out the least scathed and fortunately it only hurts when I move my arm. The old man next to me said I am lucky to be young as that fall would have broken many bones in his body. He is probably right. I have been searching for an explanation for my sickness and mishaps. Have I been naughty and have bad Karma? Are these signs that I should exit Syria ASAP? If someone knows something I don’t, please tell me.
Due to my inability to walk, we cut our time in Aleppo short and headed back to Hama. Normally, I would ice my knee to prevent and minimize swelling. Unfortunately, ice and other things that are readily available at home are completely unavailable here. There aren’t grocery stores. Meat and dairy products aren’t always refrigerated. I am not sure if it is due to a lack of freezers or what but ice doesn’t seem to exist here.
I was pretty excited to see Aleppo as my guide book made it sound like a very interesting city with many areas to explore. Commentary such as “Aleppo retains the air of an Arabian bazaar city” with “the most vibrant and most authentic souq (market) in the whole middle east” excited me to check out such a unique city. Aleppo and Damascus both claim to be the oldest continually inhabited city in the world. I don’t really care which city is actually entitled to make that claim – I was just excited to experience a place with so much history.
Our driver dropped us off and pointed us in the direction of the Citadel and market. The Citadel was a massive fortress that was used to protect the city and ward off intruders. We hiked up the stairs and crossed the bridge. In the past, invading forces were subject to being shot with arrows, having boiling oil poured on them and fire shot at them while attempting to cross the bridge. We wandered around the Citadel and admired the panoramic views of the city offered from the top.
It was a nice sunny day and I was finally starting to feel better… Until I fell down the cobble stone stairs when leaving the Citadel. Nope, it was not a very graceful exit at all. If I wasn’t in so much pain I might think it was funny. I rolled my left ankle on one of the uneven stones and fell- down the stairs. My right knee slammed into the corner of a stair to break my fall and jamming my palm on the next stair and jarring my shoulder brought me to a halt. To make things better I managed to land in what seemed to be the only mud puddle in the city. So now my right ankle is swelling while my right knee is bruising and I now have two bad legs and can barely walk. My shoulder made out the least scathed and fortunately it only hurts when I move my arm. The old man next to me said I am lucky to be young as that fall would have broken many bones in his body. He is probably right. I have been searching for an explanation for my sickness and mishaps. Have I been naughty and have bad Karma? Are these signs that I should exit Syria ASAP? If someone knows something I don’t, please tell me.
Due to my inability to walk, we cut our time in Aleppo short and headed back to Hama. Normally, I would ice my knee to prevent and minimize swelling. Unfortunately, ice and other things that are readily available at home are completely unavailable here. There aren’t grocery stores. Meat and dairy products aren’t always refrigerated. I am not sure if it is due to a lack of freezers or what but ice doesn’t seem to exist here.
Hama
We arrived in Hama in the evening and did a little bit of exploring and had dinner. There isn’t much to do in Hama but it is claimed to be one of Syria’s most attractive towns, is known for its ancient wooden water wheels and it is a good base for the day trips we are taking to surrounding sites. We were surprised to learn how much less expensive Syria is than Lebanon - two chicken shwarmas and two sodas = $2. Our hotel is nice and clean with great people working here for ½ the price of our dumpy room in Beirut. After getting settled in our room I started feeling worse and TJ was getting sick too.
Even though I was feeling a little under the weather I didn’t want to miss anything. So, on our first full day in Hama we set off with our driver, Abdul, a dapper little man who was neatly dressed in a cute little Keebler-elf looking suit, to Qala’at al-Hosn, a Crusader castle. The castle was impressive as it has been remarkably well preserved and seems to not have deteriorated much since it was constructed 800 years ago. It looked like it was straight out of a fairy tale. It was exciting to walk through the interior wondering what used to transpire between those walls.
By the time we returned to Hama I felt miserable and TJ was feeling crappy too. We had some similar symptoms and some different. I had a sore throat, cold sweats, hot sweats, body ache, stuffy nose and was exhausted. TJ also had a sore throat and stuffy nose but also a head ache so bad he felt like he was going to throw up. We spent the majority of the following day and a half in bed trying to recover. Unfortunately, wretchedly painful stomach convulsions interfered with my ability to rest. It was similar to when you wake up in the night with a really bad calf cramp and you are in intense pain for 30 seconds or a minute, except my pain didn’t go away in a timely fashion. It was awful.
The first night we weren’t feeling well we set out to buy water, Kleenex, throat lozenges and some food. We found everything except food! To clarify, we didn’t find anything we thought we could stomach or that wouldn’t make us more ill. We’d overdosed on shwarmas and the thought of another one made our stomachs churn so we decided bananas were dinner for the night.
24 hours later our stomachs craved more than a banana so we set off again. After a lot of wandering around we discovered that the shops that we thought were only selling fresh fruit had juicers! Yum! Smoothies! We also found a bakery selling normal bread (separate story required) and we even found a shop with packets of chicken noodle soup! What a relief. There is very little familiar food (other than fruits) to us in Syria as there are trade restrictions with the US. As a result, the country has not had the Western exposure that the majority of rest of the world has.
Hama is more conservative than the larger cities. All of the women here have their heads covered with scarves, if they are not wearing a full burqa. I didn’t know women wore burqas without eyeholes until I saw them in Hama. We have seen a couple of other tourists at our hotel, but for the most part I think the local people have seen very few Westerners. Men and women stare at us, me especially. I think it is a combination of being white and not having my head covered that attracts the attention.
Even though I was feeling a little under the weather I didn’t want to miss anything. So, on our first full day in Hama we set off with our driver, Abdul, a dapper little man who was neatly dressed in a cute little Keebler-elf looking suit, to Qala’at al-Hosn, a Crusader castle. The castle was impressive as it has been remarkably well preserved and seems to not have deteriorated much since it was constructed 800 years ago. It looked like it was straight out of a fairy tale. It was exciting to walk through the interior wondering what used to transpire between those walls.
By the time we returned to Hama I felt miserable and TJ was feeling crappy too. We had some similar symptoms and some different. I had a sore throat, cold sweats, hot sweats, body ache, stuffy nose and was exhausted. TJ also had a sore throat and stuffy nose but also a head ache so bad he felt like he was going to throw up. We spent the majority of the following day and a half in bed trying to recover. Unfortunately, wretchedly painful stomach convulsions interfered with my ability to rest. It was similar to when you wake up in the night with a really bad calf cramp and you are in intense pain for 30 seconds or a minute, except my pain didn’t go away in a timely fashion. It was awful.
The first night we weren’t feeling well we set out to buy water, Kleenex, throat lozenges and some food. We found everything except food! To clarify, we didn’t find anything we thought we could stomach or that wouldn’t make us more ill. We’d overdosed on shwarmas and the thought of another one made our stomachs churn so we decided bananas were dinner for the night.
24 hours later our stomachs craved more than a banana so we set off again. After a lot of wandering around we discovered that the shops that we thought were only selling fresh fruit had juicers! Yum! Smoothies! We also found a bakery selling normal bread (separate story required) and we even found a shop with packets of chicken noodle soup! What a relief. There is very little familiar food (other than fruits) to us in Syria as there are trade restrictions with the US. As a result, the country has not had the Western exposure that the majority of rest of the world has.
Hama is more conservative than the larger cities. All of the women here have their heads covered with scarves, if they are not wearing a full burqa. I didn’t know women wore burqas without eyeholes until I saw them in Hama. We have seen a couple of other tourists at our hotel, but for the most part I think the local people have seen very few Westerners. Men and women stare at us, me especially. I think it is a combination of being white and not having my head covered that attracts the attention.
Our Introduction to Syria
Excluding the chaotic transportation, our introduction to Syria was a pleasant surprise. The people, for the most part, have been very welcoming. Since there wasn’t an ATM at the border we didn’t have any local currency. The first act of kindness we received was a police man buying our bus tickets without letting us repay him. People wave at us or stop us and say welcome and go out of their way to help us get where we are going and make sure we are ok. I certainly didn’t expect this sort of kindness in an Arab country. The people have gone out of their way to convey to us that they like Americans and do not hold us responsible on an individual basis for the actions of our government. They think the world is full of brothers and sisters and life is too short to not get along.
Beirut – Ksara – Baalbek - Syria
The next morning we happily checked out of our crappy hotel and went to the bus station (which turned out to be an intersection) where we caught a mini-bus headed over the mountains to Zhale. From there we took a taxi to the Ksara Winery. The winery is unique because the wine is stored and matured in a series of underground caves. We dropped off our packs then enjoyed a tour and tastings! The winery was a fun, picturesque stop.
From there we continued onto Baalbek in Eastern Lebanon. My Lonely Planet Book sums Baalbek up very nicely: “Baalbek, the ‘Sun City’ of the ancient world, is home to the most impressive ancient site in Lebanon and arguably the most important Roman site in the Middle East. The ancient city has long enjoyed a reputation as one of the wonders of the world and mystics still attribute special powers to the courtyard complex. Its temples were built on an extravagant scale that outshone anything in Rome…” After reading this you would assume this site to be a “must see” tourist attraction, right? Well apparently TJ and I and one other tourist thought so! It was really amazing and a bit eerie to have the entire complex to ourselves! Or maybe I only felt a little sketchy when I heard the gunshots going off somewhere in the distance… Anyway, the site was really impressive and we enjoyed wandering around for a couple of hours.
Our accommodation in Baalbek was really cool. When we checked in we were the only guests at the hotel so the cute little manager gave us a wing that had a cozy room with an attached kitchen, bathroom, 2nd bedroom and a roof top terrace with stunning views of the ruins. It was a cool spot to watch the sun set over the city while glowing on the ruins. The only bummer was that I was starting to feel the onset of sickness here with the symptoms of a sore throat, stuffy nose and being freezing all the time. Fortunately our room had a black pot-bellied boiler to keep me nice and toasty.
From Baalbek we took a taxi to the Syrian border, walked across, took a mini-bus to Homs, a city bus, then another mini-bus to Hama and a taxi to our hotel. I will sum up our crossing the border experience by saying I highly doubt they get many tourists there.
From there we continued onto Baalbek in Eastern Lebanon. My Lonely Planet Book sums Baalbek up very nicely: “Baalbek, the ‘Sun City’ of the ancient world, is home to the most impressive ancient site in Lebanon and arguably the most important Roman site in the Middle East. The ancient city has long enjoyed a reputation as one of the wonders of the world and mystics still attribute special powers to the courtyard complex. Its temples were built on an extravagant scale that outshone anything in Rome…” After reading this you would assume this site to be a “must see” tourist attraction, right? Well apparently TJ and I and one other tourist thought so! It was really amazing and a bit eerie to have the entire complex to ourselves! Or maybe I only felt a little sketchy when I heard the gunshots going off somewhere in the distance… Anyway, the site was really impressive and we enjoyed wandering around for a couple of hours.
Our accommodation in Baalbek was really cool. When we checked in we were the only guests at the hotel so the cute little manager gave us a wing that had a cozy room with an attached kitchen, bathroom, 2nd bedroom and a roof top terrace with stunning views of the ruins. It was a cool spot to watch the sun set over the city while glowing on the ruins. The only bummer was that I was starting to feel the onset of sickness here with the symptoms of a sore throat, stuffy nose and being freezing all the time. Fortunately our room had a black pot-bellied boiler to keep me nice and toasty.
From Baalbek we took a taxi to the Syrian border, walked across, took a mini-bus to Homs, a city bus, then another mini-bus to Hama and a taxi to our hotel. I will sum up our crossing the border experience by saying I highly doubt they get many tourists there.
Beirut
When we got back into Beirut we set off to see the Pigeon Rocks, which are claimed to be “the most famous, and indeed one of the only, natural features of Beirut” – the Pigeon Rocks. I guess if you have come from a place that is devoid of natural features the rocks would be impressive. For us they were “nice rocks.”
On our way back to our “hotel” (it never should have been classified as a hotel) we caught a glimpse of a Friday night in Beirut. The ladies started hopping out of cars in their 4” stilettos looking like they were ready for a night at the Oscar’s or some other red carpet event. Even McDonald’s turns ultra-chic with valet parking. All of the young people appear to be wealthy and sport designer brand names and BMW’s or Mercedes. It seems to be extremely important for people here to look good. Even the hawkers dress neatly with button up shirts and slacks.
The people of Beirut all seem to have a fearless, carpe-diem attitude. And, it makes sense to me. The majority of people living in Lebanon have endured war. It isn’t something they’ve read about in history books – they have seen it and survived it. According to my Lonely Planet book, “The civil war saw Beirut transformed into a bloody, terrifying epicenter of anarchy. The city was ruled, area by area, by militias loyal to one of various factions; the infamous Green Line tore the city into Christian and Muslim halves, while massacres, hostage-takings and suicide bombings soon became commonplace. Continual intercommunal fighting between militias, combined with shelling from Israeli fighter planes, soon devastated the city, leaving tens of thousands of human casualties and a shattered economy…” That war ended in the early 1990’s. Then there were the recent Israeli retaliatory attacks in 2006 after Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed 5 others.
While the people seem to have an optimistic attitude about future and prefer to forget the past, forgetting must be impossible considering the massive remnants of the war that cannot be avoided on a day to day basis. There are massive buildings that are bullet and missile riddled skeletons. It seems like the whole city is under construction. There are functioning vehicles with windshields and windows that have been shot out. There is a convoy of heavily armed military men driving around Beirut at all times ready to respond to Hezbollah activity. Once you get to the perimeter of the city you’ll see heavier artillery and tanks and more soldiers. The erection of a Hezbollah “tent city” in Beirut, the numerous Hezbollah flags mounted on cars and buildings and the Hezbollah caravans that parade through towns in the evenings make it seem unlikely that Lebanon’s future will be one of constant peace.
After considering their history, it makes sense that Lebanese people seem to live a more dangerous lifestyle with a “seize the day” mentality. Everyone seems to party hard, smoke massive quantities of cigarettes and drive like it’s stolen. People dress well, eat well, spend as much time as possible with friends and family and indulge with every opportunity. Perhaps we would too if we had such an in-your-face reminder that tomorrow is not guaranteed.
On our way back to our “hotel” (it never should have been classified as a hotel) we caught a glimpse of a Friday night in Beirut. The ladies started hopping out of cars in their 4” stilettos looking like they were ready for a night at the Oscar’s or some other red carpet event. Even McDonald’s turns ultra-chic with valet parking. All of the young people appear to be wealthy and sport designer brand names and BMW’s or Mercedes. It seems to be extremely important for people here to look good. Even the hawkers dress neatly with button up shirts and slacks.
The people of Beirut all seem to have a fearless, carpe-diem attitude. And, it makes sense to me. The majority of people living in Lebanon have endured war. It isn’t something they’ve read about in history books – they have seen it and survived it. According to my Lonely Planet book, “The civil war saw Beirut transformed into a bloody, terrifying epicenter of anarchy. The city was ruled, area by area, by militias loyal to one of various factions; the infamous Green Line tore the city into Christian and Muslim halves, while massacres, hostage-takings and suicide bombings soon became commonplace. Continual intercommunal fighting between militias, combined with shelling from Israeli fighter planes, soon devastated the city, leaving tens of thousands of human casualties and a shattered economy…” That war ended in the early 1990’s. Then there were the recent Israeli retaliatory attacks in 2006 after Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed 5 others.
While the people seem to have an optimistic attitude about future and prefer to forget the past, forgetting must be impossible considering the massive remnants of the war that cannot be avoided on a day to day basis. There are massive buildings that are bullet and missile riddled skeletons. It seems like the whole city is under construction. There are functioning vehicles with windshields and windows that have been shot out. There is a convoy of heavily armed military men driving around Beirut at all times ready to respond to Hezbollah activity. Once you get to the perimeter of the city you’ll see heavier artillery and tanks and more soldiers. The erection of a Hezbollah “tent city” in Beirut, the numerous Hezbollah flags mounted on cars and buildings and the Hezbollah caravans that parade through towns in the evenings make it seem unlikely that Lebanon’s future will be one of constant peace.
After considering their history, it makes sense that Lebanese people seem to live a more dangerous lifestyle with a “seize the day” mentality. Everyone seems to party hard, smoke massive quantities of cigarettes and drive like it’s stolen. People dress well, eat well, spend as much time as possible with friends and family and indulge with every opportunity. Perhaps we would too if we had such an in-your-face reminder that tomorrow is not guaranteed.
Byblos – Jeita Grotto
The next day we headed north to a town called Byblos to check out its ruins, Crusader Castle, souq (market) and charming harbor. Byblos was a pretty cute little town nicely situated on the Mediterranean. In the 1960’s Byblos’ harbor was filled with yachts and its bars were hoppin.’ Today the harbor is home to rickety little fishing boats and the restaurants serve a trickle of tourists, rather than international celebrities.
On our way back to Beirut we visited one of Lebanon’s biggest attractions, Jeita Grotto. The Grotto is an expansive series of caverns that contain massive agglomerations of stalactites and stalagmites. The caverns are how I imagine other planets to look like and were very impressive. There were signs all over requesting visitors to vote the Grotto as one of the 7 wonders of the modern world. In my opinion, they might be impressive enough to qualify.
On our way back to Beirut we visited one of Lebanon’s biggest attractions, Jeita Grotto. The Grotto is an expansive series of caverns that contain massive agglomerations of stalactites and stalagmites. The caverns are how I imagine other planets to look like and were very impressive. There were signs all over requesting visitors to vote the Grotto as one of the 7 wonders of the modern world. In my opinion, they might be impressive enough to qualify.
Beirut
Our second day in Beirut was much better than our first. We first checked out the Hamra area. I’d say the best way to explain this district is it is a Lebanese version of our U-District as it borders the American University of Beirut and has two other universities nearby.
Our next stop was downtown. We wandered through Place d’Etoile, which is a quaint little city center with shops and restaurants. Since it is a pedestrian only area it was a welcomed break from playing frogger with cars and relentless honking. Here is how our Lonely Planet guidebook describes downtown: “Think Paris, post-apocalypse, and you’ll have a good idea of how Downtown looked in the early 1990’s after a decade and a half of civil war. Now, in better years, you could almost say it’s touristy.” We saw the Mohammed al-Amin Mosque, where the former Prime Minister Rafiq Harifi is buried, we walked through a Rafiq Harifi memorial, we ooohed and aaahed at the recently erected Christmas tree and visited Santa’s Village.
Next we cruised the Gemmayez area, which I’d say is Beirut’s comparable to our Belltown. We had a beer at a little pub then at dinner at a quaint little restaurant, Le Chef, where host of “No Reservations,” Anthony Bourdain, dined a couple of years ago. The food is traditional and is catered towards Lebanon’s working class. While it wasn’t our best meal, it was a nice experience.
Our next stop was downtown. We wandered through Place d’Etoile, which is a quaint little city center with shops and restaurants. Since it is a pedestrian only area it was a welcomed break from playing frogger with cars and relentless honking. Here is how our Lonely Planet guidebook describes downtown: “Think Paris, post-apocalypse, and you’ll have a good idea of how Downtown looked in the early 1990’s after a decade and a half of civil war. Now, in better years, you could almost say it’s touristy.” We saw the Mohammed al-Amin Mosque, where the former Prime Minister Rafiq Harifi is buried, we walked through a Rafiq Harifi memorial, we ooohed and aaahed at the recently erected Christmas tree and visited Santa’s Village.
Next we cruised the Gemmayez area, which I’d say is Beirut’s comparable to our Belltown. We had a beer at a little pub then at dinner at a quaint little restaurant, Le Chef, where host of “No Reservations,” Anthony Bourdain, dined a couple of years ago. The food is traditional and is catered towards Lebanon’s working class. While it wasn’t our best meal, it was a nice experience.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
The unexpected pros and cons of travelling
Surprisingly, our flights from Seattle to Atlanta, Atlanta to Paris and Pairs to Beirut all went really well. Only the last flight was delayed and the 24 hours went by fairly quickly. We even ran into AKON as he shared our Atl – Paris & Paris – Beirut legs. We all agreed that that the media we are exposed to at home portray a lot of places, including Beirut, to be much worse than they really are while a few places such as Lagos, Nigeria are worse than anyone could ever imagine. He will be putting on a concert here in Beirut and seems to prefer performing in “places that most people don’t go.”
Our first frustration occurred in Paris when we were going through a security check point and the screeners called the police after scanning my carry-on back pack. They showed me the screen and asked what was in my bag. I pointed out what each thing was – camera, Nintendo DS, iPod, etc and the police responded with, “we do not believe you.” Uhhhhh, ok, whatever… They proceeded to use their bomb detection equipment on my belongings and took my boarding pass. They eventually asked me to take my Nintendo out of its cute little pink case. Even after I showed them what it was one fellow responded, “Don’t tell me what it is.” Eventually they decided to let me through. Have they never seriously seen a Nintendo before???
Our next frustration began when we showed up at our hotel where we made a reservation last week. Unfortunately, the manager did not have a room for us! He called his friend to take us to his hotel for a night and then we would return to our original hotel the following morning. We walked over the hotel and took a look. We entered a building that was dark, run down, dirty and not the kind of place we’d like to stay. Then we saw the room… BLEH!!! The room was nasty with dirty sheets and blankets, dirty floors, hard beds, doors with frosted glass rather than a solid door and it was inconveniently located at the entrance where it was very noisy. Good thing we brought our sleep sheets! They are something you hope you don’t have to use but are glad you have them if you do! There is a shared bathroom down the hall that it is BYOTP and apparently a toilet seat is on order? I know January and Carrie can understand this sort of establishment, but I’m pretty sure it is beyond most people’s comprehension.
We said we did not want the room and went back to our first hotel so we could call around and find another room somewhere else. Little did we know it is Lebanon’s version of Easter here and EVERY HOTEL in every price range is completed booked.
After frantically getting ready for a trip for days and even weeks, getting picked up to go to the airport at 3am, being en route for 24 hours and ending up completely exhausted just wanting to shower and sleep it is very discouraging to have to stay in a place where you don’t want to make physical contact with anything. But, these are the unexpected cons of traveling and there is nothing to do other than try to make the best of it.
We checked in, went for a walk, had dinner and a few beers to expedite our crashing at our hotel (sound familiar January?).
We’ve slept enough and now TJ and I are both awake (it’s almost 4am) and are waiting for morning so we can get out of here and start exploring Beirut.
Today should be a better day!!
Our first frustration occurred in Paris when we were going through a security check point and the screeners called the police after scanning my carry-on back pack. They showed me the screen and asked what was in my bag. I pointed out what each thing was – camera, Nintendo DS, iPod, etc and the police responded with, “we do not believe you.” Uhhhhh, ok, whatever… They proceeded to use their bomb detection equipment on my belongings and took my boarding pass. They eventually asked me to take my Nintendo out of its cute little pink case. Even after I showed them what it was one fellow responded, “Don’t tell me what it is.” Eventually they decided to let me through. Have they never seriously seen a Nintendo before???
Our next frustration began when we showed up at our hotel where we made a reservation last week. Unfortunately, the manager did not have a room for us! He called his friend to take us to his hotel for a night and then we would return to our original hotel the following morning. We walked over the hotel and took a look. We entered a building that was dark, run down, dirty and not the kind of place we’d like to stay. Then we saw the room… BLEH!!! The room was nasty with dirty sheets and blankets, dirty floors, hard beds, doors with frosted glass rather than a solid door and it was inconveniently located at the entrance where it was very noisy. Good thing we brought our sleep sheets! They are something you hope you don’t have to use but are glad you have them if you do! There is a shared bathroom down the hall that it is BYOTP and apparently a toilet seat is on order? I know January and Carrie can understand this sort of establishment, but I’m pretty sure it is beyond most people’s comprehension.
We said we did not want the room and went back to our first hotel so we could call around and find another room somewhere else. Little did we know it is Lebanon’s version of Easter here and EVERY HOTEL in every price range is completed booked.
After frantically getting ready for a trip for days and even weeks, getting picked up to go to the airport at 3am, being en route for 24 hours and ending up completely exhausted just wanting to shower and sleep it is very discouraging to have to stay in a place where you don’t want to make physical contact with anything. But, these are the unexpected cons of traveling and there is nothing to do other than try to make the best of it.
We checked in, went for a walk, had dinner and a few beers to expedite our crashing at our hotel (sound familiar January?).
We’ve slept enough and now TJ and I are both awake (it’s almost 4am) and are waiting for morning so we can get out of here and start exploring Beirut.
Today should be a better day!!
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is another cool place to spend a few days. This must be one of the most liberal cities in the world where marijuana, prostitution and homosexual marriage are all legal. You can walk into a “coffee shop” to buy and smoke a joint and pick a prostitute out of a display window in the red light district. The city is pretty with numerous canals and charming canal homes and the people here are very friendly.We’ve enjoyed our time in Amsterdam. Our itinerary has not been very ambitious, which has been nice. TJ and I checked out a few museums and the Anne Frank House where Anne Frank and her family hid before they were tipped off and sent to concentration camps. It was interesting to see the space where they lived for a couple of years and from where Anne wrote in her journal that was later published by her father. Other than that we’ve just spent our time wandering around the city and dining at the restaurants and bars that seem to be on every corner.
Tonight is our last night of vacation and we head home early tomorrow morning via Paris. We’ve had a great time on our trip but we are excited to get back to see the progress that has been made on our house while we’ve been away. It should be done in a few weeks!
New Years in Prague
We arrived in the Czech Republic’s capital city of Prague on New Year’s eve! The streets were decorated with lights, there was champagne for sale on every corner and the atmosphere was very festive. We checked into our hotel, which was centrally located in the heart of all of the activity, bundled up and wandered around. There were bands and dance floors, vendors selling hot wine and hot chocolate, stalls selling food and souvenirs and lots of fireworks. At midnight everyone corked their champagne and let their fireworks fly. It was unorganized and perhaps a bit dangerous but very exciting. I am sure the party went strong all night and morning!Prague is a really beautiful city with stunning architecture, charming town squares and quaint
cobblestone streets. There aren’t a ton of sites to see in Prague but it is a very enjoyable and lovely place to spend a few days. We strolled across the Charles Bridge, wandered around the Castle, vi
sited the Christmas market, saw the astronomical clock, tasted local beers at a Pub and checked out the city. One of TJ’s highlights of Prague was seeing the Codex. The Codex is an exact copy of the bible written in perfect Latin penmanship and it is the largest existing ancient medieval document. There are different beliefs as to who created the Codex and how. One legend is that it was written by a priest in a single night, with the help of the devil. This would explain the large drawing of the devil occupying an entire page towards the end of the Codex. Another theory is that the book was written over 20 years by a scribe.
Unfortunately, Carrie was sick the entire time we were in Prague and spent part of the time in 2 different hospitals. To make a very long story short, they tested her for everything and we still don’t know what is wrong with her. I will think twice about complaining about any of our hospitals or health care system in the US after seeing what Carrie experienced in the Czech Republic. She is feeling a little better now but it is still a mystery why she got so sick.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Istanbul, Turkey
Istanbul was a refreshing change of pace! Traffic was relatively calm, people didn’t demand tips for every little service and we could walk around with little or no interruption from the local people. The people were very friendly and helpful, which we greatly appreciated!
Carrie arrived 4 hours before us and waited at one of Istanbul’s 58 Starbucks coffee shops. We met up and took a taxi to our hostel which was ideally located in the middle of Istanbul’s main attractions on a quaint cobblestone street. The neighborhood couldn’t have been more picturesque!
On our first day in Istanbul we checked out the Sultanahmet area where we were staying and the Arasta Bazaar. On our second day we headed to the Blue Mosque and then Aya Sofya, which was originally a church before it was converted to a mosque and later a museum. My travel book says Aya Sofia is “Istanbul’s most famous monument” and “one of the world’s truly great buildings.” We thought its size was impressive but other than that we were far from speechless.
We know, we have been fortunate/spoiled and are now tougher than the average Joe to please. Our next stop was the Grand Bazaar – the oldest and largest covered marketplace in the world and home to more than 4000 shops. We enjoyed the market but surprisingly didn’t find more than a couple of things that we couldn’t live without.
Carrie arrived 4 hours before us and waited at one of Istanbul’s 58 Starbucks coffee shops. We met up and took a taxi to our hostel which was ideally located in the middle of Istanbul’s main attractions on a quaint cobblestone street. The neighborhood couldn’t have been more picturesque!
On our first day in Istanbul we checked out the Sultanahmet area where we were staying and the Arasta Bazaar. On our second day we headed to the Blue Mosque and then Aya Sofya, which was originally a church before it was converted to a mosque and later a museum. My travel book says Aya Sofia is “Istanbul’s most famous monument” and “one of the world’s truly great buildings.” We thought its size was impressive but other than that we were far from speechless.
We know, we have been fortunate/spoiled and are now tougher than the average Joe to please. Our next stop was the Grand Bazaar – the oldest and largest covered marketplace in the world and home to more than 4000 shops. We enjoyed the market but surprisingly didn’t find more than a couple of things that we couldn’t live without. The following day we visited Topkapi Palace which was not nearly as impressive as I thought it would be, but was a nice place for morning walk. Carrie and I were both really sick so we took a taxi to a clinic in the afternoon. Carrie had complications from having strep throat a month ago and I had a nose and throat infection. We were very lucky that there was a dentist who spoke very good English and could translate for us. We got our prescriptions from the pharmacy and went back to the hostel to rest before catching an evening performance of whirling dervishes.
Taxi to the DR = $5
Appointment with the doctor = $22
4 prescriptions from the DR = $31
How much would this visit have cost in the U.S.??
The dervishes are men who dress in long white robes and cone hats and twirl to communicate with God. I would have puked if I attempted to twirl for a tiny fraction of the time they spent twirling. The musical accompaniment was good and the show was interesting but I was glad for the dancers that it was a relatively short show.
We started our next day in Istanbul with a visit to the Hippodrome. This was the center of Byzantium and Ottoman life back in the day and hosted its fair share of chariot races and political dramas. We also visited the Basilica Cistern, which is a series of underground reservoirs built to store water for the Palace and its surrounding buildings. It was more interesting than it sounds and a bit eerie too. I think the strategic lighting and music added to the ambiance. After visiting the Cistern, Carrie and I headed back to the market for a second round of shopping while TJ went to a coffee shop for some time online.We spent our last day in Istanbul on a ferry on the Bosphorus straight, which runs from the Sea of Marmara all the way to the Black Sea. The shores of the Bosphorus are home to mansions that were once owned by Sultans, the Ottoman aristocracy and foreign ambassadors. The mansions may have different owners now but their size and grandeur is still very impressive.
We saw all of the sites that were on our “to do” list in Istanbul but because Carrie and I were sick we didn’t get to do as much exploring as we’d hoped. There are a couple of popular nightlife areas in Istanbul that we wanted to check out, but didn’t because we were too sick. It is frustrating to be sick while travelling! It is very disappointing to be in bed instead of being out seeing and doing things. However, I believe things happen for a reason. In the 2 weeks prior to our arrival in Istanbul 60 firebombs exploded in the city and two days before we arrived a guy was arrested with 7 pounds of explosives in his backpack. I think it is possible that Carrie and I were meant to be sick so that we were safe inside instead of on the streets of Istanbul. While we got to see Istanbul, I wish we had the chance to experience the city more.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Merry Christmas!
We arrived at Cairo early on Christmas day and our first stop was the Egyptian Museum. I am sure this would be a fascinating museum for anyone, but it was especially interesting to us as 
we’d already been to a few of the tombs where many of the relics on display in the museum were excavated from. We’d seen King Tutankhamen’s tomb and mummy at the Valley of Kings and now we were able to see the 3000 artifacts that were discovered in his tomb in 1922. There are more than 120,000 relics and antiquities on display at the museum. We spent a few hours wandering around admiring them and paid a few extra bucks for admission to the “Royal Mummy Room.” Here we learned about the mummification process and saw the mummified bodies of pharaohs and rulers of ancient Egypt. NEAT!
After the museum we checked out the Citadel, which was home to Egypt’s rulers for 700 years, and Mohammed Ali’s mosque before returning to our hotel. For the 3rd night in a row we wouldn’t be getting any sleep because we had to leave for the airport at 1am so our goal was to have an early Christmas dinner then snooze for a few hours. The food in Egypt is terrible so TJ and Carrie decided our best bet would be Christmas dinner at McDonald’s.
We walked back to our hotel, took a nap then headed to the airport for our flights to Istanbul.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
we’d already been to a few of the tombs where many of the relics on display in the museum were excavated from. We’d seen King Tutankhamen’s tomb and mummy at the Valley of Kings and now we were able to see the 3000 artifacts that were discovered in his tomb in 1922. There are more than 120,000 relics and antiquities on display at the museum. We spent a few hours wandering around admiring them and paid a few extra bucks for admission to the “Royal Mummy Room.” Here we learned about the mummification process and saw the mummified bodies of pharaohs and rulers of ancient Egypt. NEAT!After the museum we checked out the Citadel, which was home to Egypt’s rulers for 700 years, and Mohammed Ali’s mosque before returning to our hotel. For the 3rd night in a row we wouldn’t be getting any sleep because we had to leave for the airport at 1am so our goal was to have an early Christmas dinner then snooze for a few hours. The food in Egypt is terrible so TJ and Carrie decided our best bet would be Christmas dinner at McDonald’s.
We walked back to our hotel, took a nap then headed to the airport for our flights to Istanbul.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Mt Sinai & St Katherine's Monastery
We were picked up at our hotel around 10pm. It took a couple of hours to collect other hikers from their hotels and then we set off for the mountain. We stopped a few times along the way for bathroom breaks and so those who didn’t expect the freezing temperatures could purchase hats, gloves, scarves, etc. We also had to stop at several police check points to show our passports. We were the only U.S. passport holders in our group with the rest being from Russia. At 3am we finally arrived at the base of the mountain. Half of our group mounted onto camels and the rest of us got ready to hike.There are 2 routes up the mountain – one consists of 3750 man made stairs (all the steps were laid by one monk as a form of penance). This route is the most direct and the most difficult.
Our guide would not allow us to take this route so we stuck with the group and begin our ascent on the camel trail. The camel trail is carved into the mountain and zig-zags back and forth at with an incline a bit steeper than we expected. I am not sure if we saw more stars or piles of camel droppings. We walked under the moonlight with stops every now and then at little huts selling tea and snickers bars. The 2 trails merged near the summit and ended with a painful 750 steps. The summit of Mt Sinai is said to be the spot where God delivered his Ten Commandments to Moses so it was kind of cool to be there on Christmas Eve.
We made it to the top just before 6am to see the sun rise. I almost didn’t want to stick around to see the sun rise because as soon as I stopped my sweat absorbed clothes started to freeze. Carrie couldn’t feel her toes at this point. We waited for the sun to do its thing and watched the sky turn colorful shades of red and orange. We then took off down the mountain and even after making a few short stops to admire the camels we were at the base in half the time it took us to climb up. 
St Katherine’s Monastery is a Unesco World Heritage site and sits at the base of the mountain. St Katherine’s is one of the oldest functioning monasteries in the world and is home to approximately 70 monks. The skulls of the deceased monks are on display at the Monastery and the burning bush from which God spoke to Moses grows inside the Monastery’s walls. The Monastery was a nice, peaceful place to visit but by this time we were hungry and tired since we’d climbed up and down a mountain instead of sleeping that night.
We arrived at our hotel late in the afternoon, snoozed for an hour or so then headed to town for Christmas Eve dinner. For lack of better options, we wound up at T.G.I. Fridays. What we really needed was a good night sleep but that was not possible as we had to get up at 4am to get to the airport for a flight back to Cairo. While the sunrise is nice, I sure hope I don’t have to see it 2 days in a row for quite some time!
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