Jordan: The North, perched between Israel & Syria

Chapter Three - The North, perched between Israel & Syria

We headed for Jerash. The drive there, through busy and uninteresting Zarqa, was unimpressive. For those who want to stay in Zarqa, there are a couple of small places there. Just ask around.

I knew that the ruins of Jerash could only be more interesting than Amman, and they were! They can easily compare with those at Ephesus, in Turkey! Entrance to the ruins is now JD5; in this case the price really is justified. For this kind of extensive ruins you'd pay similar fees everywhere. The Visitors' Centre was - in good Jordanian tradition, it seems - a building site, and inaccessible. Highlights were Hadrian's Triumphal Arch, the Forum, the Temple of Artemis and the Nymphaeum. Like most museums in Jordan, the one here amid the ruins was small and quite uninteresting to non-archaeologists. The people there were friendly though.

One should allow at least three to four hours for a stroll through the Roman city. From within the new city of Jerash you can shoot good overviews of the ruins. Just drive up the hills a bit and use a strong enough telephoto lens.

In Jerash we ate the best bread of the whole trip. There's a good bakery on the Y-shaped intersection of Abu Baker as-Seddiq Street. It's number 13 if I recall correctly. The bread is very inexpensive and fresh out of the oven; it's delicious! It's very strange that there is no hotel in Jerash. Although it's an easy day trip from Amman, if you want to continue north, it's a drag to have to return to Amman. We ate at the al-Khayyam Restaurant, just across the road from the entrance to the ruins. An average meal of shish-kebab, two or three side dishes and a drink each was around JD4.5 per person. Service wasn't particularly friendly. The views are alright.
Something incredible was to be seen here: to get rid of the insects that attacked his meat, the guy at the grill found no better way than to spray the meat with repellent. I couldn't help laughing out loud in astonishment, but at the same time made sure I wasn't getting a piece of this 'chemical food'! Perhaps it was my imagination but I thought I noticed some bigger-than-average flames licking the meat when it was placed on the grill plate ...

Avoid buying in the souvenir stalls/shops nearby. The guys there are friendly enough, but everything is way too expensive. Don't fall for the sand bottles either. They're not expensive, but then the quality isn't particularly good either, and they use artificially-coloured sand, which I hear tends to fade after a time. Better buy a more artistic one with natural coloured sand at Petra. It'll be more expensive, yes, but with some hard bargaining you can end up with a little jewel for the price. That is, of course, if you want one ...

It's only a little over 20 kilometres from Jerash to Ajlun. The drive goes through what you could call pine forests. It makes quite a nice drive, although it's probably more impressive in spring when everything is greener.

From quite a distance away one can see the Qala'at ar-Rabad, the castle on the hilltop. When you drive into town, the first thing that strikes you is the beautifully situated mosque. Entry to the castle was JD1. There's not that much to be seen inside the castle ruin, but the views from the top are great!

The people in Ajlun were very friendly and helpful, and so were the guys at the ticket desk of the castle. First thing we were asked was as usual: "Where do you come from?" "From Belgium." "Belgica? Good guns! Very good!" This also happened to us in Egypt. It seems Belgium does a fair amount of weapons exporting to the Middle East. But what's new, right?

From Ajlun we continued to Tabaqat Fahl to see the ruins of Pella. We took the road that runs along the West Bank, or Palestine if you like, via Kurayyuna. The ruins of Pella are disappointing themselves, but they have the advantage of being very nicely situated, scattered over some hills. Australian archaeologists are still working on the digs and restorations, though work had stopped for the coming winter. The view from the Government Rest House looking towards Israel, especially at sunset, is great. The food there wasn't very good and hellishly expensive at JD15 for just some pieces of chicken and orange juice for two.

The proprietor, Hussein, is a good source of information, but unfortunately he's also definitely gay and comes on strong! Beware! I have no problems with gay people, but this guy is very pushy and doesn't know when to quit. He started off telling us some stories about how great Israel really is, which I found very strange for an Arab. It turned out that he regularly stayed in a kibbhutzim and he told us with a 'sensuous' voice : "Oh, there are so many nice boys in Israel." I realised what kind of guy we had in front of us, but my (male) friend seemingly didn't. He soon found out though, because as soon as I went off to the toilet, Hussein started telling my mate how much he loved to have his, well, errm, thing, sucked. Again the Israeli boys seemed to have played a major role in that too. My companion made it clear that he was not that kind of guy, or should I say gay? To no avail. Hussein kept coming on ... "Ooh, Philippe (my mate), that sun in my face is so annoying. I'll come sitting next to you." He did, putting his hand on his leg. I could only just keep my friend from striking him. After finishing our 'meal', I asked if there was any dessert. Hussein said: "Not here. But in Jordan we have such good desserts. Maybe we can go licking some ice creams in Irbid?" Yeah, right. I ignored the last bit but stupidly asked if the desserts were sweet. "Ooh, very sweet", he smilingly answered, looking at Philippe. I couldn't help but laugh out loud, because it actually was kinda funny at the same time. Well, it was for me, not for my friend.

When we arrived at the Rest House, I had asked Hussein if we could stay at the guesthouse mentioned in the Lonely Planet guide. He had been affirmative. Now, after all his gay crap, I told him we were leaving for the guesthouse. He insisted on showing us where it was; to be honest we needed this, as we couldn't find it ourselves. As we approached our car, I told him to sit in the front, next to my pal, so he could point the way. I didn't want him behind me... He 'sensuously' said : "Oh yes, I know Phil likes me." Shortly afterwards, we arrived at a small house with no signs or anything. He showed us a room. It smelled odd, it looked odd, and we felt odd. This could have been the guesthouse, but if so it was also clearly his place. Hussein made some more really dirty remarks - the sign for my friend to decide to leave, which we did. I felt that if we stayed, something violent would happen. We made it clear that we weren't planning on staying there. He didn't give us a hard time over that though, probably because he knew that homosexuality in Jordan is something to be careful about. We headed for Irbid, which isn't far away.

In Irbid, I checked out the Hotel al-Amen. It's a very friendly place, and rooms were JD8 for a double, JD6 single. The room was clean enough too, but to reach the bathroom we had to walk down a corridor, across the reception area and then along another corridor. A bit too much at night if you're in a hurry! I went to the nearby al-Umayya Hotel on King Hussein Street. There they wanted JD20 for a double with toilet and shower in the room. A colour TV was also thrown in. Bargaining was not possible. I decided to take it anyway, and some other travellers who had just arrived seemed to agree with me on that. The staff are friendly, but not genuinely so.
Virtually next door is a very good supermarket where you can stock up on cheap foodstuffs and drinks, and any other things you may need. If you leave the hotel, turn right immediately and continue to the corner of the street. Turn right at this corner, then immediately cross the street. There you'll find the best shawarma that I ate in Jordan. It's excellent and cheap. The guy that prepares it, is a friendly dude on top. Recommended!

There's not much going on in Irbid but it's quite a pleasant place to spend some time, as are most university cities in the world. The Museum of Jordanian Heritage at the Yarmouk University is indeed the best I saw in Jordan. On top of that, it's completely free. Strange, as I found this the only one worth paying for. The people at the university entrance and at the museum's reception desk were very kind and helpful. Across the road from the university, to the left of the Chicken Tikka and Delicate Restaurant, is a photo shop. To the left of it, is a restaurant that bears only an Arabic name. It's really good. The tropical fruit shake here is absolutely delicious. No, it's heaven! A complete and tasty meal of kebabs, including the fruit shake, some side dishes and two cokes was only JD4.5 per person. Unbelievable! Recommended!

For a university city it's surprising how little English is spoken in Irbid. In fact, it seems that not many people in Jordan master English. In some of the Jordanian Tourist Authority brochures I came across was the statement "...and many Jordanians will surprise you with their English language." Oh, yes, they did surprise me! I was surprised to find that almost nobody speaks it, and the ones who do, are mostly awful at it. Oh well, I guess I don't speak Arabic very well either. But then, English is my second language just as it is for them. Some people I mentioned this to remarked that I was expecting too much from these folks. Perhaps that's true, but I am not just talking about the man in the street, I am also speaking about the university students. One guy who had graduated as an English teacher was horrible at it. The lack of being able to communicate seriously hampered travel sometimes, but luckily the people are kind and helpful enough, so almost always somebody will be found who speaks English well enough to be able to help you out.

From Irbid we went to Umm Qais, the site of ancient Gadara. Judging from the enormous parking lot at the entrance, the people here are certainly prepared to receive lots of visitors, probably in the future, as right now it's still rather quiet - although the tour buses have made their entrance. It cost 1 Dinar to get in. The ruins themselves were (again) rather unimpressive. Their location however, with views over the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights makes up for this. The museum with some mosaics and statues is the most interesting of the lot. There is a very good (but rather expensive) little book shop, where you'll have no problem finding little booklets about almost all archaeological sites in the country. Tony Howard's guide 'Walks and scrambles in Rum' is readily available for JD4, as are heftier works like Insight Guides' guide to Jordan. It's also a good place to inform yourself before joining a dig if you're interested in that. If you don't want to spend any money here, you can pick up a free copy of 'Occident and Orient', a publication of the German Protestant Institute of Archaeology, the people working on the excavations in (among others) Umm Qais. It's pretty interesting. The person manning the desk is very friendly and informative. We had a drink in the Government Rest House which is an incredibly nice place to sit and sip. Service however is dreadfully slow, especially when a busload of tourists has arrived. We had to wait twenty minutes before we were served. The waiters aren't exactly friendly if you just order a soft drink. They've got used to more affluent tourists already, which you can judge from the enormous collection of tour company stickers on the doors.

From Umm Qais we continued right up to the border, to the baths of al-Hemma. There were a couple of military checkpoints along the way. The first was almost round the bend from the Umm Qais site. The soldier stopped us and said hello. We replied and handed him our passports. He said he didn't want to see them, but wanted me to open the boot of the car and look into our luggage. When I opened both, he was looking the other way, totally uninterested. Strange! He walked to the front of the car again, and asked my friend (who was driving): "You have Mercedes at home?" My friend hasn't, but noticing the guy's deep interest, he replied: "Yes." The soldier smiled widely and said: "Yeeeess. Mercedes good! ... Go!" We could continue. He waved us good-bye until we were out of sight. On the way, we could see military bases and watchtowers on both sides. Just before entering al-Hemma we had to pay a road tax of 1 Dinar, but not so for coming back. The restaurant by the baths is a great place to sit. It's very quiet and relaxed. There's not much to the baths themselves. The water wasn't that smelly, but I wouldn't jump into it either. It occurred to me (again, maybe) that most sites in Jordan aren't really places you should go to for their impressiveness. They are places you must go to, to sit and absorb, if you know what I mean. And then, they're always great.

The food in the restaurant was good enough, and not particularly more expensive than elsewhere. Possibly it used to be, but now that prices seem to be higher in the whole country, the difference is gone.

The children in al-Hemma are crazy. They came begging for money and/or sweets when we were in the car and didn't give up when they didn't get any. They grabbed the roof and windows and held on whilst we were driving. They insisted on getting the can of Pepsi that was in their sight. A bloody dangerous thing to do, for us, too. You can imagine what'd happen if you hurt one of the little brats. Finally, to get rid of them, I had to literally throw the can of Pepsi out of the window.

Also beware of the giant wasps here. They're present in the whole of Jordan, but in al-Hemma they were aggressive! Some locals at the restaurant who had ordered some sweet desserts or something, had to flee from their tables, to avoid getting stung! And they couldn't return to their places. The wasps were feasting on the sweetmeats. Shortly after, the whole table and the chairs were inhabited by over a dozen stray cats, who joined the wasps in the feast and ate the chicken leftovers. The locals stood and watched. The waiters chased the cats, but wisely didn't chase the wasps! Only minutes later, the cats returned and were having a ball again. Nobody bothered anymore. It was a lost battle.

Syria: Crac des Chevaliers

Chapter Eight - Crac des Chevaliers & farewell to Syria

In Tartus, I was directed to two entirely wrong bus 'stations' before I found the right place to arrange a ride to the intersection of the highway and the road to Hosn, for Crac des Chevaliers (or for Homs if I would have liked to continue on).
The fare on a crowded Qadmous minibus was S£30. The ride to the intersection took about half an hour. I was dropped off right where I wanted to be, but a local had to point it out to the driver for me, so be attentive or you could just as well whiz past!

I had expected some activity at this intersection/turnoff. But no ! It was completely dead. I started thinking of the amount of time I was going to loose here trying to catch a bus to the Crac, when one passed by. The driver understood where I wanted to go, and waited for me.

The minibus struggled uphill to the Crac; the trip took half an hour. I was dropped only about a hundred metre short of the entrance. For some reason I didn't have to pay for the ride. Only after repeatedly insisting, I found out that my ride had been paid for by the two friendly locals I had been talking to during the ride, and who had got out about midway. Normally the price is S£25.

I really needed a drink and some food at that time. I took the recommendation of the guidebook and walked past some other (signs to) eateries to the Restaurant La Table Ronde. I wish I hadn't. The food is quite terrible and costs too much for what it is. A plain cup of tea is S£25 ! On top of that the manager is not exactly a friendly guy, pushy, and not very trustworthy. He even tried to change money for me at a rate worse than the bank rate : he offered S£42 to the Dollar, whereas the bank gives S£45. I told him that, but he wouldn't give more than S£46.

Still, I took his offer to look at one of the rooms they also have. I fancied a night close to this majestic piece of art in military architecture, and decided to stay there. Rooms were, at S£500, too expensive for a single traveller for the quality you get. It can however sleep three. There was a whole collection of insects in the room (including some of the biggest grasshoppers I had ever seen), so it wasn't terribly clean, but at least there was a hot shower en-suite. The walls of the rooms are cardboard-thin, so very noisy. I would experience that later, when an overland truck full of drunken, noisy Australians - I'm sorry for their fellow countrymen - arrived at the site, and decided to spend the night at the campsite of the La Table Ronde. They were singing, drumming, shouting, belching, and whatever else loudly until about 2 am, which is when I finally fell asleep. At quarter to six (in the morning, yes sir !) they felt inclined to restart. What should have been a nice night on that high hill, right on the spot of this historic site, turned out to be a personal nightmare. When I asked some of them about the Crac, it was clear they weren't informed nor interested. A sad bunch. And it's unfortunately enough, often these people who call themselves the 'real' travellers !...

To continue where I left off... After my meal I went to visit the Crac des Chevaliers, called Qala'at al-Hosn by the locals. It's a really impressive sight from the outside. Strangely enough, it looked less big than I had expected it to be. This is probably because many of the buildings are built up to considerable height, thus making it look more compact. It is not a small castle ! You only learn to appreciate its sheer size when you wander around its innards. The visit took me 4 - 5 hours, and I loved every second of it !

The Crac is amazingly well preserved. It probably looks very much the same as when the Knights Hospitallers were stationed here. Inside, you expect to run into a armoured guy any time. At any one time it could house 2,000 people.

I quickly understood why this is called the best preserved castle in the world. It really must be ! The only thing you need to do, is bring in some furniture and there you are... That's why it's so interesting to historians and students of (military) architecture. The stronghold is so well designed that it was never taken by force, although several serious attempts were made. Arab sources tend to make it sound as if Sultan Baibars has really conquered it. That's not true. In 1271, it finally fell to him, after he had fooled the garrison's commander by writing him an excellently falsified letter which supposedly was from the Count of Tripoli and in which the latter told the defenders to give up their positions and surrender to the enemy. Because of the near-authenticity of the letter, the knights obeyed this order and showed up. That's how the Crac really fell, IMHO not a really glorious victory. Anyway, most important thing is that there was no blood shed, and the knights were given safe retreat.

Entry to the Crac is S£300, but it's worth every penny of it. To orientate myself in the maze of rooms, halls and corridors, I used the Lonely Planet map and walkthru. No matter what people may think of that, it's an excellent brief description of the things to see, and it guarantees you don't miss out on the most important things to see, as you would do if you just walked around without a clue.
The café inside the Crac has been closed. This makes for a much cleaner place than described in the LP guide.

The people who used to rent the place now have opened a brand-new restaurant on the hill from where you have the best view of the Crac. The young manager, who's definitely gay, told me his father used to pay 1.5 million Pounds per year to hire the Crac tower from the government. For 'only' about 1 million he could build this new place !

The restaurant is very good - much, much better than the La Table Ronde ! - and the guy will go out of his way to please you. The food is very tasty; speciality : barbecued chicken. The price is around S£250 pp for a decent meal. The manager speaks very good English, and is great fun to talk to. I ended up spending my whole evening at this place. The views from inside (as well as outside) can't be better.

I felt sorry to leave the magnificent castle behind. On the other hand I was glad to leave the La Table Ronde ! This and the Cairo Hotel in Hama were really two two-faced joints. Avoid them if possible. I think if I would do it again, I'd visit the Crac from Homs.

Khalid Ibn al-Walid Mosque, Homs A minibus from the Crac back to the main road to Homs, costs S£25 (and another S£30 to Homs itself), or you can hire a microbus which will take you from the Crac's entrance to anywhere you want to go in Homs for S£300. The trip that way only lasts little more than half an hour !
Except for the beautiful Khalid Ibn al-Walid Mosque, there was little to see in Homs, but I found it a friendly city.

If you need to get a telephone card in Homs, don't bother going inside the office and eventually queue for nothing. Get the card(s) outside in a special booth to the left of the office, where the telephone booths are. This was one of the few cities in Syria where the cards were readily available.

Taxi drivers in Homs were also more fair than in most other cities. To get to Damascus from Homs, I took a bus of Noura Tours. This bus was truly excellent quality, and so was the service. In fact, this was no doubt the best bus I was on in Syria. The fare was S£75, and the trip took about two hours. On the bus, I sat next to a young man of Brasilian-Syrian origin, who was working as a computer programmer. I enquired about the computer and Internet situation in Syria. The Internet situation was not so good. Far from good, as a matter of fact. Gradually, very gradually, the people in Syria (actually only in Damascus) are getting acquainted with the Net. Few or no people have Internet access at the moment. But he was sure things were going to change. I'm sure they will. I hope so. For the moment it could of course be that the government doesn't want the man in the street to have access to that amount of information? Or perhaps it's only technical problems? I think it's a bit of both...

As soon as I got off the bus in Damascus, I was hassled by taxi drivers - what else? - to take a ride into town. Hearing from my computer friend how far the centre was away (far !), I decided to take one. After serious bargaining, the fare was still S£75.

I spent the rest of the day visiting some more (but lesser) sites in Damascus, and by taking a rest. My plane left later that night. At 2:30! Not exactly the best of times.

Although there are almost no departures, check-in at the Damascus airport had to be no less than two-and-a-half hours in advance. Everything is super smooth though.
Departure tax is still S£200. For this you get a stamp which is supposed to go in your passport.

I was surprised (well, actually I was not…) to find almost no shops and restaurants in the airport building, and what is there, is really minimal. It's no use following the signs pointing upstairs to a restaurant, as everything is dead up there.
My biggest surprise was founding no bank where I could change my excess Syrian Pounds back to US Dollars. After all, it's not allowed to take Pounds out of the country. Spend them ? Sure, but there was damn little at the airport where I could want to loose them!

Upon entering the departure hall, you are supposed to put your baggage through a detector. Don't put any film rolls through this, as you will have a good chance that they'll be ruined ! This is an important warning to all photographers ! Even the guy at the detector reckoned they might have not survived if I had put them through ! Be careful! The detector in the boarding hall is no problem, but I wouldn't trust it to check high-sensitive film, say over 400 ASA.

End note

Well that kinda describes my trip.
"A country full of terrorists and people who only wait for the right time to rob you". That's how Syria is pictured world-wide by people who either know nothing about the country at all, or who do, but who have personal gain by giving it a bad name. That's very unfortunate for the folks living there, because it's totally wrong, and I really hope from the bottom of my heart that the stupid policy which is pursued by a handful of countries will be abolished soon. From a tourist's point of view, however, the isolation makes for a country where you can still experience many places in (relative) solitude and where the people are mostly still truly genuine.
Syrians don't really understand why someone is traveling on his own, and will do everything in their power to make this 'unfortunate' traveler feel at home as much as possible. The Arab hospitality is renown, but in Syria they really take it one step further!

Syria: Sights near the Mediterranean coast

Chapter Seven - Sights near the Mediterranean coast

To get to the coast, we needed to drive through the mountains. The approach to the mountains reminded me of closing in on the Himalayan range when I travelled from Bareilly to Naini Tal in India. It's quite the same : driving on an extensive plain, you see the high mountains lying in front of you like a natural, massive green wall, the tops surrounded by clouds. This wall has to be penetrated...

A curving road has been constructed all the way through. When climbing it, steep drops sweep away almost from under your wheels. The views are stunning, and there are several nice pictures to be shot. Unfortunately, there was only one thing keeping from doing that (well, to do that more than twice) : Basheer. He had been a safe, careful driver all the way, but whenever I asked him to stop to let me take a picture in the mountains, he had the frightening, nasty habit of not pulling over parallel to the direction of the road, but swaying across, to brake only when the front wheels were only an inch away from the drop ! Supposedly to offer me the best views. I can assure you with a 1500 metre downhill before you, in a 25 years old car with poor brakes, and not in control yourself, this is enough to get a heart-attack ! After pointing this out to him the first time, he still hadn't understood what I was on about. I decided not to go for a third shot...

As the roads climbs, it gets colder and the roads are more and more absorbed in a fog. Up in the clouds lies the town of Slunfeh, a popular summer resort. The views from there don't come any better.

On the other side of the mountain, the roads are less steep and the drops are further away. After having gone downhill for a fair while, we arrived at the town of al-Haffeh. From there it was only a short drive to Qala'at Salah ad-Din, actually a Crusader stronghold which was taken by the great Muslim commander. If you don't have your own wheels, you can take a taxi (minibus) from the nearby town right to the entrance of the castle for S£100.

The narrow road winds down a ravine. We stopped to gaze at the magnificent ruins which are atop a wooded ridge. Fantastic!

From the bottom of the ravine, the road goes up again and you expect to be met by knights on guard any minute. This doesn't happen, but you do arrive in a very atmospheric place. A single giant stone pillar in the middle of the road, which supported a drawbridge between the castle and the plateau at the other side of the ravine, immediately sets the tendency of this site: it all looks very medieval!

From the small parking lot, we climbed the stairs to the south-eastern tower where the entrance and hence the ticket office is located. Excellent local honey is also sold there. Entry is S£300 (an enormous increase over the previously S£100 !), but a visit is more than recommended.

The sheer tough appearance of the place is incredible. The buildings ooze strength, the walls are massive, sometimes up to five metres thick. Still, looks can deceive and that's also the case here. The walls may have been strong, they were also functionally badly conceived. That and a severe construction flaw, an incomplete ditch cut in the rock which divided the stronghold, eventually caused the castle's downfall. Taking advantage of these building mistakes, Saladin was able to take it without too much trouble.

The views all around are very good, especially from the huge keep. Like everything else, the inner vaults of this keep - or of the whole castle as a matter of fact - are impressive to say the least. It's hard to imagine that this incredible construction proved so useless in the end...
Tour groups have made their appearance, but you can still visit the site in a good deal of solitude.

From the mountains, we drove down to the coast, to the city of Lattakia. I didn't like it very much as there wasn't going on much in terms of sightseeing. Nothing at all really, only nearby Ugarit. However, it has an easygoing, more or less Mediterranean air and a good selection of shops, hotels and restaurants. It reminded me of Port Said in Egypt.

What's immediately apparent, is that the women are much more modern here than in most other (Muslim) places in Syria. At least judging by their looks. They are still just as unapproachable in the streets, as elsewhere. A guy I'd meet near Qala'at al-Marqab later on, would boldly tell me that "Lattakia girls very much like to fuck". I'm sure they do. Who doesn't ? But I severely doubt that they're that broad-minded !

I stayed at Hotel Safwan, in a quiet location out of the city centre. It's in a side street of the Corniche, near the town house (in Arabic noted as al-Kornish, al-Gharbi; tel. 462583). It's owned by the Ziadeh family, who are a friendly bunch. Rooms are cheap at S£250 for a single with private bathroom. Doubles and rooms without bathroom can in/decrease this price with S£50-100. The rooms are reasonably clean and come with a balcony, which offers no good views unfortunately. Upstairs are so-called 'suites' for S£1000, which are nothing else than the family's apartments which are on request for a 'suite' quickly cleaned out.

What initially appeared as a good deal, soon turned out the opposite. The one brother, Mahmut, was a bit (?) too keen on promoting his hotel. He noticed I was browsing through the Lonely Planet guide (to find a place to eat actually), and asked if their hotel was in it. I said it wasn't. This was enough for him to start thinking I could help him get into the guide, and he fiercely almost dragged me through the seven or eight floors of the place to show how good it was. I was shown the so-called 'suites', which he seemed very keen to let. Like I said, all the rooms were lived in by the family. I saw people lying on their beds, preparing a meal in the kitchen, or sitting on the toilet, even a lady changing her dirty pantyhose. You can imagine their surprise when their father, nephew, uncle, or whatever comes storming in with a foreigner who looks at them just as surprised as they are, greets hastily and is then dragged out again by their father, nephew, uncle, whatever, and disappears as quickly as he had come.

I was offered (and given) tea, coffee, a soft drink and sweets in his quest to convince me of writing some good things in the guide. He really thought I had written that guide, although I had never even given him the slightest impression that I had !

I had to hear his pleas over and over, and what was funny at first started to become extremely boring and uncomfortable in the end. He even phoned his brother's son, and forced him to come over to talk to me. Luckily this lad spoke excellent English and was great to talk to; he also recognised his uncle's overreacting when I explained what was going on. The guy was great because he could draw a multitude of cartoon figures, like Tin-Tin, Asterix, Mickey Mouse,... Everything just like the real thing !

Mahmut's brother Ismail, who was an officer in the army for 30 years and still has a bullet wound on the head as a remembrance of the 1973 war, is a more relaxed person. Still, the pressure to promote the hotel was still there.

Now, if I look at things afterwards, I reckon I'd promote the place if it was worth doing so. So let's look at it… The room comes with fan, toilet and shower. The water was piping hot. In the morning, after I got up, I wanted to wash myself but the cold water had been cut off, so I tried to use the (very) hot water. This got cut off as well shortly after. I sat on the toilet and wanted to wipe my butt when suddenly the bowl toppled over. Can you imagine my surprise ? My whole back got a spraying ! One of the two beds turned out to have an army of ants continuously marching over it. Not exactly nice.

The brothers were helpful though, and actually also friendly in a way. The rooms are very quiet. But recommending this place ? No, not really. Just too many things were not in order, and the pressure was a bit (?) too much. Maybe if the price was S£100 ?

A man's gotta eat, and one of the better places to do it in Lattakia must be Spiro, on the Corniche. It's a two star restaurant with excellent and friendly service, serving great food at only about S£250 pp including drinks. Now this is recommended !

I also extended my visa in Lattakia. It's on the third floor of the police & immigration office. The visa was issued on the spot, although they initially tried to have me come back for it. I explained I couldn't, and after a short while the officer gave in.

The whole process was a bit tiresome and entirely bureaucratic, as expected. While filling in the application forms, I was offered coffee however, and the people were all nice 'n' friendly !
First I sat down at what I'll call room 1/desk 1. I waited for the officer to fill in a form and apply a stamp. Then I paid him S£35 and moved over to desk 2 in the same room. There I needed to fill out four forms, and hand over three passport photographs. Then I had to wait about half an hour, whilst nothing at all was going on.

After that I was directed to room 2/desk 1. A cute but sturdy female officer who spoke no English at all observed me for a while and then talked to another person. After 20 minutes or so, a higher ranking officer showed up, and I had to move to desk 2 in the same room. He filled out some papers, and asked my passport in which he put a stamp. He handed me everything, after which I had to go back to room 1/desk 1. From there, I was brought to the office of a general. The low-ranking young policeman humbly knocked on the door and introduced me to the him. The general was sitting at a big, antique desk, two things which looked like ostrich feathers were just above his head. He was friendly and asked me a few basic questions and signed a form. Back to room 2/desk 2, and straight on to room 3, where I had to fetch a stamp to put on yet another form. Now back to room 2/desk 2. The stamp in my passport was filled in and stamped yet another time. I had to pay S£100. Now the only thing I needed to do, the officer told me, was go back to the general's office for the final signature, but pass through room 1/desk 1 first. And yes, I had my 15 days extension after that. No problem ! :-) After that, I needed to send some postcards and went to the post office. Oddly enough there's no mailbox. You find it about 50 metres to the left.

A coastal road leads from Lattakia to the ancient site of Ugarit, which was already inhabited in the third millennium BC. The drive is pleasant, but the beaches you pass are very disappointing.
Unfortunately, so was Ugarit. The site only has its rich history to speak for it, little else (oh well, okay, perhaps the location isn't bad either). At S£300 to get in, I'd suggest to read up on the history though ! There's little or nothing to help you visualise the place.

The best part is the original entrance to the city, and that can be seen from the street without paying. It somehow looks like a large drainage; I noticed similar outlets while on my way through the country ! Funny ! I always thought of Ugarit when I saw them.

There are some friendly cafés near the entrance to the site. Prices are normal. They were having extremely bad business, they told me, and with only a site like Ugarit nearby I was not surprised.

Back in Lattakia, I said good-bye to Basheer, my trustworthy taxi driver who had made the difference in the last couple of days. I had appreciated his company and friendship. But friends or not, he cost me money. Money that I could spend on something else, or not at all. I went to Baniyas. A minibus was S£15 and took about 45 minutes. Slower than by cab, but so much cheaper. Baniyas is a real disaster town. Absolutely nothing is going on there, and I was quite happy to leave.

I was going to Qala'at al-Marqab. It must be noted that microbuses leave from another station, not the one you arrive from Lattakia (or any other place you managed to take a 'big' bus). The microbus station is about 400-500 metres away. The locals will help you finding the right micro. The fare to right beside the castle is S£10. The trip in an overly full van takes about 10-15 minutes.

I was still carrying my backpack, as I hadn't seen the chance of leaving it behind somewhere, and sweated my way up the steep hill the castle is built on. I was greeted by Nadr and his brother Mohammad, the two guys who owned the refreshment stall near the entrance. Their soft drinks were expensive at S£35, but they tasted great after this effort ! They were also extremely nice dudes. Nasr was the quiet type, also because he spoke no English, and his brother was the modern-minded, talkative kinda guy. He insisted on showing me around the castle. I admit being a bit reluctant at first; with pricey drinks I suspected he couldn't be trusted too well. But I was entirely wrong ! He showed me the whole castle, inside and out, stayed with me for about two hours, and didn't expect a dime. On the contrary, he invited me for a free drink afterwards. The friendliness of the Syrian people is really unlike any other place in the world, so genuine, so sincere... Really touching at times !

Qala'at al-Marqab, built of black basalt, is another 'strong' castle, although not oozing as much power as - for instance - Qala'at Salah ad-Din.

When you pass through the main entrance, forget about visiting the part to the left, as it's full of big snakes (allegedly poisonous; the locals give this part a miss as well).

At the time of my visit, a film was being made at the castle. When paying my usual S£300 to enter, we were warned to be as quiet as possible, as not to disturb this Syrian production. It was a movie about life in the Middle Ages, with actors dressed in the typical clothing of that time, so the whole place really came to life. A unique experience !

I visited the improvised props room, the make-up room and even the would-be massage parlour in the keep, where the actors were given a relaxing massage by some very nice looking ladies. Even in Syria actors seem to be lucky devils ! I realised (again) that I was in completely the wrong business... :-)

Several of the actors were thrilled to see me and wanted to pose for photographs. I was so absorbed in the activity that it was difficult to remain focused on what else there was to see : the military architecture and the sweeping views towards the coastal plain. I was offered coffee and tea. I had to decline several offers, but accepted Mohammad's. When sitting back at his stall, I had the chance to gaze at the world below me. A truly magnificent world when seen from there.
It was there that I met the former curator of the Cathedral Museum of Tartus and his driver. He was a very friendly chap, and looked like the perfect stereotype of an archaeologist, complete with small beard and a straw hat. Surprise ! He was an archaeologist !

He said he had some business at the castle - it would take only an hour or so - and after that he'd return to Tartus. I could come along if I wanted to. I gladly accepted the kind offer.
I spent the remaining time with the two brothers, and some of their friends. We had a nice conversation. I was enjoying myself so much that it came as a surprise that the hour had already passed and it was time to leave. The good-bye was hard for Nadr - he was a sincere, sensitive young man - and he offered me a key-ring with his initials to remember him. Friendship is not to be taken lightly in the Middle East, and every time I think of that, the discriminating stand certain countries take towards these people really makes me puke !

The drive to Tartus, Syria's second most important port, took roughly about half an hour. As the archaeologist - he never told me his name, although I asked - had been the curator of the museum, he knew the owner of the Raffoul Hotel just in front of it very well. He assured me it was a great place, and dropped me off right on the doorstep. He hadn't been lying. It's a really good place and a great deal ! I was surprised it wasn't in the guidebook. A spacious single room (actually a double, as is often the case) is only S£200 with private bath. It's spotlessly clean and the owner (who speaks good English) is indeed a very friendly chap. I really liked him; he has a tremendous sense of humour ! He owns the shop virtually next door, on the corner of the street. If you find the hotel closed, drop in at the store. He won't rip you off in the shop either; you pay the price the locals pay.

I was the only guest in the hotel at the time, and I was given the keys of the front door as well.
The few - but interesting - sights Tartus has, are all very near, the Cathedral Museum, as said before, just across the street. It costs S£300 to enter. It's not really worth that kind of money, but the really splendid interior of the cathedral together with the museum makes it a worthwhile visit after all. The attendant is a nice guy, who will explain where necessary (virtually everywhere, because labelling is non-existent or in Arabic only). I was also offered some South-American herbal tea. No matter how nice he was, I couldn't persuade him to let me take photographs, not even without flash. It was a government policy, he said, that taking pictures inside museums is forbidden. To my question of "Why", he had no answer.

When heading from the cathedral to the seafront, a slight detour leads to what is known as 'Old Tartus'. And that's what it actually is. It's the old city, still enclosed by the equally old walls. It's not a big area, but it's very pleasant to make your way through the narrow streets and discover the occasional medieval building, tucked away behind more recent constructions. The seaside itself is pleasant enough for a walk, although it was sizzling hot during the daytime. A short distance offshore lies the island of Arwad. Frequently, boats make the short trip. I didn't go. After reading some negative reports about it, it had lost my interest.

Distances are relatively short in Tartus, and I preferred walking. I'd advise to use taxis only when you have to move fast or too far. These guys are even worse than the ones in Aleppo. They never use their meters or don't have any. They will hit you for exuberant fares if you don't agree on one before getting in. And even if you did agree, they'll still try to scam you upon arrival, or demand heavy tips. Never give in. Just pay what you owe them, plus S£10 or so as a tip, and get out. Taxi drivers must be the one and only who let the Syrian friendly people loose face.

I really wanted something else than just plain sheep or chicken dishes and headed for the Pizza Hut. It looks exactly the same as the well-known international chain, but it just has to be Syrian. Nevertheless, it's a damn good copy ! The pizzas could just as well be the real Hut thing. They're very tasty, and a welcome change after three weeks of Arabic food.

The Pizza Hut is at al-Hamrat, above the al-Fanar office. Or you could ask just about anyone in the streets; everybody seems to know where it is. I was even approached several times in the streets by people asking me if I had been to the Hut and if I liked the food there. People from a polling bureau ?... :)

Again I wanted to make a telephone call in this town, and again the telephone office had the familiar problem of not having any telephone cards to sell. I suppose the Syrian telecom company still has some fine-tuning to do… Making an indirect international call was a bit nightmarish, so I decided to take a pass. The same problem with stamps. None available.

To get to nearby Amrit, I wanted to take a microbus, but it seems that very early in the morning, there aren't any. I had to rent the whole bus for S£100. For that, it did drop me off right at the entrance, though. The drive takes only about 10 minutes.

The ancient site itself was a strange place to visit. Not a lot to see apart from two 'mysterious' spindles, stone monuments which overlook an otherwise uninspiring necropolis. Whilst wandering around, it started to rain quite heavily, and the dark grey sky gave the place a gloomy, spooky even, appearance, which I appreciated.

There's no entrance fee, but the caretaker of the site will insist on supplying you with a flashlight to explore the dark tombs. I found this totally unnecessary, as the graves are empty anyway. The guy will obviously expect some baksheesh for his assistance. His biggest help, however, was to let me shelter for the heavy showers. :-)

To get back to Tartus, I had planned on hitchhiking, but I didn't see a single car during my walk from the site to the highway ! So, don't count on it. Once at the highway, I flagged down a passing microbus. It cost S£25 to the centre of the city.

Syria: The grinding waterwheels of Hama

Chapter Six - The grinding waterwheels of Hama

The following morning, me and Basheer left Aleppo. We headed for Apamea, a city which flourished under the Seleucids. Its slightly overgrown appearance gives it a special character. The whole surrounding area of Apamea is stunning... A plain with high mountains in the background.

The site is not visited by many foreign tourists. Because of this, it's a peaceful place and I even saw a desert fox amidst the ruins, clearly a sign that the place isn't trotted all over.

Apamea's a big site! For example, the Cardo (colonnaded main street) is over two kilometres long ! So it took quite a while to explore, but I loved every minute of it. Entry costs S£300. The friendly guy at the ticket booth speaks reasonable English and can inform you about the site and the ongoing excavations.
The 'antique' sellers are a real pain. They keep hassling you to buy what is mostly worthless crap. I wouldn't even buy it if it were antique, because I think antiques belong in museums. Also, a guy may come up to you, present himself as a guardian of the site and ask for your ticket. I showed the wrong ticket, which obviously was okay to him. This dude was clearly suspect. He'll walk with you for some time, secretly show you some details on the columns which look like (or are) penises, and then demand a tip. Make it clear from the start that you're not interested in his 'services' to avoid the hassles. I must say though, that all of the hustlers (here and in the rest of Syria) keep a low profile. Even when putting on the pressure, they're still light-years away from the guys in - for instance - India and Turkey.

The view from the citadel over the town below is worth the short climb. The caravanserai which now houses the museum is easy to make out. The Roman Theatre is heavily ruined and although being once the largest in the world, there's little to remember you of its former grandeur.

The museum costs S£150 and if you've seen the one in Ma'aret an-Nu'aman and/or don't have a particular interest in mosaics, isn't worth your time. I'd suggest picking the one which is most convenient for a visit, or go for the cheapest (this one). IMHO, the museum in Ma'aret is better in terms of quantity, but this one has the better quality.

There is no labellings, but the caretaker will soon enough act as self-appointed guide. His explanations are as good as useless. What he says, you can make out yourself. He will expect a tip afterwards, but is easily satisfied and is a rather friendly chap.

In the early afternoon, we drove to Hama, but first we visited some of Basheer's relatives. They were very kind people. We had tea and were invited for dinner. One of the family members was a young guy who was doing his 2.5 years of military service. He spoke French well, so we could have an interesting conversation.
We said good-bye to these friendly folks and continued. They lived very near to Qala'at Sheisar, an Arab fortress on a rock right by the road to Hama. It's not very interesting, the view from the road when passing by will satisfy most people. I wouldn't think (anymore) of organising a trip especially to see this place.
The nearby noria has been stopped and looks very neglected. Some women were washing crude wool in the river.
Just short of Hama we passed through the Christian town of Maharde. I immediately noticed that there were no veils worn around here. The sight of truly beautiful women walking around on the streets 'exposed' without company was odd to say the least.

As soon as we entered the city of Hama, I liked the place. The friendly, easygoing atmosphere immediately shows through. It's hard to imagine the cruel things that happened here in a quite recent past : in 1982 the Syrian government brutally crushed a thoughtless uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood, resulting in the deaths of perhaps 25,000 people. New Hama is literally built on the bodies of the victims of this clash.
I stayed at the Cairo Hotel, which was far too expensive to be the cheap backpackers joint it's propagated to be. A single room was an astonishing S£550 ! Although I met other people who were only paying S£300, I couldn't get a discount on the asking price ??
The room was spotless and the shower great, but the mattress was only about 1 inch thick (really !) and when I woke up the next morning, the planks of the bed were visible on my back. The room was also too noisy. The receptionist, unlike his relative Badr, was a seemingly nice guy, but actually wasn't.
Badr is the guy who started the Cairo Hotel. I met him in the place he's now running, the Noria Hotel, a place I was impressed by. Excellent rooms of near-Cham Palace quality come at US$18 for a single. A quick conversion learns me that this is S£900, so for only S£350 more I could have a tremendous increase in quality over the Cairo ? This is clearly another sign that the latter is bad value for money. Yes, you're not mistaken : I was very disappointed in the Cairo Hotel !…
A much better place to stay was the neighboring Riad Hotel. The owner is a very friendly chap, and although they're in fierce competition with the Cairo, here they have fixed prices, which are cheap enough : S£250-300 for a room.
If you go next door to the Cairo, they'll give you a (maybe) S£50 discount on whatever the Riad is asking. Something I personally regard as ridiculous and totally not a sign of trustworthiness. Rooms are equally spotless in the Riad and actually more comfortable. For me it meant an amazing S£250 reduction for an even better room !
If you like dishonesty, go to the Cairo. If you like a welcoming, friendly and honest atmosphere, bunk in the Riad if you're travelling on the cheap, otherwise head for the Noria Hotel.

Like I said, I met Badr in his hotel. He's a friendly man who speaks excellent English, German and Polish. We had a lengthy conversation, which showed me he was a very modern person, definitely broad-minded and very modest for the rich person he was. He didn't even own a car.

Except for the hotels, he also has a pharmaceutical business. His knowledge on medicine has resulted in him being consulted as a doctor by the locals ! During our talks, two people came in to have their blood pressure measured by him, and asked which pills they had to take to solve eventual problems. Pills, BTW, are readily available over the counter in Syria, almost always without doctor's prescription.

Hama is famous for its norias, and they truly are a feast for the senses! Norias are large, wooden water wheels, dating back to the Middle Ages, which are turning day and night, fed by the water of the Orontes river. The wooden axles of the wheels rotate between wooden blocks. This wood-on-wood produces a loud groaning which is audible virtually all over town.

There are ten or so norias left in Hama today, and I think I visited them all. The al-Mohammediyyeh noria is the largest, with a diameter of 20 metres odd, but it's difficult to get a good view of it. No matter where you stand, it's always wrong for the best view, or you have to get to the other side of the river. I found the so-called Four Norias offering the best view, and the one right in the middle of town wasn't bad either.

Right by the Four Norias is the aptly named 4 Noria Rest. This restaurant offers excellent views and very good food. The waiters are friendly, and meals are cheap at about S£300 pp. It's a brilliant place to be at sunset, when local boys gather to jump off the high, turning wheels and aqueduct to attract the attention of the present tourists.

The Azem Palace was the residence of the governor who ruled the town in the 18th century. It's perhaps not worth the S£300 you have to pay to get in. Initially, I was very disappointed by the place and by the museum. The great 3rd century mosaic of Maryameen (Maria) made up for a lot of this.

I only started appreciating the palace after visiting the rooms upstairs. It's a nice place to be after all, but I still say it's probably not worth its entrance fee. The people here sell far too expensive postcards (S£25 for one !!).
Right by the palace are some norias and the an-Nuri Mosque. The best place to enjoy these norias is from the Sultan Restaurant, which is romantically located. The mosque's not worth a visit inside. The best part is its minaret, which is often the case with mosques.

Better is the Grand Mosque. It was completely destroyed in 1982 but has been well repaired. It's hard to imagine it was the scene of such violence. Nobody seems to visit it nowadays, but it's still a quite beautiful site. Even if its predecessor was many times more beautiful… Absolutely no hassles here. I was only one day in Hama... Which is unfortunate! I could have easily spent three there.

Syria: Aleppo, rival of Damascus

Chapter Five - Aleppo, rival of Damascus

Although it's quite sure Damascus is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, Aleppo strongly doubts that, and sees itself as the most likely contender to that title. On arrival, Aleppo's bus station appeared to be way out of town, but actually Baron Street and surroundings were only a short walk away.

I wanted to stay somewhere central, and in a bit of comfort. I chose to go to Ramsis Hotel. I didn't know how to get there, so I asked a guy on the street. He turned out to be Fadi Afash, a member of the Syrian football team. He was a really nice dude.

The people at the reception desk of the Ramsis aren't particularly friendly, and something gave me the impression they're not so trustworthy. At US$30 for a single, it is too expensive for what you get. The bathrooms are too dirty for this price range. The rooms come with A/C, TV, fridge, and breakfast is included in the price, but the waiter downstairs will still expect a tip for serving you.

I decided to take it for one night, and in the meantime look out for another place.
The Baron Hotel opposite the street was not an option. Just as expensive for much worse rooms. This place is only living off its reputation. Perhaps that's enough for some people, but bedbugs are not my idea of atmosphere...

The Tourist Hotel, of Madame Olga fame, is probably the best place to stay in Aleppo (in terms of value for money). Rooms are S£350 or S£400 with en-suite bathroom, all of which are spotlessly clean ! The big problem though, was being able to get a room at all. It's always full, so if you want to stay, be sure to make a reservation !

Second choice is the al-Jawaher Hotel, near Bab al-Faraj. Everybody knows it. This place is also spotlessly clean and the en-suite bathrooms even have a real bath tub ! The staff are friendly and helpful. Rooms cost S£400 for a single, although they're actually doubles. The rooms are quiet and don't attract any (or hardly any) street noise. I liked it so much, I stayed three nights.

I walked out of the Ramsis Hotel. A taxi driver who was clearly waiting for (tourist) customers outside, came up to me asked if I wanted a ride to Qala'at Samaan, 'Ain Dara or every place else I wanted to go. Just to Qala'at Samaan and back was US$40, a ridiculous price ! Then, he threw in some other places on the way, but the fare didn't go down.

If you bargain very hard, you'll eventually come down to $20, which is still absurd but seems to be the lowest price they allow themselves to fall down to. Be warned and either pass them by, or bargain hard ! These guys are real sharks. Honestly : at least 90% of Aleppo's taxi drivers can't be trusted. They never use their meters, and will rather have you getting out of the car than turning them on. There are enough tourists already, to be able to find another victim.
I decided to have lunch first, and then look out for a taxi driver willing to take me for a better price.

There are several decent places to eat in Aleppo. I went to al-Andalib, virtually next door (but 'round the corner) to the Baron Hotel. The food is good 'n' cheap (around S£300 for a good meal including drinks), it's a nice place to sit, and the waiters are friendly. Only minor point : the chips were not edible. Don't order them !

Al-Chabab, not far away, was an equally nice place to sit with even more friendly waiters, who will go out of their ways to please you. A really extensive meal including drinks costs about S£350. After finishing eating, I was offered oranges, grapefruit and cherries on the house, complete with a note saying : "C'est avec l'hospitalité de la restaurant al-Chabab". Great !

After turning down several of his colleagues, I agreed with a driver to go to Qala'at Samaan, Deir Samaan, Qasr Mushabak and Qatura for US$20, including photo stops where I wanted. He was a really friendly, joyous chap, even offered me drink, etc.

Qala'at Samaan was one of the highlights of my trip. A really beautiful, surprisingly quiet and interesting place. Upon entering the site, after paying the S£300 entrance fee and a short climb, the well-preserved main Basilica of St Simeon immediately makes an impression. Three adjacent basilicas, forming a cross with the main one, add to the grandeur of the place. Centrally positioned are the remains of St Simeon's pillar. This holy man, who lived in the 5th century, namely had the odd habit of sitting atop pillars for most of his life. In total he spent not less than 36 (!!) years on top of them. He started of with a three metre high column, but the last 30 years of his life, he lived on a pillar which had the amazing length of 15 metres.

Simeon was clearly a nutball, but in those times must have been considered a display of iron will, and hence of immovable faith, because the site effectively became a place of pilgrimage. People came from as far as Britain to hear St Simeon preach from his high position.
Today, the pillar is not more than a boulder on top of a pedestal. Because of its high holy contents, pilgrims over the years have chipped it almost completely away.
Because the place tickles the imagination so much and the buildings, together with the great views to the west, are quite stunning from nearly every angle, a visit can take a while. There are also some buildings to explore nearby. The most interesting is a baptistery.
After my relaxing visit to the site, I was about to have an unpleasant experience... My driver, the formerly very friendly person, had changed completely : he told me the 20 Dollars had been for the drive to Qala'at Samaan, and now he wanted another $20 to finish the rest of the trip. Immediately, I grabbed my bag, and attempted to get out. I told him he was bloody dishonest, and a disgrace for his otherwise overwhelmingly friendly country. I pointed out to him that we had agreed on something, and that we should both stick to that. I said that, even if I would have discovered that he was overcharging me (which he did, but they all do), I would have paid the amount of money, because we had agreed on it. Somehow I made an impression, because he took me by the arm, and told me to get back in. It was OK. He'd drive for $20.

Only a couple of kilometres further on, he started nagging about the price again. To drive to Qatura and Qasr Mushabak, he'd need another $5 because "petrol is expensive in Syria". I refused to pay, urged him to stop (which he did) and got out of the car again. I got visibly angry now, took $15 and told him to take it and leave. Again, he seemed temporarily impressed (or scared he'd loose out on an agreed $5 ?) and suggested to get back in. He'd drive to Qatura and Qasr Mushabak (which is just along the road to Aleppo, BTW) "for free".

This time he kept his promise and didn't nag. I refused to talk to him any more. He very well noticed that and started feeling uncomfortable by it. He inserted many 'photo stops' (many of which I refused) in the tour just to please me, probably because he noticed he could forget about a possible tip.

Qatura boasts some Roman tombs and an old church and well, but it's not so exciting.
Qasr Mushabak, like I said situated near the road from Aleppo to Qala'at Samaan, not far from al-Hawa, is easy to spot. There's no charge, and you have the site all to yourself, apart from the occasional Bedouin tent nearby. Not that there's an awful lot to see, but the interior - which looks to me more like a church than a castle - is reasonably well preserved. It's a nice and recommended place to make a stop.

The rest of my trip was hassle-free, but back in Aleppo, I was still quite glad to be rid of the dishonest driver. This taught me that although I was travelling in one of the friendliest countries in the world, I should always keep my guard. Not that I could have done much to prevent this (except for not taking a taxi), I think, but nevertheless… I returned to the Ramsis. The good memories of an otherwise perfect day quickly let me forget the bad experience...

The following day, in the obscure Tourist Office, I found a nice and trustworthy person to drive me around. His name is Basheer Kadour, and his card says : 'Cap driver for all archaeological sites'. Okay, we understand what he means. :-) His English is quite limited. But he's a nice man. Silent and reserved, but extremely helpful and honest. His prices are definitely way below the ones offered by his 'colleagues' ! His card also says you can reach him at the Aleppo Tourist Office, or by phoning (021) 744043. I can really recommend this guy ! I met two Dutchmen who had taken a taxi tour with him three years earlier, and they were in praise of him as well.
His prices are fixed, although perhaps he'd eventually come down a bit. He doesn't expect any tips (but appreciates them obviously).

A full day trip including Cyrrhus, Nahr Afreen, Shalalat Midanki and 'Ain Dara costs US$35. He takes his time, is never hurried and suggests good photo stops. The same trip, but also including Qala'at Samaan and Qasr Mushabak, would have been $5 more. Compared to my previous adventure, this was cheap.

On another day trip we would take in al-Bara, Serjilla, Ma'aret an-Nu'aman, Jeradeh and Ruweiha. The cost for this was US$40. He also does overnight trips. The cost for these, including everything, is $60 per day. He even drives to Lebanon on special request. These will cost as much as $80 per day.

By all means, I think these are fair prices to rent a car with driver for a full day in Syria.
Of course, it's possible to visit most of these places by a combination of public transport and walking. But that honestly would have taken too much of my time. A cab is admittedly very expensive, but also much more convenient.

The drive to Cyrrhus, better known to locals as Nabi Houri, was fun, especially the final stage from Azaz to the archaeological site. Azaz, described in the guidebook as a dump, was much more pleasant than I expected. Nothing going on really, but the Kurdish people here are friendly (yes, this is Kurdish territory).

From this town a narrow road leaves for Cyrrhus. It makes it way through lovely orchards and olive groves. People here are not used to having tourists around, and still stop to gaze at you when you drive past. Somehow that always feels odd... On the way, we crossed two old Roman bridges, built over the Sabun and Afreen rivers. Very picturesque. Near the second bridge we stopped to help a goatherd free one of his goats; it was trapped between the river and its banks.

The first thing you see upon approaching Cyrrhus is the large octagonal mausoleum tower, dating back to the Roman era. It's a very beautiful landmark, bordering a graveyard with both old and recent graves. It's possible to climb the tower by means of a small stairway inside. The views are excellent.

Taking the road almost opposite the mausoleum, one comes to the main ruins complex. And 'ruins' is the right word here; everything is completely destroyed, except perhaps for the amphitheatre, which can still be recognised. The remains of ancient Nabi Houri shouldn't be the goal of a visit to this area, but it's free, but it's free, the surroundings are quite lush and beautiful and there are no other people here. The views are best from the citadel on top of the hillock behind the site. Cyrrhus is right in the middle of Kurdish territory and I had expected heavy military presence. But no... Virtually nothing. Only a couple of tucked away watch towers on the Turkish side. On the Turkish side indeed, because this place is right on the border. One can see two villages, next to each other. One lies in Syria, the other one in Turkey. Nothing really separates them.

We drove back by another road, but also through cheerful landscape. We passed through Nahr Afreen and after a short while ended up at Shalalat Midanki. It's a great place to sit by the shallow but wide waterfalls made out by River Afreen and have a picnic. There's nothing else to do. The couple of cafés here sell terrible tea (turbid !) at the ridiculous price of S£50 for a small pot.

Me nor my driver were in a hurry, so we ended up staying quite a while near the falls. Many local people come here, and it's fun to just sit and watch them.

In the village of Basuta we made a stop at the Restaurant al-Basuta, which is quite excellent ! It's located near a spring and you can have a great meal for two here for less than S£500 including drinks. The waiters are helpful and friendly. Recommended !

By the time we had finished eating, it hard started to rain quite hard. We drove through green vegetable fields, full of people working on them, to the site of 'Ain Dara. The archaeological site is perched on top of a hill. I was surprised to find it open on a Tuesday. Tickets (S£150) have to be bought in the bungalow on ground level.

The first thing I got to see when we arrived, was a Japanese guy running around in his underwear. He was a member of the excavation team, and was clearly not expecting visitors... When he noticed us, he smiled and quickly disappeared inside.

My driver decided to shelter for the rain while I explored the site. At the top, the first thing you see, is a big lion statue. It's the most impressive thing at 'Ain Dara. That should tell you something about it. There's not much to be seen, but I loved the place for its solitude and for its environs. The second best thing are the bas-reliefs which decorated the base of the temple. One of these is still intact and in place.

On the way back to Aleppo, we passed Qala'at Samaan. Here, down the hill, lies Deir Samaan, initially a monastery associated with St Simeon's basilica. Due to the popularity of the pilgrimage site, a complete town soon developed around it. Today, we can still see the remains. Interesting also, is a gateway (near the main road) marking the start of the old street which lead up to the basilica.

It was about 6:30 in the evening when we arrived back in Halab, as the Arabs call Aleppo. We had a nice cup of tea in the Café al-Sahel, opposite the clock tower near Bab al-Faraj. It's a great place to mingle with the locals, or just watch the hustle-and-bustle out on the street below. Another good traditional café is the al-Mathaf Café, al-Maari Street.

We agreed to meet again at 8 am, not the next day, but the day after. The next day I was going to explore Aleppo itself...

First thing I did, was going to the museum. I was 15 minutes early - the place opens at 9 am. I admired the eye-catching basalt statues from Tel Halaf which make up the entrance. Once open, I bought a ticket (S£300) and started exploring... The museum is interesting and certainly worth a visit. It's a pity that some exhibited artefacts carry only a label in Arabic, French or none at all. There's definitely room for improvement. Photography is forbidden, but you can buy a good collection of postcards at the reception.

The citadel is worth a visit, but to be honest only for the views and the throne room, which is very impressive. Many people complained when they had to pay the S£300 at the entrance. One American woman summarised things quite accurately : "What ? 300 Pounds ? You are going to scare the tourists away ! Turkey's much cheaper, and very close to Syria. Why would tourists choose Syria with Turkey so close and cheap ?" Maybe she was being a little harsh, but she made a valuable point : Syria's entry tickets are way too expensive ! Instead of figuring out a reasonable price per site, the government has thought and decided they can even increase prices still, as the 'rich' tourists will pay anyway. To a certain extent, I think that's right, but people planning a trip at home will be held off. And that's a fact ! A friend of mine actually stayed at home because he told me the trip would be too expensive for him with all these S£200 entry fees to pay (I always visit many places). And now they're S£300 !! Incredibly enough, the special fee for taking photographs at the citadel has been abolished. You can take as much pictures as you like, for 'free'.

The entrance to the fabled souqs of Aleppo was visible from the citadel. Being so close, I decided to explore them right away. Boy ! They were one of the big disappointments of my trip ! Surely they are a great labyrinth where you can spend hours and hours exploring, but it's the atmosphere which completely sucks ! This is not an oriental bazaar, this feels like a southern European tourist shopping street or a tourist handicraft centre ! It's obvious that too many tourists have already passed through here. The souqs in Damascus hold much more of the typically Oriental atmosphere than these. The vendors here seem to speak every language of the world, including Dutch and that must tell you something ! Dozens of salesmen wanted me to 'translate a letter from a friend or relative in Belgium'. The first couple of times, you think they're honest, but you soon find out that these letters don't exist and the only thing they do, is try to sell you something. Luckily the pressure is (still ?) low.

I found almost as many people try to lure you inside their shops as in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, and there it's quite bad. Although I think even the Grand Bazaar has more character nowadays than the Aleppo souqs. A visit is nevertheless essential when staying in the city, but I'd recommend making it a brief one.

Aleppo's Grand Mosque is definitely open now, and the 'refurbishing' has been rounded off. I didn't really notice much of it, so I suppose the buildings must have been in a really heavily neglected state before. The minaret is very beautiful and so is the minbar inside. Otherwise it's not so thrilling, definitely totally incomparable to Damascus' Omayyad Mosque. It is, however, a great place to photograph people. Just sit down with a telephoto lens at one of the sides of the inner courtyard and snap away. There's also no entry fee.

The Grand Mosque is where I met Mohammad, a disarmingly friendly little fellow who spoke very good English. He was on his way home from school. He insisted on showing me around. I accepted. He knew his stuff very well. He had some pictures within his schoolbook which he showed me from time to time, to illustrate what he was on about.

After the 'tour', the clever-dick tried to sell me the pictures, which were clearly cut from a book or leaflet - I suspected a free Tourist Office leaflet. S£50 he wanted. I told him he would soon be a rich person, if he kept on selling free leaflets. He laughed wholeheartedly. It went on like that for quite some time. I really had a liking for him, and finally bought the pictures for S£20. He told me it was really time for him to go home, because his mother would be very mad at him for being so late. Just outside the gate of the mosque, a man was selling Arabic books, mostly religious ones. Before he left, Mohammad grabbed one of them, and showed it to me. Inside were the pictures he had sold me. The price for the book, which I furthermore couldn't read, was more than S£100...

I decided to visit the Armenian quarter next. Abdallah, a guy I had already briefly met inside the mosque, wanted to walk with me. He was - as most other Syrians - a very nice guy.
It's great to wander through the different quarters of the city. It's odd to find most shops closed on Friday in the Muslim part while they're all open in the Christian quarter, and vice versa on Sundays.

Abdallah really knew his way around here, and showed me several churches, among them the Forty Martyrs' Cathedral and the Maronite Cathedral. To the right of the latter is another church. In itself it's not particularly worth visiting, but the people there are welcoming. I even got to meet the bishop, who has his residence there in one of the adjacent buildings !

I concluded this day in the Public Park, a nice place to sit and watch. I talked to many people who came asking me who I was, where I came from and why I was in Syria. Abdallah watched and listened bemused.

When it was getting dark, we walked towards my hotel (I had changed to the al-Jawaher in the meantime, BTW). At the clock tower, Abdallah and I said good-bye, but promised to stay in touch my mail.

The next morning, Basheer (my taxi driver) and I met again. We had a whole day of sightseeing to do.

First, we were off to al-Bara, one of the so-called Dead Cities around Aleppo. The most striking structures are two pyramid-shaped tombs (actually there are three, but the third is very dilapidated). One of the pyramids still contains five quite intact tombs (the other contains two broken ones). There's also an interesting antique olive oil mill and some old churches. Al-Bara is a great site. It's free and you have the place all to yourself.

A similar Dead City (free and no other people) is Serjilla, very nearby. It's a spread-out site with many buildings still standing. The most remarkable are the baths. People live in tents amongst the ruins.

Ma'aret an-Nu'aman is a nice little town. I had heard about its mosaic museum and wanted to have a look. It costs a whopping S£300 to enter. Photography is forbidden. From a layman's point of view, most of the mosaics are not particularly well executed. They appear to be a bit childish, IMHO. Of course there are many and they're (probably) interesting but that's another thing.

I also visited the Grand Mosque in Ma'aret. Although I was not actually inside the mosque interior (ie. in the prayer hall), somebody there got a bit upset about my presence. It is clear that non-Muslims are not welcome here. If I'd been a woman, I could've had big problems, as a local informed me. The best thing about the mosque is its minaret, and that can just as well be seen from the street.

One of the bigger disappointments of my trip was Jeradeh, another Dead City about 10 km further on. The ruins were far from interesting to me. I was expecting a real 'dead' city, not a small cradle of ruins amidst a not-particularly-sleepy village. Not surprisingly, this place has no atmosphere at all.

Much better is nearby Ruweiha. IMHO, it's best to skip Jeradeh altogether and head straight for Ruweiha. Some houses are built amongst the ruins, which include a 6th century church and a particularly noticeable mausoleum. The people who live there are very traditional and friendly.
Neither of the two sites has an entry fee.

We arrived back in Aleppo at around 7 pm. Basheer took me over to his house. His wife had prepared supper and I was invited to join, which I gladly accepted. His wife and two children were very nice. Neither of them spoke any English, but Basheer tried to translate as much as possible. I also met his brother, and later in the evening I was invited at this brother's son's garage. I learnt some interesting things about cars in Syria ! It's truly amazing how the mechanics here succeed in making even the biggest wrecks 'road-worthy' !

Saying farewell this family felt like leaving behind some good friends, which actually Basheer had become.

I haven't mentioned this before, but all of the days I stayed here in Syria's second biggest city, I tried to make a phone call to Belgium. Unfortunately, the telephone office was a joke. Every time I walked in to buy a telephone card, they told me they were sold out, or the counter was closed. Trying to extract stamps from the people at this place had similar results.

Syria: The friendly city of Raqqa

Chapter Four - The friendly city of Raqqa

Raqqa was a very friendly city ! I was invited practically everywhere for tea or sweets. Although there's nothing much going on, I loved every minute of my stay there.

I had a room in the Ammar Hotel. A single (with two beds, so actually a double) cost S£400. The only bit of 'luxury' is a wash-basin. Toilets and shower are down the hall. The rooms are rather noisy, but they're clean.

I haven't been offered supposedly free tea or coffee or any other scam like that. Apparently, some travellers have pointed out to the guy what's written in the LP guide… This guy, BTW, is not the most friendly guy you'll ever meet, but he's not so bad either.

Right across the street from the Ammar Hotel is a great shawarma joint. The owner, Abdallah, is a great guy. His food is excellent and cheap enough (S£25).

A stroll through the main street is very rewarding. The people are so friendly ! I was frequently invited for sweets and drinks. Astonishing !

At the end of the street is Bab Baghdad, the city's only remaining gate. It's not particularly impressive but dates from the Abassid period. Behind the gate is the skeleton of a mosque under construction. The works were halted some years ago, because the Iranian (re)sources dried up. It's a quite picturesque place. I followed the old city walls for a while (they run north from Bab Baghdad), but soon returned because the walk wasn't particularly interesting.

The initial reason I had come to Raqqa, was to pay a visit to the long dead desert city of Rasafeh. Getting there was much less difficult then I thought it would have been. First, I walked to the Raqqa bus station, but I was at the wrong side of the street. Mini/microbuses leave from the station at the left hand side of the street (if you're coming from the city centre). The local people quickly pointed out the right microbus to get to the Rasafeh turnoff. The fare was S£15. Soon enough the small Kia mini-van filled up and was crammed with 17 people and their luggage / groceries. It was fun though. A Syrian family made some kind of picnic of the 20 minute trip.

I was dropped off at al-Mansura, right by the turnoff to Rasafeh, which lies about 35 kilometres away. There is no public transport to it, as it is effectively a dead city. I quickly understood my only option was to hitch. I had walked about 50 metres or so, when I saw two men talking loudly. One left when I approached; I decided to ask the other one if it was easy to get a ride. He immediately invited me inside the house we were standing in front of. It turned out he was a doctor and the 'house' was something like a First Aid post. He gave medical assistance to people who couldn't afford to go to a private doctor. I was introduced to his two gorgeous beautiful daughters... and their children... Arabian coffee was served and we talked about this and that.

When I was about to leave, the doctor insisted on giving me some kind of present. As he couldn't immediately come up with something, he handed me a tube of anti- histamine ointment, some antibiotics and the Syrian version of Aspirin... At least I could leave for Rasafeh prepared ! :-)

Out on the road again, I was wondering how long it would take before I'd find a ride. Soon enough, as I discovered : the first car I flagged down stopped. I could come along for… S£250. Hmm… No, thanks. The next car… It stops too. "How much ? S£250 ?!?…" Same with the next, and the next… Apparently, all the locals are aware of the difficulties to get to the ruins and have all agreed to ask foreigners S£250 for the return trip. Yes : they wait for you or come along with you for a walk around the ruins.

About halfway from the turnoff to the ruins, we were stopped at an army checkpoint. I needed to get out and come to the HQ, where I had to talk to the captain. He didn't speak a word of English, and my Arabic is worse than bad, so not much talking went on, but I clearly understood that I had to be back after 40 minutes. Why ? I'll never know. But he really insisted on being back in time. This was the only time in Syria that I was stopped by army or police.

My 'driver' was a real nutcase. He drove like mad, even through the potholes, sometimes with no hands on the wheel. In the meantime he found it necessary to try and teach me Arabic, although he himself didn't speak a word of English. Would be nice of him, were it not that he had turned up the radio volume to the max, so I could hardly understand a word.

Already from a distance you can see the walled city lying there in the middle of nowhere. It's impressive because it takes in quite an area. Visitors enter through a monumental gateway. It's there that you also pay for yer' ticket.
Rasafeh is a very nice place to visit. There are some old churches and cisterns to be seen. But with this kind of money for the trip thither - and I could only stay for about half an hour ! - and a S£300 entry fee slapped on, I doubt if it will appeal to shoestring travellers. Guess not… This is one of those places that seemed to be free to enter previously, but now carry the heavy entrance burden so many sites in Syria do.

Getting back to the turnoff was no problem. Like I said, you're paying for a return trip. I had a great ecological experience in a garage, next door to the doctor's office. I wanted to get rid of the plastic water bottle I had been carrying during my visit to the ruins. I didn't want to throw it on the street, so I asked a guy in the garage where I could loose it. He gazed at me, then suddenly seemed to understand what I wanted, and... filled the bottle with tap water for me. Hmm. Not exactly right. I emptied the bottle and showed him I also wanted to ditch the bottle itself. He clearly didn't get it, and called upon another employee for help. He didn't get it either. So, I threw the bottle on the street, showed them this was not correct, and picked it up again. Then asked them if they understood, and now they did ! One of them took the bottle from me, and threw it away... on the street...
Anyway, I was back on the main road, and from there, I flagged down a big bus, paid about S£15 again, and travelled back the 30 minutes to Raqqa in a bit of comfort.

Back in my hotel, I washed up a bit and went out on the streets again. I needed another one of Abdallah's shawarmas and a drink. I was walking in Quneitra Street when I was invited in by a tailor. He was a friendly man, very eager to practice his English. I didn't mind teaching him some more words. He was incredibly enthusiastic, a nice guy to talk to and a good listener. He introduced me to his aid Ali, a Kurdish boy, and to all his customers, the pastry baker next door, a couple of construction workers, the shawarma seller, the local photographer,... All great people, incredibly hospitable, and the one even more friendly than the other.
I spent my whole evening at his shop, and wasn't bored for a minute.

The next morning, I was going to Aleppo, but first I dropped in at my friend, the tailor's. He was so happy to see me, and frankly, I was very happy to see him again too. Tea was served immediately. The photographer, Pashar Taha, was there again as well. I got to know him better too. He's a true professional; he sent some of his work to my home. Pictures to remember each other were made, and extensive good-byes were uttered.

It was with some pain in my heart that I had to leave these kind folks, and this very pleasant city. But I knew I had made some good friends...

At the bus station, I bought a ticket to Aleppo. It cost me S£85. The company was called Express Tours, and I can really recommend them. Their buses are very good. They take about three hours.

Next to me on the bus was a very nice Arab man. He didn't speak any English, but by using symbolic language we managed to mutually entertain each other during the whole trip.

Syria: Deir ez-Zur (Dayr az Zur), Along the banks of the Euphrates

Chapter Three - Along the banks of the Euphrates

I arrived in Deir ez-Zur late afternoon. Decided to go to the Mari Hotel, after reading its 'review' in the Lonely Planet guide, I asked where it was. Nobody spoke English, but eventually I got there. The hotel is located at the end of what looks like the entrance to a shopping gallery or a cinema. They charge US$26 for singles. The rooms have a fan, and an en-suite bathroom which is very clean. The rooms are a bit small though, and very hot ! When I was in Deir ez-Zur, it was 45°C outside, really boiling hot, and the rooms were impossible to keep cool even with the fan on max speed.

The people at the Mari are polite enough, but not trustworthy at all, as it turned out. Sometimes I was charged S£25 for a soft drink/bottle of water, whilst at other times they charged me twice as much for the same thing ?? It's much better to buy all you need in one of the two small shops which are virtually next door to the hotel. They charge fair prices.

I talked to several people staying at the Hotel Raghdan, some of which had also stayed at the Mari before. Rooms at the Raghdan were US$15, and all people raved about them and about the service. All agreed that the rooms at the Mari were better quality, but not so much that they justified the $11 more.

Contrary to what I expected after reading the Lonely Planet guide, I found Deir ez-Zur a very nice place to stay for a couple of days. The view of the Euphrates river from the 500 metres long suspension bridge is absolutely great, and should really be more explicitly recommended !

I have heard of people confusing the rather dirty canal flowing through the town centre with the majestic Euphrates, for which you have to walk further out. A couple of days ago I visited the Web site of a Swiss guy who was clearly mistaken, talking about the Biblical river flowing in a concrete bed...

Deir looks like a deserted, not so friendly city on first sight, but in the evenings - when it's cooler - it looks like the whole town's population is out on the streets. This is an ideal time to photograph people if you like to do that. Many people will happily pose for you, often even asking to be photographed themselves.
A great place to mingle with the (male) locals, is the café of the Hotel Damas.
When coming from the city centre, there are restaurants to the left and right of the suspension bridge. The one on the left, the Big Bridge Restaurant, serves good food. It's a bit more expensive than elsewhere it seems, but the views of the very nearby river more than make up for that.

I dined out with a French couple. They had visited some of the sites in and around Deir the previous day. It's from them I got the tip to visit the city's museum, which I initially wanted to skip

The old museum has been closed. There is now a new one in the west of the city. Just walk towards the end of Ali Ibn Abi Taleb Street.

Entrance tickets cost S£300, but in this case it's really warranted. This must be one of the best museums - in terms of presentation - in the whole country ! All the different periods (in time) are excellently explained, and labelling is in Arabic, English and French. There's an excellent overview of the history of writing.

Several of the artefacts on display are actually copies from stuff in other museums, but still if you want to really learn something about the country's history or about the history of writing this is no doubt the place to come to ! The staff are very friendly and helpful, and will answer all questions you may have (if they can, of course; their English is not perfect).

As in all museums in Syria, photography is not allowed and bags here must be left at the entrance. You will have this place virtually to yourself.

Apart from the Euphrates, the museum is the only attraction in town, but the place makes a good base for a trip to the South, towards the Iraqi border, where some interesting places are to be found. I wanted to visit some of these sites, but with the extreme temperatures in this region, I loathed having to spend virtually a whole day on buses. On top of that, my time was limited here.

I tried to arrange a taxi to take me to Qala'at ar-Rahba, Dura Europos and Mari the next day. Perhaps I was just unlucky, but none of the taxi drivers seemed to speak any English, and didn't get what I was on about. So I decided to talk to the people at the reception of the Hotel Mari. They're real sharks ! Avoid arranging anything here ! They wanted S£3000 for the half day trip to these sites, coming down only to S£2800. A ridiculous price. At the Hotel Raghdan, prices are S£1000 less ! This seems to be generally considered a 'fair' price for the trip.

The taxi driver who picked me up the next day didn't speak a word of English - not a real surprise - and on top of that was dead sick. He obviously had a high fever, and a horrible cough. Most sensible people in the West would stay at home with sick leave, but I understood this was just not an option in Syria. Especially when some 'rich' tourist was paying a ridiculous amount of money, probably enough to make up for a whole week of driving.

Anyway, we first drove to Qala'at ar-Rahba, a medieval castle about fifty kilometres to the south of Deir. The castle hill is nicely situated amidst a green plain near the Euphrates, although the river itself was not visible. The views of the castle from the surrounding ridge are simply stunning. I didn't bother trying to get into the castle itself, as it's heavily ruined.

We continued to Dura Europos, another 50 kilometres or so further on. I expected a lot of this site. I had heard and read terms like 'impressive', 'stunning', 'fascinating', 'mysterious', 'intriguing', and was probably expecting too much. I admit I was at least a bit disappointed by the site. It's in essence only an empty shell. The city walls still stand, but inside much has disappeared, and what's left is heavily ruined. I did like the great views from the crumbled walls over the Euphrates river which passes by right below. These alone are worth coming here and paying the S£150 entrance fee. These, and the gun-toting caretaker who careers up and down the site on his old motorbike, looking out for 'insurgences'.

Still closer to Iraq (the border is about 20 km away) lies Mari. I was charged S£100 to enter, but the site is worth every piastre of it. The now largely underground royal palace of Zimri Lim is great fun to explore, making your way through corridors with towering earthen walls. The complex must have been a real labyrinth, judging by what's still left of it. There weren't many other tourists - although still more than I had expected - making it a place with a lot of atmosphere, ideal for sitting down for a while and thinking about long gone eras.

Outside are the remains of a ziggurat, a typically Mesopotamian temple-tower. I had expected to find at least a bit of the tower still standing, but it turned out that only the foundations remain. Still enough though, to get a good impression of the layout.
After my visit, I joined my driver in the tent which was also the ticket office. I was offered tea. The people were kind. Yes, Mari's a nice place to visit.

It was late afternoon when we returned to Deir ez-Zur. About halfway back, we passed a roadside market. It was small but busy. I decided to have a walk around. There was no shelter from the sun anywhere near it. The heat was ringing in my ears. The people were definitely traditional. All men wore the traditional Arab head-dress, no Western clothing in sight. At a certain moment it was as if the market came to a standstill, during which I was cautiously observed; then - just as suddenly - everything continued.

I looked at the wares on sale, fresh fruits and vegetables mainly. I bought some sweets, a pretzel-like pastry baked in oil. Very tasty, and very cheap.
Most people at the market were reluctant to have their picture taken. Dunno why, but I experienced that behaviour throughout Syria. Surprising.

While I was walking around, my driver bought some fuel. It was sold by a guy who sucked and siphoned the stuff from a large barrel. The siphoning didn't work very well, as I saw him sucking and spitting all the time. Somehow, I can't imagine this will do a lot of good for his personal health... When the tank was filled up, we drove non-stop to Deir. The first thing I did, was taking a nice cool shower. Boy, this place was hot !

Later that day, I took a nice, long evening stroll. Always a worthwhile experience in Deir.

The next morning, I wanted to go to Raqqa. I inquired about transport thither, and was advised to go to the Qadmous bus station. It turned out that there are no big buses leaving for Raqqa from there or anywhere else in Deir. Only from the minibus station, and that's obviously at another location... Once there, finding a bus was a breeze. It cost S£70 and the trip took about two hours.