We were curious to visit this troubled country that has featured heavily on the news for most of our childhood and teenage years. We had heard good stuff about Lebanon but for us it was unfortunately a very mixed bag. We’ve travelled around very poor countries, countries suffering from food shortages or trade embargos, police states, dictatorships. However, there is something in the air in Lebanon that makes you feel low all the time. It’s a country where the difference between rich and poor is enormous, at times even disturbing. Most poor people – street vendors, bus drivers and passengers – we met were very nice while the wealthier people were typically indifferent and sometimes even rude.
Monthly Archives: December 2010
Slowing Down in Syria
As soon as we set foot on Syrian ground everything around us seemed to slow down. It started with the border guard automatically flicking through our passports for 15 minutes over and over again but getting distracted by whatever was happening around him. Holding the visa stamp in one of his hands he was getting himself a cup of tea, chatting to whoever was passing by, answering the phone while continuing to flick through our passports. Then he seemed to remember what he was supposed to do and started scribbling something in Arabic on a random page in our passport (in James’s case on the front page of his passport – that’ll be great for any future use…). Finally he stamped our passports although it took him another few minutes to hand them back to us.
Istanbul
Important things first – we had our first bath for months and months 🙂 We got ourselves a great deal on wotif.com for Istanbul which turned out to be a one bedroom apartment with a proper bathtub for the same price as a hostel. We’re loving low season in Turkey and all cold and luke warm showers have been erased from our memory. The location was great too. Just behind the Blue Mosque in Sultanahmet, the old quarter, but not too close that the daily morning prayer would wake us up before dawn. When travelling in Muslim countries this is always a major factor when looking for accommodation. Though by now we’re kind of used to the regular prayer times and we can even sleep through the stereo version. Well almost. Continue reading Istanbul


