Alrighty... Alden planned on adding a post during his nice long layover in Paris Chuck De G. airport, but the computer has a horrible french keyboard with lots of letters and buttons in the wrong place! (Which he only realized after buying time on a CDG computer!)
What is written above, written as it usually would be on a god fearing American computer, appears as such:
Qlrighty::: Qlden plqnned on qdding q post during his nice long lqyover in Pqris Chuck De G: qirport but the co;puter hqs q horrible french keyboqrd zith lots of letters qnd butto,s in the zrong plqce1 9ahich he only reqliwed qfter buying ti,e on q CDG co,puter1)
Qlden*s giving up qnd just typing qzqy qt this point qs he nor,qlly zould; so just deql; ok§
The flight fro, Q,,qn aqs pretty eqsy; but the plqne; qn Qirbus 320 zqs entirely unco,portqble for Qlden*s blessedly tqll frq,: Qir Frqnce didnùt fqil in provifing q terrible egg breqkfqst: it zqs very unedible. Q auiche; zith BQCON111 zqs found in CDG; its only redeq,ing aqulity thus fqr::: it hqs been tzo ,onths since Qlden*s hqd qny bqcon; qnd he indeed loves bqcon:
ok; qcutqlly; this is just silly; the butto,s qre too ,essed up; there zill be ,ore qdded lqter zhen Qlden is less exhqsutesd; qnd hqs q nor,ql co,puter::: Ti,e to go find so,e duty free bowwe:::
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Heading home!
Ok folks, Alden is heading home today! Well, technically tomorrow, but at 1:45 am, so that feels like it is part of today, right?
So what's this guy been up to? Alden's been relaxing on the Dead Sea, then he got to Jerash- Some Roman ruins north of Amman. It is always crazy seeing Roman ruins in the Middle East...
Then two full days of shopping with his mother. This involved going to lots and lots and lots of handicraft shops- environmentally friendly & sustainable development eco-tourism co-op's for female empowerment. They had all sorts of handicrafts and entirely unreasonable prices. Wow. It was very crunchy and Vegan and such.
But Alden didn't complain much; there is duty-free liqour as his reward.
This need's to be short- Alden's hungry- but here's one of the best things he's seen thus far: A taxi with a customized shifter- this thing had a little button on the top, much like a fighter plane, that HONKED THE HORN. Yes, just in case you are shifting gears and cannot wait a second longer, it was possible to honk the horn via the shifter. Amazing.
Alright, pray to St. Christopher- Alden's off to the airport!
(More to come once back in the US...!)
So what's this guy been up to? Alden's been relaxing on the Dead Sea, then he got to Jerash- Some Roman ruins north of Amman. It is always crazy seeing Roman ruins in the Middle East...
Then two full days of shopping with his mother. This involved going to lots and lots and lots of handicraft shops- environmentally friendly & sustainable development eco-tourism co-op's for female empowerment. They had all sorts of handicrafts and entirely unreasonable prices. Wow. It was very crunchy and Vegan and such.
But Alden didn't complain much; there is duty-free liqour as his reward.
This need's to be short- Alden's hungry- but here's one of the best things he's seen thus far: A taxi with a customized shifter- this thing had a little button on the top, much like a fighter plane, that HONKED THE HORN. Yes, just in case you are shifting gears and cannot wait a second longer, it was possible to honk the horn via the shifter. Amazing.
Alright, pray to St. Christopher- Alden's off to the airport!
(More to come once back in the US...!)
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Aqaba, Wadi Rum, Dana, Dead Sea, oh my!
Ok, sorry people, Alden's been on the road!
Let's keep ourselves in order for clarity's sake: But first: Alden is healthy and has no broken bones, dispite himself.
Petra day 2:
Hike up to above the Treasury (aka the Indiana Jones building) for some stunning Alpha-Male poses. Pictures to be sent very soon, Inshallah! Then drive "TO AQABA!" (If you haven't seen Lawrance of Arabia, you might not understand the hilarity of screaming that quote every 15 minutes so or in the little POS Hyundai Alden rented...)
Aqaba! A really, very, extremely hot (weather-wise) town on the Red sea. Lots of new developments- impossible to find the beaches mentioned in the out-of-date Lonely Planet. Dinner obtained at a sea food restaurant. Sea food is eaten. YUM.
Aqaba day 2: Sit on the beach all day! Woohoo! Down at the Royal Jordanian Diving Club (really not that exclusive if they let Alden in, eh?) a day at the beach was had. This was nice to recover from the extremely physical days at Petra. There was a huge US Navy ship docked nearby, and soon young navy guys and gals started rolling into the diving club. They wasted no time at all in locating the beach bar. Go Team America!
Side ntoe: Foodstuffs were obtained at the local Safeway (crazy!).
Then- To Wadi Rum! This was Lawrence of Arabia's hide-out during the Arab Revolt. Stunning place. Alden and Mother found housing at "Beit Ali" and promtly rented ATVs to go dune bashing for a couple of hours.
Lesson learned: If you are going too fast on an ATV (Alden discovered they top out at nearly 60 mph) and you find yourself nearing a dune's drop-off of unknown height, don't go down it. But should you fly off a dune at a very fast speed, make sure you are able to roll faster than the ATV. If you are agile and blessed with the tawny thighs of a jungle cat, like Alden, you might roll faster than the ATV, but you will certainly lose your shoes (like in a cartoon) as you roll down the dune (faster than the ATV, remember that!). You then will get a little lecture from the ATV guide about not going so fast. But, Good Times! No broken bones!
Then Alden and Mother (who was clever enough not to crash her ATV) headed into Wadi Rum Village, to rent camels. This is not a comfortable means of transport. After 2 hours, Alden's legs hurt in the way they hurt after running 10 miles, in the rain, during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Seriously, after thousands of years, the best saddle was a hunk of wood? Yikes, it hurt. But beer helps this go away...
Wadi Rum day #2: Rent a Jeep! (With a driver who knows where he's going, naturally.)
After sleeping in a bit, Adlen and Mother head into Wadi Rum to hire a jeep for an 8 hour tour. He times it perfectly (what else would you expect from this guy?) so that the tour ends at a "sun-set spot" exactly before sun-set. Brilliant. And it was! Wadi Rum is indeed best viewed from the back of a pick-up truck jeep thing (with a cloth cover for shade). Simply stunning. Alden had a great time- scrambling up a couple of rock bridges, and hikes, during jeep tour pauses; good times were had. There isn't too much wild life- a few camels, lizards, and very blue birds. And indeed, the sun setting over Wadi Rum was the type of thing that inspires poets. Wow.
Then- To Dana Nature Reserve. Alden will be honest, he would have skipped this place if Team Awesome hadn't recommended it. Great suggestion, Team Awesome! Like Wadi Rum, Dana is really, really quiet. Alden loves the quiet; quite the contrast to "honk first, break second" Damascus! After a siesta, a good afternoon walk around Dana- up a nice little mountain for a "view point" which really understates the absolute beauty of the place! Alden and Mother stayed at a nice little hotel in the middle of the 15th century ruins of Dana village. Excellent place to view the sun setting down the valley of Dana.
Then- To the Dead Sea! So to really rough it, Alden and Mother are staying at the Dead Sea Marriott. This place is great. Alden quickly made friends with the bartenders who gave him several complementary beers this evening as he viewed the sun setting over the Dead Sea. (So Alden likes watching the sun set, ok?) The Dead Sea is still very salty since the last time he visited in July. Soon Alden will find his way to the "Sports Bar" to find a steak and ESPN.
It has been a good time in Jordan thus far, and a full day at the Dead Sea Marriott tomorrow! Woohoo!
Let's keep ourselves in order for clarity's sake: But first: Alden is healthy and has no broken bones, dispite himself.
Petra day 2:
Hike up to above the Treasury (aka the Indiana Jones building) for some stunning Alpha-Male poses. Pictures to be sent very soon, Inshallah! Then drive "TO AQABA!" (If you haven't seen Lawrance of Arabia, you might not understand the hilarity of screaming that quote every 15 minutes so or in the little POS Hyundai Alden rented...)
Aqaba! A really, very, extremely hot (weather-wise) town on the Red sea. Lots of new developments- impossible to find the beaches mentioned in the out-of-date Lonely Planet. Dinner obtained at a sea food restaurant. Sea food is eaten. YUM.
Aqaba day 2: Sit on the beach all day! Woohoo! Down at the Royal Jordanian Diving Club (really not that exclusive if they let Alden in, eh?) a day at the beach was had. This was nice to recover from the extremely physical days at Petra. There was a huge US Navy ship docked nearby, and soon young navy guys and gals started rolling into the diving club. They wasted no time at all in locating the beach bar. Go Team America!
Side ntoe: Foodstuffs were obtained at the local Safeway (crazy!).
Then- To Wadi Rum! This was Lawrence of Arabia's hide-out during the Arab Revolt. Stunning place. Alden and Mother found housing at "Beit Ali" and promtly rented ATVs to go dune bashing for a couple of hours.
Lesson learned: If you are going too fast on an ATV (Alden discovered they top out at nearly 60 mph) and you find yourself nearing a dune's drop-off of unknown height, don't go down it. But should you fly off a dune at a very fast speed, make sure you are able to roll faster than the ATV. If you are agile and blessed with the tawny thighs of a jungle cat, like Alden, you might roll faster than the ATV, but you will certainly lose your shoes (like in a cartoon) as you roll down the dune (faster than the ATV, remember that!). You then will get a little lecture from the ATV guide about not going so fast. But, Good Times! No broken bones!
Then Alden and Mother (who was clever enough not to crash her ATV) headed into Wadi Rum Village, to rent camels. This is not a comfortable means of transport. After 2 hours, Alden's legs hurt in the way they hurt after running 10 miles, in the rain, during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Seriously, after thousands of years, the best saddle was a hunk of wood? Yikes, it hurt. But beer helps this go away...
Wadi Rum day #2: Rent a Jeep! (With a driver who knows where he's going, naturally.)
After sleeping in a bit, Adlen and Mother head into Wadi Rum to hire a jeep for an 8 hour tour. He times it perfectly (what else would you expect from this guy?) so that the tour ends at a "sun-set spot" exactly before sun-set. Brilliant. And it was! Wadi Rum is indeed best viewed from the back of a pick-up truck jeep thing (with a cloth cover for shade). Simply stunning. Alden had a great time- scrambling up a couple of rock bridges, and hikes, during jeep tour pauses; good times were had. There isn't too much wild life- a few camels, lizards, and very blue birds. And indeed, the sun setting over Wadi Rum was the type of thing that inspires poets. Wow.
Then- To Dana Nature Reserve. Alden will be honest, he would have skipped this place if Team Awesome hadn't recommended it. Great suggestion, Team Awesome! Like Wadi Rum, Dana is really, really quiet. Alden loves the quiet; quite the contrast to "honk first, break second" Damascus! After a siesta, a good afternoon walk around Dana- up a nice little mountain for a "view point" which really understates the absolute beauty of the place! Alden and Mother stayed at a nice little hotel in the middle of the 15th century ruins of Dana village. Excellent place to view the sun setting down the valley of Dana.
Then- To the Dead Sea! So to really rough it, Alden and Mother are staying at the Dead Sea Marriott. This place is great. Alden quickly made friends with the bartenders who gave him several complementary beers this evening as he viewed the sun setting over the Dead Sea. (So Alden likes watching the sun set, ok?) The Dead Sea is still very salty since the last time he visited in July. Soon Alden will find his way to the "Sports Bar" to find a steak and ESPN.
It has been a good time in Jordan thus far, and a full day at the Dead Sea Marriott tomorrow! Woohoo!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Alden vs. Petra
Woah! Where has Alden been? Sorry y'all, but Alden's been busy! Here's what's happened:
Alden left Tartus for Hama. Hama has cute ancient water wheel things that were part of an old school irrigation system. Some are still functional and make groaning sounds. Alden saw all of them in about an hour, then slept for the afternoon.
Next day, Alden gets back to Damascus for his last night in Syria. Dinner at Arabesque: steak & wine. Some last moment shopping got done as well. (Alden's father should get excited.)
Then taxi to Amman, Jordan. The taxi ride was taxing. The driver went back on his pledge to use the AC, and even though Alden rode shot-gun, it was a throughly miserable drive. The highlight was Alden purchasing a large bottle of his favorite Irish cream liqour at the Duty-Free area. Also, the taxi driver, like most taxi drivers, is involved in smuggling large amounts of duty-free cigarettes. Alden was less than thrilled to hide contraband cigarettes on his person as demanded by the driver while the car got inspected.
In Amman, Alden expected to meet his mother, who was joining him in Jordan for his last two weeks of his SUMMER 2008 MID-EAST ADVENTURE. She has lots of frequent flyer miles; thus they are staying at the Grand Hyatt Amman. Really roughing it...
Alden's mother was late, but arrived nonetheless. Day one with mother: See Amman. Citadel, Roman amphitheater, the Balad, etc. Back to the Hyatt for the afternoon ('cause it was too hot for anything other than a dip in the pool). Then dinner with Brian "Da Ampersand" Katz. Delightful.
Now for adventure: Renting a car should not be difficut, given there was a Hertz Rent-a-car in the Hyatt's lobby.
Alden: "Hello, I would like to rent a small car for tomorrow."
Hertz girl: "Oh, I'm sorry, no small cars for tomorrow."
Alden: "Ok, medium or large perhaps?"
Hertz girl: "Sorry, no medium or large."
Alden: "Ok, any cars at all?"
Hertz girl: "Nope, no cars at all for the next two weeks."
Alden: (Confused, blank stare)
One phone call to the first random car agency listed in his slightly less out-of-date Jordanian Lonely Planet, and Alden's got wheels for the next day!
Alden and mother take off down the dramatic King's Highway for Wadi Musa (town next to Petra), but not before seeing the Crusader castle at Karak. Alden LOVES castles, remember? It was a bit hot, but Karak was great. Fairly intact. Good job, Crusaders.
Lunch, then hit the road again. Arriving in Wadi Musa too late to get into Petra, Alden and mother head "off the beaten path" to find "Little Petra." Arriving shortly before sunset, a little Bedouin man grabs Alden to show him a good place to see the sunset. A sprint through a valley and a scramble up a cliff later, and indeed, Alden is at the best sunset he has seen this summer. He finds his patiently waiting mother and they find some dinner in town. (Cleopatra's all you can eat buffet- great deal.)
Alden vs. Petra - Round one:
Arriving sharp at 6:30 (when the ticket office opens), Alden and mother saw just about everything. Round one: Alden. Amazing pictures were taken, extremely difficult hikes were accomplished- Up to the Monestary (850 steps according to a tacky t-shirt) and up to the aptly named "High Place of Sacrifice" via the long route. It was hot, but Alden and mother beat the crowds all day long by keeping a pretty good pace. Alden also bought foodstuffs to bring for lunch, thus avoiding the awful restaurants. Actually, they looked ok, but they were filled with tourists. Alden doesn't really like that crowd...
Side note: Wadi Musa rings with gun shots, honking, and fireworks all night long. Weddings on Tuesdays and Wednesdays? Seriously people?
Side note: Winning the "Unexpected national majority of foreign tourists at Petra" today were the Spanish- and mostly Catalan at that. Mostly nice people, and it gave Petra an funky Iberian flavor.
Petra can't really be described with any justice given this author's state of true exhaustion right now, but after 12 hours of site-seeing, Alden is VERY impressed with the Nabateans that made the place. Good job, Nabateans! You guys even installed an plumbing system to control the blood flow from the High Place of Sacrifice! And Alden just loved the column tops that had elephants! Seriously, you done good work.
Tomorrow, Alden vs. Petra: Round two. More hiking, which means it is time for some Tylenol PM and earplugs to catch some sleep!
Alden left Tartus for Hama. Hama has cute ancient water wheel things that were part of an old school irrigation system. Some are still functional and make groaning sounds. Alden saw all of them in about an hour, then slept for the afternoon.
Next day, Alden gets back to Damascus for his last night in Syria. Dinner at Arabesque: steak & wine. Some last moment shopping got done as well. (Alden's father should get excited.)
Then taxi to Amman, Jordan. The taxi ride was taxing. The driver went back on his pledge to use the AC, and even though Alden rode shot-gun, it was a throughly miserable drive. The highlight was Alden purchasing a large bottle of his favorite Irish cream liqour at the Duty-Free area. Also, the taxi driver, like most taxi drivers, is involved in smuggling large amounts of duty-free cigarettes. Alden was less than thrilled to hide contraband cigarettes on his person as demanded by the driver while the car got inspected.
In Amman, Alden expected to meet his mother, who was joining him in Jordan for his last two weeks of his SUMMER 2008 MID-EAST ADVENTURE. She has lots of frequent flyer miles; thus they are staying at the Grand Hyatt Amman. Really roughing it...
Alden's mother was late, but arrived nonetheless. Day one with mother: See Amman. Citadel, Roman amphitheater, the Balad, etc. Back to the Hyatt for the afternoon ('cause it was too hot for anything other than a dip in the pool). Then dinner with Brian "Da Ampersand" Katz. Delightful.
Now for adventure: Renting a car should not be difficut, given there was a Hertz Rent-a-car in the Hyatt's lobby.
Alden: "Hello, I would like to rent a small car for tomorrow."
Hertz girl: "Oh, I'm sorry, no small cars for tomorrow."
Alden: "Ok, medium or large perhaps?"
Hertz girl: "Sorry, no medium or large."
Alden: "Ok, any cars at all?"
Hertz girl: "Nope, no cars at all for the next two weeks."
Alden: (Confused, blank stare)
One phone call to the first random car agency listed in his slightly less out-of-date Jordanian Lonely Planet, and Alden's got wheels for the next day!
Alden and mother take off down the dramatic King's Highway for Wadi Musa (town next to Petra), but not before seeing the Crusader castle at Karak. Alden LOVES castles, remember? It was a bit hot, but Karak was great. Fairly intact. Good job, Crusaders.
Lunch, then hit the road again. Arriving in Wadi Musa too late to get into Petra, Alden and mother head "off the beaten path" to find "Little Petra." Arriving shortly before sunset, a little Bedouin man grabs Alden to show him a good place to see the sunset. A sprint through a valley and a scramble up a cliff later, and indeed, Alden is at the best sunset he has seen this summer. He finds his patiently waiting mother and they find some dinner in town. (Cleopatra's all you can eat buffet- great deal.)
Alden vs. Petra - Round one:
Arriving sharp at 6:30 (when the ticket office opens), Alden and mother saw just about everything. Round one: Alden. Amazing pictures were taken, extremely difficult hikes were accomplished- Up to the Monestary (850 steps according to a tacky t-shirt) and up to the aptly named "High Place of Sacrifice" via the long route. It was hot, but Alden and mother beat the crowds all day long by keeping a pretty good pace. Alden also bought foodstuffs to bring for lunch, thus avoiding the awful restaurants. Actually, they looked ok, but they were filled with tourists. Alden doesn't really like that crowd...
Side note: Wadi Musa rings with gun shots, honking, and fireworks all night long. Weddings on Tuesdays and Wednesdays? Seriously people?
Side note: Winning the "Unexpected national majority of foreign tourists at Petra" today were the Spanish- and mostly Catalan at that. Mostly nice people, and it gave Petra an funky Iberian flavor.
Petra can't really be described with any justice given this author's state of true exhaustion right now, but after 12 hours of site-seeing, Alden is VERY impressed with the Nabateans that made the place. Good job, Nabateans! You guys even installed an plumbing system to control the blood flow from the High Place of Sacrifice! And Alden just loved the column tops that had elephants! Seriously, you done good work.
Tomorrow, Alden vs. Petra: Round two. More hiking, which means it is time for some Tylenol PM and earplugs to catch some sleep!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Tartus
Wednesday morning Alden got up nice and early to head up to Tartus. First, a bus to Homs, then a mini-bus (death trap) taxi to Tartus. Luckily, Alden knows how to say "Yes, but I am bigger" and "Yes, because I am much bigger, than you" in Arabic to get littler Syrians to move over to allow Alden a fraction more leg room for the hour long drive. Alden also wonders, much like the Jerry Seinfeld sketch, "What is going on in this driver's life that makes him drive so angrily?"
Tartus is right on the Mediterranean. It is a fairly quiet little city with a very attractive sight for Alden to investigate: An island! Alden does love a good boat ride, and the island of Arwad is 3 km off the coast. This is the only Syrian island with a resident population. It was also one of the very last Crusader hold-outs; it measures 500 by 800 meters- so not that big. Arwad's streets are so narrow it is hard for two people to pass each other. It also has NO CARS, which means NO HONKING. The exchange of honking for the roar of Neptune's relentless wave assault on the shore was indeed music to Alden's ears.
To get to Arwad one takes a wee little ferry that fits maybe 3 dozen people, crammed together, attempting not to puke on each other, since the sea was pretty rough on Wednesday afternoon, with some 10 foot swells that made children cry with horror. It was almost comical. Alden found himself sliding into the mindset, "Well I'm sure that the captain knows what he's doing, right?"
Alden wandered around Arwad for a bit; the narrow little streets follow no logic, but the shore of the island was a wide lane, with kids swimming in little tidal pools. The two Crusader forts on the island have mostly succumbed to either the waves or have been recycled into homes. If it wasn't for the mounds of trash everywhere, the island would be perfectly delightful. But as it is, Arwad was a great place to relax for a bit.
Side note: the trash isn't anything new; Syrians don't have the same conceptions regarding littering as Americans. And it is especially odd for Alden, since one of the first questions he gets from Syrians is "Isn't Syria beautiful?" Indeed it is, but it would be even MORE beautiful if there wasn't crap all over the place. Seriously, stop littering. It's gross.
Back on the mainland, Alden explored the "old city" a bit- basically the area in and around the crusader castle that has been turned into peoples little homes, another very cool recycling effort.
Then over to the Crusader cathedral, "Our Lady of Tortosa." Half church, half fort, this was probably a pretty imposing little fortress back in the day. Now it is filled with dusty display cases of nothing too impressive, as well as two security guards that follow you around, almost annoyingly close, asking to see your entrance ticket every few minutes. Alden's internal dialog: "Seriously, I just showed it to the guy standing RIGHT NEXT TO YOU, do you not trust him?" Luckily Alden always keeps all of his tickets to Syrian tourist sites, because a pile of student tickets works just as well as an international student ID card to get the student discounts. And the pile of student tickets didn't cost $25! Victory!
Alden spent the afternoon walking up and down the shore on the Corniche. It was a stunning sight as the sun set over the water- viewed from a top floor restaurant in the local Dept. of Commerce building.
Thursday Alden got himself up nice and early. Mission: Visit yet another Crusader castle- Qa'alat Marqab. This would turn out to be the best one yet!
A mini-bus ride to Bainyas, switch onto a mini-bus towards Yoanbe- and an hour out of Tartus Alden is at the front door of the most intimidating castle he has seen in the Middle East. Large and very in charge, Marqab is amazing, but a different type of amazing from the other castles he's visited. Krek de C. is very intact, and is right out of a fairy tale. One can easily imagine knights in shining armor, damsels in distress, etc. Saladin's castle is not so intact, but has a great and commanding location over two steep valleys. But Marqab just looks evil. This is partially due to being made entirely out of black (basalt) rock. It overlooks miles of farm land one one side, and the Mediterranean on the other. It is very intact, without too many visitors.
The out-of-date lonely planet claims that Krek de C. stables still smells like horses. This isn't true; it smells like poop alright, but that's from humans. The stables at Marqab are enormous- larger than at Krek de C., and not smelling of human waste. The castle housed thousands of soldiers- it was crucial in the communications and logistical links for the Faranj back in the day. To be honest, Alden's expectations were rather low- his out-of-date lonely planet guide said that most of Marqab was ruined due to an earthquake ("zilzell" in Arabic); but it was in excellent shape on Thursday.
Marqab was so intimidating that Saladin didn't even try to lay siege; he marched right by to go after easier targets- eventually Marqab was basically abandoned when the Faranj retreated back to Europe. Alden enjoyed exploring the several large and intact storerooms and dungeons. The chapel (converted to a mosque when the Faranj left) still had some fresco remnants in the confessional. Very cool. Castles with ocean views are quite nice. Alden also enjoyed the services of a free guide at Marqab. He got quite a bit of attention since he was the only non Syrian at the castle. The guide switched seamlessly between Arabic and (very loud) French; languages that Alden seamlessly speaks only marginally well. Alden insisted on speaking Arabic, while his guide focused on French. It was a nice refresher in French castle vocabulary for Alden, bringing back fond memories of good times, but less than impressive grades, in high school French.
Back in Tartus for a late lunch and a nap, Alden spent the afternoon relaxing by the ocean. Not a bad day.
Tartus is right on the Mediterranean. It is a fairly quiet little city with a very attractive sight for Alden to investigate: An island! Alden does love a good boat ride, and the island of Arwad is 3 km off the coast. This is the only Syrian island with a resident population. It was also one of the very last Crusader hold-outs; it measures 500 by 800 meters- so not that big. Arwad's streets are so narrow it is hard for two people to pass each other. It also has NO CARS, which means NO HONKING. The exchange of honking for the roar of Neptune's relentless wave assault on the shore was indeed music to Alden's ears.
To get to Arwad one takes a wee little ferry that fits maybe 3 dozen people, crammed together, attempting not to puke on each other, since the sea was pretty rough on Wednesday afternoon, with some 10 foot swells that made children cry with horror. It was almost comical. Alden found himself sliding into the mindset, "Well I'm sure that the captain knows what he's doing, right?"
Alden wandered around Arwad for a bit; the narrow little streets follow no logic, but the shore of the island was a wide lane, with kids swimming in little tidal pools. The two Crusader forts on the island have mostly succumbed to either the waves or have been recycled into homes. If it wasn't for the mounds of trash everywhere, the island would be perfectly delightful. But as it is, Arwad was a great place to relax for a bit.
Side note: the trash isn't anything new; Syrians don't have the same conceptions regarding littering as Americans. And it is especially odd for Alden, since one of the first questions he gets from Syrians is "Isn't Syria beautiful?" Indeed it is, but it would be even MORE beautiful if there wasn't crap all over the place. Seriously, stop littering. It's gross.
Back on the mainland, Alden explored the "old city" a bit- basically the area in and around the crusader castle that has been turned into peoples little homes, another very cool recycling effort.
Then over to the Crusader cathedral, "Our Lady of Tortosa." Half church, half fort, this was probably a pretty imposing little fortress back in the day. Now it is filled with dusty display cases of nothing too impressive, as well as two security guards that follow you around, almost annoyingly close, asking to see your entrance ticket every few minutes. Alden's internal dialog: "Seriously, I just showed it to the guy standing RIGHT NEXT TO YOU, do you not trust him?" Luckily Alden always keeps all of his tickets to Syrian tourist sites, because a pile of student tickets works just as well as an international student ID card to get the student discounts. And the pile of student tickets didn't cost $25! Victory!
Alden spent the afternoon walking up and down the shore on the Corniche. It was a stunning sight as the sun set over the water- viewed from a top floor restaurant in the local Dept. of Commerce building.
Thursday Alden got himself up nice and early. Mission: Visit yet another Crusader castle- Qa'alat Marqab. This would turn out to be the best one yet!
A mini-bus ride to Bainyas, switch onto a mini-bus towards Yoanbe- and an hour out of Tartus Alden is at the front door of the most intimidating castle he has seen in the Middle East. Large and very in charge, Marqab is amazing, but a different type of amazing from the other castles he's visited. Krek de C. is very intact, and is right out of a fairy tale. One can easily imagine knights in shining armor, damsels in distress, etc. Saladin's castle is not so intact, but has a great and commanding location over two steep valleys. But Marqab just looks evil. This is partially due to being made entirely out of black (basalt) rock. It overlooks miles of farm land one one side, and the Mediterranean on the other. It is very intact, without too many visitors.
The out-of-date lonely planet claims that Krek de C. stables still smells like horses. This isn't true; it smells like poop alright, but that's from humans. The stables at Marqab are enormous- larger than at Krek de C., and not smelling of human waste. The castle housed thousands of soldiers- it was crucial in the communications and logistical links for the Faranj back in the day. To be honest, Alden's expectations were rather low- his out-of-date lonely planet guide said that most of Marqab was ruined due to an earthquake ("zilzell" in Arabic); but it was in excellent shape on Thursday.
Marqab was so intimidating that Saladin didn't even try to lay siege; he marched right by to go after easier targets- eventually Marqab was basically abandoned when the Faranj retreated back to Europe. Alden enjoyed exploring the several large and intact storerooms and dungeons. The chapel (converted to a mosque when the Faranj left) still had some fresco remnants in the confessional. Very cool. Castles with ocean views are quite nice. Alden also enjoyed the services of a free guide at Marqab. He got quite a bit of attention since he was the only non Syrian at the castle. The guide switched seamlessly between Arabic and (very loud) French; languages that Alden seamlessly speaks only marginally well. Alden insisted on speaking Arabic, while his guide focused on French. It was a nice refresher in French castle vocabulary for Alden, bringing back fond memories of good times, but less than impressive grades, in high school French.
Back in Tartus for a late lunch and a nap, Alden spent the afternoon relaxing by the ocean. Not a bad day.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Solid as a rock!
Alden apologizes for the lack of any updates the past few days, but he hasn't been up to much.
Fii hawqeeqa ("actually") Alden's been getting over a case of the "Euphrates," which wasn't too enjoyable. Sticking to a P.O.W.-inspired diet of rice gruel and water, Alden learned that "western" style toilets are known as "faranj" toilets- the Arabic term for crusader. Hilarious, right? Quite a legacy.
Alden is usually a staunch supporter of international intellectual property law enforcement, but he didn't seem to mind so much that a large supply of Imodium and stomach antibiotics cost less than $2.
Not wanting to be more than a quick dash away from his faranj toilet, Alden spent the better part of the past week in his lovely house in Damascus reading a book on the Crusades. This was quite a bit of fun for Alden, who is a student of strategery, since he has now been to the majority of the cities and castles that played significant roles in the Crusades. He is a dork, whatever.
Alden and his brother, Walter, would often sing a little anthem from "Arrested Development" to celebrate a success in the Euphrates department while they were hiking in Tibet: "...solid as a ROCK!" Indeed, Alden sang this little ditty this morning, Alhamdulillah! Alden is nearly back to full health- he picked up a little sinus infection, but that is quite minor compared to the previous ailment.
Side note: Syrians love Dolce & Gabbana. Correction: Syrians love knock-off imitation Dolce & Gabbana apparel. The young and hip teen-agers (and many 20-somethings) will wear tight t-shirts and hats with huge "D&G" logos, and there are "D&G" items for sale everywhere, sometimes with hilarious misspellings. Alden nearly succumbed to temptation and purchased a $3 "Dolec & Cabanna" shirt, but his respect for intellectual property law kicked in.
Alden will spend two more days in Damascus, then head up to Tartus and Hama before heading down to Amman, Jordan. There are a few more castles to see before Alden heads back to the U.S. of A.
Fii hawqeeqa ("actually") Alden's been getting over a case of the "Euphrates," which wasn't too enjoyable. Sticking to a P.O.W.-inspired diet of rice gruel and water, Alden learned that "western" style toilets are known as "faranj" toilets- the Arabic term for crusader. Hilarious, right? Quite a legacy.
Alden is usually a staunch supporter of international intellectual property law enforcement, but he didn't seem to mind so much that a large supply of Imodium and stomach antibiotics cost less than $2.
Not wanting to be more than a quick dash away from his faranj toilet, Alden spent the better part of the past week in his lovely house in Damascus reading a book on the Crusades. This was quite a bit of fun for Alden, who is a student of strategery, since he has now been to the majority of the cities and castles that played significant roles in the Crusades. He is a dork, whatever.
Alden and his brother, Walter, would often sing a little anthem from "Arrested Development" to celebrate a success in the Euphrates department while they were hiking in Tibet: "...solid as a ROCK!" Indeed, Alden sang this little ditty this morning, Alhamdulillah! Alden is nearly back to full health- he picked up a little sinus infection, but that is quite minor compared to the previous ailment.
Side note: Syrians love Dolce & Gabbana. Correction: Syrians love knock-off imitation Dolce & Gabbana apparel. The young and hip teen-agers (and many 20-somethings) will wear tight t-shirts and hats with huge "D&G" logos, and there are "D&G" items for sale everywhere, sometimes with hilarious misspellings. Alden nearly succumbed to temptation and purchased a $3 "Dolec & Cabanna" shirt, but his respect for intellectual property law kicked in.
Alden will spend two more days in Damascus, then head up to Tartus and Hama before heading down to Amman, Jordan. There are a few more castles to see before Alden heads back to the U.S. of A.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)