http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Damascus-for-Dummies/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Damascus for Dummies en-us Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:01:41 +0000 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:01:41 +0000 Hi everybodyWe're so sorry for the long delay in updating but we've been getting our travel on and so internet has been few and far between. Last weekend we went to Palmyra and hung out with some Bedouins and their camels. Last week we finished the Arabic course and ran wild through the souq and restaurants and up Mount Qaysioun to watch the sunset. Then we celebrated our new freedom from Ara http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/North/Aleppo/blog-422391.html Hello from Abou Roumaneh in Damascus an officially swankier part of townSo we finally started class and a grueling week later are slowly recovering. The classes are 5 hours a day 8302 with a 30 min snack break five different subjects every day. These range from Grammar to Dialect Conversation to Modern and Classical Literature Social Studies History Media... on and on and all in A http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/South/Damascus/blog-415377.html So continuing the game of catchup here's a little bit about our home for the first week The Damascus Hostel. First of all the owners and staff are pretty much the nicest people ever. Even though our flight was 1.5 hours late Johnny was still standing patiently at the baggage claim door when we finally straggled through. I think we were told welcome welcome almost 20 times on the 20 http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/South/Damascus/blog-413421.html We're here we're safe some photos for you allDay 1 Visiting the Umayyad Mosque about a few yards of the Souq Hamadiye walking back to the hostel getting lost and watching the twilight fall from our balcony. http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/South/Damascus/blog-412249.html We're packed we're ready we're leaving TOMORROW At 1pm tomorrow June 22 Leah and I will be racing splitscreen style toward the Philadelphia and Toronto airports respectively. We'll see each other about 10 hours later in the PARIS airport squealing with excitement.Within a few hours we'll be giggling in the back row of the Air France flight to Damascus. We'll be met by adorable Raymo http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/South/Damascus/blog-410880.html Two dorky girls who love to study Check.Two dummies who know surprisingly little about where they're going given the fact they've been studying the region for three years Check.Nothing left to do but pack next week resulting in much worrying about prices jails destinations visas politics the heat clothing Arabic the heat classes transport apartments the heat and did we mention http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Syria/South/Damascus/blog-407700.html