Blogs from Syria, Middle East - page 2

La iglesia de Santo Tomás es un antiguo templo romano convertido en iglesia o una tumba romana. This church was a former roman grave or temple. Bu kilise önceden bir roma tapinatiti veya turve imis.... read more

No doubt American and Arab societies vary greatly, but what I am finding is that no matter what the differences, the same elements, such as love, trust, and friendship, remain the same. I will explain the process of courtship in Syria that may seem a little different than the process of courtship in the United States. I find that in America, people “accidentally” get married- if I ask many of my college friends now, very few have the intention of getting married in the near future. Indeed most of them will, but perhaps sometime down the road. Most are focused on educational advancements and their careers. Marriage is something that comes along later, after we’ve “found” ourselves, we seek to find someone else. But in Syria, the process is different. Whereas in the West the person ... read more

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citadel_of_Damascus... read more

Yesterday there was the masira, and although I want to make this blog as apolitical as possible, I must comment on the event and its impact on Syrian society. To the best of my understanding, there was a call for all of Syria to orchestrate supportive rallies across the country from Aleppo in the North, to Homs in the center of the country, to right here in Damascus. Thousands to millions of people throughout the country turned out to throw their support behind Bashar al- Assad, the president. These “Syria is Awesome!” rallies were full of young people, professionals, middle class citizens, minorities, women, and students. Despite the economic and social diversity of the crowd, everyone had one thing in common- their patriotism towards the country and its leader Bashar al Assad. These rallies came a ... read more

Dear All Greetings from the Syrian Desert! Currently in the town of Palmyra, Syria’s star tourist attraction, and a rather touristy little town it is – more reminiscent of Thailand’s backpacker hotspots, with pancake houses and touts by the bucketload – seems a bit strange for Syria, but actually rather welcome to be back on the tourist track again particularly at this time. Last I wrote, I was just about to leave beautiful Aleppo, and a not-so-beautiful hotel room, taking a 4 hour bus trip eastwards towards the capital of the Syrian desert, Deir es-Zur. A journey of stark contrasts – starting off leaving civilization and verdant hills, and travelling through such a barren and inhospitable-looking landscape which is the Syrian desert. I felt thirsty just looking out of the bus window, from the comfort of ... read more