The traumatic start to this weekend’s trip was our own doing! After successfully bartering down a taxi to the bus station to 100 SP for the first time ever, we found we had both forgotten our passports. You need them to buy tickets so we had to get a taxi home again to collect them!!! Once we got to Hama routine kicked in. We had another chicken shwarma from what we consider to be the best kebab stall in Syria. It didn’t disappoint. Then we took a taxi to the Riad Hotel where we were very lucky to get a room. They had already turned some people away but for privileged guests (well, we had stayed there once before!) they managed to find a room. This time we even had a balcony which was nice, especially ... read more

Now that it's confirmed we won't be staying in Syria, we thought we'd best try to get the rest of cultural Damascus done quickly!! For those who haven't yet heard, we have taken a contract in Baku, Azerbaijan from September and will be there for a year initially. Exciting times and we look forward to blogging from there as there doesn't seem to be a lot already on travelblog! We ventured back into the Old City to see a couple of sights. First up was the Medical Museum which was bizarre to say the least! The courtyard is lovely and is full of medicinal plants complete with names in Arabic and English, along with descriptions of their health benefits. All around the courtyard are rooms with different exhibits. The strangest was surely the stuffed animals. Can ... read more

We had a great day out in Bosra. The city is a couple of hours on the bus to the South of Damascus. It seemed that we had to travel halfway to Beirut just to get the bus though! When we arrived in Bosra we were unable to find any accommodation. There were 2 options: sleep on blankets on the floor in a big room behind the “1001 Nights” restaurant, or pay US$200 to stay in 5 star luxury. We took the third way - exploring the site and returning to Damascus! The restaurant allowed us to leave our now unneeded baggage with them and they even booked our bus ticket for us. Then they pointed us in the right direction and we went out to see the ruins in 40 degrees of midday heat! First ... read more

Hama is the fourth largest city in Syria. It took us just under three hours to get there from Damascus and we were instantly impressed by the chilled out feel to the place, delighted to find the most delicious chicken kebabs (so far) at the bus station, and very happy not to be ripped off by a taxi driver! We stayed at the Riad Hotel and when we return we will definitely stay there again. It was like a cross between a one star hotel and a backpacker hostel with excellent service, friendly staff, and other travellers to talk to! Our room had a great view towards the river and it's a shame we could only stay one night. The thing most people come to Hama to see is the collection of norias, or waterwheels. Unfortunately ... read more

Damascus is proving to be a fascinating place to live. For us, it’s our first experience of living in a Muslim country. Mosques are everywhere and at prayer times the sound of the muezzin calls are haunting as they echo around the city. Working every afternoon and evening isn’t leaving much time for exploring the city. That’s why we try to go somewhere new at every opportunity. This week we went to the Great Umayyad Mosque, a huge but beautiful place on a site which has been a place of worship for various religious groups since the 9th Century. To get there we take a taxi to the entrance to the Al-Hamadiye Souk. Walking through there is quite an experience. Everything seems to be on sale if you wander down the labyrinth-like side streets. We have ... read more