Syria

In my previous post, I listed visiting Syria for 3 days as one of the definite highlights of my summer in the Middle East region. As a result of Syria's infamous reputation in the West and the negative perceptions that many Westerners have of it, the Syrian Arab Republic is one of the least visited countries in the world by Americans and Westerners. The US State Department lists Syria as a "State Sponsor of Terrorism" and has posted a Travel Warning that urges Americans to be aware of the apparent dangers of having a presence in Syria. Senior US officials have also included Syria in the "Axis of Evil"... another wasteland of a country in the Middle East full of angry, hostile Islamists; sounds a lot like my solo trip to Iran in April and we all know how that turned out. After visiting countries like Iran and Syria, suddenly the Middle East doesn't seem so bad after all.

An entire lifetime of exposure to biased Western media is bound to throw anyone off balance and leave them with a distorted view of the Middle East, especially states (Iran/Syria) and non-state actors (Hezbollah/Hamas) that are in opposition to US/Israeli policy in the region. It's a shame that so many people miss out on being able to visit Syria for these reasons. Instead, most foreign travelers head for the obvious tourist traps in Egypt and Jordan. In an objective international context, Syria lists among the best tourist destinations in the world. It's hard to realize why anyone would ever want to visit Syria if you believe everything the media and US government tells you about Syria. On the contrary, my Lebanese professors would tell me that Syria boasts some of the most beautiful and cultural sights and attractions in the Middle East and that Syria is actually one of the safest countries in the Middle East for Americans to visit. If anything, Americans are a bigger target in Saudia Arabia, a close US ally. Anyone who tries to picture Syria in their heads would probably think of a third-world backwater country full of terrorists and desert wastelands. You couldn't be anymore wrong.

Americans usually can't get into Syria but getting into Syria actually wasn't a problem for me at all since the school organized the trip, including the visas. Also we were entering overland from Lebanon and since Lebanon and Syria do not have diplomatic ties or a demarcated border, Syrian officials generally will let anyone with a Lebanese visa to enter Syria through Lebanon. Of course, that means anyone without an Israeli stamp in their passport. Damascus, the capital of Syria, is only about 50 miles from Beirut. We left Beirut at 12pm but we didn't get to Damascus until around 7pm, which is even worse than when we were in Ecuador last December/January and it took us 7 hours to go 100 miles from Quito to Cojimies. Anyway, we found a duty free shop at the border and loaded up the tour bus with booze. We even bought a Heineken keg for the long ride into the Syrian desert. Most of the terrain between Beirut and Damascus is arid (similar to southern Italy) and characterized by rolling hills and mountain ranges... the vast desert starts a few miles west of Damascus and stretches all the way to Baghdad.

Damascus is actually the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. Roads have always led to Damascus and the city is a testament to the dozens of empires that have come and go over the last few thousand years (Roman, Persian, Greek, Assyrian, Byzantium, Egyptian, Mamluk, Umayyad, Crusader, Ottoman, French). After a few weeks in Beirut, it was a bit refreshing to be in Damascus. Though older and more populated than Beirut, Damascus seemed a lot more cleaner, less densely populated, and better planned... though, the driving conditions were just as bad. The old city, enclosed from the modern city by stone walls, is remarkably well-preserved and just walking through the narrow roads and alleys around the souqs is an adventure in it of itself. After purchasing a hookah for $40 that would've cost over $100 in the US and exploring the Muslim (Ummayad Mosque) and Christian Quarters (St. Paul's house) of the old city, we boarded the bus for Palmyra (Tadmur), a 4 hour drive into the middle of the Syrian desert. The bus used the old Damascus-Baghdad highway, a route used for caravan trade in ancient times but in recent times is the main route used by insurgents entering Iraq through Syria. Palmyra is about halfway on the highway and 70km from the Iraqi border.

Palmyra remains one of the most impressive ruins in the Middle East, after the Pyramids in Giza and Petra in Jordan. An ancient desert city, it was conquered by the Romans in the 1st century AD. Here we were, in the central Syrian desert, and the Roman Empire influence was still present. After Palmyra, our bus ventured back across the barren desert into the Western Syrian mountains on the border with Lebanon to a town called Ma'loula. The town of Ma'loula is the only place in the world that still speaks Aramaic, the language of Christ. Ma'loula is a predominantly Christian town in the Syrian mountains. 10% of Syria's population is Christian. It was outside Damascus that Saul of Tarsus converted to Christianity and changed his name to St. Paul. It was also during the Lebanese Civil War that the Syrian Army prevented the Christian militias from being defeated by Muslim militias.

Pope John Paul II visited Syria. So should you.

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Assad believes in Syria. Do you?

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Saladin, who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Souq, bullet holes still visible from French warplanes (1943)

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Ummayad Mosque

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Syria loves Hezbollah

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Iran, Syria, Hezbollah

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Syrian Christians

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

JPII visits Syria

From Syria: Palmyra

Syria's Desert

From Syria: Palmyra

From Syria: Palmyra

Palmyra

From Syria: Palmyra

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Ma'loula

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

From Syria: Damascus/Maaloula

Lebanon: Middle Eastern Paradise

While I was doing my 6 weeks of summer school in Beirut, I had the intention of making regular updates on this blog, from my impressions of Lebanon and its unique culture to random stories about running into Hezbollah (several times). That quickly changed when I started settling into daily life in Beirut. Class from 8 until 1230. Gym, lunch, and studying/homework until dinner. Going out at night and coming back sometime between midnight and dawn. I was spending the summer in Beirut, famous for being the undisputed party capital of the Middle East. The last thing I wanted to be doing was spending all my time in front of a computer with Beirut and Lebanon just outside my window. So, I decided to attempt to describe my 6 weeks of study abroad in Beirut, Lebanon with just one essay. Initially, I thought such a task would be no problem and ideally I would've finished and posted it by the time I left Beirut. It's the 11th of August and it's only now that I think I've come up with an essay worthy of describing the greatness of Beirut and Lebanon. And I suppose it took so long for me to work on this is because I also hoped of inspiring more to visit. Of all the countries in the Middle East I've had the privilege of visiting or living in, Lebanon is by far my absolute personal favorite, and its capital Beirut is without a doubt my favorite city in the entire region.

It's a shame that Lebanon is one of the least visited countries in the Middle East. Surrounded by its larger and more infamous neighbors, Israel and Syria, most people can't even find Lebanon on a map. Usually the only times people will ever hear of Lebanon, it will be the nightly news reporting on sectarian violence, terrorism, or war in the country. But the Lebanese always speak of their country as the most beautiful in the Middle East, from its hospitable mountain vilages to its glitzy capital Beirut, from skiing in the snowy mountains in the morning to swimming in the sandy beaches in the afternoon to clubbing in the capital at night; Lebanon is the most underrated country in the entire Middle East.

About the size of the US state of Connecticut, Lebanon has more to see and do than countries double or triple its size. 6 weeks still wasn't enough for me. The notion that Lebanon is 'too dangerous' is a grossly exaggerated misconception and misrepresentation of an otherwise friendly and welcoming nation, as described by the Lebanese themselves. The US State Department has a 'Travel Warning' issued for Lebanon and urges Americans to avoid any travel or presence in the country. In the last 6 months, I've been to 7 countries with so called 'Travel Warnings', and I've come up with the conclusion that they don't mean anything. Sure, Travel Warnings for Iraq and Somalia are definitely legitimate but I have never at all felt unsafe in Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Syria, Iran, the Philippines or Saudi Arabia... I didn't even feel unsafe when I went to Hezbollah-controlled South Beirut and Hezbollah pulled my taxi over. The only way to have a legitimate opinion about a country is to just see it yourself, with a blank slate in your mind. Take whatever else you hear about it, whether its from the media or the government, with a grain of salt and just go.

Summer is probably the best time to be in Beirut. There are more than 12 million Lebanese abroad, while there are only about 4.4 million in Lebanon itself. But hordes of overseas Lebanese return to their home country to spend the summer. My apartment balcony had a view of the Mediterranean Sea. The beach was only a 10 minute walk away. At night, the rooftop bars and clubs come alive and stay open until you can see the sunrise. The Lebanese are famous for knowing how to party, in any situation. The country's seen some rough times since 2005, when former PM Hariri was assassinated by a car bomb in Beirut. Since then, Lebanon's seen nothing but more political assassinations, sectarian violence, bombings, civil unrest, war, etc. There's never any lasting peace in Lebanon and even when it seems like it, tensions are always high and the possibility of an outbreak of more fighting always exists. LAU is located in West Beirut, which was overrun and captured by Hezbollah fighters in May after intense gunfights in the street, which nearly pushed the entire country into another civil war. The guy who works at the Starbucks on the ground floor of my aparment would tell me how Hezbollah fighters would come by and take coffee breaks during the fighting. Yeah, they'd just rest their RPGs and AKs against the table and sit there sipping on coffee. Despite the Doha Agreement, which ended the May conflict, sectarian violence still occurs throughout the country (Tripoli). As a result, there's a strong military presence everywhere in the capital. Soldiers and tanks are positioned on every road and every intersection. It's impossible to go for a walk and to not see an armed soldier or checkpoint. But there's a pervasive sense of 'life goes on' that seems to be imbued in every Lebanese citizen and hard times never seem to dampen their strong spirit. Beirut is home to two American universities, AUB and LAU, which adds a strong sense of youth and vigor to the capital and best seen at night in any of the various nightlife neighborhoods around the city. Walking around the city is always an adventure. 5-star hotels are right next to bombed out or bullet-ridden buildings. It's actually rare to find an old building with no bullet holes in it. You'll see a soldier on top of a tank on one corner and then find an expensive designer brand fashion store on the next corner. Beirut, called the Paris of the Middle East, is unique and unlike any other city in the world.

Lebanon is the only Middle Eastern country without a desert. Instead, around the country you'll find Byblos (the 2nd oldest city in the world) and Tripoli in the north. On Mt Lebanon, you'll find snow (even in the summer) and cedar forests that once covered most of the country. The simple villages in these mountains make a stark contrast to the glitzy, cosmopolitan capital. The large Roman ruins at Baalbek are so well-preserved that you can actually imagine what they were like in ancient times. Also in the Bekaa Valley is the home of Lebanon's world-class wine industry and vineyards, in addition to being the heartland of Hezbollah, the Shi'a paramilitary and political organization in Lebanon. Depending on your politics, they're either terrorists or freedom fighters. Down south are the Druze villages in the Chouf mountains and the ancient port cities of Tyre and Sidon, now unfortunately home to some of the 400,000 Palestinians living in refugee camps in the south.

The Lebanese people are unique in that they are all the same and different in so many ways. Though on the surface people identify themselves as Lebanese, beneath that sense of nationalistic pride are many various sects of 17 different religions living side by side with each other. Mainly split between Sunnis, Shi'ites, Christians, and Druze, this melting pot of cultures can either help to promote a sense of tolerance and diversity unlike any other Middle Eastern nation, or it can sow the seeds of conflict and war, as it has throughout Lebanon's long-troubled history, including its brutal 15 year civil war (1975-1990), Syrian occupation (1976-2005), and Israeli occupation (1982-present). Probably the only thing that the Lebanese can agree is on is their bitterness/hatred of Israel. On the upside, people on the streets tend to have more of an international outlook and be more cultured than the citizens of any other Mideast country. Everyday church bells will ring and muezzins will sing the call to prayer, side by side with each other. And a conversation with someone on the street could include Arabic, English, and French, sometimes all in the same sentence.

It's hard to perfectly describe spending 6 weeks in a country like Lebanon and a city like Beirut. Here's a short list of experiences off the top of my head:

-4th of July at Hard Rock Cafe
-all you want wings and beer at Hard Rock Cafe on Mondays
-sunsets on the Mediterranean Sea
-going to every region in Lebanon controlled by Hezbollah (South Lebanon, Bekaa Valley, South Beirut) and getting out alive
-going to Hezbollah-controlled South Beirut and having armed Hezbollah guys pull our taxi over
-people-watching on the Corniche
-meeting Wadi Jumblatt and getting a tour of his compound (leader of the Druze)
-the crazy times/late nights at pubs, bars, clubs, etc.
-staying out all night and hearing the morning call to prayer and church bells
-random gunfire
-drinking/going out on weeknights
-Buns and Guns





-meeting up with Ghada Bualuan, my 1st semester Arabic professor at ND
-the prisoner exchange between Hezbollah and Israel
-playing paintball at a Hezbollah field in South Beirut
-Filipino night club
-the Opus Dei Center in Beirut, named Les Cedres
-Euro Cup 2008, Viva Espana!
-the only rule to driving in Lebanon: there are no rules
-apartment parties
-traditional Lebanese dinners, including around 20 appetizers
-celebratory gunfire
-hearing explosions in the city and not knowing whether it was more fighting or some guy just getting married
-the Palestinian refugee camps
-riding around Beirut on a moped
-getting a free ride around Beirut in the open back of a Lebanese Army Humvee
-excursions to Tripoli (during the sectarian fighting), Byblos, Mt Lebanon, the Cedars, Tyre, Sidon, Baalbek, the Chouf mountains, and Syria
-all the other short stories and anecdotes that I can't remember

I'll return to Beirut and Lebanon one day, inshallah. Viva Lebanon!