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Archive for the ‘Middle East’ Category

AIDS Test

In Middle East, Syria on February 5, 2007 at 1:39 pm

Everyone who wants to live and work in Syria needs to get an AIDS test done.  There are only two places in the country where you can get the test – one in Damascus, one in Homs.  Two weeks ago the Iraqi president visited with the Syrian president and requested that all Iraqis be sent back to Iraq within 15 days if they can’t get their test completed.  This means every morning before 8am there is a huge lineup at the clinic, maybe 500 people scrambling to get their test so they can stay.  This is in addition to all the Syrians and other foreigners who are there for the same thing.

This morning I arrived at 8am and stood at the front of the line for foreigners, waiting to throw my passport through the gate to the men in the white coats.  The first man was relatively gentle and pleasant, the second yelled and screamed until his face turned red and he sounded like he’d either pass a kidney stone or explode.  I got my passport through on the first try and then stood in the cold and mud for the next three and half hours as relatively gentle man let Syrians jump the queue.  Eventually he yelled out my name and I was able to get inside the gate and wait for another hour and a half.

As I was at the front of the line this time, I was able to watch yelling man take blood samples.  First he yelled at whoever was in the chair, grabbed their left arm and tied the rubber hose around it.  If he couldn’t find the vein in 2 seconds, he’d rip the tube off, grab the right arm and give that a try.  If no vein there, tube off, wrapped on wrist, a little bit more yelling, then BAM, jab into the back of the hand.  If he was lucky he’d hit a vein, but sometimes it looked like he was pulling up muscle or marrow.  I was lucky and ended up with a soft speaking and polite man who managed to get my vein on the first go.  A bit of bruising but at least no emotional scarring.

Tomorrow I go back to get the results – they’d better be negative.

Prayer Time

In Middle East, Syria on February 2, 2007 at 9:09 pm

A 95 year old man makes the call to prayer at the mosque closest to my current residence, about 50 feet up the road.  His prayer is painful, you’re begging for it to end before he dies and the last breath gurgles out of his throat.  While he gasps and wheezes his way through the ritual, the other calls to prayer echo out across the city, fading in and out like twisted backup singers.  It’s eerie and I’m glad it’s only 5 times a day.

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On the Way…

In Asia, Iran, Pakistan on November 13, 2002 at 7:09 pm

Sorry for the short message but it’s just to let you know that I am indeed alive.  At this moment we are waiting for our Pakistani visas to be issued by the most annoying consul yet.  If everything goes according to plan we should be in Taftan, Pakistan this evening.  By far this is the most exciting part of the trip and I am totally ready for whatever craziness and mayhem it has to offer.  I’m getting frustrated with trying to book a flight out of India, everything requires a faxed confirmation and other faxes of copies of copies of stupid things but I will be leaving Delhi around the 5th of December.

The time in Iran has been good although I am very ready to leave.  The scarf is oppressive in the heat and a pain when I’m trying to set up my tent.  On the other hand I have almost had my fill of army and guns and tanks and all that fun stuff.

We’re pretty much driving full-tilt during the day to make it to each city due to tribal conflicts and all that chaos.  We will be in those cities each night behind military compounds or secure campgrounds.  Once I reach India I’ll be phoning you from Amritsar so you can hear my voice and cry at the sound of the beauty of it 🙂

I’m loving this trip, can you tell?

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There Are Computers in Iran!!!

In Asia, Iran on October 31, 2002 at 7:03 pm

Yes, it’s true.  Iran truly is a progressive country and there are functioning computers.  In fact, the internet connections are probably the best here.  So in case you haven’t guessed, we are now in Iran.  Eric has put up some beautiful photos on the worldwidewandering.org site so have a look and be very surprised.

We crossed the border last Friday in one hour and ten minutes, a record for anyone who has ever tried crossing from Turkey.  That includes bringing Eric across who was taken into a private room for questioning but made it out alive after two minutes of ‘Hi – how are you, do you love our country?’.

So far we’ve been stopped a number of times by the police and military, but mostly because they have no idea what to do with us.  Tourism is so low because of 9/11 that we we’re only the second overland truck to cross into Iran through Turkey this year.  When the military spots us now, they are really at a loss as to what they are supposed to do.  However, they treat us with respect and are more curious about us than anything else.

One night we stayed at the Caspian Sea.  When the locals found out we were in the neighbourhood, they all showed up on their motorbikes just to look at us.  Some had never seen foreigners before so they just sat and watched while we ate dinner.  The next morning when we woke up someone had brought us fresh bread for breakfast.  This was after we had dinner with a French arms dealer.  Don’t ask me how we meet these people, but I have no objections to getting to know the types you only see in movies.

Anyways, we’ve been hanging out in Tehran for a few days and although it’s a big city, I haven’t done much sightseeing other than to visit the former U.S. embassy which is now affectionately known as ‘the U.S. Den of Espionage’.  It’s pretty interesting to see all the propaganda painted on the walls outside – it’s in total contrast to how the Iranian people really feel towards Americans.  They are always trying to reassure us that they love all North Americans and do not necessarily hold the same views as the government.

So now that I’m here, you’re all probably wondering the same thing – what’s the traffic like?  Haha, I know you’re more interested in the head scarf thing but I really do have to address the whole manner of driving here.  It’s the most chaotic thing I have ever seen in my life.  It’s the funniest game of chicken between pedestrian and driver – the pedestrian knows he’ll lose yet persists in standing there til the car swerves around him.  Today I tried to play the game and almost won against a Peugeot until Adam freaked out and pulled me back.  A red light at an intersection appears to mean that if the red light applies to you, quickly turn right or left into oncoming traffic.  All cars drive without the following three things:  headlights (hot pink do not count as you can barely see them), a clutch, and windshield wipers which is not such a big deal unless it rains like it did all day yesterday.  Arnout also pointed out that there is no such thing as sideview mirrors, probably because they’ve all been knocked off at some point.  I won’t even start on the phenomena that are motorcycles.

As for the head scarf, I actually do not mind wearing it except when I am pitching a tent.  Then it just gets in the way and nailed into the ground about 2 times before I start screaming and then one of the guys comes and finishes up.  It’s also a pain when you are in a hotel room without a private sink and must put the thing on to go outside to find a place to wash your face.  For the most part however, it’s not all that noticeable and one added bonus is that it catches the food that misses my mouth and provides a snack for later on.

So there you have it, about six days in Iran and I can’t find a single thing wrong with it.  I’m glad we’ve added an extra week on because there is so much to see and we probably won’t get to half of it all.  In fact, I’m willing to bet that most of you would actually enjoy it here yourselves.  Just stop watching the news and check out Eric’s website to see how beautiful it really is.

This Saturday is 7 weeks on the truck and we are all still getting along like best pals.  The only person I’ve had to punch thus far was a dirty old cab driver in Lebanon.

That is all for now.  Iran wants me to tell you that it loves you all!!

(check out more photos of the Alborz Mountain entrance here…)

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Almost There…

In Iran, Middle East, Turkey on October 24, 2002 at 6:57 pm

Ishak Pasa, building completed in 1784. Dogubayazit

Right now I’m in an internet cafe in the frontier town of Dogubayazit, waiting to drive to the Iranian border early tomorrow morning.  The town we’re in right now is a beautiful place 35km from the border.  Unfortunately due to current events there is no tourism and it appears that the townspeople are suffering for it.  If you want to know what there is to see around here, there is always Mount Ararat which is really quite spectacular. In fact all of Turkey is amazing.  I prefer the Eastern part to the Western as its not so touristy and the people are unbelievably kind and generous.  The scenery is beautiful as well.  This morning when I got out of bed I could look through the mountains and see one of the ranges in Armenia.  It’s so weird to be on the other side of the world seeing stuff I’ve only ever read about.  Tomorrow is the day I’m looking forward to the most.  (Read a longer version of the story here…)

We have to leave early as crossing into Iran often takes no less then 6 hours of hassle, waiting, and having the truck searched.  It will be the first time we’re all separated from Adam as he has to cross the truck alone.  I’d have to say he is the first person I’ve ever had to trust with my life, literally, and not having him in view means I’m going to have to take care of myself.  Not that I’m complaining, but it has been nice thus far having others do all the thinking and planning for me.  Anne will be with us though for the whole customs thing which is nice since she’s done it a few times before already.

Eric, the American, finally got his visa today which is right at the last minute and highly unusual as no Americans are getting in at the moment unless they are with a commercial tour group.  My visa experience was a hassle but nothing compared with his.  The Indian visa was also a little frustrating but its all sorted out now.  We’ll get the Pakistani visa at the border when we get there.  While we’re in Iran and Pakistan all the Brits will tell people they are Australian and Eric will have to be Canadian.  I must say that I enjoy this as that just adds one more wacky element to the equation.  Today I’m also trying to book my flight out of Delhi back to Amsterdam.

And today is the last day for about 4 weeks that I can walk around with my hair showing.  Tomorrow it goes under wraps until we reach India which is probably a good thing since it’s looking kind of ratty right now. Apparently I have very Arabic features so when I’m dressed up in my hejab, most people think I’m from this region which leads me to believe that we are descended from Ishmael.

Anyways, I must go now.  Thanks to my number one gem of an email writer, Andrew.  A close second is Seraphina whose emails I have enjoyed immensely.  Mom and dad, I’m a little disappointed in your lack of parental affection via the internet.  Even Auntie Rhonda writes to me more than you do.  Does this mean I have to sleep on the couch at Christmas time?

Alrighty then,  that’s it from Turkey – more to come later from wild areas of the world!!!!

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In Turkey

In Lebanon, Middle East, Turkey on October 19, 2002 at 6:47 pm

Lebanon was pretty cool, very European and quite clean.  The best story is from Baalbek but all I can say is that we were hosted by a local ‘tribal’ family that grows really ‘interesting’ plants which they ‘export’ to Europe.  Very nice people although I’m not sure you’d want them in your backyard.

We were in Beirut last week during the Francophone convention so the military presence was huge and unusual.  A friend of mine from accounting is originally from Beirut so he got in touch with his family and best friend who all ended up hosting me and one of the guys from the trip for all of Monday.  We got to see the sunset over the city while booting along in a Mercedes with suspension!!  Much different from the truck and very enjoyable.  The Lebanese people were much nicer than I was expecting considering that most reports have said the Lebanese are indifferent to tourists.  It was awesome to get back to Syria though and I’d have to say it is definitely my favourite country thus far.  Unfortunately we had to leave it yesterday to get back to Turkey where we are now staying in the Cappadocia region which has to be seen to be believed.

Currently we are sleeping in a cave and it is very comfortable.   Every morning the hot air balloons in the region go up so you can hear the hissing from the gas when they take off.  Today I finally got to a hammam (Turkish bath) and quite enjoyed it.  Got the massage thrown into the deal and I think I was thoroughly beaten and cracked to high heavens.  I thought with the 12 layers of skin they scrubbed off that I’d lose my tan but the cleaning actually made it more luminescent.

So we are now done the Middle Eastern part of the trip, shortened since we didn’t go to Egypt in order to spend more time in Iran.  My observations of the Middle East are this:

Western media does a great injustice to a region that hates war as much as we do.  I did not meet a single extremist and there were no violent outbursts the whole time I was there.

All people, especially Syrians, are thrilled that any westerner has come to see their country and the first thing anyone says to you is ‘welcome!!!’  This is always followed by a smile and an attempt to engage you in conversation. They will often go out of their way to help you find where you need to go, and everyone invites you for a cup of tea.  It was not unusual for someone to actually walk me to where I needed to go and then explain my situation in Arabic so I wouldn’t have to fumble through it myself.

The number one fun thing to do in Aleppo, Syria is cross the road.  Once you get rid of traditional road rules, the whole game is highly entertaining and risky.  The one woman who was driving me around Beirut assured me that there are rules, for example, she signaled left while driving into oncoming traffic since somebody would eventually let her turn…

The fruit drinks in Syria are the best anywhere and incredibly cheap.  You can eat yourself silly for less than a dollar and the food is all amazing.

Anyways, of course there are more impressions but they’ll have to wait til another time.

I’ve made another adjustment to my travel itinerary.  I am no longer going to the Emirates or Oman as I’m tired of trying to get those visas.  I’ve decided instead to stay on with the group and go to Pakistan and India.  Commercial tour groups cannot go through Pakistan at this time which means the driver has to transit the truck through while the rest of the group flies to India.   Since we’re private this does not apply.  However one of the commercial drivers is going through the same time we are so we’ll probably end up convoying with him.  Also wıth the current political climate being what it is we’ll probably get a military escort.  HOW COOL IS THAT??????  I’m putting the itinerary for that part on the bottom of this letter so that if anything happens and makes the news you’ll be able to see if we are anywhere near the mayhem 🙂

I don’t know when I’ll be writing again as Iran is a bit iffy on internet connections, until two years ago it was illegal.  So if I don’t write it doesn’t mean I’m dead.  It means I’m still having an awesome time but can’t find a way to communicate it.  I’ll be here in Goreme for the next two days so if you feel like writing a note please do so since i can get it here.

Itinerary:
10.25  enter Iran
15.11  exit Iran, enter Pakistan at Taftan
16.11  to Quetta
17.11  Quetta
18.11  to Sukkur
19.11  to Dera Ghaza Khan
20.11  to Lahore
21.11  Lahore
22.11  Lahore
23.11  Lahore
24.11  exit Pakistan, enter India at Amritsar
25.11-5.12 Amritsar to Jaipur

I’ll still be coming home on Dec.19 so that is the only static thing at this time.  LIFE IS GREAT!!!!

That’s it from me on the Middle East so I hope you’ve enjoyed it and may even want to visit this incredible part of the world.  It really is incredible and undeserving of the reputation it has.  Hopefully I’ll be able to write from Iran but if not, happy Halloween and I’ll write again from India.

Alibaba in Bliss

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Back From Jordan

In Jordan, Middle East, Syria on October 8, 2002 at 6:38 pm

Just returned to Damascus after visiting Jordan for the past week.  I don’t know if it’s because Jordan is more well known than the other countries I’m visiting, but it didn’t have the same allure as Syria or Lebanon.  Nevertheless, it was pretty cool to see.  The highlights were the sunsets in the desert which I don’t think can be beat.  We camped out in Wadi Rum one night and in the morning the Muslim call to prayer was echoing off the mountains so it came back to us in harmony.  Pretty amazing and one of the nicest ways to wake up.  We went floating in the Dead Sea the day after we got there.  Yes, it’s true, any cut you have is amplified a billion times and lucky me, after floating for about an hour watching the sun rise, I stepped on a rock and gashed my foot.  Better than 12 coffees and an electric charge to wake one up let me tell you.

The night we camped at the dead sea, we were followed by the military down from Mount Nebo til they were sure we weren’t going to camp on the mountain.  Then just as we were cooking dinner, another military jeep came by.  Fortunately Captain Omar took pitty on us and let us stay.  He ended up staying for dinner and I managed to get one picture with him, but was too shy to ask if I could hold the AK-47 for the photo.  He gave us permission to stay the night and I guess he told the rest of his soldiers which is probably why they came to our camp in the middle of the night to watch us all sleep.  A little weird, a little creepy, but I suppose patrolling the already militarized section of the Dead Sea can be boring and watching people sleep is better than ???

Then we headed to Petra for a few days (read a longer version of the story here).  A bunch of us went there at 6 am to beat the tourists which we successfully managed to do.  We were the only ones there for about 3 hours apart from a French couple that disappeared up the mountain for awhile.  It was really amazing to walk down the Siq and then see the treasury around the corner.  The whole time I was there I kept pinching myself saying “I can’t believe Indiana Jones has been here!!!!”

Managed to get a pretty bad heatstroke that day and was apparently delirious upon arrival back to the hotel.  Kept looking for the pants I was already wearing.  The next day we were at the Wadi Rum.  I couldn’t go in on the jeep ride as my stomach would have heaved so a nice Bedouin fellow from the village took pity on me and took me for a walk around one of the valleys and Nabatean tombs.  Day after that we all headed to Aqaba for some snorkelling where my left leg was promptly introduced to fire coral, after which I had a hard time getting in the boat, fell off and gashed my left arm on the ladder after pinching my finger in the rope.  Don’t worry about imminent war, I will surely die before that from self- inflicted wounds.

Today we hustled back up to Syria and tomorrow we’re off to Lebanon.  The good news here is that I successfully obtained my Iranian visa last week!!!  Apparently all it takes is a smile and some batting of the eyelashes to be successful, not to mention a lot of cash.

A word on the people here thus far… everyone is very friendly and so happy that we are here visiting.  Everywhere you go you are invited for tea and conversation.  The other night Adam had to take care of some trip business so I went out onto the street, about 11pm, to just wait on the sidewalk.  Within 1 minute I had been invited to sit with three Libyans, 2 Iraqis, and all the shop owners on the corner brought me free tea.  The first thing anyone says to you here is ‘welcome’ and they all want desperately for you to say you love their country, which I do, so it’s not a stretch to extend the niceties.

Anyways, I’ve been told my e-mails are long so I’ll stop here after one final note…

When you are traveling in countries that are very different from home and things do not always look familiar, and other things are challenges, you start to re-evaluate the things in your life that are important or need prioritizing.  Toilet paper is one of these things and I must say that my wish is that I always have some around until the day I die.

That is all, next week a report on Lebanon.
I LOVE THE MIDDLE EAST!!!!!

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Delicacies From the Pasture

In Middle East, Syria on September 29, 2002 at 6:36 pm

Hello again.

Yes, I’m still in Syria but found another internet cafe and decided it was worth the update.

This evening’s dinner… sheep testicles.  They taste a little like scrambled eggs but I must say it’s never been so hard to eat eggs.  The first bite was ok, the second was difficult, the third was an exercise in swallowing while gagging.  But hey, I tried sheep intestines last week and they weren’t so bad…

Today we arrived in Damascus after spending two days in the desert.  Our accommodations for that part of the journey were sleeping two nights in different dead cities.  The equivalent of ghost towns, just two thousand years older.  Last night I was enjoying the breeze from the desert at night as the daytime temperatures were up to 40+ degrees.  Then I woke up this morning covered in a few inches of sand and thought that maybe a breeze is not so great.  Sometimes when I see other tour buses going by I think “you all look so clean”.  And then I remember that the way we’re doing it is cheaper and infinitely more exciting.

The first day we were in the desert, Adam decided to let each of us try driving the truck.  Mainly because desert scenery is not so great after the first half hour, and also because there was little chance of crashing into another vehicle.  When it was my turn, I promptly and accidentally drove onto a military outpost.  We originally thought it was a desert house, but the soldier with the AK-47 gave away what it actually was.  He was nice though, nodded to our greeting and gave a hearty wave.  99% of me was going ALRIGHT!!!!! the other 1% said hmmmmm.  Today we got back onto the highway and although the signs said Iraq was only a hundred km away,we decided it was not such a great idea.

We’ll be here in Damascus for the next two days.  It is a different city from Aleppo in that it is the capital and a little more cosmopolitan.  The people are still amazingly friendly though and it will be good to come back here two more times.

I discovered in Aleppo that I could never starve in this country.  Everywhere I went, the men were literally shoving food in my face.  They’d laugh and not let me go til I’d eaten the fries/pizza/pistachios and then cheer when I finally ate it.  The women are much more reserved and you must greet them with an Arab greeting before you get any emotion out of them.  Last night in Palmyra at the dead city, the guardians of the tombs where we were staying came over to the camp for about an hour to talk.  The women were very nice and one of them spoke English very well so I was finally able to have a female conversation rather than the one that typically goes “Yes, please, hello.  Where you from?  Welcome.  You like Syria?”

I’ve had two marriage proposals so far, one from the man at the chicken slaughter stall who proposed while his friend was slitting the throats of the chickens.  Not quite how I envisioned it happening, but I guess you can’t have it all.  And yes, I was wearing a head covering at the time.  Just a scarf and I must say that I enjoy it.  There’s a degree of anonymity that cannot be had from going bare-headed.

Good news on the Iranian visa front – it’s finally been issued – to Holland.  Tomorrow will be a test of patience as I try and negotiate with the embassy here to get a faxed confirmation from there.  Not how I want to spend my day but like I said before, I am going to Iran.

Sorry the message is so long but I want everyone to know how great it is here.  Every day is perfect and each day is better than the last.  I thought my tan was getting darker but then I took a shower and realized I’m just really dirty.

So that’s it for now.  Thanks to everyone for their e-mails, it’s great to hear from home.

That is all.

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Alison is in Syria

In Middle East, Syria, Turkey on September 26, 2002 at 1:12 am

Hello all.

Here it is at last.  After being away for a month I have finally arrived in Syria.  I spent two weeks in Holland and then two weeks in Turkey.  Turkey is mostly European and not part of the trip that I wanted to take, so here are the highlights in brief:

Istanbul – cool, most exciting thing was standing in the Aya Sofia where emperors were crowned hundreds of years ago.

Moved on down to Ephesus which was also amazing.  The best part was our ‘holiday’ in Oludeniz which is on the Mediterranean.  I have never seen water that blue!!  We hung out there for two 1/2 days during which we rented mopeds, went swimming every day for two or three hours, tanned, and I went paragliding from 1800m.  The freakiest part was the take off when our chute got tangled and we were almost blown off the mountain.  Nevertheless, my pilot who looked like a short version of Ponch from ‘CHiPS’ got us down safely after 1/2 hour in the sky watching the sunset.  The next day we went to Saklikent where we did some canyoning in the most amazing gorge I’ve ever seen.  Then as we were heading to Ucegiz, which is at the bottom of a very long hill, the truck brakes started losing air at the top of the hill.  We managed to glide peacefully and safely to a parking lot at the bottom where everything promptly seized up so we were stuck for the evening.  Adam, our driver, negotiated a night on one of the boats for all of us so we went to sleep in a secluded bay and the next morning woke up to the moon setting and the sun rising.  Needless to say that has got to be the best way to wake up.  Since then we’ve been driving like crazy to get to the Syrian border so everything after Ucegiz has been pretty quiet.

To give you an idea of how I’m traveling, I’m with 8 others on a British Ford Cargo truck which is pretty much going to be home for the next 2 months.  We camp in campgrounds or on the side of the highway depending on where we are at the moment.  Adam is the driver, Anne does everything else.  The travelers are from Holland, US, Northern Ireland, Germany, England, and me from Canada.  Yes, Anne and Adam are real people and although I never doubted it, it was a relief to finally meet them.  Anyways, Adam is well known throughout the Middle East and India as he’s been working around here for the last 6 years.  He’s also well liked so we get to see tons of stuff with the locals that no one else would ever see.

Anyways, yesterday we arrived at the Turkish/Syria border crossing around 4pm and finished the whole crossing around 5:45pm.  As soon as I saw the ‘Wellcome to Syria’ sign, I haven’t stopped smiling since.  I’ve waited my whole life to come to the Middle East and here it is finally, right here in front of me.  We had the best falafel and Syrian pizza for dinner last night and then cruised around the city of Aleppo where we’ll be staying for the next two days.  The people are amazingly friendly, food is cheap, and just being here is mind-blowing.  Fortunately everyone on the trip shares the same traveling philosophy so we’re all game to do anything that looks different.  We’ll be in Syria now until October 1 at which point we’ll be heading into Jordan.

We’ve also changed the itinerary somewhat so we’re skipping Egypt in order to spend more time in Iran, for which I have not yet gotten my visa.  Frustration is setting in but I shall be patient because I AM going.

Not much to report on the war and military presence.  Only seen one tank so far so I’m disappointed.  Nevertheless, it all feels very safe so none of you should be worrying.  This place ROCKS!!!

I’ll write again when we find another internet cafe that works.  Very rare…