Return to Syria

July

Thursday 2

It was a big week at work and Thursday night, after my shift I headed to the airport for my long trip north (after a quick detour south).

I bought my flights with Qatar Airways and despite a couple of cancellations due to the war in Iran and a hefty price tag of about $3000 return, everything worked out on the day.

I boarded QR7138 from Canberra to Melbourne at1850.

Just over an hour later, at 2005, I landed in Melbourne ready and eager for the next, and longest leg.

I took QR905 leaving Melbourne around 2245. It arrived in Doha at 0550 the next day. That meant I had under two hours until my final (or so I thought) flight.

At some point I decided the best, next course of action was to continue to Beirut, right after I arrived in Istanbul.

I was planning on maybe going the following day. I had accommodation booked in Istanbul, but I thought it was better to rip the bandaid off and keep going.

So at 0735 I hopped on QR239 from Doha to Istanbul.

I had my drone and a whole heap of things I wasn’t going to need so I thought it would be better to leave it in Turkey before continuing on my adventure.

I landed in Istanbul at 1155 and decided to take the new(ish) metro into town.

I was a bit short on time and luckily my friend met me at Gayreteppe. He collected my gear and transferred me to the metro for Sabiha Gokcen airport – on the other side of Istanbul.

At 1445 I arrived at the airport – giving me an hour and 15 to check in to my DOMESTIC flight.

I’m not sure I realised that the flight I booked to Beirut had a stop in Dalaman along the way.

In the end it wasn’t a bad thing because it meant I was flying domestic and needed less of a lead-in time.

In the end, I had a bit of time up my sleeve for a snack – the first of my 4000 Iskender kebabs during the trip.

At 1615, PC2290 was taking off from Istanbul for the quick, 1h15 flight to Dalaman.

I landed at 1730, giving me plenty of time before my 2045 ongoing flight to Beirut.

I was grateful for the snack in Istanbul.

Everyone said Dalaman airport was extortionate, and they weren’t lying. It was $9 for a gatorade. I think a McDonalds meal was about $30.

I had about three hours to kill so did some laps before climbing on to my fifth and final flight for the day – PC1826 from Dalaman to Beirut.

The flight took off on time at 2045 and landed in Beirut at 2205.

At the airport, I toyed with getting a sim card. Lebanon wasn’t part of my roaming plan and I couldn’t manage to find an eSim online. At $40, I thought it was probably a bit exorbitant for a day’s worth of internet so I decided to rawdog it (as the kids say).

My first problem was going to be finding an Uber without the internet.

In Doha, I had also booked (what seemed like) the cheapest place in Beirut. It was $63 but was probably worth about a third of that.

I ended up staying in Rawche Universal Apartments.

The location was great but that’s where it ended. It was up there among the worst places I’ve ever stayed – and i’ve stayed in some shockers.

We arrived around 2300 – after getting admonished for having Uber set to Credit Card instead of cash.

The trip was 15 minutes and cost me $27 dollars.

After a bit of stuffing around to check in I went up to the room. It was pretty dirty with cockroaches everywhere. There was no soap and no towels which wasn’t great after my day-and-a-half of travelling.

I went back downstairs and asked for a towel. The rest I could deal with.

There was more stuffing around and searching high and low, but eventually the guy managed to find me a clean/ish towel.

I had a quick rinse off before heading out for a walk and a drink. I even managed to find soap at a corner store which was a win.

I was out until 0200 before heading home for another shower and bed.

Saturday 4

I was up early – around 0700 and after another shower – I headed out for another walk.

I wandered along the corniche enjoying the light before it got too hot and humid. I was very tempted to jump in the water, but in the end decided to stay dry.

I checked out a couple of ATMs – on the look out for USD for Syria (and Turkmenistan), and once I sorted that, I was ready to go.

I stopped off at Dunkin’ Donuts (because when in Rome, right?) and around 0900 was back at the hotel packing up and ready to begin my adventure.

Having set Uber to Cash payment – I was ready to go.

I called an Uber around 0915 to take me the short drive to the Cola Bus station.

It was only about ten minutes and cost me $10.

It was pretty easy to find information on how to get to Damascus – but less so on how to hug the coast to Tartus.

One of the best blogs I saw was from The Globetrotting Detective who had seemed to have done the trip a couple of times.

She had a thorough guide on how to get from Tripoli to Tartus (and on to Latakia)

The thought was to try to get on a bus to Tripoli so I could find on going transport to the border.

I got a shared taxi from Cola Bus Station to Tripoli which took about an hour and a half and cost me $6.

It was a tight squeeze and a bumpy ride, but around 1110 we pulled into the bus station at Tripoli.

I guess it wasn’t really a bus station – more like a stop on the side of the road.

From there I needed to find a shared taxi to Abdeh.

I waited about ten minutes for a minivan to pull up and by 1121 I was on the way.

The trip to Abdeh was only about 30 minutes and cost me $3.

By 1156 I was dropped off at a busy round-a-bout.

I found a guy/driver to take me the fifteen minutes to the Arida border but we needed to wait until the car was full.

I think it was about $3. Eventually I paid the entire $15 to get the driver to take me alone. It was boiling hot and I was sick of waiting and no one was coming so I thought, stuff it.

We were finally on the road around 1223 and by 1252, we were there.

Of course when we arrived we discovered the border was closed.

Thankfully the driver didn’t dump me and go, or maybe it was a ploy. He asked around and finally told me that if we wanted to cross we’d have to go to the next border – about an hour inland.

By this point I was pretty hot and tired and generally defeated, so I agreed.

He drove me back to Abdeh and his mate said he’d take me for $40 (instead of the usual $50.) I said fine and off we went.

Around 1400 we arrived at the Wadi Khalid border.

The driver said he’d wait a while to make sure I got across before leaving me.

Of course I gave him all my remaining Lebanese Pounds and then when I got to the border crossing I needed 50c to photocopy my passport.

In true bureaucratic style I was shuffled from one office to the next – copy this, stamp that, check this, approve that and finally, about 1430 I was through. I’d made it (back) to Syria (nearly).

I had to complete all the formalities, again, on the Syrian side and pay $150 for the pleasure.

They searched my bag and checked my papers 1455 I was on my way.

A driver offered to take me all the way to Tartus for $35US. He said it would take an hour.

By this stage I was pretty fed up with it all so agreed without much hesitation.

The drive back to the coast was pretty interesting with kilometres and kilometres of stationary petrol tankers lined up, apparently destined for Europe and waiting to cross the border.

The driver said they make them wait to control them, otherwise they drive dangerously as they race to the border. There are also lots of security checks.

Anyway, around 1630 we finally pulled into Junada Hotel at Porto Tartous.

The hotel was fancy(ish). It cost me $200US for the night which is a bit rich, but it was one of the few places I could find (and book) online.

I ended up booking with the Syria Booking site – or so I thought.

When I arrived, they didn’t have any evidence of my booking.

Luckily they had a room and let me stay.

They all seemed happy, if not a bit bemused, to see me.

After getting freshened up and changed I went out to explore the world.

The hotel is right on the waterfront, basically at the end of a long Corniche.

It’s also right across the road from the old town, making it a perfect location to base yourself.

The hotel was a little bit like a Las Vegas resort with heaps of bars and restaurants on the complex, but they seemed like they would have been expensive.

I was out and about for about two hours, before heading back to the hotel around 2230 very ready to call it a night.

Sunday 5

I got up early and had a swim at the hotel – the water was warm and nice but a little dirty.

Breakfast was also included in the rate, so after an hour or so in the water I went up stairs to get tidied up and then headed back down to the restaurant.

It was a big buffet with mostly Syrian guests I would say and the staff were all very happy to see me. English wasn’t a strong point but I received many, many “Welcome to Syrias” – in a variety of contexts.

After breakfast I had another walk around town before heading back to the hotel for one last shower before heading out to find the bus station.

I was also on a mission to try to find a simcard, because being off the grid was starting to grate.

It’s not a mission I succeeded at, but I did manage to find the bus station.

The bus station was only about 15 minutes from the hotel so by 1347 I been ushered into a few different ticket shops, purchased a ticket and told to wait.

The bus ticket was 250 Syrian pounds – or about $3 for the one hour trip.

It wasn’t completely smooth sailing – my bus didn’t ever seem to arrive and I was ferried into a different shop to exchange my ticket for another operator.

Eventually, about 1305 some one helped me find my new bus and I was off.

It was a quick and easy trip and around 1430 I was spat out at the Pullman Bus Station at Latakia.

I’d heard the taxi drivers were pretty relentless at the bus station – sort of unsurprisingly, and I didn’t EXACTLY know where I wanted to go, so I left the bus station and headed outside and around the corner to gather my thoughts.

Fortunately, I had downloaded an offline Google Map of Latakia and noticed that the hotel was a shortish walk away – well about two kilometres, which I thought was feasible given I was travelling light.

So off I went, down the hill, heading towards the coast – where I knew the hotel was located.

I chose Safwan Hotel – mostly because it’s where all the foreigners said they stayed. It seemed central enough and the guy working there was nice.

It was only $15 for a shared room (which I didn’t have to share) and while it was a bit rough and ready, it was nicer than the place I stayed in Beirut and a quarter of the price.

The man working there was also a fountain of knowledge about Latakia, Syria and a whole lot of other things.

I arrived at the hotel around 1500 and after a quick freshen up I decided to head out into the world for a look around.

First things first, I noticed a Phone shop just around the corner.

It was already 1545 on a Sunday but thankfully the MTN phone shop was still open.

The girl in the office spoke a bit of English and before long I was on the way, armed with a newly minted simcard and mobile internet to boot.

Just down the road, I stopped off for some French Cock. It’s just a hole in the wall that sells Fried chicken but its Disney font and deep friend smell caught my attention.

I overordered (blame it on language) and ended up sitting outside scoughing it all down.

After lunch, I continued on my way south to the Southern Corniche – I wanted to see some of the beaches and coastline.

The water looked great but there was so much trash.

It’s also still very much in the process of being developed. There are a few clifftop cafes and restaurants but also a lot of empty lots and construction sites.

I walked down to check out a couple of the beaches.

I ended up striking up a conversation with a young guy who was studying medicine. He invited me to a charity where his peer was studying.

I ended up spending a couple of hours speaking to them about their hopes and aspirations before deciding to head back to the hotel to call it a night.

Monday 6

Given the state of my accommodation and probably because I was a little jetlagged, I was up early and out the door – exploring more of Latakia.

I wandered through the old town and tried to check out one of the oldest Mosques in Latakia – Al Nour Mosque (which was closed).

I hung a right and headed down to see the Tetraporticus before heading back to the Southern Corniche to see the sea.

I had every intention of going for a swim, but it was just too dirty.

Heading back towards the hotel I stopped off at St Taqla’s Shrine for a hot second before packing up my gear and checking out.

Not sure how he convinced me, but the guy at the hotel encouraged me to take a public bus back to the Pullman bus station.

It left from across the road and only cost me 30 cents or something,

It was easy enough and a pretty interesting experience.

The bus trip took about 26 minutes and finding a bus to the capital was pretty easy.

Around 1300 I was off.

The coach to Damascus took about 4.5 hours including a half hour stop.

It cost me about $6.

I hadn’t eaten anything so far in the day, but that didn’t stop me from getting violently ill along the way.

Something didn’t agree with me and I nearly had to tell them to stop the bus.

I was worried if they thought I was sick they might put me off and drive away, so I was VERY lucky when they stopped along the road for a minute – giving me just enough time to duck off behind a bush and be violently ill.

Not long after that we stopped at a rest stop so I was able to sort myself out and prepare myself for the last 1h30 of the trip.

Around 1820 we pulled into the Al Qaaboon bus station in Damascus and it was a bit chaotic, to say the least.

A young girl asked where I needed to go and I told her Bab Touma – from where I knew I’d be able to find my way to the hostel.

She showed me the right shared taxi to take and as it turned out, I ended up sitting next to a young boy who was from America and in Syria (alone!) visiting his family.

Armed with a couple of English speakers – I managed to get to Bab Touma without much drama.

The trip was only about 15 minutes so by 1830 I was at Acadonia Hostel in the old town.

I can’t remember who, but some recommended I stay there, and when I arrived I was surprised to see it was run by a young Australian girl.

It was dirt cheap – like $10 a day for a bed in a dorm room (without anyone else sharing it).

The bathrooms were outside, but I wasn’t too bothered.

By now my guts seemed to have settled down so I headed out to explore the old town – and to grab a kebab.

I wandered around for a couple of hours – checking out the souq before, around 2200, calling it a night.

Tuesday 7

In bed early and awake early. Around 0700 I headed out for a wander around town.

I wanted to get to the Grand Mosque before it got too busy, or hot, but typically, when I arrived it was closed.

Like most places in that part of the world, Damascus is very quiet in the mornings (probably because they stay up all night).

I did a bit of a walk around the old town – checking out churches and mosques and the winding little streets.

At 0844 – one of the places that was open was this famous ice cream shop – Bakdesh.

On a recommendation of a friend, I stopped in for an ice cream drowning in pistachios.

It cost me about $2.50.

By 1000 the Grand Mosque was opened and so I headed back to the hostel to pull on some long pants and headed back out to explore.

I spent a fair bit of time exploring the complex – I’d forgotten how grand it was.

Around 1100 I headed back into the Souq to check out Khan As’ad Pasha Al Azem.

Entry was 500SYP or about $7.

I stopped for a rest and a tea before continuing on my adventure.

In the afternoon, I decided to check out a local hamam. I ended up at Hamam Teirouzi

I think it cost me $15 for the standard scrub, soap and massage.

On the way back, I grabbed another Kebab and headed home to change. I wanted to go to a rooftop bar for sunset.

I wanted to check out La Joya but someone told me I’d need a reservation and would have to call to secure it.

That all seemed too hard, so I ended up checking out Z Bar on the roof of Omayad Hotel.

The place was empty but had a good view. Drinks were just OK. I’m glad I did it but probably wouldn’t have missed much if I didn’t bother.

It cost me about $25 bucks for a couple of drinks 2230, I decided to call it and head back to the old town.

A taxi was $10 and while I downloaded the YallaGo App I didn’t have a lot of luck using it.

Wednesday 8

I had another early start so I could check out a bit more of Damascus before my flight to Istanbul later that afternoon.

I’d spent a lot of time in the old town, so decided to branch out and wander up to the National Museum, stopping off at Al Hejaz Station along the way.