Wanderings round Damascus with Family

Things have been toooooo hectic over the last weeks of Xmas. Now in a rainy! Cairo and for the first day in ages I have been able to get some time at the weekend to catch up on the blog. These photos are from ojur family wandering around Damascus Old Town and souks whilst we visited at New Year.

The Coffee shop at the rear of the Umayid Mosque where we stopped for a break.

For all of Syrias rocky political relationships you rarely see or heard anything adverse against the west etc. (Politics are not discussed!). This is the only overt statement I have seen, deep in the old town a metal sheet with the Israeli flag on the floor that people can stand on, drive over etc.

Nuts, outside the Mosque

The Hamediyah Souk roof.

Two ladies watch the Souk customers go by

Sunlight streams through into the Souk

The roof is not without its wear and tear - it looks like the night sky

Man with very big balloon!

Walking through the Spice Souk, mostly closed as it was Friday (prayer time)

Closed shops

House of Anaises, now a church. This apparently was where St Paul was taken when he was blind. Now a very atmospheric underground church probably 1C or 2C.

Back Steeets of Damascus in the Christian Quarter

St Paul Church and Bab Kissan. St Paul had to escape by jumping out a window.

Your don't see too many restroom doors as ornate as this one in the church

Straight Street in Damascus, built by the Romans, roof by the french.

Damascus for New Year

Just returned from Syria. The family came out fornew year and then I stayed, with camera, for another 8 days. Took lots of photos which need to be downloaded. Heres one that I like in the meantime.

Shisha Seller in the Sunshine (try saying that fast!)

Latest news from those good folks at WikiLeaks...

Dear Kids,

There is no Santa. Those presents are from your parents.

Love,
WikiLeaks

Over the fields....

Mrs T is the sort of girl who likes to drag here husband out for a walk in the Siberian wastelands that is the Suffolk countryside during winter. The weather would make your average penguin shiver. Still at least I can take the camera now. Heres a few shots I took and played with on the laptop....

Bleak fields....

Mrs T heading off into the distance, when she gets to the hedgerow Ill tell her she is going the wrong way...

The bridge to the church

The raging River Fynn

The memorial cross in Witnesham

A few dried and frozen flowers....

Bleak fields no. 2

The tundra, with ext years crop poking through...
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The way home...

Playing with the filtering, some nice differences you can create...

Bleak fields no.3

Berries outside our house

A wee bit chilly in the heart of Suffolk

This year we have had volcanic ash and now the cold making our travels more interesting. Luckily I managed to get out of Cairo and into Heathrow hours before it turned into Siberia, and although it took 5 hrs to navigate the usual 2 hr journey home we managed it. Now doing our crazy run around to people and shops before having to return to Egypt on the 27th - if we can of course, artic blizzards and Heathrow chaos all predicted at the moment. On the 28th the plan is we all fly to Damascus.

We managed to get in one football game here, watching the mighty ITFC beat Leicester 3-0 on a snowy field, all the more exciting as we won 80 of your english pound notes on the result. Been walking in the fields to the country church for carol service, having snow ball fights (boys v girls) etc so Mrs T happy.

Santas Winter Wonderland in the Middle East

I just managed to leave Cairo to go to Damascus as the Khamaseen wind was blowing up a storm and luckily I was one of the last flights out....A bad weather front from Europe has been sweeping across the Mid East and had certainly left an impression on Damascus when I arrived, over 5-10cm of snow in places. Of course the meeting I was over for did not take place, think the average Syrian looked out from underneath their duvets and said "I don't fancy work today". To be fair tits not a common occurrence. Heres some quick snaps, wish I took the good camera now.....

The mosque from the office window, during the snow..........then during the rapid melt

Cairo Biggest Loser is...........

well, it depends how you measure it! Most weight or greatest percentage. After a couple of difficult weeks (Eid and parties) here are the results at 14 weeks. Both feeling pretty smug with ourselves, losing just under 10% and between 13-16lbs (ca. 7kg). We are carrying on with our challenge till Xmas, not that we are competitive at all.....

(note as a gentleman I have taken the weights off tinas chart!)