I feel like I need a day off. I had the option of going to Apamea or Palmyra (for late morning departure in time for sunset). Both are fabulous Roman Ruins … both have columns standing on the side of the main street giving visitors a good feel for the scale of the place. I’ve been to both before … at the end of the day, it’s just a pile of rocks right? Chatting, eating and meeting people is all part of travel too! So I’ll settle for that instead.
It is Friday today, the town is nice and quiet … some eating places are open so I should be fine! The time off allowed me to review my plans based on discussion with other travellers. No one liked Lattakia … it is characterless and the only good beach belongs to 5-star hotels … using the beach and pool requires payment amounting to a night at a budget hotel.
Abdullah at the hotel suggested that I take a trip to the Euphrates instead … this would mean skipping Aleppo as well as Lattakia. Skipping Aleppo was fine as I had been twice already. We will leave at 0700 tomorrow by private car taking in a few sites before reaching the Euphrates. Then we’d track south along the river by public transport to stay a couple of nights. From the town of Dayr az Zawr, we could make day trips to ruins close (20km) to the border with Iraq.
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- Having a shave; SYP50 (about NZD1.50)
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- Having a shave; SYP50 (about NZD1.50)
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- Clock tower in Hama. Much of old Hama was destroyed in the 1982 shelling to dampen a religious rebellion. There’s a few old buildings left.
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- Government offices with President Assad mural. Much of old Hama was destroyed in the 1982 shelling to dampen a religious rebellion. There’s a few old buildings left.
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- Hama clocktower from hotel roof.
