I seem to have a bit of a routine happening, wake up, do some typing, make a coffee, put on the olympics, sit on the couch :) A wonderful start to the day...The difference today though is I'm walking again, only six or seven kilometers but still a move. Packing up all my gear and saying a big "thank you" to Fay I get to it. Stopping briefly at the internet cafe for breakfast it's pretty hot when I emerge onto the streets. Luckily not as hot as the last two days but still hot enough to make it unpleasant...
It's strange walking through a city I lived in for four months. The streets are all familiar but now being summer, are also different. I am impressed with the greenery around, in winter everything is dull and lifeless and I wasn't expecting much difference this time around. A pleasant surprise.
Walking past the Four Seasons, up to Hijaz station then due South towards Philistine camp it isn't long before the heat and the pollution start getting to me. Standing at a massive intersection gasping for air whilst getting smothered in diesel fumes it feels like my lungs are slowly filling with toxic mud. Thank God I only have another few kilometers to go... :)
The walk up Philistine Road is great. The people are all extremely welcoming and many kids come running out wanting their photo taken, even though this is still a suburb of Damascus it has the feel of a village.
Rami and Suphi are waiting when I arrive and couldn't look more pleased to see me, they are extremely happy I accepted their invite to stay out here a couple of nights. Alaa makes an appearance and we head to Suphi's house for lunch.
Over the winter I did a couple of lunches with Suphi's family and it's a always pleasure. Suphi's mum is an amazing cook and his dad, being very knowledgeable on international affairs, is always keen for a chat. I have to laugh at his summary of the Arab world today..."Yes, the Arabs have a very good history...and a very bad present" :)
I have arranged to meet some friends at a bar so after a little rest Rami, Alaa, Suphi and I head into town. It turns out the taxi driver is one of Rami's relatives and he's a pretty entertaining guy...
"Ben, do you drink whisky?"
"Sometimes"
Reaching under his seat he turns with a big smile bearing his prize...a bottle of booze...
"Do you want a glass?"
Laughing "Yeah sure"
It just so happens he already has a glass full with ice on his dashboard. Rami takes care of filling it up..."Enough, enough...you will kill me"
The driver turns "No problem, no problem"
Well, straight whisky isn't the way I normally like to start a night out but hey, what can I do... :)
Damascus is incredibly cheap for most things but a night out isn't one of them. The cheaper bars will charge $4 a beer while the higher end bars will charge $10. Coming from outside Syria this sounds reasonable but a good way of highlighting just how expensive it is here is comparing it to a meal. A cheap restaurant will charge $2.50 a meal with an expensive restaurant charging $10, basically one beer at a night club is the equivalent to one meal at a good restaurant!
There is one high end place that I want to check out though, Z Bar. Everyone said it wasn't worth going to during the winter because they don't open the roof, but luckily for me Wasseem and Farah have a reservation tonight and are happy to drag me along. We try to get some more people booked in but it's full :( Not to worry though, some other friends are having a house party so the boys are more than happy to socialize there...
Z Bar is amazing and I'm glad I made the effort. Perched atop the Omayad Hotel the view over Damascus is awesome and catching up with a lot of old friends it's a great night.
Talking to a cute young Korean student I decide to walk her home and passing a small park we stop for a chat. Glancing at the sky I'm amazed not a single star can be seen, just this slightly orange glowing fog :) Tai Hey has to get up early to go sightseeing so we say our farewells and I catch a taxi back to Rami's. He also had a late night and having just returned himself meets me when I pull up.
As we walk back to his house I have a moment of horror...
Where's my backpack with my camera and video camera???
This is the very reason I almost never take it out with me :( Thinking back I'm sure I had it until the park. Grabbing a cab Rami accompanies me and we and head back into town.
It's getting light by the time we reach the park but my confidence is still high, there is hardly a soul on the streets. Jumping out of the taxi I race across to where we were sitting, have a moment of panic when it's not under the seat, then success! It's lying on the ground to the right of me :) Breathing a big sigh of relief I jump back in the taxi and head home for bed...
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