travels in the middle East

We wake up in Damascus to the early morning intonation which starts at 5.00 am but we are glad to be up early as this is the one full Damascus day. This starts with hotel buffet breakfast which covers every taste, from olive and cheese to sweet jams and everything in between. Then out of the hotel onto the streets armed with a map of the Old City. This is easy to navigate and we make for the souk area first aiming to go to the great mosque after lunch and then to track down St Paul before retiring. The thing which amazes is the almost dustlike quality of the ancient place, it is a place which has seen so much and you can feel it. We have the feeling of being in the presence of an ancient being over whose face we, along with so many other people teem. Looking around it is clear that from time to time great movements in time, earthquakes, conflict and time itself, have worn lines in buildings which hang together almost unbelievably. The great Mosque, an architectural feat with a great courtyard and fine minarets at each corner is a place of pilgrimage for some, and a tourist attraction for others. Tracing St Paul is more difficult, although the guide book says that you can find the house of Ananias in Straight Street, Syria does not go in for blue plaques and we don't find it. We trace the way to the chapel which commemorates the window St Paul was lowered from but as its entrance is on the outer wall of the city, the direct route isn't open. We meet a kindly student who offers to show us the rope ladder which now hangs out of the student hostel and suggests that we shin down it. Passing through a wonderfully smokey student room, we survey the prospect and remember our age. Taking the longer route, we eventually arrive at the chapel and there is a window, and a basket! but clearly not the real one. At all the sites there is always an ancient who has a brush which he or she pushes around, hoping that the visitor will light a candle or perform some action which might produce some income. We retreat, no road to Damascus moment for us, and seek out a refuge from mezze and tahini, we find a cheerful Pizza restaurant, some Syrian wine and rather enjoy ourselves.