After wonderful Damascus, I headed to Palmyra and the Krak de Chevaliers, the crusader castle from the 12th Century. Both were amazing to see, truly unique and beautiful. It's low season for tourism, so in both cases, I practically had the place to myself. The only trouble was a small case of food poinsoning that included being sick on an ancient ruin in the middle of the desert. Thankfully, as I said, I had the place to myself. Since I had a limited amount of time, I didn't let the sick get me down, and forged ahead. The Krak was especially deserted, and it felt surreal, very imaginative and from a time forgotten. I'll be able to post pictures, hopefully soon, but between weird internet connections and time crunches, it might be another week or so. A quick note about a fellow traveler, a woman named Michelle from Australia. I met her on the top of a cliff overlooking Palmyra. We talked for about an hour, during which I found out she had biked across Asia, from North Korea through China, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, and everything in between to continue across Europe and end in Paris, where, ironically, her bike was stolen from her friends apartment lobby as they carried her bags up to the apt. She's gone across Africa, now she's going from Europe through the Middle East, all on a bike. So, just proof, once again, that anything is possible. After sightseeing, I headed to Saraqib, a village near Aleppo in the north of Syria. There I stayed with the Kourdoni family, and I had an amazing experience getting to know true Syrians. Hassan is on Couchsurfing, and he officially hosted me, but his parents and sisters were all part of the experience. It was great to meet them, eat with them, talk with them and generally share cultures. Due to the situation in Egypt, there was a lot of talk about politics, and I learned so many things. I feel very lucky to have heard first hand the way people there, including their friends and some coworkers, feel about the political situations in the Middle East. I'm constantly humbled on this trip by the amount of information I'm not aware of, and how limited my own views can be. My mind has been blown open more than once, and I feel lucky to have had these opportunities to question my world view and opinions. After the wonderful hospitality I enjoyed in Syria, I had what can only be termed a horrendous time getting into and out of Turkey on my way to Germany. The story is long, complicated, disturbing, and hilarious - I know I couldn't do it justice on paper. Thankfully, I made it through in one piece, and my wonderful friend Anja met me at the airport in Berlin. Her father drove us to their family home, and I spent the next few days being escorted and hosted around Berlin. Anja currently works near Hannover, but she and her girlfriend Hannah came up to Berlin to show me around before we headed to their home in Lehrte. It was so wonderful to spend time with Anja, her parents and Hannah. I seem to have the best friends who are also the most generous hosts. They showed me the town - museums, wonderful food, and of course wonderful company. Seeing an old friend is always a joy, but making new friends makes it all the better. Also, I was able to see Hannover, which apparently is the town my Great Great Grandmother hailed from before crossing over to the USA. Today I said goodbye to my friends, and headed across Germany on the Train. I had such a great time watching the scenery and enjoying the novelty of train travel. It was exhilerating, and between my hot coffee and good book, I couldn't have asked for anything more. Now I'm in a small village near Saarbrucken on the German/French border, and I'll be staying here volunteering for the next two weeks. My host, Nadia, has recently returned from her own travels, and I'm looking forward to sharing stories and getting to know her village. After that, Paris!
