Trip Notebook
15 Sep
Staying
Beirut: 17 April
Pension Al-Nazih Very small, not much atmosphere, but clean and friendly (once you get to know them). Two dorms — one female, one male, 5 beds each. US$12/night. Total: 6 x US$12 = $72
Damascus: 23 April
Al-Rabie Hotel Ramshackle old house in old Damascus, situated in one of the oldest houses in the city (and we know Damascus is… very, very old). Charming little place, though practically creaking. Dorm with 4 beds. 600 Syrian pounds. Includes breakfast. Shisha/hookah available in the lobby. Hard beds. Probably best place to meet travellers (of all stripes: general demographics were between 21-55, Europeans, Japanese and Australians. Families.) 1 x 600 SYP = US$13
Al-Haramein HotelJust down the row from Al-Rabie, carved pretty much in the same vein; same type of house, clientele, and services, prices. Shower in basement: if you never saw yourself precariously tottering down several flights of stairs in a several centuries old house, you will, at the Al-Haramein. I’d still pick this over Al-Rabie, only because the Al-Rabie’s beds were rock hard and it was pretty noisy at night.2 x 500 SYP = US$22.60
(Stayed with my Syrian-Russian friends, the wonderful Kayyali family, for the rest of Damascus. 2 days turned quickly into 2 weeks, with their home-made vodkas, Russian farm parties, and superb Syrian hospitality.)
Palmyra: 26 April
Wow, what a shitty town. What a shitty town so close to fabulous ruins. That’s why anybody even comes here, I guess (and why the town got so shitty). Law of Circular Destruction in the developing world (think: Vang Vieng, Laos).
Baal Shamin Hotel Set a little behind the main strip, I booked for a dorm bed in a 4-bed dorm but as the only guest, had the hotel to myself. Not that it was much of a hotel. But you can always count on the manager (Ali? Mohammed?) making a pot of shai every time you come downstairs, and sitting you down for shai, TV and small talk. 2 x 300 SYP = US$13
Kraks des Chevaliers: 28 April
Bebers Hotel the only hotel here as far as I can see. Amazing views right cross the castle. Met a tour group in Palmyra (I don’t do tours, but if I did, I’d do an Intrepid trip. I’ve crossed paths with lots of Intrepid groups all around the world, and their guides are friendly types and unusually obsessive about what they do), so off I went to Kraks with them. The group had come from Cairo overland and were going through Syria on the way to Turkey, overland, too. Sort of what I was doing, minus the company. Shacked up at the Bebers with this bunch for the night. Asking price for a double room was 1000 SYP — drove a not-so-hard bargain to 800 SYP, including breakfast. This would be my only “proper hotel” on the entire trip! Appreciated laundered sheets, presence of air-conditioning (though I didn’t need one, it was good to know I could), and uproarious English-speaking company. (Europe) biker types were the other people at the hotel, they’d ridden into Kraks at dusk and seemed to be on a long bike journey. Note to self: learn to ride a bike so you can do this, too. 1 x 800 SYP = US$17.40 
Aleppo: 5 May
What happened to Aleppo? I didn’t stay here as I was running out of time and needed to get on the twice-weekly train to Turkey. But do yourself a favour. Go, no, RUN, to Aleppo. Don’t stay at the Baron Hotel, but go to the bar. Walk around the grounds. Take a photo of the “telex room” as you’re going to the loo. Sneak a peek into the guestbook (though it’s usually locked up), to discover names like Agatha Christie and Lawrence of Arabia.
Antalya: 6 May
Stayed with the lovely Melissa Maples. Went to a Turkish mystic. Good fun.
Goreme: 9 May
Some of the most beautiful natural settings you will ever lay eyes on. Underground cave cities, churches, Dali-esque surreal rock formations. Went quadbiking all over Cappadocia in an All Terrain Vehicle.
Kose Pension: 10 euros for a bed in a triple room. Quiet, beautiful little house, free wifi.
Istanbul: 11 May
Second time in Istanbul. What a delightful, romantic city. Turkish food is not the same outside of Turkey — more so than any other cuisine. Turkish food in Turkey is… superb, fresh, varied, and wonderful. Turkish football. Ritin rooftop bar, lots and lots of my favourite midye dolma (very awesome one across Ritin).
World House Istanbul: 13 euros. 4 x 13 = 52 euros
Going
London-Singapore-Dubai-London: 420 GBP [plane]
Dubai-Sharjah: 100 AED [taxi]
Sharjah-Beirut: 493.65 AED [plane] *note: if I were to do this now FlyDubai.com flies out of Dubai directly, not Sharjah, and is only 150 AED!
Beirut-Damascus: US$12 [taxi, 2.5-3h] from Charles Helou taxi
Damascus-Palmyra: microbus to Harasta station (10SYP) + 200 SYP [bus, 4-5h]
Palmyra-Kraks: hitched a free ride, but otherwise 150 SYP I think and with a switch of vehicles at Homs
Palmyra-Homs: hitched a ride, so, free, but otherwise 80 SYP in a microbus
Homs-Damascus: 110 SYP [2h, VIP bus] + microbus to Al-Bahsa (10 SYP, but wave madly, point excitedly, and speak whatever Arabic you can)
Damascus-Aleppo: 200 SYP [5h, bus]
Aleppo – Adana: 1010 SYP [9h, seat on train]
Adana – Antalya: 45 TL [12h, bus] *note: Akdeniz is the only bus company that does many daytime departures to Antalya. You can catch a microbus from outside the Adana station (cross the road, in the direction of the Otogar) for 1 TL. There are a bunch of bus offices at Merkez Otogar, and Akdeniz is at No. 4. Upside of this: they will pick you up and send you to the Otogar for free.
Antalya – Goreme: 40 TL (9h, bus)
Goreme – Istanbul: 50 TL (12h, bus)
Istanbul – London: 25 GBP (yes, you read right! 25 POUNDS!!) God bless Pegasus Airlines
Syrian visa: US$33 (For Singapore passports. Issued at the border. Not possible if your home country has a Syrian embassy, in which case you need it processed there.)
