Originally Posted by
RandomBaritone
Astonishing and heartbreaking in equal measure.
Perhaps what I'm most impressed by, though, is how you managed to keep an undercurrent of daily life visible while also amply demonstrating the horrors of war. Beautifully prepared meals and gracious hospitality are universal, and they remind us of the power of the human spirit even in the face of senseless tragedy.
Thank you,
RandomBaritone
. Yes, the repression under Assad and now the threat of ISIS has been trying for Syrian people, but their strength and fortitude was very much visible, and so very inspirational.
Originally Posted by
LoungeBum
This TR is so far one of the best I have ever read/see. Congratulations Daniel!
I have been trying to travel to Syria since 2009 and my relatives (My wife mom is from Syria) always advise me is not the right time...
I have missed a couple of amazing places now destroyed by ISIS not to mention the suffering and struggling the people from Syria and Iraq are forced to have by this lunatics.
My wife was also happy to see your TR, which has been shared with all her relatives from Syria, and it was very well received by them!
Keep up the TR's mate, you are doing an excellent job!
Many thanks,
LoungeBum. Great to hear that the photo’s have been seen and enjoyed by some of the Syrian people
. The war has unfortunately ravaged the country so much since 2011, but hopefully there will eventually be a return to more peaceful times ahead.
Originally Posted by
brooklynflyer82
Thank you so much for posting this. This is probably the most informative and inspirational trip report i have ever read. To see the way people persevere in the midst of so much terror and sadness is an amazing narrative to read and the pictures really bring everything to life. Thank you so much for telling this story.
Thanks,
brooklynflyer82. While compiling this I tried to get appropriate words to go along with all the photo’s I took, so glad to see they hopefully complement each other.
Originally Posted by
kevincure
Great stuff, Daniel. Loved the report. I visited much of this area in '08 (the week of Obama's election). I'm American, and the Kurds were incredibly pro-American - literally was offered free food every single day. The mountains of Northern Iraq are beautiful, as are sites like the old Erbil fort. On the Syrian side, I showed up with no visa and was allowed to sleep in the bunks of the border post, chatting with the guards about writers like Alaa al Aswany, until a visa could be procured the next day. Heading over to Aleppo, I recall a young Kurd coming up to me while at the Citadel and discussing at length Assad's repression of the NE Kurds.
It's disappointing to see Ocalan on the banners, but also incredible to see the bravery of the locals, especially the all-female fighting force!
Thank you,
kevincure. Sounds like you had a very interesting and enjoyable trip in this part of the world. I had read of peoples write-ups of travelling through Syria before the war and it seemed like a quite a relatively safe, friendly and normal part of the Middle-East. Hopefully it returns eventually to some sort of stability after the last 5+ years of war and chaos.