Category Middle East
Tuesday Train Journey – Aleppo to Latakia, in Syria
This year every Tuesday I will be recounting an overseas train journey. It could be a short hop or a long-distance overnighter. Every journey is special to me – the greatest way to travel by far. In 2009 I was extremely fortunate to visit Syria where first stop was Aleppo, which remains my favourite city […]
The Railroad in Damascus
I count myself incredibly lucky to have travelled to Syria in 2009. My trip there counts as one of my all time best – little did I know of the horrors that were soon to unfold, as I received an incredibly warm welcome everywhere I visited from the smiling locals. The whole country appeared so […]
Monday Morning Blues – The Wadi Rum Desert, Jordan
I visited Jordan in 2005 and spent a night under the stars in the dessert. Wonderful memories of a simple lifestyle in a vast open space. I could do with being there now!
Monday Morning Blues – Camel Photo Bomber, Palmyra, Syria
I took this shot in May 2009 and it always makes me smile.
Monday Morning Blues – Our Lady Of Lebanon, Beirut
This statue of Our Lady of Lebanon stands on a hilltop near Beirut. It is reached via a terrifying cable car – I definitely shut my eyes when we lurched from the top!
Sunday Photos – The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus
I visited Damascus in 2009 and was totally mesmerised by the great mosque, especially after dark. Here is a gallery of some of the photos I took.
Monday Morning Blues – Jerash, Jordan
Most Roman ruins have at least one memorable feature such as an impressive amphitheatre, triumphal arch, aqueduct or bathhouse. With Jerash in Jordan it is the curved colonnade, which is pictured below. Join us over on Twitter every Monday morning when we post our far away photos featuring the colour blue @wilburstravels
My Top Ten Big Cities Outside Europe – #1, Aleppo, Syria
Aleppo, Syria – population 1.8 million (estimated) Vying with Damascus to be the oldest continually inhabited city in the world (6,000 years and still counting despite the recent devastation), Aleppo became my favourite from the moment that we met in May 2009. I had travelled by train from Istanbul to Adana in Turkey and then […]
My Top Ten Big Cities Outside Europe #6 – Beirut
#6 – Beirut, Lebanon (population estimated 1.3 million) The hardships currently faced by the Lebanese in general and the Beirutis in particular are hard to bear. The devastating explosion caused by negligent storage of fertiliser is symbolic of a incompetent, corrupt and careless regime. One can only hope that this changes very soon. I visited […]
