Vacation Pics

I've posted a bunch of pictures from my holiday, and I'll let them tell the story. I had a great time - it wasn't very 'restful' but it was exactly what I needed. I got to walk a lot, join in political protests in Beirut, see firsthand the damage from the Israeli bombing of Lebanon, explore Damascus and spend time with friends and family. There is one part of the story that is missing - my camera wasn't working when I went to Dahiya, the suburbs of Beirut. The damage I saw there was more overwhelming than anything I've ever seen - even 6 months after the fact. I wish I could share those images with you...

Dubai

Amal and I at breakfast

The hotel I stayed in in Dubai

On the way out of Beirut - heading south

Rebuilding a bombed out bridge just outside of Beirut

Valley

Hizballah flag at the top of Fort Beauford in southern Lebanon - a strategic spot that has been controlled by the Lebanese, Palestinians and Israelis at different points.

Marcy and I took a wrong turn and ended up in an area with cluster bombs. The road was clear, but the red and white tape marks dangerous areas.

poster warning civilians about cluster bombs

Private home in Southern Lebanon

Sunset - we had to move fast because the roads were too bad to drive after dark

Children playing in the rubble

Southern Lebanon - there used to be a house behind this gate...

Mosque in Southern Lebanon

Damascus - One of the oldest covered souq's in the world

A khan in the old city. Khan's are places were merchants would stay overnight

This is where unprepared women go to get a brown cloak that covers their hair and bodies before entering the mosque. I looked like one of the sand people from Star Wars...

Courtyard view

Courtyard of Al Ummayed Mosque

Woman praying inside the mosque

Mosque interior

Storyteller at a traditional Damascus coffee house

Minaret

View from a Damascus rooftop in the Old City

Bob, my host and guide in Damascus

The interior (and I do mean interior) of a beautiful Damascene style home, in the old city

Beirut
Lebanese citizens returning from the rally on February 14, the anniversary of Hariri's assassination

Balloon with a picture of Hariri

The wrecked building in the background is where Hariri was assassinated

Girl holding the Lebanese flag

Minivan full of patriotic young Lebanese guys

Enormous lebanese flag, with the Hariri mosque in the background, Martyr's Square

Billboard of Condi - the part you can't see has a snake. In arabic it says, "I am Condi" under both pics...

Hizbollah encampment next to the Parliament. They are demanding a new government.