Ok I know it has been forever. Sorry. We were in Syria and most websites were censored by the government and the internet was so slow that it wasn't even worth it to try and post.
I guess that I will just do kinda an overall review of Syria. First of all, I love Syria. If it wasn't for the ridiculously oppressive government and lack of human rights and civil liberties, I would totally want to live in Damascus. It was weird though being there and being a young American. All the tourists that go to Syria are really old and they are almost all from Europe. We probably saw like 4 American groups in out entire 6 days in Syria. And people don't like Americans there which was really different cause when we were in Egypt, when people figured out we were Americans they were usually full of happy things, even if they didn't like the US government. People were pretty good about distinguishing between the American people and the government, and that just didn't seem to happen in Syria as much. And there are "I love Syria" and "I love Bashar (Basher?)" hats and stickers everywhere. I almost bought one as a joke but I just couldn't bring myself to do it because I felt like it support the Syrian government too much. I feel a lot more lenient than most people in terms of who the government should negotiate with but I just can't support the Syrian government and how they treat their citizens and people that reside in the country. End of rant.

Anyways, we went to a bunch of historical sites, they were cool but it wasn't really that exciting and I don't think that it is worth blogging about. I have some really cool pictures though and I will be putting them on facebook tonight so check them out. One of the most amazing things that we did was go to Golan Heights, the area that is in dispute with Israel and the technical basis of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It was weird being there. I feel like I have never been to a more modernly significant site in my life. This is basically the place that is fueling all tension between the Arab world, Israel, and the Western World. It was crazy observing that first hand and hearing both sides propoganda. So we were taken on a tour of the area by the public affairs minister of the town, Konicha, although I absolutely murdered the spelling of that. He got on our tour bus and narrated the entire trip through the rubble that they have preserved almost perfectly since the 70's when Israel evacuated this certain part. All the buildings had been completely destroyed, either by major explosives or simple gunshot. It looks like a war zone.

So technically that is what it was, but it definitely brought up a lot of feelings towards the whole ordeal for me. I usually avoid talking about politics on here but I just really feel like I need to say how it made me feel. So sorry if you disagree. First of all, I have usually taken the side of the Arabs on this side of the conflict. I understand what Israel has gone through but they aren't the underdogs anymore. They are technologically more advanced than any country in the Middle East and their military rivals any military in the world, including the US, and I don't say that lightly. So Israel, get over it. You kicked all of the Middle East's butts in the 1967 war and they know that you are better. Stop trying to just prove you are better. Despite this, I have felt that the Arab countries haven't had enough stable leaders to be able to handle this right. I think I can say with some certainty that no country in the ME has a stable enough leader to actually look at this problem in a factual manner and take away the deep seeded feelings of hatred that are embedded into the Arab community. Many of these countries can't even guarantee basic rights to their citizens, forget about treating their enemies like people. Ya, ya, say whatever you want but I found the best quote to describe how I feel about how stupid both sides are being about this situation, "You can't shake hands with a clenched fist." So why can't we just negotiate!!!!!!!!!!!!!


So I feel like I have talked about the faults of both sides, but those were my preconceived notions about the whole issue. When we got to Golan Heights and were looking at the building, it made me lose sympathy for the Arab side of the argument. Go ahead, get angry. But I just kept thinking about how they were taking on such a victim mentality. It has been almost 40 years since this area was destroyed. PICK YOURSELVES UP! I know that it is to remind people of what happened, but by acting so helpless, it made me angry. You are letting them get the better of you if you don't recover. Rebuild, make a memorial. Keep a few of the buildings but not an entirely demolished town. It was so ridiculous and made me really mad. Playing up being a victim, in my opinion, doesn't solve the problem. Walking around all "woe is me" does not make me feel bad for you. You had the opportunity to recover, and you chose not to. I know it is harsh but I got really mad driving around this place.


Afterwards, we talked as a group about what we saw. My opinion was completely different from almost everyone on the trip. Oh well. I still feel very strongly this way. I know that I don't fully understand the situation, and I don't think that any westerner can but I feel like I am making this opinion fairly well educated. Ok. That is truly the end of my rant about the Arab-Israeli Conflict.

So...the rest of Syria. The shopping in old damascus was awesome. I got a lot of presents there. The people were way nicer than in Cairo. I really really really like Damascus. So...we went to a few more historical sites. They weren't really that exciting but we had a hilarious guide who told the most un-PC jokes ever. I would say he was racist but he insulted everygroup you could imagine equally so I'm not sure that is fair to call him. It was an odd experience to say the least.


That was basically all of Syria. Now we are in Jordan and we got to Amman, the capital, yesterday. BEST THING EVER!!!!!!! The world cup started and I got to see my friends from school!!!!!! One of our really good friends from school lives in Jordan and my roommate for next year is living with him family so I got to see both of them!!!! We watched the world cup and jsut hung out! I totally needed it, I was for sure starting to get a little homesick. Oh exciting news too!!! We got our housing for next year and I am with my 3 best friends and our best guy friends are living on the floor below us! And we are in leased housing, so that means that we are technically on Northeastern property, but it is just basically an apartment and only like 6 groups of NU students live there. It is gunna be great!!!! So that has nothing to do with my trip but too bad. I was really excited. So we saw them yesterday and spent the nights at Abdo's house. Sorry, we refers to my friends Curt, Miguel, and Lauren. And Abdo is the one who lives in Jordan and Deryn is my roommate for next year. The whole group leaves on Tuesday but Curt and I stay here till Friday night to hang out with Abdo and Deryn.

So.....right now we are in Petra and are going to tour the ruins tomorrow. It should be really fun and beautiful so I will let you know how it goes. Thats really about it. Sorry this was so long but there was a lot to catch up on!!!


XOXOXOXO
Katie