we spent five days in damascus as part of the middle east studies program (mesp) travel component. we stayed in an old syrian orthodox monastery near the old city. the old city of damascus is a walled off section that is actually quite large, with narrow pedestrian-only streets. it’s one of the coolest places ever. there is a long “street called straight,” where Paul entered the city after he was blinded by God and then he was healed with the help of ananias. we went to ananias’ house, which is now underground because the level of the ground has risen about eight feet since then. there was a large souk (market) where we got ice cream (actually multiple ice creams each day) at the oldest ice cream establishment in the world. there are a lot of similar “oldest in the world” claims to fame here, including that damascus is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world.
one of my favorite things we did in damascus was partake in a turkish bath – hammam! we go in and take off our clothes, and bathe from these little water fountains. then we go into a intensely hot steam room, which is great. then this guy rubs you down with an abrasive glove that is almost like steel wool. he grabbed my friend brian and i and basically threw us to the ground and scraped us both down (at the same time) with this glove. then he slaps us as hard as he can on the buttocks and that is the sign to turn over, and he does the front side. then we get an intense one minute testosterone-fueled massage involving fists in the back of our thighs and back cracking. afterward we get wrapped in multiple towels and get tea to drink. it was probably one of the best experiences ever.
we had some guest speakers who are in syria with the mennonite central committee. they have a platform of biblical non-violence and peacemaking, so that was interesting. they are working under the syrian orthodox church, and thus are very against western-style church planting. the one guy had some hardcore challenges for us – like what does it mean to love our enemies in today’s world? it takes on a whole new meaning in this part of the world with “enemies” like hezbollah, hamas, and the regimes in syria and iran. something to think about for sure. i was sitting here typing this and my chair fell over backwards. ahhhh! i hit my head really hard against the cement wall – hopefully i don’t have a concussion!
ok, i survived. we had a free day and we just hung out in old city damascus. one could spend weeks exploring it! the next day we went to the american embassy. the cultural center there has been closed to syrians due to the recent attack by the u.s. – american-syrian relations are at their “lowest point in history” right now. the guy who spoke to us there was awesome. diplomacy is a whole new game when you’re in syria. we had a great time in damascus!
