The real Aleppo

At the end of my short trip to Syria in 2009, I hoped that I would return to visit Aleppo and Palmyra. Of course, if I actually follow through with this project, I will also visit north-eastern Syria to find Chagar Bazar and Tell Brak.

Aleppo was important to Mrs Mallowan. She clearly loved to visit with her husband. She thought of it as a place to regain comfort and composure. According to the notes, it was the location for the start of the novel 'Murder on the Orient Express' (note - ought to read this and shouldn't let the movies put me off).

The current news bulletins show Aleppo as a place of death and destruction. It wasn't always. I had hoped to stay at the Baron Hotel as part of the revisiting project. I wonder if it still stands.

The link below is an informal report from a variety of travellers to Aleppo. Notice the note at the start of the website explaining that things may be very different now. What a terrible tragedy.

travellers' tales from Aleppo

The following link is a report from 2007 in the UK newspaper The Independent. The writer makes Aleppo sound very inviting and gives rates to stay at The Baron (very reasonable too).

Travels with Agatha Christie

How much longer with the people of Syria have to suffer?

Doubt prevails

More than a month has gone by since my last blog and I have so much to record from my trip to Devon and my reading during the summer. There is no excuse for dragging my heels in this way, except for Doubt. Doubt that spending time on this project is sensible or useful. Out damned Doubt. There is no reason why I should not continue, even for my own amusement. Work has begun again, which drains my energy and my creativity. I've been frontloaded and have new courses to teach, so I am in that panic mode again. Walking that tightrope of complete fear because I have to convince a room full of people that I know what I'm talking about and make it seem fantastically interesting at the same time, while smothering myself in a veneer of self-confidence so that no-one will find out the truth. Added to all of this, I've been working on sending a dog that I rescued on the compound to the UK. She arrived yesterday and, as I knew this was meant, she has been welcomed by abnormally high temperatures for the end of September, so she will not suffer the cold and wet just yet.

I did send the letter to Mathew Prichard. I've had no reply so fear that, even if he read the letter, he thinks I'm a complete lunatic and has thrown it and my request to the rubbish bin. I don't blame him, but I am hugely disappointed. It would have been such a boost for me to have had his blessing. I knew it was too much to ask though. Look at me - a middle-aged teacher with nothing published (except research articles in academic institutions) and nothing to commend me as a possible writer. Still, that could be said of all writers when they first began so I'm going to have to pull up my socks and start believing in myself before I asking other people.

As it is, Syria continues to be out of bounds while Assad thrashes the people who dare to question his authority. Every Friday there are more deaths. I do wonder why the holiest day of the week in the Muslim religion is always the most violent.

Tell Brak

I'm still gathering evidence and pondering on the case. The idea of simply following the route to Chagar Bazar doesn't seem sufficient to me. What's my purpose in this project? My inspiration is Ms Christie's memoir about her travels and her life at Chagar Bazar and Tell Brak. Like Ms Christie, my main purpose is more anthropological than archeological, although I am interested in ancient times. Again, like her, I'm more intriqued by the ephemera of every day life, which provides more personal indications of the life of the people. Eye idols don't do much for me I'm afraid. Why 'eye' anyway? Again, like Ms Christie, when I hear archeologists confidently explaining about what a lump of clay would have been used for 4,000 years ago, I find myself wondering 'how do they know?'. I feel the same way about economics which relies on predicting behaviour of people, when one of the best qualities of people is that they behave unpredictably so often.

Back to the point of this posting. I want to retrace the travel section, if at all possible by the Orient Express although the cost seems prohibitive (perhaps another of my preparatory tasks must be to find a sugar daddy toute suite). However, I want to spend time at the two archeological sites to drink in every day life and live within the landscape that Ms Christie loved so much. I want to see if there have been changes and allow a 21st century audience to see beyond the 'axis of evil' and the general fear of Arabs that is prevalent in the West. Just two weeks ago, at a small village produce show, an elderly Norfolk man made a comment about a photo taken inside a mosque in Oman.

Cor, you wouldn't catch me taking a photo in a mosque. Probably get blown up!

If I am to spend time at Chagar Bazar, or nearby, I will need to do something, preferably a paid job. Well, I can type, write and take photographs. I can cook plain food, clean and do laundry (although I expect local people can do the same and need the job more than I do). So, my current quest is to investigate how I can find a job in Syria. Seems a daunting prospect, but with determination . . .