After scrambling around town to pay bills, and ensure that I had enough money for the 7-day trip, I dashed off to the Adana bus station, neither ticket nor reservation in hand. The destination - Antioch, almost three hours south of Adana. That ride was uneventful, and I managed to reach Antioch at dusk, with just sufficient light to feel I could safely cross the border into Syria. After a little negotiation on prices, I took a service taxi across the border into Syria, then onwards to the city of Aleppo where I had planned to rest for the night.
The border crossing was busier than usual, which I had expected given the impending religious holiday. I had requested a smoke-free ride, which I was happy about. Can't handle cigarette smoke in a confined space. Once in Aleppo, I found my favourite hotel out of rooms. All booked for the religious holidays. I scrambled around the city and when I had run out of energy I finally settled for a place that was clean, and only just comfortable. 45 US for that. It's fine staying in a dive in the summer but with my asthma, I cannot afford to take chances!
I didn't bother with breakfast, too keen to get an early start. At 8:30 I took a 'pullman' bus from the Ramousseh Bus Station. For just a few dollars, if that, I got as far as the city of HOMS, where I negotiated a private taxi. For fifty dollars, he would take me to the ancient castle of Cracs de Chevalier, which was on the way, and drive me on to Trablous, Tripoli.
The castle was everything and more. I am so used to seeing castle ruins, and having to imagine what was enclosed in ancient walls, the imagination sparked by maps and scholarly accounts. But this castle is so different. When the Crusaders left this castle in the 12th Century, they managed to escape without the castle being plundered. So, there is so much more to see!
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