Crac des Chevaliers

We had miserable weather today...very much like a cold, rainy November day at home. Nonetheless we "attacked" the Crac des Chevaliers, a fabulous castle near Hama. The first fortress at this location was built in 1031 but the castle we visited was built and expanded by the Crusaders in the middle of the 12th century.

It is really lovely and very much intact, so it was lots of fun to ramble around. Unfortunately, our guide seemed to be trying to set a land speed record for tours, so we really raced through it. We had a bit of free time at the end, but nobody wanted to take advantage of it as they were all cold and wet, so I felt somewhat pressured to make my visit quick. Still, it was a really great day and I enjoyed myself. Everything in this castle is huge, from the rooms to the kitchens to the latrines. It has high vaulted ceilings and is laid out in a very convoluted pattern of rooms and passageways. It is exactly what you'd expect from a Crusader castle - just like in the movies.

We followed our visit with yet another fabulous lunch, this time a set meal with dozens of appetizers followed by roast chicken. Our waiter was an absolute queen, and he kept us all enormously amused throughout our meal. He was something right out of "La Cage aux Folles".

We then rode back to the town of Hama for the night, and unfortunately arrived here after dark. This town is famous for its huge waterwheels or norias, and fortunately a few are lit up so we were able to see them.

We now have free time until dinner, although I'm not sure I'll be able to eat again as I'm still full from lunch. Apparently our guide will pay for our meal if we tell our most embarrassing story over dinner. I've been wandering around town trying to come up with mine - perhaps I'll go with the one about catching my skirt in my backpack in Cambodia and walking around the ferry dock with my backside exposed.

By the way...I forget to mention olives when I wrote about our breakfasts. Olives are included in all breakfasts, as well as pretty much every other meal. They absolutely live on them over here and they are unavoidable. I don't like them at the best of times and can't imagine them being a great breakfast food.

We're off early tomorrow for Palmyra but won't actually visit the ruins until the following day. All is going well and I'm still loving Syria.