Rain is a Blessing Here

Back home, the rain has been lashing endlessly. It must be a trying time for many especially those affected by the floods, disconnected roads and utilities, loss of homes and so on. It does test one's attitude towards the Almighty.

Here in Damascus, the rain fell down heavily today. I have been asking my Syrian colleagues the past couple of days how long has it not been raining. It has been a while. The city looks so dry and a bit dusty. So today it was an absolute blessing. When such things are taken for granted or even seen as an annoyance in other countries, here to see the rain falling down is a real joy.

After an exhausting day in the office, yours trully made a quick trip to the Al Hamidiyah Souk. The souk is in the middle of the Old City where the great Umayyad Mosque is located. After our Andalusia trip a couple of weeks ago seeing the extent of the Umayyad Dynasty, I am here right back to the heart and capital of the original empire. When the Umayyad Dynasty fell to the Abbasid Dynasty, Damascus had seen its height. The Abbasids moved their capital from Damascus to Baghdad.

On the way back I saw this local ice cream shop. Quite interesting to see the ice cream being pounded repeatedly before being piled up on the table ready to be scooped for the customers. It's definitely quite tempting for people walking by. Going back to the hotel was a bit problematic. With the falling rain, even in a city of literally thousands of taxis, waiting for a long time for an empty one is not how I want to waste my time. So there I was walking in the rain .........