I am going to Damascus in Syria and later to Jerusalem in Israel had already been trying to figure out the safety/availability or running routes before the Gaza strip article came out (I am going there as well) has anyone ever lived in either of those places??? input, experiences and of course stories would be highly valued.
I lived in Syria for 5 years but up in the north, Aleppo. I taught at an international school and used to take my students for runs out and about the city.... Everybody will stare and traffic is a pain. Sidewalks are a mess. I suggest driving your car out a few miles from Damascus and running on a deserted road. For a fun time go out to Palmyra and run amongst the Roman ruins and wild desert landscapes.
Be careful not to run over or otherwise desecrate any of my shrines.
How about a nice run along the Golan Heights and the DMZ with Israel? It is always an added incentive to run with the gunsights of 2 Armies at War tracking you.
On second thought......
be sure to wear your american flag split shorts!
haha I have USA gear I will definitely not be bringing...
So there aren't really any places to train in the city? And the more important question I suppose is, no one will come after me for training in Damascus? I will be studying there and won't have my own vehicle.
*bump* anyone trained in any middle eastern country? did anyone actually stop you from running or confront you at any point?
Run in some Love Pink shorts. They'll be too confused to mess with you.
i have run in all major israeli cities... got heckled a tad, but no more or less than i do in most US cities. outside of tel aviv, which is pretty "mediterranean" culturally speaking, people just ignored me or kind of looked at me like i was an idiot.