It is 5 30 in the morning and the muezin is calling for the morning prayer. Usually I don't really realise that and sleep ahead. This morning it is different I am totally awake. I can't deny that I am nervous. At 8 we will be at the boarder the Syria. It is the first time that the three of us ride with each other and starting our engines together is a fantastic feeling indeed!

The boarder crossing (main boarder close to Reyhanli) takes its time, but after 2 1/2h and 40$ lighter we enter Syria. Shitty roads, burned out car and men with guns sitting next to the road built a warm welcome. Now we know we are in Syria!
But the roads get better and we don't feel unsafe at all. People start again smiling and waving when we pass by, like in Albania. This makes our very long trip immediatly nicer.
We have to pass some check points, where armed soldiers sometimes ask where we go.

Short before Homs we stopp for food, where we get the best hommus we have ever had. The people are very friendly and enjoy that we are there. Probably not any more often seen.

Stopping at petrol stations is the first time on our trip not any more a nightmare as the prices are dirt cheap, around 50cent per litre! Happy days!

After 500km we reach the boarder to Jordan at 5pm. It takes us ages to leave syria. They have to stamp the carnet, they fill in some things, we come to last last check point and... we have to turn around because one stamp is missing. We go in one house then in the next, we pay another 10$, which allows us to get finally the stamp in the first building. Check point ok, now we are happily looking forward the jordan boarder running arounds.

The jordanians are very nice and it doesn't take long for all the men working on the passport control to surround me with big smiles and Marc and Tam are toatally ignored. One of them jokes with not letting in my husband. But all is good and again we start to run from one buildind to the other. 27€ here, 25 there, the visa is another 20... This boarder bureaucracy feel like computergames where you don't really know where to go and what to do, but have to find the diamond, a swort and 10xp points first before you get the next quest. No matter if if you don't understand what I try to explain.

It is pitch dark and we have to find a hotel. I just know one about 40km from the boarder. I really don't like driving in the dark, cause I can't really see if Marc and Tam are still behind me if there are other cars. We finally get to a small road, where we are the only ones. I am curious how the landscape is going to look like in daytime cause now I just see as far as me light shines and this is not a lot. But I can say for sure that it won't be green.

We stop in a small village to ask for a hotel three men tell us we can stay at their house if we want to, no problem, no money. They seem nice, decision made, we follow them. The people are really friendly we sit around, get tea. I am asked if I want to refresh a bit, so I go in the house and there is wife and the daughters. I sit down there and wait, and wait, and wait. Now I can wash my face and my hands, but going back to the boys doesn't seem to be an option. Finally I make it, but it is not long lasting. One man tells Marc pretty fast that I should leave again. Nice! So I hang out with the girls, cook, and look with them through my "point on it book" three times.

In the morning I am quite happy to leave, cause everyone who knows me can imagin how happy I am. Me being a woman in that society, might be tricky!