Bernard Gagnon
For many years, this ancient country was the Middle East’s great “what if?” — home to some of the planet’s oldest cities and most extraordinary archaeological treasures, yet effectively sealed off from mainstream tourism by civil war, sanctions, and security fears. But in 2026 travelers are beginning to return, cautiously and curiously, to a country still emerging from one of the 21st century’s defining conflicts. I hope to join them soon, because I was born in Damascus and have
syria (2)
The world´s second largest religion, Islam, is practiced by an estimated 1.8 billion people on every continent, and an estimated 3.6 million mosques worldwide, ranging from the humble, workaday and even primitve to the spectacular indeed. Countries with the most mosques include (believe it or not) Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iran, Morocco, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia (which is after all the religion´s birthplace), Turkey, and Yemen. Known in Arabic as a masjid, this is whe
