Visas
While Jordan and Lebanese visas can be easily obtained at the border (for $14 and $17 respectively), getting the Syrian one confounds me a bit. Syrian Embassy in Warsaw claims that there is only one way to get it - by giving them passport, photos and money ($40 for double entry visa) and waiting 3 working days. Everything would be fine, but I still haven't got my new passport and I'm not sure if I will get it long before the departure. Actually I'm not sure if I will ever receive this passport... Here's the deal: I was robbed in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia and, of course, I lost my passport (entire story can be found here [in polish]). I managed to get temporary passport there despite polish consulate has been being moved to Beijing that days. Exactly 9 days after I had got the passport they finally closed it. I was lingering with applying for new passport for months and when I decided to go to the Middle East I found out that I was really short of time, for the time needed to get a new passport is up to 6 weeks. So after buying the tickets on the 01.01.2010 (good day to buy tickets, eh?) I completed all the documents and on Monday (January 4th) I applied for the passport. The official reception date is February 15th - one day before the departure! Girl in the office told me that it is possible to get it earlier, however they need to verify my Ulaanbaatar story in the consulate because they don't have my temporary passport in the system. Apparently the communication between polish consulates and the passport offices is a bit skewed. I really wonder how they will verify it since that consulate doesn't exist any more....Long story short, it is very likely that I wont have time to apply for Syrian visa here in Warsaw so I started to google after other ways of getting the visa. The opinions are equivocal:
http://www.vagabondjourney.com/travelhelp/syrian-visa-at-the-border/
http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/obtaining-a-syrian-visa-while-abroad/
Vaccinations
Hepatitis A and B, rabies and typhoid fever are essential. Although some parts of Syria are malaria-risk areas I think I don't give a damn. More info here: http://www.tripsetc.com/middle_east.htmlI have to buy new backpack and trousers and I'm ready to go!
