We made it!

So Talal and I made it to Damascus last night around 9pm, where we were to wait in the airport for 3 hours for a flight to his hometown of Aleppo. No big deal, right? However, after 2 hours, we were finally allowed to check in and discovered that our flight had been cancelled. But the interesting thing is that this was not announced, nor did anyone tell us this when we went through security. I just happened to look up and see that the flight was no longer displayed on the departure screen. The whole Damascus airport experience was entirely crazy, and the story really deserves to be shared in person - I'll have to fill you in on this when I return.

So after Talal inquired with no less than 4 people, getting different answers from them all, we finally confirmed that in fact the flight was cancelled, and so at 12:30am, we resorted to getting a car service to drive us the 4 hours from Damascus to Aleppo. We finally made it to his parents house at 4am, and I've never been so glad to be "home".

Upon my arrival, my mother-in-law greeted me with a kiss on each cheek, which I took as a good sign. I greeted her with whatever Arabic I could muster at 4am (which isn't saying much). I could finally relax.

So now I'm here, sitting in my in-laws living room, hanging out with the Attar family. I met my 9 month old niece today (Talal's brother's daughter), and she is totally cute. I enjoyed a HUGE meal of stuffed grape leaves, lamb, and yogurt (Talal's favorite), and I ate everything my mother-in-law put on my plate. I will easily gain 5-10lbs on this trip, but all in the name of making a good first impression:)

Talal's brother, Azem, speaks very good English, so I had someone to talk to today - I was so grateful. Everyone has been extremely nice, and Talal's mom liked the purse I gave her (I think). She shows little emotion (like Talal), so it was difficult to tell.

All is well so far - will keep you posted!