One of our members, Lucy, gave a talk (via Zoom) about her impressions of Syria in 2008. This was before everything changed in such a devastating way with the onset of the civil war.
Lucy spent several days there for work and was able to see something of the country as well as meeting some 
Syrians. Visits to the mosques in Damascus as well as the Syrian Coptic churches where she heard the Lord’s Prayer recited in Aramaic were very interesting, but the highlight was a visit to the impressive Krak de Chevalier Crusader castle. She recalled the welcome of everyone she met there and how she often wonders what has happened to them now.