OK–Internet availability at the Cairo hotel in Hama–connected to the world again. First, we definitely have our act together in Damascus and can now navigate the city without significant discomfort. I want to dedicate this post to one thing only–ice cream. With great apologies to my adopted country of Italy, the best ice cream, gelato or dolce in general cannot be found in Rome or Florence. Rather, we have found ice cream nirvana right in the heart of the Damascus Al Hamidiyeh souk at the Bakdash ice cream shop. It is a fairly simple vanilla ice cream that is quickly swirled in a thick coating of chopped pistachios. The ice cream is fantastic, the pistachios seem like they were just harvested and the combination is other-worldly. Sorry Vivoli in Florence and Giolitti in Rome–you have been bested. A very close second is a small place on Sharia al Quwatli street in Hama–about 20-30 yards from the Cairo hotel. The concoction is served in a beer mug and seems to be a combination of plain yogurt, honey, raspberry sauce, almonds, pistachios, some other unidentifiable nuts, pineapple, kiwi, strawberries with bananas on the bottom. Not sure what it is called–looks like a parfait and simply unreal. When I think of Syria, I don’t think desert but, wow, what a surprise. Here are a few pics of the Bakdash ice cream shop. More posts soon.
