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press” as the starting point of the journey. As we were touring the sights, we had no idea
that murder was taking place at that very moment in London.
The station was a grand building with an impressive chandelier and photos of the present
and past leaders on prominent display. The railway line was strategically placed geograph-
ically and had been very much part of the “Great Game”, which the European powers in-
dulged in at the end of the 19 th and the beginning of the 20 th centuries. It had been built
in 1903 and was part of the planned Berlin to Baghdad railway project at a time when the
Germans had been expanding their interests in the area as key allies, economic backers, and
military advisers to the failing and increasingly desperate Ottoman Empire. At the same
time, Captain T.E. Laurence, who had stayed in Aleppo, had been involved in many attacks
on the trains from Damascus to Medina on the Hejaz line along with his guerilla forces,
prior to and during the First World War, so it had been a troublesome time for the railways.
As it turned out, the station was never connected to Berlin, and the Baghdad route is no
longer functioning and trains from Aleppo today ended up servicing other major cities in
Syria only.
Ruling Family Portraits: don't smile and try to look hard and cool.
While attempting to be as politically correct as possible and avoiding topics that might
either prove uncomfortable or provocative to our guide, we couldn't help noticing that there
were lots of pictures and statues of the ruling family. We were also puzzled how the word
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