The Family "Test"

The first meal that my Polish father ate at my Syrian grandparents home was meshe. This was his test to see if he was going to be a good addition to the family.

Meshe is the Syrian version of stuffed peppers. Only instead of being made of mostly ground meat, they are made of mostly white rice and small pieces of pork. They are then cooked in a tomato based sauce with carrots. We don't just stuff peppers, but zucchini, eggplants and large carrots. My mouth is watering just thinking about eating it.

Earlier this summer, my mom made a pot of meshe. My boyfriend and I have been together for four years now and he has yet to try meshe. So he was summoned to the dinner table for his "test." Needless to say, he passed with flying colors, just like my father did over 25 years ago.

Then and Now

The picture on the left is from 1961. The picture on the right is from 2003. Doesn't look like much of a difference from the picture, but from the stories I was told growing up, it's changed. Today, Syria has a female vice president (and she's not wearing the traditional Shawl or scarf around her head.) I always thought they were called babushka's.

It seems weird to me that Syria borders Iraq, yet we don't hear much about the country and if they are involved in the war. I have always wanted to go to Syria, but in this time of war, would the citizens welcome Americans?

From what I have read, Syrians are not against America, unlike Egypt is right now. You can't visit Egypt without being in danger. Even the tourist areas are dangerous. They don't want Americans in their country. But Syria welcomes tourists with open arms.

So why do so few tourists visit Syria. Honestly, I think it's because no one really knows that much about it. Yes it's an Arabic speaking country and they do where some of the traditional clothing. But visiting somewhere where you have family roots is special. Hopefully one day i'll get there.