Syria is no different from many countries across the Arab world engulfed this year in unprecedented protests.
But getting in to tell this story has been far more difficult. Reporting restrictions means there have been few journalists here to witness this story firsthand.
A rare official permission to enter means we can now report from the ground, albeit with a government minder at our side on the streets.
The roads of Damascus are still choked with traffic. The ancient old city, with its maze of narrow alleys, hasn't lost its charm or bustle.
Syrians still throng the cobbled streets in the covered markets, browsing in stalls selling everything from fashionable head scarves to the latest fashion in tight-fitting sequined jeans...
But getting in to tell this story has been far more difficult. Reporting restrictions means there have been few journalists here to witness this story firsthand.
A rare official permission to enter means we can now report from the ground, albeit with a government minder at our side on the streets.
The roads of Damascus are still choked with traffic. The ancient old city, with its maze of narrow alleys, hasn't lost its charm or bustle.
Syrians still throng the cobbled streets in the covered markets, browsing in stalls selling everything from fashionable head scarves to the latest fashion in tight-fitting sequined jeans...