There’s little sign of revolution in the Syrian capital. Either it is simmering underground awaiting the moment to surface, or the confidence expressed by the regime is well-founded.
The Syrian customs officers at the Jdaidet Yabous border gate still use sheets of newspaper as sunshades. A front page of the Saudi-owned dailyal-Hayat is stuck on the window of their office. It was a rather old issue. That day’s news about Syria was at the foot of the page – low-key, like coverage of Syria in the House of Saud’s media used to be. The top story was about Yemen, the second about Egypt, and the statement made by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem was along the bottom.
There’s nothing at the border to suggest you’re in a country wracked by revolution. While the vehicle searches are no longer conducted on the basis of “trust” between the security men and drivers, they do not hold travellers up. The numbers of people crossing these days is comparable to an ordinary day before March 2011 – about as many on a weekend as there used to be on a weekday.
The highway to Damascus is unchanged. Revolutions do not alter geography. Drivers still fear being caught speeding by the radar trap. The only new feature is an intelligence check point near a complex over which flies the flag of the UAE construction firm Emaar. It seems slightly token. The men appear more relaxed than those in the intelligence patrol that has long guarded the road leading to the Emir of Qatar’s hilltop palace.
This is the territory of the Fourth Division of the Syrian army, but none of its members are visible outside barracks. From above, the minaret-strewn city seems to have no eastern boundaries, only Mount Qasioun...
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/all-quiet-damascus-front