| Admin/Biog History | In 1955, Waterfield undertook a three-month tour of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, travelling by car. He arrived in the Middle East after sailing from Genoa to Beirut, via Naples and Alexandria on the 'Esperia'. It appears to be a sightseeing trip, with the opportunity to visit places he had seen or missed while volunteering in the Friends Ambulance Unit in the Middle East during the Second World War. While in Turkey he spent 10 days staying with the de Winton family in Ankara. [David] de Winton was Head of the British Council there and the family were friends of Waterfield's brother Anthony. Waterfield subsequently joined the de Wintons and a small party of others on a sightseeing trip to key sites in the country. His return journey saw him take a boat called 'Abbazia' from Constantinople [Istanbul]. |
| Description | In this 81-page journal, titled 'Diary of a Tour in Syria', Waterfield records a tour of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. The journal is complete, and spans February-[April] 1955. It includes descriptions of historical sites, architecture, landscapes, museums, people and plants, as well as notes about making drawings or paintings. There are multiple references to the challenges of travelling by car and visits to garages for repairs. There are a few sketches in pen of things Waterfield had seen and wished to record or explain visually, and occasional notes on facing pages.
It includes visits and journeys to and from the following places or sites, with entries generally spanning several pages. The below list indicates the approximate order of the tour, although his route saw him return to some places.
-Naples, Italy
-Beirut, Lebanon
-Byblos, Syria
-Tripoli, Lebanon, including The Cedars
-Homs, Syria, including Palmyra
-Aleppo, Syria, including the Citadel, souks and the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites
-Damascus, Syria
-Amman, Jordan
-Jerusalem, Jordan, including the Dome of the Rock and other religious sites
-Jericho, Jordan, including a visit to an archaeological dig led by Miss Kenyon [Dame Kathleen Kenyon]
-Petra, Jordan, including the Treasury and the Monastery
-Adana, Turkey
-Konya, Turkey
-Ankara, Turkey, including to Hittite site
-Iznic [Iznik], Turkey
-Bursa, Turkey
-Smyrna [Izmir], Turkey
-Pergamum [Pergamon], Turkey
-Esphesus, Turkey
-Constantinople [Istanbul], Turkey
Other entries of note include meeting the Italian conductor Angelo Ephrikian on the return sea voyage and a passing reference to meeting Sir James Bowker, the British Ambassador to Turkey and visiting his garden.
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