Dangerous Legacy

Levison travels to southern Syria, the penultimate leg of his journey. He wants to learn more about the impact of the conflict on the people who live there.

Wood concludes his tour of the Arabian Peninsula with an episode that has to limit his yen for long solo walks: he's in war-ravaged Syria, where a wrong turn in the car means big trouble at the hands of rebel groups. Being driven by a supporter of the now-dominant Assad government opens up the road to Damascus, where the eerie lack of tourists is often the only taint on otherwise remarkably normal lives. Even further north in the rubble of Homs, civilians are determined to return to dark, shattered neighborhoods where communities once thrived.