Purposefully Getting Lost

So last week I made a point to get myself lost. I decided that this would be the best way for me to accomplish a few things:

1. Get to know my neighborhood first hand.
2. Test my knowledge of the area by seeing if I could find my way home.
3. Appreciate the complex simplicity of daily life for the locals.

Thus, I set off on my journey. I took my camera (surprise, surprise) and got what I thought were some interesting pictures. Not wanting to bore you with details of how my afternoon consisted of mainly walking and looking, I am hoping that these pictures will give a better story.
This was a view from my neighborhood before I descended further down into the city. There are a plethora of interesting looking buildings in this city, and this is but one of them.

This was some wall graffiti I saw while walking down a side street. I was enthralled by the fact that someone had spent such time putting detail into drawing on a cracked wall. This picture only shows a small amount of the total "flock" drawn. In total, there were probably 200+ birds drawn over a 40 ft span. If this is what graffiti usually consisted of, I'd probably like it more. Just neat.

These two boys were running around about the neighborhood. They weren't really playing any specific game other than "tag." I had fun getting out of their way several times.
The city was under Roman rule for some time and the effects of such are still visible. This happens to show the Roman Amphitheater that was left behind which is now surrounded by a large residential area.
These boys were so funny. After noticing that I was taking pictures, they made sure that they were suitable subjects. They are clearly cooler than I can ever hope to be. And I think they know that.I have yet to be anywhere near this mosque, but even just seeing it from afar, I think this is the coolest mosque in the city.
This is another of the Roman ruins left in the city. This is an ancient Citadel built on an extremely high hill that overlooks most of the city.
These guys followed me for like 3 blocks and kept saying the same English phrases over and over again. I tried to talk to them but they seemed more interested in following and laughing. I finally took a picture of them and they cheered. After checking out the picture, they then trotted along.
Big Flagpole. That's right.
Another one of the city's many cool buildings. This is overlooking a poorer part of town.

On the walk I went to an art type place. I hesitate to call it a museum, but it was interesting. Hopefully I can post some of those pictures in another post later this week.