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In Damascus, a Syrian friend of our correspondent has a big dilemma – where should his little boy go to school? It’s not just the quality of the teaching that counts, but the likelihood of the school being shelled and the number of checkpoints on the road leading to it. Lyse Doucet reports on the tough choices facing a nation in the midst of civil war.

Also, the station master was sceptical, but a grand piano open to the public in the main train station in Toulouse has turned out to be a resounding success. The rules are simple - anyone can play, and you can not ask for money for 'tickling the ivories'. Chris Bockman has met some of the musicians who have sat down to play.

(Photo: A general view taken on 14 April shows the destroyed al-Safir hotel in the ancient Christian town of Maalula, north-east of Damascus, after government forces took control of the town from rebel fighters. Credit: AFP/STR/Getty Images)