Syria Tourism
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 Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 4:10 am Post subject: SYRIA TOURISM : Syria Travel & Tourism Guide |
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SYRIA TOURISM & TRAVEL GUIDE
SIGHTS IN DAMASCUS
You’ll most likely enter the Old City at its western end next to the citadel —incidentally this is the only spot where the ancient walls have been torn down. The large open archway leads directly into the Suq al Hamidiyeh the largest of several interconnected serpentine bazaars. It runs in a straight line east and west to a Roman arch (once part of the Temple of Jupiter) which opens onto a large square. This is where most of the sights are to be found at close distance.
Azam Palace
In the Old City near the Citadel, visitors can find Azam Palace. Once the governor's palace, and home to Faisal before being expelled by the French, Azam Palace is now a cultural history museum. The grounds are filled with lush greenery and beautiful fountains, and the exhibits (made up almost entirely of dioramas) display living areas, school rooms, and traditional clothing.
Ommayad Mosque
Across the square is the Omayyad Mosque (early 8th century) a must-see. Before you enter the mosque you’ll pass by Saladin’s Mausoleum also included in the admission price. Beyond that a gate leads into the courtyard. Take time to walk around and admire the three minarets and the beautiful gold and green mosaics especially on the main portal and the raised treasury. You can enter the mosque’s prayer hall at either end of the courtyard.
Walk around the prayer hall first—if prayers aren’t being said—and then have a seat on the carpets and soak in the atmosphere.
Khans and Medressas
Around the Omayyad Mosque are several khans (old hostelries for traveling merchants and pilgrims) and madrasas (theological schools). South of the mosque is the Azem Palace once the home of an Ottoman governor and now a museum.
Via Recta
Farther south is the Street Called Straight the 2 000-year-old Roman Via Recta which runs the entire length of the old city. (Unfortunately it’s also the major thoroughfare for cars in the Old City making it an unpleasant route for pedestrians.) The halfway point is marked by a Roman archway and east of that is the Christian quarter.
Many different denominations—Syrian Catholic Greek Catholic Armenian Orthodox Armenian Catholic and Maronites—have churches in the quarter. Be sure to see the Nassan Palace an opulent home-cum-museum near Bab Sharqi (East Gate) and a short walk north of there the Chapel of Ananias. It's in the cellar where according to the Bible Ananias restored Saul's (St Paul's) sight. The Christian quarter (from Bab Sharquin to Bab Touma-Thomas Gate) and the Shia quarter (just northeast of the Omayyad mosque) are good areas for quiet scenic walks.
Hammam
For more quiet time and relaxation visit one of the many Hammam such as Hammam Nureddin (800 years old and the most famous but a bit touristy
Mt Kassioun
For a good view of Damascus take a taxi up to Mt. Kassioun.
THE SOUKS
The old covered souqs of Damascus have a unique flavour you can savour with eyes closed.As you walk about in the warm darkness of these streets with their fragrant scents, spices, and colourful merchandise spilling out of the shops onto the pavements, you enter the strange world of exotic legends.Most prominent of these souqs are:
Souq Al Hamidiyeh
Follows a straight line from the west (where Bab al-Nasr used to be) to the Omayyad Mosque.It dates back to 1863, to the rule of the Ottoman Sultan Abdul-Hamid, after whom the souq was called.It is covered with high iron vaulting, so old that sun rays filter through it into the darkness of the souq.The shops here sell everything from tissues to leather-work, from sweets and ice-cream to exquisite handmade brocades, mosaic, and copper inlaid with silver.
Souq Midhat Basha
(The Long Souq): Founded by the governor of Damascus Midhat Pasha in 1878.It stands above the Roman 'Street Called Straight' which used to traverse the city from Bab al-Jabieh to Bab Sharqi, and runs parallel to souq al-Hamidiyeh, with numerous side-souqs separating them.
Souq Al Harir
Founded by Darwish Pasha in 1574.Its entrance is at the end of souq al-Hamidiyeh just outside the Omayyad Mosque.Its shops are filled with local embroidered cloths, perfume essence, and tailoring and sewing requisites.Here, too, a number of old khans have been converted into shops, best known for their cloaks, capes, mantles, shawls, and 'galabiyas'.
Souq Al Bzourieh
Extends between Souq Midhat Pasha and the Omayyad Mosque and is famous for its quaint little fruit, medicinal herbs, and confectionery.
In the middle of this souq stands a bath (one of the two hundred public baths) which has been in continuous use from the twelfth century.
St Paul's Church
Is situated behind Bab Keissan, one of the gates in the old wall encircling Damascus.
It commemorates the memory of St.Paul, whose name was Saul of Tarsus, charged by the Roman to persecute the Christians.
MUSEUMS
Epigraphy
The Museum of Epigraph, recently installed in a former Madrassa built in 1421 at the expense of Manjak, the Governor of Damascus, is worth visiting - as much for its setting as for its collections.
The whole interior is decorated with polychrome marble mosaic. The square central room has a dome, directly under which there is a pretty octagonal pool, reached by three steps. There are display cases all round. They contain manuscripts and printed works, marvelous examples of calligraphy and lay-out; there are also stones which show how the graver’s chisel can ally the rigor of Arabic script with artistic fancy to produce most beautiful lettering. There are objects here too -blue faïence inkwells, a reed pen cut as finely as a scalpel, and engraved metal stamps. Tiles from the pre-Islamic period show the development of Arabic script. A large table illustrates the development of the alphabet from earliest antiquity to the Arabic script of today.
National Museum
The National Museum of Syria Near the old town, the Syrian National Museum runs along the western side of the Takiyeh al Suleimaniyeh. The museum is closed on Tuesdays. It contains many important artefacts and should not be missed.
Popular Arts
The Azem Palace and the Popular Arts Close to the Omayyad Mosque on the southern side, this palace was designed in 1749 for Assaad Pasha al Azem, Governor Damascus. It exactly fulfills the expectations the foreigner may have gained from romantic literature, about the Damascene "douceur de vivre". Pretty rather than grandiose, it has a wealth of polychrome stone, cascading fountains in basins of immaculate marble, and a riot of flowers and greenery - bougainvillea, roses and the scents of jasmine and the cypress trees.
It was in this ravishing setting that the Department of Antiquities decided, in 1952, to, establish the National Museum of the Arts and Popular Traditions of Syria. Two years later the Department of Antiquities opened the doors of the Azem Palace, whose collections today contain almost ten thousand items. There is even more in the store. Specialists often come to study and gain inspiration - dress designers have made extensive use of the splendid costumes here in order to create new fashions. The display is both educational and extremely attractive; life-size dioramas are a frequent feature. Furniture. Tools, utensils - everyday items as well as more unusual ones -are used in settings in which highly realistic was figures recreate natural scenes with almost uncanny accuracy. This series of glimpses of Syria as it was, often until very recently, brings to life scenes as divergent as massaging or making a cup of coffee, a wedding ceremony or a Pasha’s reception.
Military Museum
A military museum may seem a strange and unlikely tourist sight, but we ought not to miss it. The Historical and Army Museum provides an occasion to recall the military highlights of five thousand years of Syria’s history.
There is a series of dioramas which look inevitably somewhat stilted and artificial, but they are most carefully composed. The weapons and objects on display, together with a wealth of maps, make it possible to follow developments from Qadesch onwards. For once, we are in a museum which does not stop short at the 19th century ; the events most vividly depicted are the most recent ones.
Source: world 66 & visit-syria |
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