Damascus

Leaving Aleppo behind us, we drove south through beautiful agricultural land. The rectangular fields were either green or freshly plowed. However, it is obvious that Syria is not a prosperous as Turkey. The villages we past were all somewhat shabby and run down. However, the fields were beautiful.

About half way to Damascus we stopped at Hama, another of those ancient Silk Road towns. It’s most famous for its norias or giant waterwheels, whose function it was to scoop water from the low-lying Orontes river and into an aqueduct.

Water wheel in Hama. Not the aqueduct to the right.

The aqueduct system supplied the city and surrounding fields with water. The Romans built such wheels and irrigation systems throughout their empire. The aqueduct looked Roman but the wheel we saw were said to be “only” 1,000 years old. The stop made a nice little interlude in the trip between Aleppo and Damascus. Too bad we couldn’t see more of the city.

It was dark for most of the rest of the trip. The almost full moon accompanied us the whole way, somehow comforting. We went through some hills before reaching the city, and when you came around the final bend, the whole city lay before you, all lit up. The is a range of mountains – or high hills, depending on our perspective. The city lights went quite far up the slopes and the following morning it was clear that they are building right up this steep landscape. The puzzling thing was the string of lights all along the ridge of those hills.

We drove into the center of the city. We all piled out of the bus, and marched through the now closed bazaar. The street was quite wide, not narrow like other bazaars I’d seen. And there was a high arching roof. I didn’t find out until later that this was the “Street that was called Straight” from the Bible. I actually walked that same street a couple of times the following day when it was bustling with shoppers. But it was amazing to think that Paul was taken to the house of Judas who lived on that street (before it became a covered market) after being struck blind as he approached with Damascus with letters authorizing persecution of Christians.

We soon left this broad, quiet avenue for narrow, winding back streets. At one intersection we even saw a house that seemed to be tipping precariously. We soon ducked into a restaurant where we were served a family-style mean – kebaps preceded by plate of humus and parsley-laden tabouli. At a corner table behind us were six young women, I would say teenagers. They were all scarfed up but there by themselves – smoking nargiles (aka hookahs), the water pipe you see all around Turkey. Clearly, I bring other associations to the smoking of such pipes, but even in Turkey, it’s mostly men who go to nargile cafes. But in Syria it seems to be a national pastime. The restaurant itself was at basement level but the ceiling was at least three stories high – the walls painted pink and lime green. We weren’t in Gaziantep any more.

Note the light fixtures in the restaurant. Ours is the long table sort of to the left.

After dinner we drove to the top of Jebel Qassioun, the hill to the west of Damascus across the top of which I’d seen those mysterious lights. It turns out they were tea houses. It’s very popular to drive to the top of this hill at sunset and look down on Damascus as the city lights come one. We’d long missed sunset but you could certainly see the city spreading out beneath you. It certainly gave you a sense of the immense size of this city. This night view of the city marked the end of the day for us; we traveled from there to our hotel were we all gratefully fell into bed.

The first place we went the next morning, the Takiyya as-Süleimaniyya mosque, turned out to be one of my favorites. Personally I prefer places of worship that are more intimate in nature. This particular complex seems more inviting. In addition to the mosque there is what was once a Sufi hostel – it’s now used for artisans, but none of them was in sight that morning – and a madrassa that was added later. The garden sin the center of this complex were also lovely. The mosque itself was designed by the famous Ottoman architect Sinan (architect of the huge Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul) and built over a period of six years beginning in 1554. This mosque is a bit more modest in scale. It has certain typical Syrian features like the alternating layers of black (basalt) and white (limestone) stones. However, the dome and the cylindrical minaret are typically Turkish; the minarets in Syria are all square. The mosque is currently being restored, the restoration paid for by the Turkish government. In fact, it may have been that we were able to enter just because this was a tour group from Turkey.

This is the courtyard. The colonnade of the mosque itself if partially visible on the right. The hostel is in the back.

From this mosque complex we walked around the corner to the National Museum. Sadly we had just over an hour there. You’d probably need more like days than hours to really see that museum. Then entrance itself is a the main gate of Qasr al-Heir al-Gharbi, a desert palace near Palmyra. When you consider that this area, from southern Iraq right up to southern Turkey, was the cradle of civilization, you can begin to imagine what might be in this museum. It really is thrilling to see ancient cuneiform tablets, for example. Since Syria was once part of the French mandate in the Middle East, the labels on the older exhibits were typed on paper in Arabic and French. Some were yellowed and curling at the edges. The newer labels were on Plexiglas in Arabic and English. In fact, I saw quite a bit of English signage around Damascus.

Entrance to the National Museum

From museum we went to see the Azem palace built in the mid-18^th century by the governor of Damascus. It is built around a large courtyard. Most are the small rooms have been turned into a kind of folkloric museum, with displays of, say, musical instruments, or some craft or other. We did get to go into the baths – very reminiscent of the hamam here in Gaziantep where I have been a couple of times. One of the plaques even mentioned the little circular cuts in the dome as being typical of Ottoman baths.

Next to the Azem palace in the Umayyad mosque. This was the first large mosque built outside of Mecca and probably one of the most important mosques in the Islamic world. Originally there had been a gigantic temple to the Aramaean god Hadad. The Romans converted it to the worship of Jupiter. Then Christian built the basilica dedicated to St. John, whose head was said to be on a casket there. The Muslims razed the basilica and built this monumental mosque in its place, retaining the casket with John the Baptist’s head. It has suffered from Mongol invasions, earthquakes and other destructive events but the current structure is amazing. The courtyard itself is gigantic. Apparently it’s heavily used as a social gathering place by Damascans. There is what we might call a cloister walk around the inside, obviously a cool place to stroll on a hot summer day. My photos don’t really due justice to the site. If you want to check it out in detail go to http://www.sacred-destinations.com/syria/damascus-umayyad-mosque-photos/

Entrance to the sanctuary

I will make one observation. The mosaics over the entrance to the sanctuary reminded me of the mosaics over the entrance to the Stanford chapel. I guess both are vaguely Byzantine. One other observation—the courtyard was entirely paved. I’ve seen lots of Mosque courtyards with trees. I don’t know if there is a reason for not having a garden of any kind in this courtyard, but it’s “wall-to-wall” stone.

The mosque visit was followed by obligatory shopping time. I tagged along while others shopped. I did get a couple of prints that appealed to me, but mostly nothing called out “buy me.”

Our last stop in Damascus was in a Christian Quarter of the Old City. We visit a small chapel called the Ananias Chapel. It is said to be the house of Ananias who came to heal Paul of his blindness. The actual chapel is in the basement. It is said that this was the actual street level during Roman times.

Altar in the Ananias Chapel

Right around the corner is St. Paul’s Church or Chapel of St. Paul. It was built in the last century on the spot where the gate Bab Kisan once stood. It was the gate through which Paul escaped Damascus (Acts 9). A section of the old city wall actually ends at this structure. Inside there are paintings reminiscent of icons that tell the story of Paul’s life.

Paul being struck blind and then being led into Damascus

There are also carved scenes depicting his escape.

Paul being let down the outside of the Damascus city wall in a basket

From here it was off to dinner and then the long trip back to Gaziantep. A memorable three days, indeed. Now I’d like to go back and spend some real time in Syria.