Moat around the citadel
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
There is a citadel at the old city, but it is off limits as it is being restored.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Western women covered up
Western women covered up
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Western women have to wear these brown robes at the mosque.
Saladin's mausoleum
Saladin's mausoleum
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Saladin ("Restorer of the Faith") was a Kurd, who successfully led the Muslims against the Crusaders. He was also portrayed in the movie "Kingdom of Heaven".
Massive khan door
Massive khan door
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
These doors were large enough to allow heavily-laden camels to walk through. The small door is what people used.
Khan, medieval mall
Khan, medieval mall
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Martin, a Flamand, showed me this "khan" in a souq. They were multistoried storage areas, stores, and motels with a single entrance that could be locked at night. This one was empty, being restored, but had photographs in display from the Centre Culturel Francais.
Azem palace
Azem palace
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Built in 1749 by the governor of Damascus, As'ad Pash al-Azem.
Muslim service
Muslim service
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I heard this great choral singing in this mosque and dropped in for a peek. Immediately, room was made for me and I was seated and served some freshly squeeze orange juice. I stayed for about 20 minutes, also listening to this Iman speaking in Arabic. When I left, they gave me some candy-covered almonds as a gift. Syrians are so warm and friendly. "Axis of evil", my a%#!
Roman theatre at Bosra
Roman theatre at Bosra
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Only a couple hours from Damascus is Bosra. There are Roman ruins here, including a 15,000-person capacity Roman theatre.
Ice creamier
Ice creamier
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is like Turkish ice cream, beaten and beaten into a light mixture and dipped into pistachio seeds. It isn't very sweet and only costs 50 cents.
Mezze dinner
Mezze dinner
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I met a couple of travellers at my hostel and we went to get some dinner in the old city. The old city is filled with homes that have been converted into beautiful restaurants. They have open courtyards with fountains and are not very expensive. We went to a Caffe Restaurant in the Christian Quarter (there is also a Jewish Quarter in the old city) and had a mezze, a few appetizers, to share. The food was fantastic and only came to $2 a person.
Minaret at night
Minaret at night
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The three minarets at the Umayyad Mosque are all constructed in different styles.
National Museum
National Museum
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
They've transplanted the facade of a desert fortress (Qasr al-Heir al-Gharbi) to the National Museum in Damascus. The museum isn't that interesting, but it has a nice garden filled with Roman remains. There are some interesting rooms in the museum, and if you use a internationl student card (like I did), the 150 Syrian pound (SP) admission prices goes down to 10 SP. Now THAT'S a student discount! Most of the sights are priced similarly. $1 = 50 SP.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)