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Madrassa al
Two fine old madrassas (schools where Islamic law is taught) face each other across a narrow alley less than 100m northwest of the Umayyad Mosque. Both of these schools were erected in the 13th century during the ascendancy of the Ayyubids. On the left (west), Madrassa al-Adeliyya
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Beit Ghazzali
Backtrack across Saahat al-Hatab and make a beeline south along Sharia al-Kayyali. On the right is a door with a plaque announcing Beit GhazzaliNew. This is the largest house in the quarter. It was built in the 17th century and served as an Armenian school for much of the 20th cent
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Jebel Qassioun
That bare rocky rise northwest of the city, Jebel Qassioun, provides a useful orientation tool. Its from the top of this mount that Mohammed is said to have looked down on Damascus and made the observation that opened this chapter. The distinctly urban view today is hardly one of p
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Hejaz Train Station
The grand Hejaz train station, completed in 1917, was the northern terminus of the Hejaz Railway, built to ferry pilgrims to Medina. Compared with the transport palaces of Europe, the station is a provincial affair, but the interior has a beautifully decorated ceiling. The actual p
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Azze Hrawe
From the Church of the Girdle of Our Lady, follow the road that heads off to the north, taking the first right for the Azze Hrawe, a Mamluk-era residence of impressive size. It was being restored at the time of research and should soon open to the public as a National Folklore Muse
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Shaati al
Six kilometres north of town, Shaati al-Azraq is Syrias premier coastal resort. While there are a few small stretches of sand in the area, access to the best stretches of beach is controlled by the Le Meridien and Cham hotels; each charges a fee per person for nonguests to use the
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Azem Palace
The largest and arguably the most beautiful of the Damascene courtyard homes, this was built in 1749 by the governor of Damascus, As’ad Pasha al-Azem. It’s fashioned in the typical Damascene style of striped stonework, which is achieved by alternating layers of black basalt and lim
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Madrassa Halawiyya
Opposite the western entrance of the mosque, the Madrassa Halawiyya was built in 1245 as a theological college on the site of what was the 6th-century Cathedral of St Helen. The prayer hall incorporates all that remains of the cathedral, a semicircular row of six columns with intri
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Mosque of Abu al
Looking north from the tell, just over the river, youll see the small Mosque of Abu al-Feda, resting place of the 14th-century soldier-turned-poet of that name, who was also a noted historian, astronomer and botanist. His treatise on geography was a major source for European cartog
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Souq
A few steps from the An-Nuri Mosque is Homs restored old Souq, which buzzes in the evenings when the whole city seemingly comes out to shop. With its grey stones, vaulted ceilings and elegant white lamp posts, its one of Syrias most attractive souqs. The artisans, carpenters, cobbl
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Western Temple Gate
At its eastern end, Souq al-Hamidiyya re-emerges back into glaring sunlight at the spot where the Western Temple Gate of the 3rd-century Roman Temple of Jupiter once stood. The outer walls of the Umayyad Mosque, directly ahead, mark the position of the temple itself, but here, on g
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Azem Ecole
Built in 1770 by a member of the Azem family (successive generations of whom governed Damascus from 1725 to 1809), Azem Ecole is a former madrassa and a gem of urban Ottoman architecture. It has a beautiful little courtyard, hemmed in by a delicate three-storey gallery, the upper f
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Straight St
Known also as Souq Medhat Pasha (the covered western part) and Sharia Bab Sharqi (the eastern part), the main east-west street that bisects the Old City has historically been known as Straight St, from the Latin, Via Recta. While its not exactly straight these days, this street was
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Bab al
Until the 20th century there were 13 gates in the city walls, all closed at sunset, and there were inner gates dividing the Christian, Jewish and Islamic quarters. These inner gates are now gone, as are several of the main city gates. Most impressive of those remaining are the nort
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Bab as
Until the 20th century there were 13 gates in the city walls, all closed at sunset, and there were inner gates dividing the Christian, Jewish and Islamic quarters. These inner gates are now gone, as are several of the main city gates. Most impressive of those remaining are the nort
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Tariff Court
South of the agora is a large, walled rectangular space, known as the Tariff Court, because this is where the great tariff stele (now residing in the St Petersburg Hermitage) was found. The enormous stone tablet dates from AD 137 and bears the inscription Tariff of Palmyra, setting
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Shrine of John the Baptist
Looking somewhat out of place in the sanctuary of the Umayyad Mosque Prayer Hall, is the green-domed, marble-clad Shrine of John the Baptist (Prophet Yehia to Muslims). The story goes that during the building of the mosque, back in the early 8th century, a casket was discovered bur
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Great Mosque
On the northern edge of the souqs, this is the younger sibling (by 10 years) of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Its most impressive feature is its freestanding minaret dating from 1090.Inside the mosque is a fine carved wooden minbar, and behind the railing to the left of it is sup
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Beit al
Unseen behind the high walls within the Old City are hundreds of delightful houses built around courtyards and featuring their own elaborate decoration. Unfortunately, many of these treasures are in a sad state of disrepair, but a loop off Straight St takes in several examples, all
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Mosque of Mohi al
On Souq al-Joumma, just a short distance east and facing a small square, is the modest Mosque of Mohi al-Din, with a beautiful late-Mamluk minaret. This is very much a community mosque, with men dozing in the shade of the prayer hall, but its also a popular pilgrimage site - buried
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