Admit it; we are suckers of all things ancient. There’s just something about visiting places that are considered ‘old’ because these are indications that we are really living in an ever-changing society. Once you’ve seen something vintage, you want to get your hands on that item because it is deemed cool.
Old places are the unspeaking entities that witnessed so many more than a thousand historians could account. Damascus, heralded as one UNESCO’s World Heritage Site had been a tourist attraction for those who want to take in the smell of yellowing stones, crumbling domes and the rich tapestry of historical events that transpired there.
DAMASCUS, SYRIA
First settled in the second millennium BC, it was chosen as the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate from 661 to 750. After the victory of the Abbasid dynasty, the seat of Islamic power was moved to Baghdad.
Damascus saw a political decline throughout the Abbasid era, only to regain significant importance in the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods. During Ottoman rule, the city decayed completely while maintaining a certain cultural prestige. Today, it is the seat of the central government and all of the government ministries.
LOCATION
In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major cultural and religious center of the Levant. The city has an estimated population of 1,711,000 inhabitants.
Located in southwestern Syria, Damascus is the center of a large metropolitan area of 2.6 million people (2004). Geographically embedded on the eastern foothills of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range 80 kilometers (50 mi) inland from the eastern shore of the Mediterranean on a plateau 680 meters (2,230 ft) above sea-level, Damascus experiences a semi-arid climate due to the rain shadow effect. The Barada River flows through Damascus.
CLIMATE
Its climate is classified as cool steppe climate (BSk) in Köppen-Geiger system, due to the rain shadow effect of the Anti-Lebanon mountains[68] and the prevailing ocean currents.
Summers are dry and hot with less humidity. Winters are cool and somewhat rainy; snowfall is infrequent. Annual rainfall is around 130 mm (5 in), occurring from October to May.
TRANSPORTATION
The main airport is Damascus International Airport, approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) away from the city, with connections to many Asian, European, African, and recently, South American cities. Streets in Damascus are often narrow, especially in the older parts of the city, and speed bumps are widely used to limit the speed of vehicles.
Public transport in Damascus depends extensively on minibuses. There are about one hundred lines that operate inside the city and some of them extend from the city center to nearby suburbs. There is no schedule for the lines, and due to the limited number of official bus stops, buses will usually stop wherever a passenger needs to get on or off.
The number of buses serving the same line is relatively high, which minimizes the waiting time. Lines are not numbered; rather they are given captions mostly indicating the two end points and possibly an important station along the line and Taxicab.
Served by Chemins de Fer Syriens, the former main railway station of Damascus was al-Hejaz railway station, about 1 km (0.62 mi) west of the old city. The station is now defunct and the tracks have been removed, but there still is a ticket counter and a shuttle to Damacus Kadam station in the south of the city, which now functions as the main railway station.
WHAT TO SEE
Azem Palace (UNESCO SITE)
One of the most beautiful palaces of the old city, the 18th-century palace of the Ottoman governor Assad Pasha al-Azem has several rooms illustrating traditional crafts and culture. Souk al-Bazuriye, Damascus.
Maristan Nur ad-Din
The Maristan Nur ad-Din, a 12th-century lunatic asylum, was used until the 19th century. Patients were soothed by music and the splashing waters of fountains. Now an interesting museum of medicine, it shows just how advanced the Arabs were on that front.
Souk al-Hamidiyeh (UNESCO SITE)
Located within the old city walls, Souk al-Hamidiyeh is Damascus’s most famous souk (market).
Built in stages during the Ottoman era – the eastern section in 1780 and the western section in 1883 – the souk has undergone numerous renovations, but it retains its old-world charm.
You can find traditional Syrian silver and gold jewelry, and intricately carved wooden furniture. Be prepared to bargain.
The Christian Quarter and Straight Street (UNESCO SITE)
Straight Street, the Via Recta, has been the main east-west thoroughfare since Roman/Hellenistic times. Just off the street are the grand Damascene houses of the Christian Quarter, now often turned into bars and restaurants.
At the end is the Roman gate of Bab Sharqi, and nearby the underground Chapel of St Ananias, where it is believed that Ananias sheltered St Paul after his blinding conversion. St Paul’s Chapel marks the spot where St Paul was lowered over the city walls to escape his Roman persecutors.
The Great Umayyad Mosque (UNESCO SITE)
The splendid early eighth-century Umayyad Mosque was built on a site that has been sacred for thousands of years. It has been an Aramaic temple, a Roman temple and a Byzantine cathedral.
The shrine, said to contain St John the Baptist’s head, is still an important pilgrimage spot, as is the tomb of Salah ad-Din (Saladin) just outside the courtyard.
More than 12,000 workmen helped to create the superb golden mosaics that once surrounded the entire courtyard, but only the Paradise Panel is left, representing paradise, or Damascus itself.
The Old City (UNESCO SITE)
Some 5km (3 miles) of walls surround the well-preserved medieval city of Damascus, with the Great Umayyad Mosque at its heart. It is a place for strolling through the labyrinthine alleys and busy souks, admiring the fine palaces, madrasas (Quranic schools), caravanserais and mosques on the way, or whiling time away in one of the many cafés.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário