Sign in with Facebook"Citadel Plus Layers and Layers of Civilizations" Aleppo by atufft
Aleppo Travel Guide: 757 reviews and 1,848 photos
I'm certain that many an army arrived at the outskirts of the city, and after appraising the defenses of the Allepo Citadel, its general decided to return home instead of wage siege warfare. The Citadel stands on solid paved rock, it's ramparts far above the city, and it's ingenious series of defenses at the entrance gate rivals the best of any fortress in medieval Europe. Inside the Citadel's highest structures, tranquil meditation and prayer could continue undisturbed while war waged below. The current Aleppo citadel is essentially unchanged since some 16th century improvements to the entrance gate, save for wreckage caused an earthquake in 1822.
Note: The Syrian Civil War has resulted in terrific damage to a number of Syrian world heritage and other historic landmarks that we visited, as listed here: wikipedia
During the first Gulf War, so I suppose we had no real reason to fear the Assad government's secret police anyway, but in Aleppo the relaxed atmosphere suggests that this city is relatively independent of the politics that haunts the capital at Damascus. The slightly European feel to the city allows for some great hotels, restaurants, and entertainment. Don't get me wrong, this is still very much a Muslim city, but we felt that life was more open and accepting of tourists. We stayed at a classic old hotel and found other tourists with whom we shared a van out to the region known as Cities of the Dead.
Damascus has the more historically significant artifacts, but the fun collection of Aleppo is better displayed in a modern open building. There are great stone reliefs and mosaics from Arabic, Byzantine, Aramaic, and Hittite epochs in the city's history.
- Pros:More fun than Damascus
- Cons:None really, this is a fine city
- In a nutshell:Aleppo as Syria's Second City is a Must See Place
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More Images from Aleppo Antiquities...
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Many of these pieces came from sites that can be visited. For example, if one goes out to the Ain Dara, Aramaic/Hittite... more travel advice
Aleppo Antiquities Museum
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The National Museum in Aleppo is open and well lit, a sharp contrast to the museum in Damascus. I was allowed... more travel advice
Aleppo Souqs, additional images...
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We bargained for a very nice rug which is shown in the shopping tip, but mostly I enjoyed wander around, buying a little... more travel advice
Aleppo Souqs
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In contrast to the Damascus old city souq, the main street of which is covered by a relatively modern iron roof,... more travel advice
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Comments (10)
Thanks , it's wonderful
Absolute well written tips of Aleppo. Great pictures too. Enjoyed a virtual tour. Wish I were there now.
Thanks for these wonderful pages on Aleppo. Specially liked the off-the-beaten path tips and your detailed description as well as pics of the Citadel. Heard so much about the souq - said to be one of the best in the region.
Syria is really worth a visit ; and tourists can walk in the streets without being annoyed every minute ; tourists in Syria are not milkcows as in some very touristic arab countries
What an excellent page on a fascinating location! beautiful photography as well. I thoroughly enjoyed your info & insights. Greetings from the Middle East / Jess
nother good page, esp. on St Simeon - one of the most impressive and beautiful places in all Syria. leyle
I've found this page extremely interesting, especially the tour of the Dead Cities.
members.virtualtourist.com/m...
nice aleppo pages alan. i see they use cyrillic lettering as well. good thing i can read it :). now, to master arabic writing...
I found that too with aleppo, a very relaxed feel to it. I didnt see any secret police anywhere...but then again they are secret! so maybe i did! I had wonderful time in syria :)))