Monuments to visit Syria

The Azem Palace is located on the left bank of the Orontes near the city centre, facing the public garden. There is a small street passing under the aqueduct of one of the major norias. Built by the same governor (Azem Pasha) as the palace of Damascus, he is not equal.

Its dimensions, its plane at levels and its escapement on the Orontes make it a magnificent th century building.

We first enter the haremlik encombré of ancient sculptures, where the iwan faces a fountain under a magnolia. This yard serves the stables and warehouses, which are now housed in the museum. On the floor you can discover the most noble part of the haremlik, preceded by a magnificent portico. Three rooms in T are served by a room under cupola. In contrast to the portico, rooms present a wax museum in the beautiful furniture (painted wood, meubles-impregnated furniture…). It illustrates the astonishing wealth of costumes in the region.

Down on the ground floor, we won the small hammam of the palace where scenes reconstruct the animation of the bath. We then win the salemlik as the haremlik on two floors. The ground floor was reserved for the service.

On the floor the reception rooms are open, with some original ornamentations.

The principle is simple: It is about raising the water through the current to water the gardens that dominate the bed of the river. Large wooden wheels with buckets turn like mills at the rhythm of the river. Become at the top of her noria, water is discharged into a stone channel that leads her to gentle slope as far as possible from the shores without any human effort. Man must, however, build and maintain these large wooden wheels that water and current gradually use.

The wood grinding, the runoff of the excess water, the fine rain worn by the wind have an unforgettable charm. The higher the wheel, the more striking the effect is.

The city centre has a beautiful group of norias near the public garden. But the most imposing group, the "four norias", is located in the east, 1 km from the river. La Noria is located downstream of the citadel. Its 21 m diameter is the highest in Hama. It dates back to the th century.

The only vestige of a very rich history, the theatre of Djéblé makes it possible to appreciate the importance of the city in Roman times. With the same diameter as the one in Palmyra (90 m), it could accommodate nearly 7 000 spectators on three floors of stands. Only the first two floors (11 and 12 rows) are well preserved. Built in flat ground, like that of Overnight, the hemicycle is supported by a powerful dome system which can still be done. It is difficult to get an idea of the quality of the decor, so the scene is in poor condition. Nevertheless, the remaining remains show a real concern for detail and care for the choice of imported materials, such as granite and marble.

Beyond the surprising gap is, we move towards the entrance of the castle which is now on one of the south towers. It's reached by a gentle slope ramp that runs three of the towers of the cross circle, the beautiful pin device. The bastion crossed the three towers from the inside to arrive at a recently cleaned and decorated courtyard. This court serves the main franques constructions: écuries, dungeon and poterne. The latter, surrounded by two towers, had a drawbridge based on the ditch of the ditch.

In front of the main entrance, Arab constructions are discovered: a mosque and steam bath as well as a tank of impressive proportions (10 m depth 32 m in length).

Gap. The gap on arrival is particularly spectacular. Dug on the rock over a length of 156 m, it allowed to cut the castle of the plateau which continues to the east and thus perfect the defence of the site. Only a needle that supports the drawbridge was spared by the crusaders. Monumental, it forms a curious 28 m high monolith. In the age of dens and explosives, it is hard to imagine what such a puncture was supposed to be in the th century. Near the parking lot, there is a large room, probably used as a prison, and, in front of it, the remains of an identifiable stable with mounts for mounts that are pierced by the wall.

The Byzantine fort, in the state of ruin, is not visiting. By circumventing it, a shop is housed in a two-storey Carolingian defence. From there, you can reach the low yard. It is from the lower town that the troops of Saladin could enter the citadel. By moving towards the exit, we go to a Byzantine chapel.

Stables. A nearly square room, 32 m apart, consisting of five naves defined by four rows of pillars, was the fortress stables. They were equipped with drinking water. The south side of the room is equipped with a tank that is reached by one of the towers of the enclosure.

The dungeon. Crossing the threshold, we reach a large room at the centre of which an imposing square pillar pillar supports a ceiling vaulted ceiling. Archères atténuent slightly the darkness of the places. The same provision is found on the floor, which is reached by stairs on the north side. Access to the terrace, by the same dark and steep staircase, makes it possible to enjoy an admirable view of the 24 m of the dungeon. Two of the ancient Byzantine walls stand in the way of the court.

This is the same dungeon as the vanquished crusaders were able to leave free, with a ransom set at 10 dinars for men, 5 dinars for women and 2 dinars for children.

Mosque and hammam. Unlike other cross fortresses taken by Muslims (Marqab, Krak des Chevaliers), the mosque was not installed in a disused chapel. Dated the period of Sultan Qalaoon by the mention of the low door of the mighty square minaret, she complemented a set of buildings including a palace. The latter has an entrance made up of three spherical niches to mouqarnas, and a bande of geometric web. The palace was equipped with a modern hammam. A central courtyard, composed of four iwan (open quadrangular vaulted room on the courtyard of some mosques) with central fountain, serves bathrooms, which still have their pipes and beautiful coloured marble plates.

The site's guarded entrance allows access to the threshold of the Royal Palace of Ugarit, composed of a multitude of two- or three-tier chutes, and combined over its two hundred years of existence. Panels indicate the function of each of them. The Royal Palace was so richly decorated and furnished that its fame had come to the ears of pharaoh Amenhotep III. The official entry was decorated with two columns whose base of the drums is still visible. On the left, a library housed a large collection of shelves. In contrast, a large dallée courtyard (the main palace) had a well at the south-west corner and a water system.

In the east of this court, many exhibits were located in the administrative centre of the city (offices, archives) and funeral facilities. Finally, a large garden agrémentait everything.

In the north and south of the Royal Palace, several buildings have been discovered, without the need to determine the precise use of them: the northern palace, at the central courtyard with bitumen coated with bitumen (left, in the main street), certainly abandoned well before the destruction of Ugarit; the large building that faces it and whose exceptional burial cellar was established some years ago; finally, the small palace (in the south), which also houses a cave.

From the numerous fortifications known to Ugarit, the western section is best preserved, with its square tower which protected the palace and its backdoor (poterne) which allowed access. The glacis is particularly tilted: These remains were probably more used during the final Fire of Ugarit. It then came directly to the palace by a ramp that is no longer visible.

We come to Safita for its dungeon, located at the entrance of the city, in height. If you come to a minibus, ask the driver to leave you nearest (nothing serves to go down to the terminus of the garaj ', 15 min walk lower). Here it is called «Al-Bourg». Apart from the hours of worship, you need to be opened (key to the restaurant next door).

Already visible from Tartous, Safita is the nearest cross-fortress of the krak. The first fortress was largely destroyed by Noureddin. The Templar, who were responsible for the security of the Tartous region, were planning to rebuild it. The current dungeon probably dates from this reconstruction, or even a little later, when work was undertaken after the earthquake in 1202.

On the way to the krak, the sultan mameluke Baïbars took off the fortress in 1271. Since Tartous, the master of the Templar ordered his evacuation.

The fortress consisted of a double enclosure, the second of which covered the dungeon. Here and there, fortification remains are built into cobbled streets, for free diving in the Middle Ages. The massive appearance of this rectangular tower (27 m high, 17 m wide) is reinforced by the absence of exterior decoration. As a defence book, its ground floor was devoted, as is today, to worship. The castle chapel has a single nave. The apse is supplemented with two small sacristies.

To access the top of the dungeon, enter the chapel and take the stairs right on the right. After a series of high marches, passage through the beautiful vaulted weapons room that housed the garrison in the event of a retreat. Two naves are separated by three cross pillars that receive the benefits of curved edges. The room is lit by four bays.

Continue climbing to arrive on the terrace from where the view in clear time is particularly extensive. Beautiful vision of the city's tile roofs and the surrounding fruit cultures. The Knights'Krak is only 15 km away from the bird. The Knights were contacted by lighting fires. The system of travellers'pigeons, the invention of the Arabs, was then unknown to franj troops.

From the dungeon you can get down to the city centre by a very picturesque shopping street. The garaj is located completely at the bottom of the city.

To complete the visit of Safita. The ruined enclosures of Arima (Qal Areimeh), 15 km southwest of Safita, testify to the quality work of Franks in the region. It is said that Noureddin, having captured the fortress master, Bertrand de Toulouse, married his sister and had a son. Albatross Rouge (Qal Yahmour), another fortress located 20 km west of Safita and only the 15 m dungeon remains intact, complemented the cross device. Thanks to their proximity, the three sites communicated by signals.

These two buildings are difficult to find, so it is better to avoid wasting too much time asking for the path very often.

The massive wall wall consists of 14 round or square towers, one of which, the tower of the Eperon at the southern end of the castle, exhibits a monumental inscription of white marble. From this turn, the bulk of the forces led by the successor of Baïbars in 1265.

You enter the castle through the tower tower, located in the west. This well-preserved construction has a beautiful vaulted entrance which leads to the right, in the central courtyard (or superior court).

The collective life of the soldiers'soldiers of the order of the Hospital was organized around that court. You will find the chapel, the dungeon and several beautiful rooms. The chapel, a small gem of cross architecture, was built in Gothic style in 1186.

Before entering, the look looks at the portal in limestone, with rich mouldings and elegant skid. The portal to the west is almost identical. On both sides of the choir there are two small sacristies; in that directed to the north still traces some traces of mural paintings (six saints). The mihrab was also excavated in the south wall of the chapel from the Muslim occupation. From the main portal, the eyes embrace the nearby sea. The tower, a massive 21 m tall construction, houses a large room. A ruined staircase allows access to its summit where the view is stunning. Attached to the dungeon and served by the same staircase, a large building houses several rooms, which will be visited more easily using a torch lamp. In the west of this whole, there are two buildings with two floors of vaulted rooms. On the left of the chapel there are home-made premises, one of which still contains two bread kilns (the castle could have up to five years of food). You can walk along the wall wall whose towers offer beautiful prospects on the coast or hinterland.

Other point of interest, meghazel, which are monumental funeral towers. They will return to the fourth century B.C. Imposing dimensions, the two towers still proudly erected facing the sea were part of a whole forming a necropolis. They both have a recorded that is reached under the tower by a stair of stairs (a torch torch is indispensable). In Persian style, the highest of the cylindrical towers adorned with lions'landforms. Further south (1 km to the right on the Homs Road) is another funeral monument of the same type: the Bourj el-Bezzak.

To have a complete view on the fortress and its beautiful situation on the outskirts of the village, stop on the road from Hama. The Aga Khan Trust for Culture, a Swiss organization founded in 1988, finances the restoration of the castle. First, the ramparts have to be crossed. The entrance hall is certainly, with the walls, the best preserved part of the castle. Another interesting piece: the central dungeon. As the crusaders did not have time to wear their claw, it remains a valuable example of Arab military art probably dating from the ayyoubide period.

The round of round on the ramparts of the castle reveals the dense composition of the city and the harmony of the seafront of the town of Tartous. Some elements of the castle would come from the fortress of the th century.

To complete this historic vision, observe the fort at the beautiful angle towers (visible from the boat).

On an-Nasr's left wing, the High Court of Justice occupies the former seraglio of Ibrahim Pasha. The seraglio of the last Ottoman governors (headquarters of the current Ministry of the Interior), not far from Merjé square, facing the Hotel Kertaja, dates back to 1900.

From the telephone station, you can admire the lovely facade of the headquarters of the Société des eaux El-Fijé, which feeds Damascus into drinking water. Finally, the Hijaz station, built in 1913, retains a ceiling painted in the purest damascene style, in very good condition.

From the Diocletian's camp (or city), it is possible to win the top of the mountain, which is dominated by the impressive Arab castle, but the ascent is aimed at the athletes and the brave because it is quite difficult. It is recommended that you do it at the cool hours (sunrise or sunset).

A good road bypassing the mountain makes it possible to win the castle by car. The view from the castle divide embraces all the ruins, oasis and tombs. At sunset, the remains are the parent of a subtle draped colour contrasting with the deep green of the oasis. The castle seems to be less impressive than the ruins. Often associated with a th-century Amir of the th century (Fakhr ed-Din), who allegedly said that he was a sling of sling against the Ottoman Empire, the castle came to the th or th centuries, as did the fortification of the temple of Bêl.

From the Birket Al-Hajj, the citadel quickly wins. From the outside, nothing leaves the wonderful monument hanging behind its high walls. A deep ditch, a drawbridge bridge and eight massive square towers form defence. Archères are set in machicolated walls and surmounted by round paths. Most of the works date back to the ayyoubide era and are the initiative of Malik al-Adil, the brother of Saladin. Only the semi-circular form has what intrigue.

Past a few dark galleries, the visitor leads to the interior of a perfectly preserved Roman theatre. " A military theatre, certainly more than it needed to excite our archeological curiosity, "noted the French traveller Guillaume Rey in 1854. At that time, the interior was still crowded with a mosque and an arsenal.

After lengthy work that lasted until 1947, which allowed the passage of stands and passages, the theatre finally revived.

So it was its strong conversion, undertaken from the time of omeyyade, which finally allowed it to keep it intact: it is only the theatre of Aspendos (in Turkish territory) that is in such an exceptional state of conservation.

Its construction dates back to the middle of the th century. The three rows of 14, 18 and 5 gradins are perfectly preserved. They allowed for 9 000 spectators. Its diameter of 100 m holds it in the third place of the theatres of Syria, after Apamea and Cyrrhus.

But unlike those two, this theater is not standing on a hill. A complex network of galleries located in the service always allows access to the stands. From the proskenion (stage), where the actors unfold, we walk through a few steps to the orchestra where the choir was held. Behind the proskenion, the décor is treated as a three-storey palace facade. Only the decoration of the first level remains, with its columns to the corinthians capitals. Ultimate refinement, a silk vélum was stretched over the spectators to protect them from the sun's zeal in summer and the fine rain of the winter. The great curtain referred to the public in fine droplets the scented water that was evaporating.

Visible from the road, it trône on the small village of Salkhad. Careful not to take pictures of the summit of the citadel, the proximity of Jordan and Israel prompted the Syrian army to make it a point of observation.

It is likely, given the scarcity of tourists in this remote part of the territory, that one of the gentils guides you in this wonderful site. From the summit, the view of the other volcanoes is sumptuous.

The citadel is perched on the crater of a volcano of which it uses the cone as external defence. Seen as a defence station south of Damascus against cross-progress, its major date, however, in the restoration of the Mameluke sultan Baïbars (1277), whose lion appears in many places. The visit of the rooms requires a torch light. The northern glacis is particularly well preserved. Take a look at the casernements at the foot of the citadel. You'll even read, on inner partitions, graffiti in French. But nothing surprising on the merits, these shelters date from the French mandate.

The fortifications, which literally dress the limestone hill on which the fortress is built, are the most impressive parts of the whole. Brick work was strongly restored during the campaign to rescue the antiquities of the Euphrates.

The double wall is equipped with 35 towers of different shapes: square, octagonal, semi-circular… The brick, according to a well-represented mesopotamian use in Simoen, was used both for defence and decoration. To visit the interior of the citadel, deep in ruins, there is a vaulted passage.

On the summit, at 347 m altitude, stands a circular minaret also in brick, only remains of an extinct mosque.

The tower of the citadel offers an extraordinary circular view on the lake and the dam. Do not hesitate to swim if the heart tells you, the water is crystal clear and the site charming. After the desert, this immense expanse of water cools minds and bodies. The recommendations for the beach are of course the same here, especially if there is a world.

There is an opportunity to see one of the few constructions of this type regulating the river, a miniature version of the immense Assad dam to the south of the eponymous lake.

The remains go back mainly to the reconstruction, in the th century, of the fortress originally built by Noureddin. The castle gives an overview of the techniques of Arab military fortification at the time. The perfect itinerary of the visit replaces the remains and points of view (superb) on the Euphrates. After climbing the entrance steps, the «royal apartments» with fountain and iwan are reached on the left. From here you won the steam bath, supplied in hot water and steam by the neighbouring bread oven. On the upper floor, the mosque is found in the well-designed mihrab and two arches overlooking the Euphrates. Then, by a corridor of 17 m to the very high vaults used as a stables, the tanks which collected rainwater were reached. The continuation of the visit leads to the foot of the fortifications by a dizzying staircase.

Returning to Aleppo by Azaz, a few kilometres away from Cyrrhus, the two magnificent Roman bridges of the th century and their progress in triangular shape. The modern road still borrows them. We have to imagine relatively busy roads. The Roman roads continue by means of trails further afield in the steppe. A horse travelled at the time 30 km a day and a donkey 15 km; thus, des were successive on these axes at a maximum distance of 15 km. Also not far from Azaz remains tracks of the mythical East-Express.

The imposing theatre, in the centre of the site, was partly cleared. It's reached by entering the city by the south door, which gave the maximus maximus that you guess before the theater. With its 115 m diameter, it is the second by size after that of Apamea. Like the latter, it stands on a hill. At its summit, we guess the citadel. It served as a defence station against the Parathians. We have a beautiful view of the cardo, the ramparts in the north and the watchtowers that mark the Turkish border.