Aleppo Shopping

  1. Al-Joubaili Soap Factory

    Noses are set twitching by the fragrant smells emanating from Al-Joubaili Soap Factory, ages old and still producing soaps the traditional way using olive oil and bay laurel.

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  2. Aleppo Dairy Qattib

    Across the road from the National Museum, Aleppo Dairy Qattib stocks a range of delicious cheeses, olives and pickles; look for the red-and-white mirrored 'happy cow' sign.

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  3. Amman supermarket

    The Amman supermarket is a good place for basics such as bread, cheese and biscuits, along with toiletries.

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  4. Chahba Cham Palace

    The best bookshop in Aleppo is at this hotel. It has a reasonable selection of books about Syria and the Arab world, some locally produced guidebooks, and a handful of novels in both English and French. There's also a limited range of international newspapers available.

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  5. Fruit and Vegetable Market

    For fresh food, there's a Fruit and Vegetable Market 200m north of Bab al-Faraj.

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  6. Fruit Stall

    For fresh food, there's an excellent Fruit Stall, 200m north of Bab al-Faraj.

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  7. Librairie Said

    Has a small selection of dusty old novels as well as the odd Syria coffee-table book.

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  8. Liquor Stores

    Among the juice bars there are two Liquor Stores where you can buy Al-Chark beer.

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  9. Orient House Antiques

    Over in Al-Jdeida, the Beit Sissi store is a wonderful place to browse for antiques and bric-a-brac.

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  10. Saahat al-Hatab

    Saahat al-Hatab is the place to shop for gold jewellery, and there are a few more antique and carpet shops across the square, although prices tend to be higher than at Orient House.

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  12. Sebastian

    On the fringes of the souq, this place stocks a small but superb range of high-quality textiles, tablecloths, inlaid backgammon boards and boxes. However, the speciality is rustic kilims, silk rugs and antique carpets. The multilingual owner, Mohammed, is highly knowledgeable, accepts credit cards and provides certificates, but most of all, he won't pressure you to get a sale.

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  13. Sharia al-Adasi

    For nargileh/sheesha pipes, mother-of-pearl inlaid wooden boxes and backgammon boards visit the shops on Sharia al-Adasi, which is north of the main souq; walk east from the front of the Great Mosque and then head north up the third lane.

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  14. Souq al-Shouna

    Souq al-Shouna is a handicrafts market behind the sheesha cafés on the southwestern side of the Citadel. While there are price tags, bargaining is still possible, although not required.

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