Sights in Syria
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Al-Khosrowiyya Mosque
Al-Khosrowiyya Mosque is notable for being one of the earliest works of the famed Turkish architect Sinan, dating to 1537. It still serves as the main place of worship for the neighbourhood and each Friday streams of men and young boys make a beeline here to assume their places for noon prayers.
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Bab Touma
For most of their length, the Old City Walls are obscured by later constructions. It's not possible to do a circuit of the walls, nor get up on the ramparts. However, there is a fine short walk between Bab as-Salaama and Bab Touma along the outside of the walls by a channel of the Barada River.
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Museum of Popular Tradition
A little further down from Beit Ghazzali is yet another house, Beit Ajiqbash (built 1757), now a home for the Museum of Popular Tradition , with fascinating artefacts relating to everyday life in bygone times. The splendid architecture and intricate decoration make this a must-visit.
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Madrassa as-Sultaniyya
Opposite the Citadel entrance is the Ayyubid Madrassa as-Sultaniyya. The prayer hall has a striking mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca) with eye-catching ornamentation achieved through multicoloured marble inlays. Unfortunately this part of the building is often locked.
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Hammam Na'eem
Hammam Na'eem, also known as Hammam al-Jedida, is a quiet, clean, friendly, men-only place north of the main souq street. To find it, coming from Bab Antakya along Souq Bab Antakya, take the first left after the start of the corrugated-iron roofing and it's just ahead on the right.
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Bab al-Nafura
Beside the coffeehouses, a broad flight of stairs carries Sharia al-Qaimariyya up to the eastern wall of Umayyad Mosque, shaped by elements of what was originally part of the main Roman-era monumental entrance to the inner courts of the temple - now the mosque's Bab al-Nafura.
reviewed
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E
Artists' Palace
The so-called Artists' Palace occupies a former khan, or travellers' inn; the old storerooms are now used as makeshift studio and exhibition spaces for local artists, some of whose work is for sale. The khan doesn't really compare with those seen in Damascus and Aleppo.
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Shibani School
The Rehabilitation of the Old City of Aleppo, a permanent exhibition in the splendid 16th-century Shibani School, illustrates the work underway to make the city more liveable. The guide Mustapha may even take you to the rooftop to enjoy the spectacular views.
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St Paul's Chapel
Beside the Old City gate, sealed since at least the 18th century, is St Paul's Chapel, dedicated to the saint. Follow the driveway up to the new convent on the left and push open the heavy wooden doors into the back of Bab Kisan, which now contains the small chapel.
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Al-Gharbiyya Minaret
There are three minarets in the Umayyad Mosque dating from the original construction, each of which was renovated and restored by the Ayyubids, Mamluks and Ottomans. The one in the southwestern corner, the Mamluk-styled Al-Gharbiyya Minaret, is the most beautiful;
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Ayyam Gallery
In a chic, sleek art space designed by Syria's revered architect Ghiath Machnok, this is one of the region's most exciting galleries, showing engaging work by Syrian artists such as Abdulla Murad, Safwan Dahoul, Mounzer Kamnakache, Yousset Abdelke and Fadi Yazigi.
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Khan Rustum Pasha
The two noteworthy khans that Hama does possess have long since been pressed into other uses: Khan Rustum Pasha (1556), just south of the town centre on Sharia al-Murabet, is an orphanage (although it's occasionally open to the public as an exhibition space).
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Khan az-Zeit
Straight Street is busiest at the western end (Souq Medhat Pasha), where it's largely devoted to shops selling textiles and clothes. There are several old khans in this area, their gates still locked at night. On the north side is the pretty Khan az-Zeit.
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Dome of the Treasury
The small octagonal structure on the western side of the Umayyad Mosque courtyard, decorated with intricate 14th-century mosaics and standing on eight recycled Roman columns, is the Dome of the Treasury, once used to keep public funds safe from thieves.
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Al-Adliyya Mosque
Towards the bottom of Souq al-Nahaseen, just before it becomes Sharia Bab Qinnesrin, a short passageway leads to Al-Adliyya Mosque, built in 1555 and one of the city's major Ottoman-era mosques. It's worth a quick look inside for the fine tiling.
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Atassi Gallery
Damascus' premier gallery has a lively programme of regularly changing exhibitions, featuring some of the Middle East's most respected modern artists, from renowned Aleppan sculptor Abdel Rahman Mouakket to mixed media by Baghdadi-born Ali Talib.
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Dome of the Eagle
At the centre of the Umayyad Mosque Prayer Hall, resting on four great pillars above the transept, is the Dome of the Eagle, so called because it represents the eagle's head, while the transept represents the body and the aisles are the wings.
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Khan Jakmak
Straight Street is busiest at the western end (Souq Medhat Pasha), where it's largely devoted to shops selling textiles and clothes. There are several old khans in this area, their gates still locked at night. Khan Jakmak is one example.
reviewed
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Minaret of the Bride
There are three minarets in the Umayyad Mosque dating from the original construction, each of which was renovated and restored by the Ayyubids, Mamluks and Ottomans. The one on the northern side, the Minaret of the Bride, is the oldest.
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Dome of the Clocks
The Dome of the Treasury is counterbalanced by a domed structure on the eastern side of the Umayyad Mosque courtyard, built in the 18th century and known as the Dome of the Clocks because it's where the mosque's clocks used to be kept.
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Souq as-Silah
One of the liveliest thoroughfares, with its glittering gold and silver sellers, is Souq as-Silah, running due south from Bab Ziyada (set into the southern wall of Umayyad Mosque), out of which crowds of people continually emerge.
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Prayer Hall
On the southern side of the Umayyad Mosque courtyard is the rectangular Prayer Hall, its three aisles divided by a transept. The hall as seen today is the Ottoman reconstruction that took place after the devastating fire of 1893.
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Fortified Wall
Little remains of the old city of Homs. Its walls and gates were largely demolished in the Ottoman era, although there is a short section of Fortified Wall with a circular corner tower just south of Sharia Shoukri al-Quwatli.
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Souq al-Bzouriyya
Souq al-Bzouriyya (literally the Seed Bazaar, but in reality the Spice Souq), is heavily scented with cumin, coffee and perfumes. Halfway along, on the left, is Hammam Nureddin, the most elegant of Damascus' old bathhouses.
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Bab Kisan
The Old City gate, Bab Kisan, purportedly marks the spot where the disciples lowered St Paul out of a window in a basket one night, so that he could flee from the Jews, having angered them after preaching in the synagogues.
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