St. Simeon and Souqs

Breakfast in Syria differs slightly from breakfast in Turkey which consists of tomatoes, cucumbers, french bread and salty cheese. In Syria we get pita and some jam as well as the ubiquitous cold hard-boiled eggs which are also often served in Turkey. Both are okay but not exactly stick-to-the-ribs fare and I find I'm always starving by lunch time.

We went out on a small tour this morning with the most wonderful guide ever. He is an elderly gentleman with impeccable English and a flair for story-telling. He was absolutely lovely and regaled us with humourous tales all morning. There seems to be quite a rivalry between Aleppo and Damascus. Both claim to be the oldest continually-inhabited city in the world (I think Damascus actually wins this one) and Allepo boasts the longest souq in Syria. He added with a twinkle in his eye that Damascus's souq may be wider and taller but not as long. There also seems to be quite a rivalry between Syria and Turkey, and we have heard that Turkish delight, Turkish baths, baklava and any number of other "Turkish" things actually originated here.

We started our tour with a trip to St. Simeon's basilica, a 45-minute drive outside town. St. Simeon (born circa late 4th century) spent 40 years of his life sitting on top of a column. The column grew in height over the years reaching a total of 15 metres. After his death they built a basilica on the site which they subsequently expanded to become a citadel. It is an absolutely beautiful ruin and must have been an amazing building. There are four sections laid out in a cross shape, the three at the top meeting around an octagonal room where the remains of the column sit.

We came back to town and toured the citadel (1214) and the great mosque (715 and rebuilt in 1260), both of which were beautiful and magnificent buildings. The citadel has never been breached even during the crusades. The mosque houses the shroud of St. Zacharias, father of John the Baptist. Pregnant women go there to pray that their babies will be male, and our guide insisted on giving us a biology lesson to prove that at this point it was already too late to have St. Zacharias intervene on the sex of the baby, since this was determined at conception.

We had a free afternoon which I spent exploring the beautiful Christian quarter of the city as well as the souqs. I did a bit of shopping and generally enjoyed the company of the salespeople. I have to reiterate that Syrians are the most friendly and hospitable people I have met on this trip. Talk about having stereotypes turned on their ear.