Path: Travel > Destinations > Middle East 2006 > Syria 4

Syria 4

• One of the water-wheels of Hama. The river Orontes drives these huge wheels which were used to irrigate the fields in the surrounding countryside: the wheels basically work like a clever sort of pump. The biggest have a diameter (and a height gain) of around 60 metres. One thing that's likeable about these giants is the sound they produce as the wooden axle turns in its equally wooden bearing: a deep, reluctant groaning.

• This is what remains of the main avenue of Apamea, a once great Roman city on the plains high above the Orontes.

• The ruins of Apamea are not as extensive as those of Palmyra but the columns display a very distinctive style.

• Inside the Aleppo bazaar. This old bazaar with its crooked lanes and uncounted domes is one of the nicest bazaars in the Middle East. Aleppo itself is one of the nicest towns in the region.

• The prayer room of one of the dozens and dozens of beautiful mosques of Aleppo.

• Two Syrian kids… not sure they know they're part of the axis of evil.

• The entrance to the Aleppo citadel. This enormous structure lies on a steep hill and it's almost a town in its own right: a huge bastion with mosques, palaces and extensive bath complexes.

• A view from the ramparts of the citadel down to the houses of Aleppo, with two local students deep in argument in the foreground.

• Final border stop: back to Turkey

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$updated from: Syria 4.htxt Sat 26 Jun 2010 10:55:11 thomasl$