But I think I’ll leave it at that. It’s a lovely little passage next to the Syrian National museum. I felt like a tourist in any developing part of the world: cautious, but safe.Meanwhile, the old parts of Damascus are still beautiful. The Souk is more than half a kilometer in length, and is covered by a 10 meter tall metal arch. Syria has since transformed from an unknown Middle Eastern country to a contemporary eponym for war and terrorism. It’s full of bars, clubs, restaurants and hotels, so you must absolutely visit at night.
In March 2019, I booked my flight to Beirut, from where I traveled across the border to Syria.Despite being nervous about a) what could happen and b) seeing the new reality of Syria, I was excited to take this trip.
We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. These cookies do not store any personal information.This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. One thing is for sure: I’m definitely coming back soon. Flanked by textile shops and herbal stores and spice racks, it flows into the eminent Bab Sharqi is your entrance point into the Christian neighborhood of the old city. Yes, Damascus has Spätis.Outside of the city walls, you should definitely make a trip to the Souk Al Shalaan.
I got to know the medieval bureaucracy of Syria (I swear to God there’s not one computer, not even a calculator in any state office in Damascus) in detail. Only snow chains saved his cheaply built Chinese car and “safely” carried us downhill again, but not after wasting around 3 hours in traffic. Walk down Straight Street and take in the spectacular atmosphere of a Damascene summer evening, mingle with the locals (mostly students) and buy your drinks at the little “kishks” or kiosks.
Syria has since transformed from an unknown Middle Eastern country to a contemporary eponym for war and terrorism. The drive usually takes 2 hours.Crossing the border wasn’t a problem for me – I have a Syrian passport.
I did not nearly eat enough great food.You can get around quite easily in Damascus by using The the traditional Souk al Hamidiyah is turbulent and confusing and the most ancient market in the entire history of the world. The German Ministry of External Affairs still cautions Germans to not enter Syria. My driver – he works “on the line”, which is a daily commute between Beirut and Damascus for pick up or delivery of goods and people – was already in a bad mood after waiting on my late flight. After 10 years of not returning to Syria, I traveled to Damascus in March 2019, crossing the border from Beirut.It’s been 10 years since I’ve traveled to Damascus. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website.
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It expired in 2008, but that didn’t seem to bother the official who stamped me in.
Here, you can buy overpriced mosaic and mother of pearl caskets, oil paintings and other souvenirs.Most importantly, you can bask in the sun at the magnificent Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly.
I’m sure I’m not the only tourist to visit Damascus in the past years, but I think it’s worth sharing my experiences to those who wonder what the city looks like today.It was not a comfortable drive.
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In fact, you could easily forget that this place has been war ridden for the past, like, I could go on and on about Damascus: about the smell of jasmine flowers and the sound of the muezzin.
You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. I saw a Russian Humvee, and the Syrian flag seemed to be everywhere. Due to bad weather conditions (rain and snow), we got stuck on the back of a mountain between Beirut and Damascus. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.This website uses cookies to improve your experience. You can get tourist visa from the Syrian embassy in Berlin or even from tourism agencies, although I don’t think you can get visa on arrival (I’m pretty sure you can get During my first days back in the city, I note how Damascus is still Due to a bureaucratic hiccup, I had to spend most of my one week trip going back and forth between police station, registration offices, bank and public notary – all to renew my lost ID card. Now that the troubles have allegedly subsided, it was time for me to return my family. It’s a more “modern” (that is, it’s not Between the old city and Ummayin Square is the Syrian handicrafts market.