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1. Economy
2. Culture
3. Transportation
4. Administration
5. History

Damascus, Syria
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One of the landmarks, the railway station of the Hijaz Railway. This was built to go as far as Mecca, but was never completed because of war and popular resistance.

Damascus, Syria
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Umayyad Mosque.

Damascus, Syria
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Where the Hamadiya Souk ends and the Umayyad Mosque begins, fragments of Damascus' Roman past is found. This structure is neutralled called the Roman Arch.

Simple quarters climb the hills. Quite a walk, of course, but views should be worth a million Syrian pounds.
Older quarters of simple but highly decorative houses. This house belongs the quarters outside the city walls.

The old quarters along the Barada river are among the most charming in Damascus.
Hamidiya Souk ends and there it is: The incredible <A HREF=umayyad.htm>Umayyad</A> <A HREF=mosque.htm>Mosque</A>, the landmark of early <A HREF=islam.htm>Islam</A>.

Umayyad Mosque.
Umayyad Mosque.

Umayyad Mosque.
Umayyad Mosque.

Hamidiya Souk.

Hamidiya Souk.
Hamidiya Souk. The famous ice cream of Bakdash, one of Damascus' eternal attractions. As the story goes, Damascus was the birth place of sorbet, so good ice cream shouldn't be a surprise in this bakery-hot oasis city.

The entrance to the Hamadiya Souk. Guarded by the citadel and the beloved president.
Downtown, with the Martyr's Square, the lung of the modern quarters.

Another view of modern Damascus. A coloured facade! Not very common!
Another section of town with old quarters, surviving between the highest office buildings in the very downtown.

Greek Orthodox church. Ring the bell, and someone will open.
Inside the Greek Orthodox church.

Covered souk leading from the Hamidiyah Souk to the Straight Street.
Ceiling details from covered souk.

Detail seen from a side street to the Straight Street.
Azem Palace. This is a 18th century structure of several buildings built for the <A HREF=ottomans.htm>Ottoman</A> governor of Damascus, Assad Pasha al-Azem.

Azem Palace is a place of many delightful details.
Modern parts of Damascus are built largely according to Soviet patterns.

In this part of the world, anything seems to be possible to sell. Desert fox or falcons, they may not be easy to get past the customs when you return home.
Damascus is a delight...

Capital of Syria, with 1.95 million inhabitants (2002 estimate).
Damascus is situated on a plateau 690 metres above sea level, bordered by the Anti-Lebanon Mountains to the west, and the desert to the east. Damascus lies in the Ghutah oasis, and is fed with water by the Barada river. It lies apparently close to the Mediterranean Sea, but the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges make the 80 km into a journey of 2-3 hours. Damascus has an annual rainfall of between 150 mm and 200 mm, mainly falling between November and February. Winters are generally cold, with daily averages of as low as 5ºC. Summer average are 27ºC at the most, but temperatures often get higher than 40ºC.
The name "Damascus" comes from the pre-Semitic "Dimashka". The city is in Arabic also known as "as-Sham" meaning "The Northern", indicating is geographical position north of the Arab homelands.
Damascus is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, and reports run back at least 3,500 years. Many claim that Damascus is the oldest continued inhabited city in the world. While modern Damascus is a standard Middle Eastern city, it was famous for centuries, and often referred to as the "pearl of the East".
Damascus is made up of a sizeable old city, divided into the market area, Muslim area, Christian area and the Jewish area. All three groups are still represented in Damascus, even if the Jewish community now only counts a few thousand.
The modern city is mainly grey with little green, and most of the modern buildings are influenced by Syria's weak economy.
Damascus has a university, many museums, and embassies.

The economy of Damascus is based upon governmental administrative activities, processed food, clothing, and printed material.
Damascus still holds traditional handicrafts up, such as high quality textiles, silk cloth, leather goods, filigreed gold, silver objects, inlaid wooden, copper, and brass articles.
The Ghutah oasis produces fruits including olives and grapes, cereals and vegetables. Among the livestock are cows, goats and sheep.

Damascus was from 661 to 750 the centre of Islam, when the Caliph used it as centre of administration. This history is notable with buildings like the Umayyad mosque.
Damascus has more than 200 mosques, but only 70 are still in use. In addition to the Grand Mosque, the mosques of Sinani-yah and Tekkeyah are notable.
3 daily newspaper are published from Damascus, all closely controlled by the Syrian state. A larger number of magazines, as well as much of Syria's book publication are issued from Damascus.

Damascus importance as a trading hub has been reduced over the centuries, and much of the trade that went through the city now uses the modern means of transportation. While Syria's main port used to be Beirut to the west of Damascus, this role is now played by Latakia to the north, which lies much closer to Aleppo.
The earlier so important trans-desert transport has totally been replaced by overseas transport.
Damascus is well connected to the rest of the country with highways, as well as with Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan. An international airport lies 20 km east of the city centre, and is well connected to other international airports.

The local administration of Damascus is closely tied to the national. The governor of Damascus plays a role even in national affairs, and most important issues of Damascus are dealt with by the national administration.

4th millennium BCE: Earliest traces of urban settlement near Damascus.
10th century: Dimashka is subjugated by King David of Judah and Israel.
732: Dimashka is conquered by the Assyrians.
7th century: Dimashka is conquered by the Babylonians.
6th century: Dimashka is conquered by the Persians.
333: Dimashka is conquerd by the Macedonians.
323: Dimashka becomes part of the Seleucid kingdom.
64: Dimashka is conquered by the Romans.
705: The construction of the Great Mosque is started, aiming at becoming the greatest mosque of all the Muslim world.
1401: Timur Lenk captures Damascus and pillages the city. He forced many of the artisans and workmen to move to Samarkand. Some decades of economic weakness would follow.
1831: Damascus comes under Egyptian control of Muhammad Ali.
1860: A Muslim uprising results in destruction of large parts of the Christian quarters and the death of many Christians. Many survivors choose to emigrate, mainly to the Americas.
1903: The University of Damascus is founded.
— The Arab Academy is founded.
1925: French troops bombards Damascus in order to quell an uprising.
1946 April: The mandate comes to an end, and Damascus becomes capital of Syria.

By Tore Kjeilen