Middle East - Anthony Ham [424]
The outdoor cafés on Sharia al-Qala’a, located opposite the entrance to the citadel, are great places to enjoy a coffee, fresh juice or nargileh and watch the world go by.
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SHOPPING
Aleppo Souq
The best place to shop in Aleppo is without a doubt the souqs (Map) of the old city and great buys include textiles, brocade, gold, silver, carpets and olive soap. Although the pressure to buy has grown in recent years, the souq remains overwhelmingly targeted at a local market – apart from the architecture, that’s what gives it its charm.
Like any Middle Eastern souq, Aleppo’s bazaar is broken down into the usual demarcations: gold in one alley, spices in another, carpets in one spot, scarves across the way. The exception to this is bustling Souq al-Attarine (Map), which sells everything: hardware, clothing, spices, perfumes and even meat. South of Souq al-Attarine, the laneways almost exclusively give way to fabrics, clothing and shoes. North of Al-Attarine, the souq is at its most dense.
Squeezed around the Great Mosque are veins of parallel narrow alleys that in places are barely wide enough for people to pass each other. Here, Souq al-Hibal (Map) is devoted to shops selling cord, braid and rope, while Souq al-Tabush is crammed with stalls selling buttons, ribbons and all manner of things necessary for a woman to run up her family’s clothes.
Souq az-Zarb (Map) is a good place to head for jalabiyyas (robes) or a keffiyeh.
Shops in the souq open from early in the morning until around 6pm Saturday to Thursday, while on Friday virtually the whole souq closes and is eerily deserted.
Sebastian (Map; 332 3672; Sharia al-Qala’a; 8am-8pm Sat-Thu) On the fringes of the souq, this place stocks a small but superb range of high-quality textiles, tablecloths, inlaid backgammon boards and boxes. However, the speciality is rustic kilims, silk rugs and antique carpets costing anything from US$50 to US$15,000. The multilingual owner, Mohammed, is highly knowledgeable, accepts credit cards and provides certificates.
Orient House Antiques (Map; 1st fl, Saahat al-Hatab; 8am-8pm) Over in Al-Jdeida, the Beit Sissi store is a wonderful place to browse for antiques and bric-a-brac.
Souq al-Shouna (Map) is a handicrafts market behind the sheesha cafés on the southwestern side of the Citadel. While there are price tags, bargaining is still possible, although not required, and it’s a good place to get an idea of prices before plunging into the souqs.
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GETTING THERE & AWAY
Air
Aleppo’s airport offers semi-regular connections to Turkey, Europe and other cities in the Middle East. Domestic services also run to Damascus (S£1500, one hour). A taxi between the airport and the city centre will cost at least S£500.
Bus
As of summer 2008, the main bus station, as far as most travellers are concerned, is Al-Ramuseh Garage, some 7km south of the city centre. All luxury, long-distance buses to destinations within Syria leave from here. A taxi to the old city or Al-Jdeida will cost around S£100. Although no services operate from the old Hanano Garage, buses connect the old bus station with the new.
From Al-Ramuseh, Al-Kadmous ( 224 8837; www.alkadmous.com) runs 24-hour services to Damascus on the hour (S£270, four hours) as well as regular services to Hama (S£105, 2½ hours), Homs (S£140, three hours) and Deir ez-Zur (S£230, five hours). Dozens of other private companies run similar services for the same prices, while a handful of companies cover the Aleppo-Lattakia route (S£170, 3½ hours). There are no direct services to Tartus or Palmyra – change at Homs for these.
Seven or eight companies offer daily services from Al-Ramuseh to Beirut (S£700, six hours) via Tripoli (S£600, five hours).
You’ll find the International Bus Station north of the tourist office. Little more than a parking lot, it’s the place for buses to Antakya (S£350), İstanbul (S£2500) and Amman (S£700 to S£750), with a handful of early-morning and late-night departures to each;