Off the Beaten Path in Aleppo

The Church of St Simeon

On a hilltop, about 40 km northwest of Aleppo, are the ruins of Church of St Simeon. Here the ascetic Simeon Stylites sat on a pillar for 40 years. He became known all over the Byzantine world and pilgrims came to see him. After Simeon’s death a large church was built in the shape of a cross with the pillar in the middle of an octagonal courtyard. When the church was completed in 490 it was the biggest church in the world. Then it became the second largest after Hagia Sofia in Constantinople. The Arabic name is Qala’at Samaan (fortress of St Simeon). As the Muslim Arabs came to the region the church and monastery was fortified.


	day trips: The pillar	Tip Rating:

Updated By MalenaN

on September 28, 2004

Remains of the pillar

As very young St Simeon Stylites joined a monastery. It was not ascetic enough so he withdrew to a cave and he passed his days with prayer and meditation. As pilgrims started to come and he got a lot of unwanted attention he built a pillar that in the beginning was three metres high, with a platform on top. He lived 40 years on top of a pillar, but in the end it was almost 20 metres high. What did he do when he needed to go to the bathroom? Not much remains of the pillar as people during the centuries have taken pieces away.


	day trips: Decorations	Tip Rating:

Updated By MalenaN

on September 30, 2004

Me and a stone

The ornamental carved stonework is nice and believed to first have been used in St Simone to later become a common design in Byzantine architecture. Looking closely you will also notice there are several types of crosses. You can see the Maltesian-, Byzantine-, Greek- and Roman-Latin crosses.


	day trips: In the footprints of a god	Tip Rating:

on April 13, 2005

Temple guardian

Standing high above the surrounding pomegranate orchards , the tell at Ain Dara is crowned by the remains a neo-Hittite temple (1000BC). A huge black basalt lion guards the approach to the temple, the base of which has a frieze of lions and winged sphinxes running all around. Step onto the platform of the temple and you will find four huge footprints carved deep into the stone paving of the entry as if a god has trodden there and left his mark. While there is no cafe or restaurant nearby, you are welcome to picnic in the grounds of the site office, where the guard does have bottles of water for sale as well as his own delicious pomegranate molasses - wonderful for cooking with. Ain Dara is about 60km north of Aleppo. You could combine a visit there with a visit to St Simeon.


	day trips: Qala'at Samaan - The Baptistry	Tip Rating:

Updated By MalenaN

on September 29, 2004

The Baptistry

South of the church is the baptistery. Many pilgrims who came here were not Baptist jet and therefore had to get Baptist before they could enter the church. It was easily done in the walk-through baptismal font. Steps are leading down to the font and on the other side steps are leading up and out.


	day trips: The guide	Tip Rating:

Updated By MalenaN

on September 30, 2004

Abu Abdo

Our guide Mustafa Jasem (Abu Abdo) has been working at the site since he was a child and as he has been there for a very long time he also knows very much and is interesting to listen to. While working he has picked up several languages and maybe he can give you a guided tour in your own language. With a mirror, reflecting the sun, he points to interesting details to see.


	day trips: The Road to Cyrrhus	Tip Rating:

on March 13, 2005

The road to Cyrrhus

Cyrrhus, in the far north of Syria, 100km from Aleppo, is a wonderfully remote and beautiful place. The road there takes you through rich farmland, miles and miles of olive groves, over two Roman bridges and on to the scattered remains of a Byzantine city close to the Turkish border. A Roman tower tomb has become a shrine for a local Muslim saint, Nebi Houri, and this attracts local families at weekends, but at other times it is quite deserted and marvellously peaceful. Because it is so remote, driving yourself or taking a driver is your best option for getting there. Otherwise it is a combination of a microbus (Aleppo to Arzaz) and then a local taxi.


	day trips: Rose-pink city in the desert	Tip Rating:

on April 14, 2005

The Basilica of St
Sergius

It's possible to visit Resafa, Byzantine Sergiopolis, in a long day trip from Aleppo. Once named for St Sergius, Syria's soldier saint, the city had many periods when it was highly favoured and richly endowed but earthquakes and conquest have laid waste to most of its spendours. What remains are the rose-coloured walls and some impressive buildings within. The site is vast and is surrounded by very well preserved walls with some lovely arcading and a massive north gate. Inside virtually all is bare but there are two large churches and three very impressive cisterns. No doubt future excavations will unearth much more, but the task is huge. There is a small teahouse at the site but no food is available there though you are welcome to bring your own. To visit from Aleppo in a day, you really would need to have your own transport, either driving yourself or taking some sort of tour.


	Secret passages	Tip Rating:

on April 13, 2005

Down, down

The cellars of the old buildings in Aleppo lead to a maze of much deeper passage ways and tunnels that local legend has it all lead to the Citadel. The bar at the Beit Wakil Hotel (a Christian-owned establishment, so alcohol is available) is in the cellar of the old house and, if you ask, someone may be free to take you down deeper and show you the tunnels leading off into the darkness. You will be surprised at how big they are and just how deep they seem to go.


	Martyrs ancient and modern	Tip Rating:

on May 6, 2005

Cathedral courtyard

The Armenian Cathedral of the 40 Martyrs is dedicated to the 40 Roman soldiers who chose to die in a freezing lake rather than renounce their newly pronounced faith. There has been a church to this dedication on the site for 400 years and whilst the Cathedral we see now was heavily restored in the 1950s there are many lovely icons and frescoes inside. In the courtyard there is a memorial dedicated to more recent martyrs - the victims of the 20th century Armenian massacres, erected by the descendants of the survivors of the ensuing death marches who found refuge in Aleppo and the Armenian community in the city.