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| souqs tips and photos posted by real travelers and Aleppo locals. • 76 Photos
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 | Aleppo souqs Reviews | 1 - 10 of 32 |  |
With everything you could ever think of for sale, the souks of Aleppo are endlessly fascinating. Stone-vaulted, narrow alleyways lead you deeper and deeper into a world so far removed from the muzak and bright lights of modern shopping you can lose yourself for hours. Look out for the section where everything you could need to construct a Bedouin tent can be found - bolts of black goathair tentcloth, great coils of black and white woven webbing and thick rope - and the little yellow pelts of foxes - but no photos here please. Agonize over which pattern to choose from the huge array of the fine black and red Bedouin scarves - they make great sarongs - or choose a bright silk one from the rainbow of colours available. Drink flower tea with an Armenian and his cousin as you choose a necklace in the Gold Souk. Smell the spices and admire the intricate patterns made with them in glass cases. Taste the olives and nuts you are offered as you pass through. Watch out for donkeys laden with huge paniers - or old men. Feel a bit queazy as you pass through the meat souk. Buy some good olive oil soap - that rough mud-coloured exterior covers a silky-smooth green interior that lathers beautifully. And when your feet feel as though they are going to drop off, make your way to one of the cafes in the street outside the main entrance (if you can find your way back) for a huge glass of fresh fruit juice before you dive back in again.
leyle Leave a Comment Address: Across the road from the Citadel and to the right
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The fabulous covered souqs are the city's main attractions. This labyrinth extends over several hectares, and once you're under the vaulted stone ceiling you're whisked away to another world. Swoon to the sweet scents of cardamom and cloves, gag at the hanging carcasses in the meat souq - it's all here. Most of the markets were built in the Ottoman era, but some date back to the 13th century.
Very easy to get lost here, and lose track of time! Leave a Comment
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Aleppo's famous souqs are fascinating to explore, and this was one area in which I didn't mind getting lost. In some alleys, donkeys have right of way, transporting goods to shops deep in the domed maze. The low ceilings make the souqs much more intimate than the ones in Damascus...I think this is possibly the only place where, for me, Aleppo scores over Damascus. Unfortunately I don't seem to have any photos, but other people on VT do have plenty...they can also probably explain about them in a more eloquent way too! Leave a Comment
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A truly nice souk... possibly the nicest of all when it comes down to architecture... all covered, spacious, quiet... and with very little on sale. Mind you, it's not even very touristic. if it weren't for the two shops specializing in Aabic calligraphy (closed, when I went there), and for the name, one would never know. Anyway you should visit it for the interesting decorations on the ceiling, and for the large "jars" on display there. Leave a Comment Address: as-kosrofiyyeh squareDirections: in the old town. next to the as-kosrofiyyeh mosque, around the corner from the citadel's main entrance
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Arguably, the souq is Aleppo's biggest attraction - even eclipsing the gigantic fairytale Citadel and the very atmospheric Al Jdeida quarters. It may lack the grandeur of Istanbul's Kapali Carsi (Grand Bazaar), and the rough-as-guts charm of Cairo's Khan el-Khalili, but it certainly is most authentic, charming, even exuding a deep sensuality that comes from a complete assault of the five senses: colorful aromatic spices, glittering gold, roaring motorbikes, unceasing honking from delivery vans, smell of raw blood from butchers' stalls only to be masked by powerful Arabic scents from the nearby perfumeries, lathery olive oil soaps, furry carpets, sweetness from unadulterated organic honey and the tastiest shawarmas (Arabic sandwich) on the planet!
Hands down, this is my favorite in all Aleppo. It's amazing how one of the most basic forms of social interaction, i.e. shopping/commerce, could be as entertaining and engrossing as this. The beauty behind Aleppo's souq is its authenticity - almost everything is geared for local trade, and souvenir shops for tourists are a rarity (think Khan el-Khalili in Cairo), as are pushy carpet salesmen (think Kapali Carsi in Istanbul).
To gain a different perspective of the souq, try coming here on a Friday as well, when almost every shop closes for the holy Islamic Friday. The whole place takes on a different aura - somber with a straight-from-a-horror-movie mood. But it gives you the chance to see that the souq - with its Ottoman motif - is in itself an attraction.
Please do visit my travelogues for more images from the souq. Leave a Comment
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The largest of Aleppo's khans, Khan al-Gumruk (or al-Joumruk), was built in 1574 by the Ottoman governor, Hanzade Mehmet Ibrahim Pasha, in the heart of the covered Aleppo souk. It housed banks, as well as the consulates of French, British and Dutch commerce, and thus became the centre for foreign trading and diplomacy. Gumruk translates to "customs", which perhaps accurately describes the function of Khan al-Gumruk in the 16th/17th centuries when it was frequented by foreign merchants. Khan al-Gumruk continues to house approximately 250 shops to this day, mostly specialising in textiles. Directions: South of the Omayyad Mosque
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The oldest surviving madrassa (religious school) in Aleppo was originally a church. In 1123, the ruler of Aleppo converted several churches, including the Byzantine Cathedral of St Helena, into mosques in retaliation for atrocities committed by the Crusaders in the vicinity of Aleppo. Al-Muqaddamiya was one such church, but soon afterwards, it was turned into a madrassa by Izzeddine Abdelmalek al-Muqaddam, who also passed on his name. Al-Muqaddamiya is located in the heart of the Aleppo souk off the main east-west axis, just west of Khan el-Gumruk. Address: al-Suden alley, Jallum DistrictDirections: Off the main east-west axis of the souk, just west of Bahramiya Mosque
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Aleppo's souk is the best in Syria and perhaps the whole of the middle east. An entire day or more could be dedicated to exploring intriguing shops in a narrow grid of alleys with vaulted ceilings and stalactite domes, set along the straight roads that were once the Roman cardo maximus and decumanus maximus. Although the souk has existed since ancient times, much of what the visitor sees from an architectural perspective dates from the 13th to the 19th centuries. Much like Damascus, Aleppo is considered a "desert port" due to its location near the edge of the Syrian desert. It has thus served a terminal for desert caravans along trade routes, specifically, the Silk Road which passed through Asia and Mesopotamia. Aleppo's rise or fall throughout its history has been linked to the Silk Road. When the Romans conquered the eastern Mediterranean, Aleppo witnessed a slow decline as trade routes were diverted further south through Palmyra and into Antioch. It wasn't until the 13th century, when a treaty was signed between the Ayyubid rulers and the Republic of Venice to allow merchants from la Serenissima to settle and trade in Aleppo, that the city saw a renewed apogee. This zenith continued under the Mamlukes and Ottomans, as other European merchants followed the Venetians, but it came to an end with the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 as trade routes moved to sea.
The attached photos show some of the scenes in the souk of Aleppo. For more photos, click on the travelogue: "Shopping in the Aleppo Souk". Address: Old AleppoDirections: From the Citadel to Bab Antakya, south of the Omayyad Mosque
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The 16th century Khan al-Shouna is atypical in that it was never a caravanserai, hence the lack of a courtyard. This khan is more of what is traditionally referred to as a qaysariya -- a gated, covered market with vaulted ceilings and shops alongside its main nave. It is said that qaysariyas (a word derived from "Caesar") originated in Roman basilicas, and may have been the basis for the Parisian passage and eventually the American shopping mall. Khan al-Shouna was successfully restored by the government in the 1990's and turned into a market for Aleppine artefacts. With its location just outside the Citadel, Khan al-Shouna has since catered more for tourists than locals, yet its merchandise is authentic and not necessarily overpriced. Address: Facing main Citadel entrance
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Despite all the flies-infested garbage carelessly piled near the entrance, Bab Antakya (Antioch Gate) deserves a visit. This massive stone portal built in the 13th century, now surrounded by workshops, used to be the grand entrance to the old city, onto the main street leading to the Citadel. Its centuries-old soot-and-dust-covered walls belie the lofty purpose it was built for during the Roman era when Aleppo was known as Beroia - as a grand entrance to this prosperous city which linked Asia with the Mediterranean.
Spend a few minutes here not only examining the massive stonework and imagining how the place would had been during the Roman times, but also observing the hustle and bustle of daily Aleppine life. Leave a Comment Directions: From the Citadel, walk straight down Souq al-Zarb to Souq Bab Antakya. Bab Antakya is right at the western end of this narrow road.
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