lounging in lovely but frantic aleppo

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On Tuesday we got a really lazy start to make up for the chaos of the day before. We had to switch hotels because the Tourist was booked, and then had a late breakfast at an outdoor cafe looking out over the citadel, next to a sort of promenade, where we sat and people-watched. On Tuesdays, museums and sites are closed, so we couldn't go inside the citadel.

After breakfast, we walked past the great mosque in town and saw some other tourists go in, so we decided to follow them. It was really interesting to be inside - I had to wear a hooded robe, which they were nice enough to have outside for tourists to use. (Apparently, I don't really need my Haight Street hippie skirt afterall). Inside, we just had to take off our shoes and then we were able to walk all through the mosque. Lining the main area, there was a covered walkway with rugs all along it, and chairs with men sitting on them and praying loudly out loud. Later, we stopped back at the mosque so I could go to the bathroom, and it turns out you have to take off your shoes and socks to go in, and then you use flip-flops which are left there for everyone to use. I felt bad causing a big scene while a bunch of ladies explained that I should take off my socks, but then I met a nice woman who studies environmental engineering and likes american TV shows, so I talked with her for a while with Ryan sitting outside wondering why the heck I was taking so long. It's always interesting telling people we're americans in syria - there are a lot of different reactions. People tend to guess we are Russian or German, sometimes Australian, but never american. People are generally surprised and interested. Many people tell us things are getting better between the US and Syria, and a very, very few act a bit put off and explain our countries don't get along.

After that, we wandered through the souks (markets), which go on for ever and ever - often with sections for different items - shoes, fabric, clothing, baby clothes, jewelry. Then we headed up to the christian quarter, which has two nice plazas and about five old churches, a bunch of newish-looking hotels and restaurants, and german tourists drinking beer. We were able to go inside the courtyard of a greek catholic church, which was interesting because it had very beautiful arches throughout, and an armenian church, which was full of incense and people praying in Armenian.

Haleb is a really interesting city, it's big - 4 million people in a very large area of land. The city center is fairly dense, though not nearly as much so as Beirut. There are enormously wide streets cutting through different parts of town, and no traffic signals to speak of, so you just have to run across 4 lanes of super-fast moving traffic. Of all the issues we hear about in the US about the middle east, I am quite sure that the traffic is much, much more dangerous than anything else. The fast-moving traffic and a lot of honking contributes to a kind of chaos in the main downtown area where we were staying - people walk really quickly and shout at each other - it's just a very loud and fast-moving city. Outside the main downtown, in the souks and the old city and the christian quarter, things are much more calm, and people seem to be more relaxed and taking their time.

For dinner, we wandered around all of the parts of the city -- the christian quarter, downtown where we're staying, and the old city -- and finally ended up back in the christian quarter (we call it the CQ) at what is supposed to be the finest restaurant in Aleppo. Dinner was very good, including lamb kebab in a sour cherry glaze, and there was a dance performance for the tour groups who seem to be the place's main clientele. Walking home, we realized we're only a week into our trip, and were amazed about how much we've seen and done in such a short time. This trip has been amazing so far.

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