Damascus is Syria's largest city and capital. It grew up around the Barada River and Ghouta Oasis, which make life possible in an otherwise uninhabitable landscape. Damascus is possibly the world's oldest continuously inhabited city - there was a settlement here as long ago as 5000 BC. Today, its fascination lies in its mysterious oriental bazaars and the gracious, somewhat decayed, charm of some of Islam's greatest monuments. The centre of the city is Martyrs' Square - most of the restaurants and hotels are close by.
The epicentre of Damascus' charm is its Old City, surrounded by a Roman wall. The city's main covered market is the Souq al-Hamadiyyeh, a cobbled street of bustling crowds, hawkers and high-octane haggling. Opposite the end of the market is the Omayyad Mosque. Built in 705 on the site of ancient temples and a Christian cathedral, the mosque was designed to be the greatest ever. Despite being gutted in a fire in the 19th century, it's still a jewel of Muslim architecture, with several gorgeous mosaics and three original minarets.
Saladin, one of the great heroes of Arab history and the man who showed the Crusaders a thing or two, is buried in Damascus. Saladin's Mausoleum was built in 1193 - it's covered with a red dome and set in a pleasant garden outside the northern wall of the Ommayad Mosque. Azem Palace, south of the mosque, was built in 1749 from alternating lines of black basalt and white limestone - it's now home to the Museum of the Arts & Popular Traditions of Syria. In the Christian Quarter, in the east of the Old City, you'll find St Paul's Chapel, which marks the spot where the disciples lowered St Paul out of a window one night so that he could flee the Jews.
One of Syria's most graceful mosques is Takiyyeh as-Sulaymaniyyeh, just south of Barada River. Designed in Ottoman style in 1554, it features alternating layers of black and white stone and two slender minarets. The National Museum, also south of the river, is worth at least one visit. The museum's facade was once the entrance to the Qasr al-Hayr al-Ghabi, an ancient military camp. Inside is a fantastic array of exhibits, including written cylinders from the 14th century BC that use the world's first known alphabet, statuary from Mari that's over 4000 years old, two halls full of marble and terracotta statues from Palmyra, Damascene weapons, old surgical instruments from surgeons' graves, a collection of 13th century Qur'ans and a complete room decorated in the style of the 18th century Azem Palace.
