Travel Chat - Syria Travelogue

Illustrated Syria Travelogue

Chapter Six - The grinding = waterwheels of=20 Hama... And more...
By Patrick Wullaert
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The following morning, me and Basheer left Aleppo. We = headed for=20 Apamea, a city which flourished under the Seleucids. Its slightly=20 overgrown appearance gives it a special character. The whole = surrounding=20 area of Apamea is stunning... A plain with high mountains in the=20 background.
The site is not visited by many foreign tourists. = Because=20 of this, it's a peaceful place and I even saw a desert fox amidst = the=20 ruins, clearly a sign that the place isn't trotted all = over.
=20 Apamea's a big site ! For example, the Cardo (colonnaded = main=20 street) is over two kilometres long ! So it took quite a while to = explore,=20 but I loved every minute of it.
Entry costs S=A3300. The = friendly guy at=20 the ticket booth speaks reasonable English and can inform you = about the=20 site and the ongoing excavations.
The 'antique' sellers are a = real=20 pain. They keep hassling you to buy what is mostly worthless crap. = I=20 wouldn't even buy it if it were antique, because I think = antiques=20 belong in museums.
Also, a guy may come up to you, present = himself as a=20 guardian of the site and ask for your ticket. I showed the wrong = ticket,=20 which obviously was okay to him. This dude was clearly suspect. = He'll walk=20 with you for some time, secretly show you some details on the = columns=20 which look like (or are) penises, and then demand a tip. Make it = clear=20 from the start that you're not interested in his 'services' to = avoid the=20 hassles. I must say though, that all of the hustlers (here and in = the rest=20 of Syria) keep a low profile. Even when putting on the pressure, = they're=20 still light-years away from the guys in - for instance - India and = Turkey.

The view from the citadel over the town below is worth the = short climb.=20 The caravanserai which now houses the museum is easy to make out. = The=20 Roman Theatre is heavily ruined and although being once the = largest in the=20 world, there's little to remember you of its former = grandeur.
The=20 museum costs S=A3150 and if you've seen the one in Ma'aret = an-Nu'aman and/or=20 don't have a particular interest in mosaics, isn't worth your = time. I'd=20 suggest picking the one which is most convenient for a visit, or = go for=20 the cheapest (this one). IMHO, the museum in Ma'aret is better in = terms of=20 quantity, but this one has the better quality.
There is no = labelling,=20 but the caretaker will soon enough act as self-appointed guide. = His=20 explanations are as good as useless. What he says, you can make = out=20 yourself. He will expect a tip afterwards, but is easily satisfied = and is=20 a rather friendly chap.

In the early afternoon, we drove to Hama, but first we visited = some of=20 Basheer's relatives. They were very kind people. We had tea and = were=20 invited for dinner. One of the family members was a young guy who = was=20 doing his 2.5 years of military service. He spoke French well, so = we could=20 have an interesting conversation.
We said good-bye to these = friendly=20 folks and continued. They lived very near to Qala'at Sheisar, an = Arab=20 fortress on a rock right by the road to Hama. It's not very = interesting,=20 the view from the road when passing by will satisfy most people. I = wouldn't think (anymore) of organising a trip especially to see = this=20 place.
The nearby noria has been stopped and looks very = neglected. Some=20 women were washing crude wool in the river.
Just short of Hama = we=20 passed through the Christian town of Maharde. I immediately = noticed that=20 there were no veils worn around here. The sight of truly beautiful = women=20 walking around on the streets 'exposed' without company was odd to = say the=20 least.

As soon as we entered the city of Hama, I liked the place. The=20 friendly, easygoing atmosphere immediately shows through. It's = hard to=20 imagine the cruel things that happened here in a quite recent past = : in=20 1982 the Syrian government brutally crushed a thoughtless uprising = by the=20 Muslim Brotherhood, resulting in the deaths of perhaps 25,000 = people. New=20 Hama is literally built on the bodies of the victims of this = clash.
I=20 stayed at the Cairo Hotel, which was far too expensive to be the = cheap=20 backpackers joint it's propagated to be. A single room was an = astonishing=20 S=A3550 ! Although I met other people who were only paying = S=A3300, I couldn't=20 get a discount on the asking price ??
The room was spotless and = the=20 shower great, but the mattress was only about 1 inch thick (really = !) and=20 when I woke up the next morning, the planks of the bed were = visible on my=20 back. The room was also too noisy. The receptionist, unlike his = relative=20 Badr, was a seemingly nice guy, but actually wasn't.
Badr is = the guy=20 who started the Cairo Hotel. I met him in the place he's now = running, the=20 Noria Hotel, a place I was impressed by. Excellent rooms of = near-Cham=20 Palace quality come at US$18 for a single. A quick conversion = learns me=20 that this is S=A3900, so for only S=A3350 more I could have a = tremendous=20 increase in quality over the Cairo ? This is clearly another sign = that the=20 latter is bad value for money. Yes, you're not mistaken : I was = very=20 disappointed in the Cairo Hotel !=85
A much better place to = stay was the=20 neighbouring Riad Hotel. The owner is a very friendly chap, and = although=20 they're in fierce competition with the Cairo, here they have fixed = prices,=20 which are cheap enough : S=A3250-300 for a room.
If you go next = door to=20 the Cairo, they'll give you a (maybe) S=A350 discount on whatever = the Riad=20 is asking. Something I personally regard as ridiculous and totally = not a=20 sign of trustworthiness. Rooms are equally spotless in the Riad = and=20 actually more comfortable. For me it meant an amazing S=A3250 = reduction for=20 an even better room !
If you like dishonesty, go to the Cairo. = If you=20 like a welcoming, friendly and honest atmosphere, bunk in the Riad = if=20 you're travelling on the cheap, otherwise head for the Noria=20 Hotel.
Like I said, I met Badr in his hotel. He's a friendly = man who=20 speaks excellent English, German and Polish. We had a lengthy=20 conversation, which showed me he was a very modern person, = definitely=20 broad-minded and very modest for the rich person he was. He didn't = even=20 own a car.
Except for the hotels, he also has a pharmaceutical=20 business. His knowledge on medicine has resulted in him being = consulted as=20 a doctor by the locals ! During our talks, two people came in to = have=20 their blood pressure measured by him, and asked which pills they = had to=20 take to solve eventual problems. Pills, BTW, are readily available = over=20 the counter in Syria, almost always without doctor's = prescription.

3D"One Hama is famous for its norias, and they truly = are a=20 feast for the senses ! Norias are large, wooden water wheels, = dating back=20 to the Middle Ages, which are turning day and night, fed by the = water of=20 the Orontes river. The wooden axles of the wheels rotate between = wooden=20 blocks. This wood-on-wood produces a loud groaning which is = audible=20 virtually all over town.
There are ten or so norias left in = Hama today,=20 and I think I visited them all. The al-Mohammediyyeh noria is the = largest,=20 with a diameter of 20 metres odd, but it's difficult to get a good = view of=20 it. No matter where you stand, it's always wrong for the best = view, or you=20 have to get to the other side of the river. I found the so-called = Four=20 Norias offering the best view, and the one right in the middle of = town=20 wasn't bad either.
Right by the Four Norias is the aptly named = 4 Noria=20 Rest. This restaurant offers excellent views and very good food. = The=20 waiters are friendly, and meals are cheap at about S=A3300 pp. = It's a=20 brilliant place to be at sunset, when local boys gather to jump = off the=20 high, turning wheels and aqueduct to attract the attention of the = present=20 tourists.

The Azem Palace was the residence of the governor who ruled the = town in=20 the 18th century. It's perhaps not worth the S=A3300 you have to = pay to get=20 in. Initially, I was very disappointed by the place and by the = museum. The=20 great 3rd century mosaic of Maryameen (Maria) made up for a lot of = this.
I only started appreciating the palace after visiting the = rooms=20 upstairs. It's a nice place to be after all, but I still say it's = probably=20 not worth its entrance fee. The people here sell far too expensive = postcards (S=A325 for one !!).
Right by the palace are some = norias and=20 the an-Nuri Mosque. The best place to enjoy these norias is from = the=20 Sultan Restaurant, which is romantically located. The mosque's not = worth a=20 visit inside. The best part is its minaret, which is often the = case with=20 mosques.
Better is the Grand Mosque. It was completely = destroyed in=20 1982 but has been well repaired. It's hard to imagine it was the = scene of=20 such violence. Nobody seems to visit it nowadays, but it's still a = quite=20 beautiful site. Even if its predecessor was many times more = beautiful=85=20 Absolutely no hassles here.

I was only one day in Hama... Which is unfortunate ! I could've = easily=20 spent three there.