THE SYRIAN SERIES, DAY 7
HAMA – PALMYRA – DAMASCUS
The ruined ruins of Palmyra. After the usual greeting of I Love You by the young waiters (they even came into my room🤣) and a quick jump out of the hotel for a morning walk it was off to the ancient city of Palmyra, something I have been told is a highlight of anyone’s trip to Syria – how many highlights can one country have?
I’D EXPECT LESS DEVASTATION DURING WORLD WAR 2
We anticipated a long day ahead, as we headed through Homs. Though we decided not to stop, the city had plenty to see.
WHERE IS PALMYRA?
Palmyra
HOMS
Homs was among the worst-hit cities in Syria. Additionally, it was a significant struggle for the government to maintain control. The battle spanned from 2011 to 2014, evoking surreal comparisons to the aftermath of World War II.
Entirely outnumbered and surrounded, the rebels had the benefit of blending in with the locals and could launch surprise attacks. Checkpoints were a common target which The Syrian Army usually responding to with drone attacks.
DAILY INFO….
- HOTEL – Beit Al Mamlouka 9/10 (incredible costumer service again!)
- RESTAURANT – Chicken Hut 😬
- FOOD – Shawarma 7/10
- ATTRACTIONS –
Homs devastation
Palmyra new town
Palmyra museum
Palmyra old town
SIEGE OF HOMS
The rebels inflicted casualties that completely dwarfed those suffered by the army. Although no one knew the number of active units, the death toll rose to 2,000, and they captured 5,000.
Given these circumstances, anyone would wonder how the rebels considered themselves as having a chance against an army of 10,000 units and 250 tanks. But with cat and mouse in such a built up area and the army needing to be visible compared to the rebels strategy of hide and seek, it was going to be difficult for either.
DAILY TRAVEL STATS….
- Steps – 15,600
- Miles covered – 291.2m
TACTICAL WARFARE
However the army foreseen the advantage the rebels had here and instead of engaging in head on conflict opted to put militias on the frontline to first surprise them and then play them at their own game.
THE ENTIRE TEMPLE WAS BLOWN UP BY ISIS
REPOPULATION
The further from Aleppo you go the more populated the towns have gotten as more and more people feel safe to move out of the city. This was actually nice to see and a pleasant change to before…life for is returning slowly.
RELATED READ: SKYDIVING OVER HAWAII
LONG ROAD TO PALMYRA
Palmyra isn’t yet the normal tourist destination because it was one of the last ISIS strongholds, and therefore, it needs regular patrolling and checkpoints. It even requires special permission, which is checked at every checkpoint.
As a road for Syrians I’d imagine it to be boring but for a tourist looking out onto barren land for 2 hrs 30 it was bizarrely intriguing.
FACTS:
- Under the Roman emperor Tiberius (r. 14–37 A.D.), Tadmor was incorporated into the province of Syria and assumed the name Palmyra, or “place of palms.”
- Palmyra is an oasis in the Syrian desert, north-east of Damascus.
- Once called the “Pearl of the desert,” Palmyra, famous for its well-preserved Greco-Roman ruins, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980, renowned for its unique blend of Greek, Roman, Persian, and Islamic cultures.
TANKS AND TECHNICAL
As we got closer to Palmyra the destruction increased again as well as the checkpoints. What did surprise me was the level of presence in terms of Russian tanks and Syrian technical vehicles. These technical vehicles, which actually look more like rebels, are pick up trucks with a mounted machine gun, were flying around these deserted towns with a gunner on the back seemingly ready to let lose. It was like Black Hawk Down.
PALMYRA NEW TOWN
Another devastated town, Palmyra was one of the last strongholds of ISIS and due to its distance to other cities became difficult for people to flee. We visited the museum here and it was particularly nervy to walk through the same building that ISIS once were. The government managed to save most of the artefacts before rebels besieged the town.
PALMYRA
Driving into the old town you can just see the scale of this place it’s incredible!
It’s taken me until I was in my 30s to appreciate this kind of scene, far too long if you ask me. Palmyra is an old Semitic City dating back to 3000BC. It has changed hands a number of times before becoming part of the Roman Empire in 100AD.
After creating the Palmyrene Empire, Roman Emperor Aurelian destroyed it in 273, and Diocletian later rebuilt it. In the fourth century The Palmyrene’s converted to Christianity and then to islam several centuries later after which the languages were changed from Greek & Palmyrene to Arabic.
BAAL TEMPLE / TEMPLE OF BEL
Like a lot of Syria Baal Temple’s recent history is tragic. After the fall of Palmyra, twice to ISIS, because of its Christian heritage, ISIS almost entirely destroyed the cellar (part of the 40,000m2 temple). It is devastating, and experts predict the remaining structure will likely fall too.
THE GENERAL
Although it is safe the visit, it is required to have an armed guard with you, but for whatever reason we had the army’s general! Getting through checkpoints become super easy as soldiers saluted him once they seen who was in the car. However at one check point when a guard heard I was from Ireland, wanted to know if I supported the Ireland football team- you have to play the game and say yes!! Off to Damascus.
BEIT AL MAMLOUKA
Tonight’s hotel was a huge surprise. Mamlouka is a small boutique hotel which has some incredible customer service. After asking about where to eat, Lauren one of the managers took me into the kitchen to eat my way through everything they had, one of which was ataief asafiri (qatayef asafiri) with thick yogurt/cream and jam. Syrians are big eaters!
SUMMED UP….
- HIGHLIGHT – Palmyra
- LOWLIGHT – The destruction of the old city by ISIS.
- MVP – The people at Mamlouka hotel.
FINAL THOUGHTS
It doesn’t get easier seeing the devastation but it’s incredible how the Syrian people continue to hold themselves after what they have gone through.
NEXT UP
A day checking out Damascus!! Click to read.
SAFE TRAVELS, DS x
152/229
This post is part of The Syrian Series, for the entire series click here or for episode 1, click here.
To watch the video of my trip, head to my highlights on my Instagram.
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2 Comments. Leave new
My husband and me were in Syria with my best friend Lebanese in medical university ( Paris)
Before the war, we visit Damascus,Alep, Palmyre…
She speak and understand Arab language
So it very easy to us to discover this country
Hi! I would have loved to have visited before the war, it would have been a different place back then! Would you revisit?