Aleppo Report

Alden didn't see too much of Aleppo when he had first arrived- it was nearly sunset, and he focused on finding a hotel and foodstuffs (and beers at The Baron). The next morning Alden seized the day and headed right into the famed Aleppo Souq. It was an assault on all five senses. The Damascus market is tamer than shopping in Bethesda, by way of comparison. There are several parallel narrow streets running east-west, and then lots of little streets running in every random direction. It was extremely medieval, foreign, and exhausting.

Mercifully, most of the souq is covered with arching masonry or corrugated iron. It was above 40 degrees Celsius (that's about 200,000 degrees Fahrenheit, aka "Freedom Degrees"), so the covered aspect of the souq is well appreciated. Alden didn't buy much at the souq; it is mostly household goods. Since Wallmart hasn't made its way to Syria, this is where everyone buys everything. His favorite item (which he did not buy, and now regrets) was a gorgeous leather carrying case for an AK 47, with two side pockets shaped perfectly to hold your spare banana clips. It could have made a great briefcase.

Near the souq is the Aleppo citadel. You would think that Alden is getting sick of castles, but Alden's inner child will NEVER be sick of castles. The Aleppo citadel is on a very commanding hill that overlooks the whole of the city. It has a huge moat, and there is only one narrow bridge to approach the entrance. The doorway is to the right, at a 90 degree angle, once you cross the bridge; this would have prevented the use of a battering ram. Very clever.

After the citadel Alden attempted to find the famed Aleppo soap factory. He was being silly and attempting to use a map. What a goof. Finally he started asking people; this works much better. The soap factory was closed, but across the street is a perfectly intact hospital/insane asylum from the middle ages, the "Bimaristan Arghan." Wow, Alden is glad he wasn't sick or an insane person in the middle ages. The patient rooms have very tall 20 foot ceilings, but they have a 4x4 foot floor plan. Overall, gorgeous architecture, and a nice reminder how far modern medical treatment has come. (But don't get Alden started about the faults involved in fMRI or the silliness of the DSM-IV.)

Dinner was acquired again at the hole in the wall place; chicken and rice, etc. Alden splurged and got humus as well; total of $4, including a Miranda soda ("ma fitamin C!").

The next morning: Alden hires a car to drive him out to Qa'ala Simeon. This is a giant Byzantine structure devoted to Saint Simeon, who was something of a huge celebrity in the 5th century. He was a very pious individual- so pious that he lived on a giant pillar, some 18 meters tall. He prevented himself from falling at night by chaining his neck to the pillar. This guy attracted pilgrims to visit him from all over Christiandom. And it got Alden to hire a cabby from Aleppo. After seeing what is left of Simeon's pillar (not much is left due to pillar-chipping pilgrims) and admiring the basillica remains, Alden toured a few of the nearby "Dead Cities" and got inside of a Roman general's tomb. He was Indiana Jones-ing pretty much all morning. The Dead Cities are pretty odd places- they are exactly what they are named. But Alden nearly died with fright when he entered an old church that had a cow in it. Not missing a beat, he screamed, "I win the Cow Game!" The cab driver was confused.

Then, and this was a blast, Alden got to drive the taxi around for a bit through the Aleppo countryside. Built in Iran, the 1.1 liter "Saba" has no airbags, seatbelts, or power anything. But dang, if it wasn't fun to drive. The little 1.1 liter engine doesn't have too much trouble pushing the car around, since it is quite light, probably made out of balsa wood and cardboard. Once he was back in Aleppo, Alden was ready to get gone, so he got the first bus leaving the station.

Important lesson learned: Make sure the bus goes directly to Damascus, otherwise you make stops in Homs and Homa, making the trip hours longer than necessary.

Alden had the front-row seat in the bus, and 30 minutes after leaving Aleppo, the bus smashed into a small blue Datsun pickup truck that swerved infront of the bus to (perhaps) dodge an oncoming motorcycle that was driving in the breakdown lane. The pickup wasn't too messed up, but Alden, like all the adult males, got out to inspect the damage. Loud arguements about the fault of the accident went on for a while between the bus, truck, and motorcycle drivers, and all the adult male passengers. Finally the bus got underway again. Alden, now very exhausted, got a "Zinger" sandwich from Winner's (fried chicken, cheese, and salami), and a bottle of wine, which he drank with a straw (in homage to Mr. Tyler).