Jdayde to Aziziyah: Aleppo’s two faces outside the walls

The old city of Aleppo does not stop at the walls. Two quarters sit north of them, and the second is not a continuation of the first but its opposite. Jdayde is narrow-laned, stone-housed and Christian since the sixteenth century. Aziziyah was laid out in 1868, wide and straight, with iron balconies. Less than half a kilometre separates them, and the city skips a century in between.

The route

Start in the yard in front of the Forty Martyrs Armenian Cathedral. Beit Achiqbash is across the lane; come out of it and walk into the streets of Jdayde, taking in the squares and the overhangs. Leave the quarter to the north-west and the streets flatten out at once: this is Aziziyah. Walk the avenue to its end and finish at the Tawhid Mosque near the Quwayq. The walking comes to two kilometres. Nothing here is far apart.

Timing

Be in the cathedral yard at nine; the bell tower catches the light at that hour and the yard is empty. Beit Achiqbash opens at ten, so give it an hour. From eleven to one, the lanes of Jdayde: take your time, the restored fronts change street by street. Lunch in Aziziyah at half past one. Be in front of the Tawhid Mosque at three and read the four minarets from the far pavement.

Watch out

Churches can be shut outside service hours, so ask the keeper at the door, and do not photograph during a service. Restoration is under way in Jdayde: keep out of scaffolded lanes and off the rubble. Most of the houses are still lived in, so do not look in through open doors. Hours at Beit Achiqbash vary. Confirm them at the entrance. Aziziyah fills up in the evening, so do not leave Jdayde for after dark.