The north mouth of Aleppo: half a day from Bab al-Nasr to Bab al-Hadid

The wall around Aleppo had nine gates; five still stand. Two of them are on the north mouth, with a large Ottoman complex between them. This walk sets out from the citadel square and follows that line: 1500 metres, four stops. It is a short route, but the quickest way to understand on foot where the wall actually ran.

The route

Start on the square in front of the citadel. It is the most practical place to look at the old city; the fabric opens in every direction from here, and taking your bearings on the square is faster than opening a map inside the lanes. Walk northwest, towards Khandaq Street. After 600 metres Bab al-Nasr sits on the south side of the road. When you look for the gate, look for the inscription rather than the arch: the letters are carved in relief and large enough to read from street level. From here turn southeast. The Uthmaniyya Madrasa is 300 metres on, but the lane is narrow and the building tall, so you only see the complex whole once you are in the courtyard; the west door is the nearest way in. Coming out, turn east and take Bab al-Hadid Street. The last 700 metres run straight. The street delivers you to the square in front of the gate, and the shops around it still ring with the anvil.

Timing

Be on the citadel square at 09:00. The square is empty in the morning and the fabric reads from a distance. Reach Bab al-Nasr around 10:00: morning light is best for the band of inscription, and traffic on the road builds towards midday. The Uthmaniyya Madrasa at 10:45. Outside prayer times the courtyard is open; go in before the noon prayer and count from there the arches of the 42 student cells that ring the court. Bab al-Hadid at 11:45. The ironworkers keep to the morning and the hours before noon; by the afternoon half the sound has gone and the ground around the gate becomes another place.

Take care

Entry is free at all four stops. The Uthmaniyya Madrasa is a working mosque: stay in the courtyard during prayer, do not enter the hall, take off your shoes. Bab al-Nasr and Bab al-Hadid stand on open squares with traffic passing at their feet; cross to the far pavement to photograph them. Part of the fabric of the old city was damaged in the war and repair work continues. Some lanes on the line may be closed; if one is, take the parallel lane, the main direction does not change. The surface is uneven and the paving is lifted in places. Friday midday is not a visiting hour at the madrasa.