From al-Midan to Qadam station: the southern end of the pilgrim road

The south gate of Damascus is not a gate but a street. The pilgrim caravan gathered here before setting out, the wheat of the Hauran came into the city along this line, and in the twentieth century the railway followed the same direction. This route takes that direction in order: 2 kilometres on foot down the spine of the quarter, then 3 kilometres by car. You are well outside the tourist axis; the line works for the city.

The route

Start at the north end of Midan Street and keep south. The quarter runs 2500 metres along this single spine; on either side stand mosque and hammam fronts from the Mamluk period, with grain shops and sweet makers between them. Fulus Mosque is not on the street but inside the fabric: a small door, a neighbourhood mosque without a courtyard. If the plaster work of the mihrab is your reason for coming, you will have to ask the way. Return to the street and carry on; al-Jazmatiyah begins in the middle stretch and you can smell the bakeries before you see it. Beyond this point you do not walk. Take a taxi: Qadam station is 3 kilometres south, 12 minutes depending on traffic. The station sits beside the main road, its dark basalt front standing apart from the concrete around it.

Timing

Be at the north end of al-Midan by 09:00. The bakeries are at work, the street has not yet jammed, and this is the hour to read the fabric of the quarter. Reach al-Jazmatiyah around 11:00: the sweet windows fill towards midday, and maarouk and mabroumeh come out onto the counters about then. Pass on to Qadam around 12:30. Ramadan breaks this order — after the afternoon prayer al-Jazmatiyah becomes the most crowded place in the city, and in that season it is better to reverse the plan: station in the morning, souq at dusk.

Take care

Qadam station was badly damaged in the fighting of 2013. The building stands, but it is not a museum on a regular visiting schedule; you have to ask to enter, and being turned away is ordinary. There is no published source for hours or fees, so confirm on the spot. The quarter mixes homes and workplaces and is not a visitor district: ask before photographing. Traffic on Midan Street is heavy, the pavement narrow, the stalls spilling over it. There is little shade along the line; in July and August press the walking part into the morning. Taxis for the return are easy to find on the main road.