A morning in Damascus: from two souqs to the Umayyad Mosque

This walk fits into one morning: 1250 metres, five stops, two souqs and a mosque. It starts under the covered western half of Straight Street and ends in the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque. The order is deliberate. The souqs are quiet at opening time, the mosaics read best in low light, and the last stop is a small room most visitors to the mosque never see.

The route

Start in the middle of the Midhat Pasha souq and walk west. The straight line under the roof is the Roman street itself; the souq takes its name from the governor who reorganised it in 1878. Out of the west end you cross outside the wall into the lanes of Sinaniye: 300 metres. Find the Sinan Pasha Mosque by its minaret rather than its door — the green glazed brick shaft stands out even in a narrow street. Then turn northeast and walk 550 metres to the west mouth of the Hamidiyah souq. After 400 metres the souq delivers you straight to the west gate of the mosque: the roof ends, the columns left from the Temple of Jupiter appear, and the courtyard wall stands behind them. Leave the mosque by the north gate. Saladin’s tomb is a few steps away, and anyone who leaves by another gate misses it.

Timing

Be in the Midhat Pasha souq at 08:00; the shutters go up then and the row of cloth sellers is still quiet. Sinan Pasha at 09:00: the tiles of the minaret take the sun before noon. Enter the Hamidiyah at 10:00. The holes in the roof are left from the bombardment of 1925, and in the morning dust they turn into shafts of light. You reach the mosque around 11:00; the gold mosaics on the west wall of the courtyard open up in low light, while at midday the marble floor is bright enough to hurt. 20 minutes is enough for the tomb. Do not build this plan on a Friday, when both souqs are largely shut.

Take care

The mosque is open to visitors outside prayer times. Entry is 500 SYP and the figure changes; women are given an abaya at the door, shoes come off in the prayer hall, so bring socks. Sinan Pasha is a working mosque: shoulders and knees covered, a headscarf needed, and none may be lent at the door. The Hamidiyah fills up in the afternoon — that is the reason for going early. Of the two cenotaphs in the tomb, the walnut one is the real grave; the marble one was a gift in 1898 and is empty.