nathanaels (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} nathanaels) wrote,@ 2007-09-14 02:00:00 |
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Crusader Castles, the Southern Coast, and the Orontes Valley
From Ugarit, we sped away from the coast and high into the nearby mountains in an effort to reach “Saladin’s Fortress” before closing. Known as Saône to the Crusaders who built it, this castle is every fantasy castle I dreamed of as a kid. Perched high atop a peak in the midst of a forested mountain range and surrounded by deep valleys and streams, it looks like something straight out of the Lord of the Rings. We arrived just before closing, but the late hour afforded some magnificent views of the setting sun in the mountains.
Our driver’s family, as it turned out, lives in the area so he invited us over for tea, and after leaving the castle, we head over to his home. Our visit caused quite a stir in their household and neighbourhood, but they were all very kind and sweet, but also quite shy. Naturally jokes were made about “marrying their daughter to an American”, and the youngest boy asked if he could have my “head-scarf”, meaning my handkerchief. I am disappointed to admit that my Arabic is entirely inadequate for situations like this, but fortunately, Nora was able to cover for lacking. I dream of the day when I can fully exploit such an opportunity for cultural discussion.
We returned to Lattakia and found a southbound bus to Tartus.
Tartus (Tartosa to the Crusaders) is the other major port of Syria but it is tiny compared to its much larger sibling. The Phoenicians built it as a service station for the much more important Arward (Arados), an island 3km off the coast of Tartus, which was a centre of both international trade and boat building from Canaanite times. After a less than impressive night at the Daniel hotel (which is clearly abusing its long outdated recommendation by Lonely Planet), we explored the coastline and then head out to the island for a seaside dinner of grilled fish and salad. I love harbour cities and Tartus had a charm that I found endearing. The pace of life is a little simpler, a little quieter, there. There are no ruins in the city worth mentioning, but I was very excited to see much of the western side of the island still committed to shipbuilding. During our walk, I was able to see dozens of hulls in varying stages of completion. That night, the moon, my Lady Luna, showed her full face to guide us back to the mainland.
Over the next couple of days, we saw a large number of sights throughout the region between Tartus and the Homs, in the Orontes valley (the region between Aleppo and Damascus). The Phoenician temple and tombs at Amrit were eerie; I nearly fell into a pit in one of the grave shafts. The Crusader monastery tower of Castel Blanc, in Safita, pleased me for personal reasons, but then subjects relating to warrior-monks usually do. A roman temple with giant rocks had some pretty giant rocks. The famous Crusader castle Krak de Chevaliers was much less charming than many other places we visited but it is a remarkable sight. The monastery of St. George is identical to the traditional presentations of it, but unfortunately, there was no dragon corpse to be found. Finally, guidebooks give the impression that Homs, the small city between Hama and Damascus, is not necessarily worth a visit, and while that might be true, the lifestyle and standard of living there are better than anywhere else I have seen in the country.
Having moved directly eastward, we were now squarely inside the Orontes Valley. I wanted to visit two more sites before moving further eastward, into the desert. These sites were not in the guidebook and were significantly more difficult to find. Qatna, another major city-state in the region during the Bronze Age, and Qadesh, a smaller site but one that was the location of the most epic battle in the Near Eastern Bronze Age. We sought them both out on the morning of day eight.
The site of Qadesh is located in modern Mishrefeh, a small village 2km northeast of Homs. There is an excavation going on there and some restoration work has been done, but the most interesting feature of the site is the mounds that recall the ramparts of the ancient city. The skeletons of hundreds of early modern buildings still fill the top of the site, but standing on top of the ramparts, they actually help to invoke a sense of the scale in the city. Otherwise, Qatna was particularly un-photogenic.
Qadesh, modern Tell Nebi Mend, was even less photogenic. The primary reason for my visit to the site was to investigate the topographical circumstances that dictated the battle that took place there in 1274 BC, when the armies of Ramesses II (Egypt) and Muwatalli (Hittite) fought one another. According to the Egyptian depiction of events, the Hittites fielded some 47,500 men, and from the Egyptian account, we even have an outline of the troop movements that took place on the field of battle. Since we know that, in reality, the Egyptians seem to have lost the battle, in contradiction to their description of events, I wanted to see how similarly the actual site resembled the Egyptian portrayal of it. I am pleased to say that every major feature of the area is identifiable and they are all in the correct places.
From Ugarit, we sped away from the coast and high into the nearby mountains in an effort to reach “Saladin’s Fortress” before closing. Known as Saône to the Crusaders who built it, this castle is every fantasy castle I dreamed of as a kid. Perched high atop a peak in the midst of a forested mountain range and surrounded by deep valleys and streams, it looks like something straight out of the Lord of the Rings. We arrived just before closing, but the late hour afforded some magnificent views of the setting sun in the mountains.
Our driver’s family, as it turned out, lives in the area so he invited us over for tea, and after leaving the castle, we head over to his home. Our visit caused quite a stir in their household and neighbourhood, but they were all very kind and sweet, but also quite shy. Naturally jokes were made about “marrying their daughter to an American”, and the youngest boy asked if he could have my “head-scarf”, meaning my handkerchief. I am disappointed to admit that my Arabic is entirely inadequate for situations like this, but fortunately, Nora was able to cover for lacking. I dream of the day when I can fully exploit such an opportunity for cultural discussion.
We returned to Lattakia and found a southbound bus to Tartus.
Tartus (Tartosa to the Crusaders) is the other major port of Syria but it is tiny compared to its much larger sibling. The Phoenicians built it as a service station for the much more important Arward (Arados), an island 3km off the coast of Tartus, which was a centre of both international trade and boat building from Canaanite times. After a less than impressive night at the Daniel hotel (which is clearly abusing its long outdated recommendation by Lonely Planet), we explored the coastline and then head out to the island for a seaside dinner of grilled fish and salad. I love harbour cities and Tartus had a charm that I found endearing. The pace of life is a little simpler, a little quieter, there. There are no ruins in the city worth mentioning, but I was very excited to see much of the western side of the island still committed to shipbuilding. During our walk, I was able to see dozens of hulls in varying stages of completion. That night, the moon, my Lady Luna, showed her full face to guide us back to the mainland.
Over the next couple of days, we saw a large number of sights throughout the region between Tartus and the Homs, in the Orontes valley (the region between Aleppo and Damascus). The Phoenician temple and tombs at Amrit were eerie; I nearly fell into a pit in one of the grave shafts. The Crusader monastery tower of Castel Blanc, in Safita, pleased me for personal reasons, but then subjects relating to warrior-monks usually do. A roman temple with giant rocks had some pretty giant rocks. The famous Crusader castle Krak de Chevaliers was much less charming than many other places we visited but it is a remarkable sight. The monastery of St. George is identical to the traditional presentations of it, but unfortunately, there was no dragon corpse to be found. Finally, guidebooks give the impression that Homs, the small city between Hama and Damascus, is not necessarily worth a visit, and while that might be true, the lifestyle and standard of living there are better than anywhere else I have seen in the country.
Having moved directly eastward, we were now squarely inside the Orontes Valley. I wanted to visit two more sites before moving further eastward, into the desert. These sites were not in the guidebook and were significantly more difficult to find. Qatna, another major city-state in the region during the Bronze Age, and Qadesh, a smaller site but one that was the location of the most epic battle in the Near Eastern Bronze Age. We sought them both out on the morning of day eight.
The site of Qadesh is located in modern Mishrefeh, a small village 2km northeast of Homs. There is an excavation going on there and some restoration work has been done, but the most interesting feature of the site is the mounds that recall the ramparts of the ancient city. The skeletons of hundreds of early modern buildings still fill the top of the site, but standing on top of the ramparts, they actually help to invoke a sense of the scale in the city. Otherwise, Qatna was particularly un-photogenic.
Qadesh, modern Tell Nebi Mend, was even less photogenic. The primary reason for my visit to the site was to investigate the topographical circumstances that dictated the battle that took place there in 1274 BC, when the armies of Ramesses II (Egypt) and Muwatalli (Hittite) fought one another. According to the Egyptian depiction of events, the Hittites fielded some 47,500 men, and from the Egyptian account, we even have an outline of the troop movements that took place on the field of battle. Since we know that, in reality, the Egyptians seem to have lost the battle, in contradiction to their description of events, I wanted to see how similarly the actual site resembled the Egyptian portrayal of it. I am pleased to say that every major feature of the area is identifiable and they are all in the correct places.
