These were some of the places which intrigued us as we explored this ancient urban centre - a city we loathed to leave.  However, the lure of the country's monuments left by civilizations which once flourished, then disappeared soon drew us away from the enticements of Syria's capital.

                It was early morning when we left Damascus' Cham Palace Hotel - one of a  dozen in a chain of Syrian luxury abodes located in that country's large urban centres - on our way to Palmyra - made famous by the renowned Queen Zenobia.  The desert road, in places edged by newly planted trees, was almost deserted as our group of four which included myself, my daughter, the guide Mayada - working for the Syrian Tourist Office - and our driver, Yasir, made our way to Syria's ancient desert metropolis.

                In two and half hours and 220 km (134 mi) from Damascus, we checked into the Palmyra Cham Palace Hotel - a deluxe abode which would not be out of place in an affluent section of a North American city.  From a window in this 20th century caravanserai, we gazed in wonder at the remains of a once thriving fabulous desert urban centre.  It was our first glimpse of the most majestic and wonderful ruins in the world - a fabulous remnant from an extraordinary civilization the Arabs produced four centuries before the dawn of Islam.

                When we drove to explore the ruins, their sheer size took our breath away.  The remains of a mysterious desert empire, they appeared to be magnificent in their spectacular grandeur.  It was as if by magic someone had planted a colossal wreck in the barren heart of Syria.

                In the first two and half centuries of the Christian era, Palmyra under Roman rule flashed into brilliance.   Nevertheless, in the 3rd century A.D. it overthrew the shackles of Rome and became, for a number of years, the centre of a proud Arab empire which extended from the Caucus Mountains to the Nile Valley.  However, not long after this zenith, it fell and became a mass of ruins.

                The legendry Palmyran empire was built then lost under the remarkable Zenobia.  She became queen in 267 A.D. and ruled for only 5 years before her city of 200,000 was razed by the Romans.  Yet, in this short period of time she made her oasis one of the most important centres of power in that age.  The majestic ruins one sees today are a monument to this courageous queen.   

                Ancient walls, arches, columns, statues, temples and tombs are everywhere.  The Temple of Bel, Palmyra's most magnificent monument, dominating the ruins; the Temple of Bel Shamin with its restored cella; the Valley of Tombs with their tower and underground burial places; and the partially restored heart of Zenobia's city which includes the Arch of Triumph, over 400 columns, 3,000 seat theatre, agora, senate house and baths, remind the traveller of the greatness which once was.

                Leaving Syria's top tourist-drawing historic city, we took the fine road on our way to Deir ez-Zor.  Mayada indicated that the Syrians called the landscape through which we passed a green desert.  She said that this was because it was not reality a true desert since, if the land was irrigated, vegetation would quickly sprout.  The newly planted and flourishing trees on both sides of the road, watered from artisan wells by government hired bedouins attested to her words.

                As we drove along the excellent highway, we passed dozens of huge flocks of sheep with their shepherds.  In the background, around the goat hair tents or cement block homes, all one could see were tractors and trucks.  There was not a camel in sight. The modern age has apparently engulfed the Syrian desert dwellers.

                 We were intrigued by some oil wells pumping away in the middle of nowhere, when Yasir suddenly stopped the car.  Before us stood a tiny lamb looking as if it was dazed.  Defying the stereotypes of Arabs, cruel to their animals, he took the lamb aside and gave it water from a bottle to drink.  He would not leave until a passing bedouin stopped his truck and promised to take the shivering animal to the nearby encampment.  As we drove away, we watched the nomad's wife with her small son make the lamb comfortable.

                When we reached Deir ez-Zor 210 km (130 mi) from Palmyra, a sand storm was raging.  However, by the time we were settled in the Furat Cham Palace, an elegant hotel overlooking the Euphrates, the wind was forgotten as we relaxed in its soothing atmosphere.  Gazing over the waters of the river which gave birth to civilization, I reminisced about the importance of this ancient land in the history of mankind.

                In the late afternoon when the wind had died down, we toured the city of 250,000  - a farmer's town which appeared to be bursting at the seams.  After strolling across its famous suspended bridge - a symbol of Deir ez-Zor which was built during the French occupation of Syria - we sat down in one of the shiradiqs (coffee houses) on the edge of the Euphrates to sip a cup of refreshing tea.   In the words of Mayada, "We are only carrying on the traditions of the Akkadian, Babylonian, Parthian, Sassanid, Greek, Roman and Arab travellers who stopped awhile and refreshed themselves on the banks of this ancient river."

                In the middle of a rich farming and oil producing area of Syria, Deir ez-Zor is also an ideal centre from where to explore the remains of bygone civilizations.  The ruins of Doura Europos, built by Seleucus Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's successors, lies 85 km (53 mi) to the east, near the village of Salhiyeh.  It was an important economic and military strong-point for the Greeks, Romans and Palmyrans.  Today, a good number of structures are uncovered, the most important of which are temples of various religions which existed side by side.  An exquisite hand-painted mural from one of its synagogues has been moved to the Syrian National Museum in Damascus where it is displayed in a special section.

                A little further on, 35 km (22 mi) from Salhiyeh, are the remains of Mari, now called Tell Hariri, one of the most ancient cities in the world.  Reaching it peak during the 3rd and second millennium B.C., it is noted for the extraordinary uncovered 300 room palace.  A huge structure even for more advanced later civilizations, it is considered by archaeologists as the greatest royal residence ever known in history.

                Early Sunday morning we left for Aleppo, 320 km (198 mi) to the west.  The highway snaking along a short distance from the Euphrates passed villages built on the edges of irrigated fields, dividing the desert from the sown.   About 45 km (28 mi) from Deir ez-Zor we turned on a country road to examine the ruins of Halabiya built by the Palmyrans and later used by the Romans and Byzantines as a defence post against Persian invasions.  According to legend, the Romans captured Zenobia in this fortress while she was trying to escape to Persia.

                From a high point in the ruins we had a splendid view of what remains of this Palmyran citadel, the river and the steppes beyond.  Also, across the Euphrates, another of Zenobia's ruined bastions, Zalabyeh, which appeared to be crumbling into the river, could be clearly seen.  "Here, Zenobia had her last days of freedom", Yasir reflected as we continued on our way westward.

                Past Ma'adan, the green crops seemed to thicken and all the villages appeared to be under construction with new water towers, schools and electrical lines.  In 1965, I had travelled the same route and the towns with their fields appeared to be the poorest places on earth.  Today, government irrigation and building projects have transformed the land and the lives of the people to fit into the 20th century.   Where at that time there was only desert, new villages, along with cotton, vegetable and grain fields now covered the land.

                Raqqa, across the river from the main road was our second stop of the day.  We drove through the bustling heart of this overgrown farming village to the old section.  Founded by Alexander the Great in the 4th century B.C., it was rebuilt in 772 A.D. by the Abassid Caliph, al-Mansur as a summer residence. 

                From the remains of that era, we examined a minaret of the Great Mosque which was reconstructed in 1166 by Nur al-Din; the Baghdad Gate in the partially preserved walls; and Qasr al-Banat (Castle of the Girls).  Noting that I was taking a photo of the adobe building, a young man asked, "Why are you interested in this heap of mud?"  It was hot and I was not in the mood to reply.  I smiled and walked away.  No doubt he thought that I was one of these mad westerners.

                Passing the newly constructed Tishreen Dam, we turned inland to Madinat al-Thawra where a colossal dam has been built on the Euphrates.  Called Lake Assad, the 640 sq km (250 sq mi) artificial lake supplies much of Syria's electrical power.  The newly built town and dam were constructed with Russian help and this is reflected in the buildings which are sombre and do not have any Middle Eastern flavour.

                About 100 km (62 mi) east of Aleppo, it was apparent that the taming of the desert with the lake's waters was bearing fruit.  Edging the highway, large sections of land were lush with fields of grain, gardens and orchards.  "They have really made the desert bloom", my daughter remarked as we made our way through a land covered with greenery. 

                Entering Aleppo, we headed straight for its famous citadel - for centuries the city's landmark.  Rising from steep limestone glacis it dominates the town as it has done since l,000 years before the birth of Christ.  I had visited this majestic fortress a number of times, but it has never ceased to give me a feeling of awe when I behold its towering ramparts.

                Inside, we realized that the citadel was not just a fortress, but a miniature city.  Even though it was ravaged twice by the Mongols and devastated by an earthquake in 1882, the outlines of its streets and edging structures remain.  There are gigantic store-rooms and grain silos for siege provisions, huge cisterns, dungeons dug out of rock; and leftovers of a Byzantine church, two renovated mosques, shops, baths, homes, and wells - some 60 m (197 ft) deep.  For us, the most interesting part was the royal palace built by the Egyptian Mameluks who succeeded Saladin's kingdom.  Its columns, roof beams and beautifully decorated ceiling panels have been tastefully restored by Syrian craftsmen.

                From the citadel, we drove to the elegant Chahba Cham Palace where we spent the afternoon loafing amid the affluence of the 21st century.  This put us in good mood for the early evening exploration of the city's huge 12 km (8 mi) maze of stone covered souks and ancient caravanserais edging the citadel. 

                The labyrinth of vaulted arches and subterranean passageways with their inns were built centuries ago by Malik al-Zaher, Saladin's son.  We spent an hour roaming in their medieval atmosphere, intrigued by the colourful hubbub of activity.  Yasir summed it all up by saying, "I never cease to be amazed with tourists.  They stare in wonder at what they think is a scene from the Arabian Nights, but for us it is only a place to shop for our daily needs."

                The sun's rays were barely visible on the horizon when we left for Qalaat Simaan (Fortress of Simeon), one of the most monumental religious spots during the first 1,000 years of Christianity.  From Aleppo, we made our way through a corridor of towering cypress trees edged by newly sprouting stone palaces.  Soon we were driving through a countryside of red earth dotted with many outcrops of rock.  In Byzantine times, this was a thriving part of the Middle East, but now all that remains from that prosperous era are stone shells of their urban centres - known as ghost towns. 

                In less than an hour, we were in Qalaat Simaan, the epitome of these long abandoned cities, 60 km (37 mi) north west of Aleppo.  In its days of glory, it was the largest of the Byzantine towns - noted for its grand cathedral.  This was built in memory of Saint Simeon, the first of the Stylites, who spent his life living, praying and preaching atop a stone pillar.  Once composed of four basilicas arranged in the shape of a cross in the centre of which was the sacred column, it is today a heap of ruins.  Only about 2 m (6.5 ft) of the sacred post and some of the cathedral walls remain.

                From these weathered stone ruins we surveyed for awhile the moon-like countryside, then retraced our steps to near Aleppo and turned south.  The excellent four-lane highway was bordered on both sides by flourishing trees, planted only in the past few decades.  Beyond, the green fields whose rich red soil has been farmed since the dawn of history, stretched as far as the eye could see.  A short distance after passing the town of Saraqab, we were in Tell Mardikh, 64 km (40 mi) south of Aleppo, where the ruins of Ebla are located.

                One of the most prestigious archaeological discoveries in Syria, this ancient city, now only an imposing mound, once covered an area of some 56 ha (138 ac).  It flourished between 2,500 and 1,600 B.C. and had an estimated population of 22,000.  In 1975, Paolo Matthiae of the University of Rome unearthed a 17,000 tablet library, filled with new historical material.  From these earliest written records in Syria it has been learned that Ebla was at one time a prosperous city and the capital of a large kingdom.  Most of the tablets are now housed in the Aleppo Museum and are being slowly and meticulously deciphered.  Only a part of the ruins has been excavated.  To amateur archaeologists like us, it appears that the work has only begun.

                Back on the Damascus expressway, we travelled through a countryside dotted with countless tells.  According to a Syrian historian there are more than 3,000 of these long forgotten covered towns.  It seemed that every village we passed was being transformed with new construction edging ever closer to the completed highway.  In between the towns and over the tells, newly planted orchards amid fields of grain and vegetables gave the land an aura of richness with a historic tinge.

                At Khan Sheikhoun, we turned westward and drove for half an hour to the ruins of Apamea - once a metropolis of 300,000 where Anthony and Cleopatra at one time dallied.  Its basis was laid in 300 B.C. by Seleucus who named it in honour of his wife Apamea.  In its days of greatness, during the Greek and Roman periods, it was noted for its philosopher sons and was one of the richest and most beautiful towns in the world.  In times of strife, it could field some 600 war elephants.  During the early Christian era, it became a centre of monophysitism - the doctrine denying the duality of Christ.  In the subsequent centuries, the city declined until it was demolished by two earthquakes in 1157 and 1170 A.D. 

                Today, the uncovered parts of the ruins are a gigantic litter of building blocks intermixed with huge broken capitals and columns - a man-made lunar sight.  The chaotic spectacle is, to some extent, put into order by a series of re-erected fluted columns edging the 1,850 m (6,068 ft) long  main thoroughfare and a reconstructed part of a church.  Mayada's words, "Everything passes away except stone", truly described modern Apamea.

                The ruins were barely behind us when we began to climb the hill leading Qalaat al-Mudiq (Castle of the Defile).  The fortress looked impressive in the distance, but inside nothing from the past remained.  The entire village within the walls appeared to consist of half abandoned streets and rundown houses.  Only its well-preserved ramparts remained to remind visitors that this was a citadel fought over by Crusaders and Muslims for several centuries.                  >From atop the walls, we enjoyed an excellent view of the colourful Ghab valley, sparkling green, yellow and red, before continuing on our way northward across this once unhealthy malaria-filled marshland.  In the 1960s and 70s, the swamps were drained and a series of canals built.  Today, this former water-logged land has become one of the richest agricultural areas in Syria.

                After Jisr ash-Shughour, the largest town edging the Ghab, we entered the Syrian coastal mountains, lush with green vegetation.  At Al-Qusatil, a roadside outdoor restaurant encompassed by towering trees, about 45 km (28 mi) from Latakia, we stopped to dine.  Invigorated by the cool mountain breezes we gorged ourselves on the best foods Syria had to offer in barbecued meats and delicious appetizers.  I was pleasantly surprised when the bill for our group of four came to less than US$30., and that included a hefty tip.  When I mentioned to Mayada that I could not believe the waiters were so friendly and the enormous tasty meal cost so little, she smiled, "Our country is a generous land which offers its hospitality to native and foreigner alike.  Behind our cuisine and way of life are 10,000 years of history.  This has refined our tastes and made us amiable to strangers."

                In Latakia, we settled in Côte D'Azur de Cham Hotel where our room opened onto the white sands lapped by the blue Mediterranean waters.  In its opulent atmosphere, we rested well that night.  Next morning, after a hearty breakfast in the splendid seaside Meridien Hotel, we drove the few kilometres to Ras Shamra or as it was known in historic times, Ugarit.

                 For centuries this capital of a Syro-Phoenician kingdom was lost in history until parts of it were excavated early in the 1930s.  From these diggings it was discovered that in the 15th century B.C. the first alphabet, which was the forerunner of all the world's alphabets, was invented. 

                One of the most important discoveries of mankind, it came into common use between the 16th and 13th centuries B.C. and is the mother of Greek and Latin.   From that once influential city, which today appears to be only a heap of stones, there has been excavated the outline of a 90 room palace, a well preserved grave, parts of temples and stone bases of a great number of buildings. 

                After Ugarit, we drove along the Syrian coast on a super highway through citrus orchards overshadowed by mountains in which are snuggled Crusaders' castles.  In the coming days we were to explore Saladin's Fortress with its incredible moat, hand hewn from stone; the Citadel of Marqab, once thought to be impregnable by the Crusaders; and Crac des Chevaliers, the epitome of medieval castles.  However, this day, we made our way to the seacoast town of Tartous, one of the last cities to be lost by the Crusaders, then turned inland. 

                Our path took us through olive covered mountains in which were nestled, neat, clean villages.  To us, the countryside with its superb towns appeared to be a part of southern Europe.  Near the fortress of Misyaf, at one time the capital of the infamous Assassins, we turned eastward and made our way to Hama - noted for its enormous waterwheels, as old as the city itself.

                When we checked into the Apamee Cham Palace, I thought we had entered the fabulous world of the Arabian Nights.  Exquisite marble like columns, arches and fountains, designed to fit into the 21st century atmosphere, gave this ultra-modern abode, with a touch of the past, an enchanted aura.  Like all the Cham Palace hotels, it was constructed for the serenity and comfort of the traveler.

                Standing on my room's balcony, I gazed down on the ancient waterwheels of Hama which for centuries have lifted the waters of the Orontes River to irrigate the surrounding gardens and orchards.  It was as if the comforts of the modern age and the relics from Syria's past had become intertwined.            

                I was spellbound with a feeling of contentment.  Our exploration of the country's rich history while staying in some of the most comfortable abodes in the world, had truly been a dream-like journey.  Tomorrow, we would be back in Damascus and the real world.  Tonight, I wanted to recall and savour to the utmost every detail of our exciting trip through Syria's past

                                                                                                       Habeeb Salloum