After our coastal sojourn to sunny Goa for last weeks installment of 52 weekends, this week we thought we'd take a look at the Middle East. And rather than head for Beirut’s landscaped sidewalks, clean streets and fresh, clean air, the streets of Damascus will be our destination, with all the chaos, dank air and invigorating coarseness that offers such a different proposition to Beirut’s cosmopolitan flair.

If you only have 48 hours in Syria, do take in both Damascus and Aleppo, two Syrian cities vying for the title of ‘world’s oldest continuously inhabited city in the world’. Aleppo still presents the charms of old Syria, with its authentic hammams, the imposing Citadel that acts as a landmark for tourists and its mysterious tekkes. It is this older face of Syria that probably charmed the likes of writers Gustave Flaubert and Agatha Christie when they passed through. 

Damascus

A popular pastime in this region.

Tony Stephan’s antiques store at No 156 is renowned for having the finest quality items at the best prices. With a range of textiles, mother-of-pearl inlaid furniture, antique Bedouin jewelery and intricate copper and brassware, visitors have included dignitaries like Jimmy Carter and Nancy Kissinger. Check out the ultra-chic Villa Moda, a boutique converted from a 17th century stable, stocking labels like Stella Mc Cartney and Azzedine Alaia. Villa Moda is the first retail store in Damascus where the city’s beau-monde are able to get their designer-threads fix.

Ghraoui Chocolate: Head to Ghraoui, for some of the best dried fruits and chocolates in the world, if sweet sensations are your thing. Although Ghraoui can now be found in several locations in Syria, Jordan, Kuwait and the UAE, there’s probably no better place to try these chocolates than their original city of manufacture in Damascus. 

Bakdash: A trip to the Souk Hammadiyeh isn’t complete without a trip to Bakdash, an ice cream store that’s an institution in Damascus. It’s the place for family get-togethers, couples going on dates as well as a celebratory venue for engagement parties. Bakdash sells only one type of ice-cream, a delicious white concoction with a generous covering of pistachio.

Al Khawali: You’d find quite a few restaurants in Syria in converted traditional Syrian houses -- with the signature Syrian tiles and water fountains. Syrians, however, swear by Al Khawali and the shish taouk and the fresh tannur oven-baked bread come with rave reviews. The dessert range includes baklavas, ma’qaruns and persimmons. Address: off Straight St, cnr Maazanet al-Shahim, Damascus Souq, +963 11 222 5808; no alcohol.

Street food: The street food in Syria is amazing. Fill up the pomegranate juice from the juice stalls found on almost every street corner in Damascus. Inside Damascus’ labyrinthine souks you’ll find many local restaurants as well, with ceilings displaying the famously intricate workmanship of Damascene artisans. Be sure to try one of these restaurants at least once.

What to see

The souks are divided into the Souk Al Hamidiyeh, the most prominent and most popular among tourists, the Souk Midhat Pasha, the Souk al-Bzouriyeh (as the area where the soaps and spices are to be found) and the Souk al-Harir. The Umayyad Mosque, located almost next door to the Damascene Souks, is where you’ll find the tomb of Saladin and the head of John the Baptist apparently, and the third minaret, according to Islamic end-of-days’ predictions, is where Christ will appear at the end of the world. 

Four Seasons Damascus and Beit Al Mamlouka are the best places to bed down in town. 

Aleppo

Arriving in Aleppo, you’re immediately cognizant of a deep, rich history. It is a capital city that contests Damascus’ claim to being the ‘oldest continuously inhabited city in the world’ with a complex, intriguing history. Spend a few days in Aleppo exploring the citadel, which features an underground bar in the pedestrianized streets of Aleppo. Waiters there insist the underground areas were a way for the house’s original inhabitants to connect to the citadel during the multiple sieges laid on the city. 

Where to eat

Emerald Raheb: Bouhaira Street by the entry of Basil House for tourism, as well as Zmorod. Another dining option with great history is Kan Zaman. The Kan Zaman has great history -- with its walls attached to five churches belonging to the Roman Orthodox, Armenians, Mormons and Assyrians. Aleppo - Aljdaida, Jasmeen street. Tel : +963 21 36 30 299, +963 21 33 11 299. Fax: (963) 21 - 33 11 299.

Beit Al Mamlouka is a boutique hotel in Damascus.

Hammam Yaboulga al Nassri Citadel: The prophet Abraham is said to have milked his sheep on the hill of the Citadel and the various empires that have taken over the Citadel have left their architectural imprints on this fort. The tall bridge cum viaduct built by the Ayyubids (the main mode of entry into the Citadel till today), the damage done by the Mongol invasion, the new Mamluk palace, the restoration under the Ottoman empire and the excavations and modern ampitheatre under the French mandate, all display each civilization’s unique architectural imprint on the citadel and provide a glimpse into Syria’s geo-political importance.

Led by an able guide, you’ll be able to distinguish the Mamluke from the Ayyubid architectural details, pass through the excavation sites and St Simeon and the dead cities. At St Simeon, there's a row of columns increasing in height. Taking its name from the ascetic St Simeon who spent 42 years of his life here, those columns are where St Simeon meditated.

Adliyeh Mosque: Oldest Ottoman mosque in Aleppo Ain Dara. Dark rocks of the type used for the construction of the Ain Dara animals.

Aleppo souks: The longest covered souks in the Middle East, the souks and khans of Aleppo are broken up into different sections: Khan al Gumruk, Khan al Nahasin, Khan al Sabun and Khan al Wazir. Khan al Wazir is probably the most famous and well-decorated, Khan al Gumruk the largest and Khan al Nahasin the site of the oldest continuously inhabited house in Aleppo.

Mansouriya: Whilst Hotel Baron has all the faded glamour and history, Mansouriya couches Aleppan history within the comforts of five-star luxury.

Hotel Baron: Hotel Baron, was, in its heyday, host to some of the most illustrious individuals of its time. Stepping off from the Istanbul-Aleppo train connection (which still runs today), were individuals like Agatha Christie, T.E. Lawrence and Charles Lindburgh, with Ataturk having mounted his machine gun on the hotel's rooftop.

Getting there from Damascus:

You can take a train directly to Aleppo and then travel on to Damascus. Several European cities similarly have flights directly to Aleppo. If you’re coming from Damascus, the options are domestic air transfers, car or bus transfers. Domestic air transfer is cheap and convenient. Car transfers are convenient (if not the cheapest) if you have a guide and would like the same guide to travel with you throughout with bus transfers being the most entertaining, depending again on the bus company you choose.

Bus companies run the gamut from perfectly dependable, with on-schedule departures and spotlessly clean air-conditioned buses, to those where you're likely to be sharing your seat with a goats and that have various cracks on the windows. The origin of those cracks will come to you as you travel through residential estates and find groups of boys cheekily taking aim at the bus with pebbles.