Syria
From Imakoopedia
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| Quick Facts | |
| Capital | Damascus |
| Government | republic under military regime |
| Currency | Syrian pound (SYP) |
| Area | 185,180 sq km |
| Population | 17,155,814 |
| Language | Arabic |
| Religion | Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) |
Syria (the Syrian Arab Republic) is one of the larger states of the Middle East region and has its capital in Damascus.
| Table of contents |
Regions
- Damascus and its Environs
- Mediterranean Coast
Cities
Other destinations
- Krak des Chevaliers - the archetypal Crusader castle, magnificently preserved and not to be missed
- Palmyra -
Understand
Syria has a population of 17.8 million people (UN, 2003), of which 6 million are concentrated in the capital Damascus. A moderately large country (185,180 sq km or 72,150 sq miles), Syria is situated centrally within the Middle East region and has land borders with Turkey in the north, with Israel and Lebanon in the south, and with Iraq and Jordan in the east and south-east respectively.
The population of Syria is predominately Arab (90%), with large minorities from other ethnic groups: Kurds, Armenians, Circassians and Turks. The official language is Arabic, but other tongues are widely spoken and include Kurdish, Armenian, Turkish, French and English. The Syrian Republic is officially secular, but in nonetheless greatly influenced by the majority religion of Islam (90% of the population, split between 74% Sunni Muslim and 16% other Muslim). There is a large Christian minority that amounts to about 10% of the population.
The President of Syria is Bashar al-Assad, who replaced his father Hafez al-Assad soon after his death on 10 June 2000. Having studied to become an opthalmologist (eye doctor) in Damsascus and London, Bashar was groomed for the presidency after the 1994 car fataility of his elder brother Basil. As a consequence, he joined the army and became colonel in 1999. Bashar's modernising credentials were somewhat boosted by his role in a domestic anti-corruption drive. More recently, however, Bashar's style of leadership has more closely come to resemble that of his father as an non-democratically elected and autocratic ruler (à la Saddam Hussein of Iraq). Bashar's position as dictator of Syria rests on his presidency of the Baath Party (the only legal political party, as previously in Iraq) and his command-in-chief of the army. A "cult of personality" is widely promoted for Bashar Assad and his late father - their images are to be seen everywhere in the streets of Syria.
Assad's regime and the Baath Party own or control the vast majority of Syria's media. Criticism of the president and his family is not permitted and the press (both foreign and domestic) are heavily censored for material deemed threatening or embarrassing to the government. A brief period of relative press freedom arose after Bashar became president in 2000 and saw the licensing of the first private publications in almost 40 years. A later crackdown, however, imposed a range of restrictions regarding licensing and content. In a more relaxed manner (perhaps owing more to the fact that these matters are largely beyond possible government control), many Syrians have gained access to foreign television broadcasts (usually via satellite) as well as the three state-run networks. In 2002 the government set out conditions for licensing private, commercial FM radio stations, ruling at the same time, however, that radio stations could not broadcast news or political content.
Get in
By plane
Syria has two international airports: Damascus International Airport, 35km (22miles) SE of the capital, and another just NE of Aleppo in the north of the country. Both airports have regular connections to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, though flights tend to be relatively expensive compared to other destinations in the region. Syria levies an air departure tax of US$5.
By train
By car
By bus
By boat
Get around
Train
The Syrian railways are reasonably modern and are based on Russian rolling stock. Rail travel is inexpensive and generally punctual, although railway stations are often a reasonable distance out of town centres. The main line connects Damascus, Aleppo, Deir ez-Zur, Hassake and Qamishle. A secondary line serves stations along the Mediterranean coast.
Buy
The unit of currency in Syria is the Syrian pound or 'lira' (£S), divided into 100 piastres.
Exchange rates (current in November 2003):
- 1 UK£ = £S 78.92
- 1 USD$ = £S 46.69
- 1 Euro = £S 54.93
- 1 AUD$ = £S 33.70
In the past, many forgeiners visiting Syria had to make a trip to Lebanon in order to withdraw money using their ATM cards. In recent months, a number of ATMs have become available in downtown Damascus. At the time of writing, ATMs are available, down the street from downtown's Tourist Information Office (just ask the taxi driver to take you to "al-Sahaw Ma-ha-foutha" and near the entrace to the Cham Palace Hotel. Others are also available in various locations throughout downtown.
Credit cards are becoming more widely accepted, but their use is largely confined to top hotels and expensive restaurants. It is also virtually impossible to get an advance on your credit card in Syria.
Eat
You can find the famous falafel for 10 to 15 Syrian Pound.
Shwarma costs 25 Syrian Pound.
Drink
You can drink water from the tab, if the locals drink it, you can. This water is of course for free compared to the bottled water that comes at 25 Syrian Pound for 1.5 liter.
Just as an example, a half liter beer in your hotel costs about 100 Syrian Pound.
Sleep
A budget traveler spends about 100 to 150 Syrian Pound a night for a rooftop.
A double room you can find for around 500 Syrian Pound.
Learn
Work
Stay Safe
Stay Healthy
Respect
Contact
Phone
The international calling code for Syria is +963.
Internet
Syrians were only allowed access to the Internet after 2000 when the new President relaxed most (if not all) restrictions to its use. The advent of the Internet has created a mini-boom with most cities and towns having at least two or three internet cafés. The system remains heavily overloaded and can be incredibly slow. The authorities have blocked direct access to some Western web site (such as Yahoo and Hotmail), but the proprietors of Internet cafés have mostly managed to get around this, presenting no problem to the traveler in general.
External links
Travel and Tourism
- Ministry of Tourism of Syria (http://www.syriatourism.org/new/index.html)
Newspapers
- Syria Times (http://www.teshreen.com/syriatimes/) - the English-language version of the Syrian daily national newspaper Tishreen (very much follows the government line...)
