Bananas Don't Travel Well

Roman house, still lived inWe visited Bosra (a town in southern Syria, not the similarly-named Iraqi town of recent headlines) as a day-trip from Damascus (Damascus posting to come soon). An ancient capital of the Nabateans and later the Romans, Bosra is located in the Hauran, a landscape of dark fertile soils peppered with volcanic rocks. This area was an ancient granary, and is still fertile today, as evidenced by orchards and cultivated fields—this part of Syria is not a desert at all.

We had a small adventure leaving Damascus. On arrival at the Baramke garage, the bus station we were supposed to leave from, it became clear that the place had closed, permanently. We stood there at a loss for all of a minute when a man came up with two elderly Christian ladies, wearing matching navy and white dresses, who had also mistakenly showed up at the terminal. He led us, with the ladies, to the other station. This involved hailing a cab, squashing the two ladies, Chris and I in the back seat (they thought it was hilarious that I ended up sitting on Chris' lap), and then leading us in turn to where we were to catch our respective buses. One of the women spoke a bit of French, so we managed to communicate where we were from, etc. They were sisters, and were going to Montreal to visit a cousin next month. The man who helped us all out wanted nothing in return.

colonnaded streetThe city of Bosra was built out of the local black basalt (volcanic rock), giving it a bleak, spooky feeling. Because basalt is light and strong, it allowed for unusual construction techniques, such as cantilevered floors. Not only was it used to build the typical Roman monuments, but also to build common homes, many of which are still lived in today. Basalt is very durable, making Bosra one of the best-preserved Roman cities in the world.

The town itself was marvellous, in a bleak kind of way. Along the colonnaded streets (a unique feature of Eastern Roman cities) were covered markets, a caravanserai, baths, a huge fountain, palaces, villas, you name it. Much of it was still standing, including parts of the original stuccoed roofs.

theatre at BosraBut the best part was the Roman theatre. grand stage debutBosra's theatre is the best preserved in the world, in part because of the durable basalt from which it was constructed, but also because it was later completely encircled by an Arab fortress. The fortress itself was full of gloomy passageways (it too was built out of black basalt), lit by fake torches put on for the tourists (a bit tacky but actually a nice touch). As you come out on the ramparts, the back of the theatre looms in front of you. Walking around the outside of it, you come upon the back entrances to the seating area (designed exactly like a modern stadium). It's not until you actually come out into the theatre that you get a sense of how huge it is. Not only is the entire seating area still intact, but so is the columned façade behind the stage. It is so well preserved that virtually nothing is left to the imagination. You can go backstage and see the dressing rooms and even stand in the wings, peaking out at where the crowd would have been, imagining you are an actor about to go on stage.

All told, a worthwhile day.