Page 31 - Off the Tourist Trail - 1000 Unexpected Travel Alternatives (Part 1 of 2)

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Palmyra Skara Brae

NEED TO KNOW NEED TO KNOW
LOCATION Palmyra is about LOCATION The site lies 4,"3" #3"&
134 miles (215 km) northeast of 563,&: near Stromness on the west
Damascus, Syria coast of the main island in
Orkney, Scotland "UMBOUJD
DATE OF "MFQQP 0DFBO
CONSTRUCTION -BUBLJB DATE OF (MBTHPX &EJOCVSHI
1st–3rd centuries AD 4:3*" CONSTRUCTION 3000 BC /PSUI
4FB
DAYTIME 1"-.:3" DAYTIME
-&#"/0/ .BODIFTUFS ANCIENT AND HISTORICAL SIGHTS
TEMPERATURES TEMPERATURES &*3&
6/*5&%
Jan: 45°F (7°C); Apr: 64°F %BNBTDVT *3"2 Jan: 43°F (6°C); Apr: 48°F ,*/(%0.
(18°C); Jul: 86°F (30°C); *43"&- (9°C); Jul: 59°F (15°C);
Oct: 68°F (20°C) Oct: 52°F (11°C) -POEPO
+03%"/
ABOVE Candle-lit sarcophagi in an underground tomb, Palmyra
Palmyra, also known by its Arabic name of Tadmor, An extraordinary collection of uncannily well- In a beautifully windswept location on the west
is one of the oldest cities in the Middle East. It is preserved remains, most of which date from the coast of Orkney lies Skara Brae, Europe’s most
thought to date back to Babylonian times, but city’s early Roman period and have turned pink complete Neolithic village. The site comprises a
most of the surviving buildings date from the 1st with age, lie scattered across the desert here. The group of ten dwellings that were occupied from
to 3rd centuries, when the city was incorporated original city’s comprehensive outlines can still 3100 to 2500 BC and remained undiscovered
into the Roman Empire. Palmyra served as an clearly be seen, from the main street to the agora until 1850, when a violent storm tore away the
important meeting point between the Persian (marketplace). Highlights include the enormous, mound of grass and soil that had grown over
Empire to the east and the Greco-Roman world striking Temple of Ba’al (or Bel), the smaller them. The houses, which were originally sunk
to the west. Its fabled oasis, a symbol of fertility in Temple of Nebo, and a beautifully restored into the ground and covered with turf, remain
a barren landscape, is thought to have inspired theater, with its nine rows of seating. Bisecting excellently preserved, and even retain some of
the nickname “the Bride of the Desert,” and made the ancient city is the magnificent Great their original “furniture” – beds, shelves, boxes,
Palmyra a popular stop on the caravan route Colonnade – the remains of what was once the and seats made out of stone slabs. The village
between Persia and the Mediterranean on the city’s principal street – which is lined with dozens even had its own elaborate drainage system,
old trans-Asian Silk Road. The city’s heyday lasted of columns standing in incongruous, antique complete with primitive stone toilets in every
until 273, when Queen Zenobia, who claimed to splendor amid the endless barren desert. dwelling, which can still be seen today.
be a descendant of Cleopatra and was famed for
her beauty, learning, and courage, led a rebellion
Practical Information Practical Information
against the Romans. The city’s fortunes gradually
Getting There Fly to Damascus, and then rent a car or jump on the bus Getting There Fly from the Scottish mainland to Kirkwall or catch a
declined following this rebellion until, by the 6th from the airport to Palmyra. ferry to Stromness. The site is only a short trip from either of these towns
century, it was nothing more than a fortified by car, taxi or bicycle.
When to Go Spring and fall are the best times to visit – this way you avoid
outpost at the edge of the Roman Empire. the scorching extremes of summer and the chilly winter nights. When to Go May or September. The weather is likely to be just as good
Website www.syriagate.com/Syria/about/cities/Homs/palmyra.htm as in the summer, but with far fewer visitors around.
Majestic Palmyra, Syria, in the early morning sun Website www.orkneyjar.com/history/skarabrae

The Bronze Age village at Skara Brae, Orkney, Scotland

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