The sun was out in force as we drove the hour or so north east to the Byzantine sandstone palace of Qasr ibn Warden. We passed surprisingly green countryside before reaching the rather unusual looking buildings, which, whilst forming part of the defensive line that included Rasafa and Halabiyya, display little fortification. I thought that they were modern government buildings from the main road. We were shown around by the caretaker Mohammed, a really lovely old man who took delight in pointing out the various features. SPOT
As it was such a nice day we decided to head over to the Roman ruins at Apamea, which tend to get overshadowed by those at Palmyra. We cut across country through numerous small farming communities and lost count of the number of potato laden tractors we overtook, before arriving at the former trading post which grew to over half a million inhabitants in its heyday. Little remains of the city itself, but what makes the site special today is the main street, lined along its 2km length by the remains of the parallel colonnades. You can see the ruts in the paving worn by chariot wheels, the raised paving to the sides of the street, and portions of the facade behind which shops would have been located. The grandeur of the place is still evident, and must have been awe inspiring 2000 years ago. SPOT
There were, unfortunately, plenty of annoying guys riding around the site on motorbikes trying to sell us 'antique' coins and suchlike, it's good the way they have such consideration for their heritage as they roar over the stones.
When we got back to Hama we had a wander round and stocked up on some food before preparing ourselves for New Year's Eve.
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