Saturday, June 20, 2009

Church of St. Simeon

It's a lazy Friday morning and you are in Syria. What can you do? Visit one of the many citadels that dot the country and get a lesson in history and civilization of mankind!

That's what I can think of anyway. And this time I visited the Church of St. Simeon which is about 1 hour out of Aleppo. This is the site where a famous hermit monk (St. Simeon) used to preach atop a tall pillar. It is special because most hermit monks prefer to live in a cave, but Simeon decided to live on a pillar. The only thing that remains of this pillar is its foundation. After his death, a church was built around this site and came to be known as Church of St. Simeon. Of course, the church that remains is more of a ruins but you can't help feel the grandeur that it must have had in the good old days. And it is always a wonder how they constructed such massive structures without the help of machinery and cranes. Mind you, it sits atop a mountain!


Other posting on places to visit in Syria:

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