Orange Blossom Water

Syrian cuisine in general, and especially Aleppine cuisine, has a very wide selection of dishes. Being surrounded by olive, nut and fruit orchards, Aleppo is famous for a love of eating, as the cuisine is the product of fertile land and location along the Silk Road. The International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007. But in fact, Aleppo was a food capital long before Paris, because of its diverse communities of Arabs, Kurds, Armenians, Circassians and a sizable Arab Christian population. All of those groups contributed food traditions, since Aleppo was part of the Ottoman Empire.

Aleppo prides itself on the best cuisine in the Middle East, the city has a vast selection of different types of dishes, and this post is just a brief introduction about Aleppine cuisine, everything here (dishes, or ingredients) are specialty of Aleppo.

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Above: This is my necklace, it is the name of the city “Aleppo”, in Arabic “Halab” and is written like this حلب

Aleppo (Halab حلب) is the largest city in Syria, and the oldest city in the world (12,200 years old). Aleppo was ruled successively by the Hittites, Assyrians, Akkadians, Greeks, Romans, Umayyads, Ayyubids, Mameluks and Ottomans who left their stamp on the city. The old city of Aleppo reflects the rich and diverse cultures of its successive occupants. Many periods of history have left their influence in the architectural fabric of the city. Characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys, covered souq and ancient caravanserais, the Ancient City of Aleppo became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.

Since 2012, Aleppo is exposed to destruction, and the losses in ancient and modern city are tremendous. At least 121 historical buildings have been damaged or destroyed – equal to 30 – 40 per cent of the World Heritage property are, in addition to the destruction of more than 1500 shops of the Souq.

What happened in Old Aleppo is a crime against humanity and history, the old city with its monuments belong to all the people of the world. This targeting has resulted in great loss in the components of Syria’s archaeological heritage, which can be added to a long list of painful losses that cannot be replaced.

I will leave you now with photos showing Aleppo “Before and After”:

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Aleppo (in Arabic: Halab and written like this: حلب) is the largest city in Syria, and the oldest city in the world (over 12,200 years old). I was born in Hama, and I lived part of my childhood in Aleppo.

Before the terrible war on my country Syria and four years ago, Aleppo was a thriving, cosmopolitan place. But since 2012, Aleppo is exposed to destruction, and the losses in ancient and modern city are tremendous, it is heartbreaking.

I’ll start a series called “To Aleppo With Love إلى حلب مع حبي” and I’ll post Aleppine dishes, this series of new posts is dedicated from me and my family to great Aleppo.

Watch the blog for updates…To Aleppo With Love – Soon !

Click on picture for larger image.