One of the charms of Northern Iraq, Northern Syria and Lebanon is the existence of remote Christian sites. Sometimes these are relict landscapes, but there are also thriving religious communities. This diversity is the strength of the region, but also the source of so much discontent. Maaloula is such a Christian refuge, and it might even be Syria’s next nomination to become a World Heritage Site: it was submitted for a Preliminary Assessment last year. It would be an “interesting” choice, a bit like the Taliban reporting on the conservation status of Bamiyan. Maaloula suffered badly in 2013/2014 when it was taken by the Al Nusra Front, whose former leader is now the president of Syria.

The itinerary of my tour was planned in such a way that we would be in Maaloula during the Christian Festival of the Cross, which is a celebrated yearly event by the local community. On the approach to the town, security surely had been tightened: armed soldiers looked into the boots of cars and there were canine units (to sniff bombs?) as well. These security guys are all 18 to 20-year-old Muslims with long beards, appointed by the new regime.

The setting of the town, at 1500m altitude, is still very fine, but there is a lot of damage to its buildings. On the hills around town, you see recently added Christian symbols, such as a large statue representing the Virgin Mary and one of Saint Charbel (a holy person in the Maronite Church). …

Visited Feb 2007. Maaloula is less than an hour by minibus from Damascus but I made an overnight trip of it, staying overnight with the nuns in the Convent of St. Takla and woke to a light dusting of snow the next morning. Maaloula's small population and relatively isolated location have helped it preserve much of its history and local culture. The monasteries and churches here are among the oldest in Syria and contain some of the oldest Christian icons in the world. The village is also one of only 3 left that still speak Western neo-Aramaic, perhaps the closest remaining language to that of Jesus. While visiting one of the local churches I was able to hear the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic which was a pretty amazing experience even for someone generally inclined toward religious cynicism. The village is backed against a mountain/cliff and homes are built so close together and nearly on top of each other that the "streets", which are little more than footpaths are often tunnels passing beneath the homes built above.

There is plenty to be said about how Syria has been run in the last few decades but Maaloula also struck me as a good example of how tolerant the country was of its historical and cultural diversity at the time. Much more than I had expected for the region. I hope the village hasn't suffered too much through the civil war but I doubt many will be visiting any time soon. Even …