Day of the Khans - 11 October, 2008

I. THE KHANS OF OLD DAMASCUS
For centuries, Damascus served as a crucial stop on the Silk Road, becoming an important center for trade, and a unique hub for inter-cultural exchange. It was not long before Damascus developed the reputation of offering the very best of music, food, performance, and art to all that paid it a visit.

An important reason for this development was the Khan System - large buildings nestled within the covered souks (markets) of old Damascus that served as important centers for both trade and the meeting of different cultures. Foreign merchants traveling the Silk Road would often be entertained by their gracious Syrian hosts in the khans, while others used them as a place from which they could conduct business or rest.

II. THE KHANS TODAY
Unfortunately, much of the impressive beauty of the Damascene khans - once considered to be jewels of the Old City -- has suffered from neglect. In many cases they are facing disrepair and dilapidation, and in urgent need of restoration and renovation.

Over the past several months, the Syrian-German Cooperation Project (the Governorate of Damascus & GTZ) have been working to address this issue by helping the members of the khans in the Old City develop a sustainable restoration and management plan that can be implemented in the coming months.

III. EVENT CONCEPT
The original concept for the Day of the Khans festival grew out a joint discussion - facilitated by GTZ - held between khan members and the Directorate of the Old City of Damascus. Both parties recognized the need for an event that highlighted the khans to the general public and media and would serve as the launching pad for the restoration and management process to begin.

The idea was then brought to the attention of the Governorate of Damascus and the Ministry of Tourism who were both enthusiastically supportive of the idea, and suggested that the event become a part of the 2008 Silk Road Festival in order to open up the khans to a wider audience.

IV. EVENT IMPLEMENTATION
The great success of the Day of the Khans was in many ways due to the effective partnership between the khans
members with government officials from Maktab Anbar, the Governorate of Damascus, and the Ministry of Tourism. With the implementation assistance offered by GTZ, each side contributed equally to the success of the event in their own unique way - whether was khan members organizing themselves to clean their khans or purchase new lighting, or government officials committing funds to advertise the event or providing free food and drink to all event attendees.
By the day of the event, all participating khans had been cleaned and made ready for the public, and with the support of their governmental partners, each khan was able to feature an entertainment activity, including traditional Syrian and Indonesian musical ensembles, Arabic calligraphy, Syrian folklore dance, an Andalusian musical ensemble, and a photo exhibition exploring the history of the khans.

VI. IMPACT & FUTURE
The Day of the Khans impacted many different groups on a variety of different levels. At the most basic of levels, over 500 domestic and international journalists, tourists, and native Syrians were introduced to the valuable heritage of the khans and reminded of their unique role throughout Damascus' history. In addition, khan members were able to see the benefits of keeping the khans clean and open to the public, while the government officials were able to appreciate the potential of the khans for tourists and cultural events. Most importantly, however, both the khan members and government officials realized that the sustainable restoration and economic management concept is an idea that can work, and all involved in the project saw a glimpse of will be when this concept flourishes.