Hejaz Train Station is a main train station located in central Damascus

Damascus

Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

, Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

 close to the Marjeh Square

Marjeh Square

Marjeh Square is a major square in downtown Damascus, Syria. The square was the central part of the city in the first half of the last century, before Damascus expanded further...

. It was built by the Ottomans

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 between 1913 and 1917 as the northern terminus of the Hejaz railway. The railway was intended to ferry pilgrims to Medina

Medina

Medina , or ; also transliterated as Madinah, or madinat al-nabi "the city of the prophet") is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and...

 and was designed by the Spanish

Spanish people

The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....

 architect Fernando de Aranda. The station's interior has a beautiful decorated ceiling. The actual platforms of the station are closed - a much-delayed project was to see the station expanded to include a high-rise hotel, shopping mall and underground railway - and all trains now leave from Qaddam station.