In my Oriental dress I could walk about without any covering on my face, perfectly uninterrupted.  I first examined the town, but there was not much to see, as there are no remains of the old Caliphate buildings.  The houses are of burnt bricks, and are only one story high; the backs are all turned towards the streets, and it is but rarely that a projecting part of the house is seen with narrow latticed windows.  Those houses only whose facades are towards the Tigris make an exception to this rule; they have ordinary windows, and are sometimes very handsome.  I found the streets rather narrow, and full of dirt and dust.  The bridge of boats over the Tigris, which is here 690 feet broad, is the most wretched that I ever saw.  The bazaars are very extensive.  The old bazaar, a relic of the former town, still shows traces of handsome columns and arabesques, and Chan Osman is distinguished by its beautiful portal and lofty arches.  The principal passages are so broad, that there is room for a horseman and two foot passengers, to go through side by side.  The merchants and artisans here, as in all eastern countries, live in separate streets and passages.  The better shops are to be found in private houses, or in the chans at the bazaars.  Miserable coffee-stalls are everywhere numerous.

The palace of the pascha is an extensive building, but neither tasteful nor costly; it is imposing only from a distance.  There are but few mosques, and those present nothing costly or artistic, except the inlaid tiles.

To be able to overlook the whole of Baghdad, I mounted, with great difficulty, the exterior of the dome of the Osman Chan, and was truly astounded at the extent and beautiful position of the town.  It is impossible to form any idea of an Oriental town by passing through the narrow and uniform streets, no matter how often, as these are all alike, and, one with the other, resemble the passages of a jail.  But, from above, I looked down over the whole town, with its innumerable houses, many of which are situated in pretty gardens.  I saw thousands and thousands of terraces spread at my feet, and before all, the beautiful river, rolling on through dark orchards and palm groves, to the town, which extends along its banks for five miles.

All the buildings are, as already remarked, constructed of unburnt bricks, of which the greater part are stated to have been brought down the Euphrates, from the ruins of the neighbouring city of Babylon.  By a close examination, traces of the old architecture are to be found on the fortifications; the bricks of which they are built are about two feet in diameter, and resemble fine slabs of stone.