In the centre of old Latakia, hemmed in by shops and traffic, stands a Roman triumphal arch from the time of Septimius Severus, dating to around 200 AD. It's not an imposing monument by the standards of Rome or Palmyra — three of its four columns survive, and the stone has been worn smooth by two millennia of coastal air — but its survival is remarkable, and it stands as a quiet reminder that Latakia was the Roman city of Laodicea ad Mare, one of the important ports of the eastern Mediterranean.
A few marble columns from the same era survive in nearby streets, and fragments of the ancient city occasionally surface during construction. The arch is most easily found by walking into the old commercial district from the seafront; it sits in a small open space that the surrounding buildings seem to have grown around rather than demolished. Worth a look on any stroll through the centre.