The displaced include Sunni traders from Aleppo, once the country's industrial powerhouse. Some have re-opened businesses in Tartous on a smaller scale.
Mohammed Jallad, an oven maker, fled as fighting intensified in his Aleppo neighborhood. His home and business were destroyed in shelling.
With a loan, he reopened business in Tartous, sharing an industrial space with four other Aleppo men. He sleeps in a nook above his ovens to save money.
His shop's rent tripled over two years as demand by displaced people rose. From 15 workers in Aleppo, he now employs two.
Jallad says he doesn't want to flee abroad, fearing he would join the fate of some 3 million Syrian refugees who mostly live in miserable circumstances.
"I wanted to work, so where could I go? The situation abroad is humiliating," he says.
As Syrians struggle to get by, they have adjusted to reality.
Taghrid, an embroiderer in Damascus, says she sent her army-age son to Egypt to avoid conscription, something many families have done.
"May God protect him," she says outside Damascus' grand Umayyad Mosque. She only gave her first name out of fear of endangering her son.
Government services, while scrappy, still exist. Workers receive salaries, even if the local currency is falling. There is still power, though cuts are routine. Health care is still free, although residents say waits are long as doctors leave their posts.
