In the style of the original Northwest Run, my Italian and I pulled off the Lebanese version. We were forced to take this route because the short route from Bcharre to Baalbek was still closed due to immense amounts of snow keeping the pass closed. Rather than backtrack (the worst kind of defeat), I opted … Continue reading
Tag Archives: Lebanon
The Modified Volkswagens Of Bcharre, Lebanon
I’m not sure who is responsible, but the mountain town of Bcharre is filled with these severely modified Volkswagen Beetles: They look like they could take a serious beating… Actually, they look like they already have taken a serious beating. But, they look like they could take another one: They are an interesting local specialty. … Continue reading
Bcharre And The Qadisha Valley
A view down the Qadisha Valley… The Qadisha Valley is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful places in Lebanon. With its trails set amid steep cliffs, waterfalls, rock-cut tombs and monasteries it is hard to argue with this impression. When we visited we had the valley almost entirely to ourselves – there were … Continue reading
The Largest Stone In The World
This is an abandoned Roman quarry (which I thought was interesting by itself) found within the Lebanese city of Baalbek: Off in a corner of the quarry… …can be found what is billed as the largest stone in the world, measuring in at 21.5m by 4m by 4.5m: It was the Romans that carved out … Continue reading
Exploring Byblos (Jbeil), Lebanon
Byblos is believed to be the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world: About 7,000 years ago a small Neolithic fishing community settled along the shore and several of their huts, with crushed limed stone floors, can still be seen. Many tools and weapons of this stone age period have been found as well. The Chalcolithic … Continue reading
The Lebanon Of Hezbollah
Hezbollah fighters launching rockets toward Israel… I’ve already shown you the Mleeta Resistance Landmark… And if you are a reader of this web site, you are almost certainly already familiar with Hezbollah anyway. Therefore, I shall not go into a detailed history here. I’ll sprinkle in some interesting facts and observations I made on our … Continue reading
Exploring Baalbek, Lebanon
Baalbek has long enjoyed a reputation as home to some of the finest Roman ruins anywhere in the world. However, even without the Roman ruins, it would still be an interesting town… To reach Baalbek, one passes through the hot, dry Bekaa, not so much a valley as a high-altitude plain, with its Hezbollah flags … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 