Lebanon Summer Trip, chapter 3: Byblos (Jbail)

Another amazing and historical place we got to see in Lebanon was Byblos, locally called Jbail. This city is one of the oldest cities in human history. Byblos has been continuously inhabited by people for over 7,000 years! The Bible takes its name from this city as during Egyptian times it was used as the main port on the Mediterranean for shipping the papyrus. The English word Bible comes from Byblos as it describes "the (papyrus) book".

The souks are built around the old medieval city walls

A rose in the garden

Such a pretty old quarter district

Jill in the center of town

The flowers and trees surrounded the outdoor bars and cafes inside the city walls

Our crew pauses before going under the archway of the old city walls

Looking back through the city wall to the shops

Bella with flower wind spinners

Roman columns show where the old Roman road ran from the port into town

Rosie, Alex and Bella sit along the wall

Byblos castle

The castle was built in the 12th century by the Crusaders

Local limestone was used for construction...

along with bricks from the Roman ruins.

The castle (fort) protected the city and the port

Bella blooming

The site is on a hill overlooking the Mediterranean

The old columns can be seen standing in the distance and fallen in the foreground

The columns are near ancient burial tombs

Alex and Rosie sit atop the royal tombs

Jill with the sea in the background

Ancient brick house along the coast

Rosie on the small amphitheater stage. The audience could see the show and the sea...

while the mountains and city are situated behind the audience.

The children "perform" for the adults

Bella and Dad

Rosie after her time on stage

A family of giants tower over the ancient ruins

A family of entertainers

Bella "on the roof"

The girls sitting on fallen columns under a shady tree

Mr. Cat can't believe he's walking on a spot that people have lived for 7,000 years!

The Roman columns

The castle is still mostly in tact

The flowers add to the beauty

The columns among the flowers

The girls among the flowers

A view of the tombs and the sea

Between the castle walls looking back up to the mountains

The house in the distance

Castle archway angles enhance the view

The ancient in front and the modern in the distance

The Mediterranean Sea

The Lebanese coastline looking south

The columns seen from the castle wall

Rosie as the castle lookout

The lookout walks the walls

Bella in the scarves at the souks

The walk down to the port through cobblestone streets was amazing

Happy Jill walks through history

The cool shops in the souks built along the walls provided lots of window shopping

Jbail port

Looking back to the castle in the distance from the water

Aurore and Alex, our amazing hosts, pose at our lunch spot

The whole town was not only fascinating for its history but also a cute modern touristy town with lots of shops and places to eat. There is a modern stage set up on the water for an amphitheater that holds 5-6 thousand. Moby played there the day after we saw him in Dubai. In the background of the lunch photo, you can see the roadies for 30 Seconds to Mars who had just finished setting up the stage for the concert that happened that night. The mussels and the calamari were excellent and the view of the port was perfect.

Our trip to Byblos was quite memorable.

Lebanon Summer Trip, chapter 2: Baalbek and Ksara Winery

On our second day in Lebanon, we were up early and thanks to Aurore's planning, we boarded a bus for Baalbek, not far from the Syrian border. On the way to the Beqaa Valley, we made several stops to scoop up families, mostly families of students from my classes in Dubai! In total, we were 40 people, including 22 kids!

Driving into the Beqaa Valley we saw amazing mountains and greenery.  It was a beautiful view as we rode between Mount Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains. The area is a Hezbollah-run part of the country, and although we saw signs on the way in, there were no safety issues or problems.

The Baalbek ruins were an amazing spectacle with the layers of history all showing through at the site.

The Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans are all represented at this UNESCO world heritage site. The site even hosts summer festivals.

We then took the bus back through the valley passing many sites with mountains on all sides.

Along the way, we saw a goat herder and farmland.

We made it to the Ksara Winery and had a nice dinner and the kids ate well too.  We enjoyed the reds, whites and roses. We went on a great tour into the caves where the wine is stored and aged. The winery was founded in 1857, making it the oldest winery in Lebanon.

The kids running on the hill in front of the winery.

Barrels of wine aged in the cool, humid caves.

The caves give new meaning to "wine cellar."

These very aged bottles remain locked away from the tourists.

The endless row of wine into the abyss.

We made it home for shisha and snacks on the full moon patio.

It was an incredible day filled with amazing history and spectacular natural beauty. We also enjoyed meeting so many friendly people and catching up with our Lebanese hosts that we share our lives with in Dubai. It was an unforgettable day with the best Lebanese hosts any visitor could have.

Lebanon Summer Trip, chapter 1: Arrival, Grotto and Museum

Our summer trip to Lebanon began with our arrival in Beirut where we were scooped up by our friend and host, Aurore. Throughout the week, she treated us like family and was the best tri-lingual tour guide imaginable. Thanks to her, we were able to live in a neighborhood for a week, see more sites than we thought possible and eat some great Lebanese food.

We stopped for falafel and shawarma on the way home from the airport.

After our food stop at Arax, we arrived at the house in Ballouneh. Wow. The view back down the mountain to the port city of Beirut was amazing.

Coming from Dubai, the Lebanese weather was literally a breath of fresh air. Surrounded by mountains and green trees, we enjoyed the cool breeze as we sat on the balcony looking down at the city and the Mediterranean Sea.

Bella with the Mediterranean Sea and Beirut in the haze behind her.

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After a short rest, we visited the Jeita Grotto and were truly amazed.

 The girls pose with the statue outside: "The Guardian of Time"

While wandering through the two interconnected caves above the underground river, we all explained our own images comparing the different stalactites to other objects. Jill collected them in our journal for a found poem to help us remember the amazing and varied views underground.

"mushroom, broccoli forest, church organ, coral reef"

"spikey veins, daggers of the gods, shark teeth"

"kebabs, pleated skirts, dinosaur mouth"

"bones, harp strings, tree roots"

We took a short boat ride on the underground river in the lower grotto.

The water was cold and clear.

Back above ground, we rode the small train.

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We then drove up to the Hall of Fame silicon museum. Unlike wax museums, the 'people' are made of silicon and typically have some movements.  We ran into some famous people.

 Here Einstein poses with a brain on his desk, making "scary eyes" at visitors.

 Fidel Castro and his Cuban cigar.

 Yasser Arafat's hands and mouth twitched making him seem very real.

 Saddam's silicon replica is housed in the same room as Clinton and both Bush presidents.

 The girls pose with the silicon version of the tallest man in the world, Robert Wadlow.

Sunset,

and moon rise...

Staycation in Dubai!

It is really awesome to live in such a great tourist town. In addition to nice places to eat and malls to wander around, Dubai has many parks, the beach and water parks. The weather has been hot but not that bad. Loving the 108 degree sunny days! Here is a short video of what magnificent things you can do with a summer in Dubai.

4th of July in Dubai

Moby rocked the party and supplied the fireworks for our 4th of July celebration.