Alas the journey's over...(hiking wise)

I'm realizing it's not about a hike, or a girl, or about a degree, or fellowship, etc... All in all it's about the journeys that life brings our way; it's never about one thing. Many friends, unbeknownst to them, have taken such journeys. Some continue to fight what life decides to bring naturaly to them, some expect it and deal with it graciously. I'm inspired by the latter group.

It's all about the grace man. Nothing more; nothing less. There was an abundance of that in the villages I've visited in Lebanon. There's not much of in Beirut however, unfortunately. People might be under the impression that it's embarrassing to 'act' that way. Yesterday I was mistaken for an 'on the cart' vegetable salesman. The man who asked me how much the Kilo of Figs was turned all red and was real apologetic when he realized I was just standing there. I, on the other hand, was really honored in this case of mistaken identity... When I asked the salesman if he dug his life, he smiled and asked me, "whats not to like kiddo?"... I love that. An answer that's a journey in and of itself...

And what is growth other than realizing that theres so much more to learn, to see, to breathe in...?
My brother and I decided to go on this expedition together knowing that there is growth to be had; spirits to interview; and mountains to climb- literally and figuratively... Most importantly we had no expectations and what better way than to walk, talk, and laugh at each other and ourselves...? Ask me in a year what this meant to me and I'll try and give you more than generalizations...

For now I'm living life, learning from it and loving the best I can...

Peace and Love,
Samer

WLE: An Expedition of Lebanon Dedicated to my Brother Samer

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150256931206862.326023.562431861&l=8864b3ef6a&type=1

FINAL WLE Day 12 (08-19-2011): Niha - Jezzine to Jisr el Khardaly – Marjoyoun

WLE Day 12 (08-19-2011): Niha (Hike) - Jezzine to Jisr el Khardaly (by Car) – Marjoyoun (Hike)

Length: Aprox 35 km, 9 hrs

Difficulty Level: Moderate to Difficult

Samer rejoined us the previous night and I was very happy to see him again. We met at Nader’s, the local Internet Café /Bar in Niha- an open friendly and busy place. Nader himself, the owner, introduced himself as a Lebanese-Belgian who had come back to live in the town after some 30 years of living in Belgium. “Can you believe that before I came back, there was no meeting point in the town for people to just hang out?” he said. The place was buzzing with patrons coming in and out. At one point there was a group of people led by Nader organizing the town’s festival. This was a quintessential example of the direct positive effects Lebanon’s Diaspora can have on Lebanon.

In the morning, Chamoun woke Samer and I up with a surprise. He had heard that the Lebanese army was discouraging any hiking between our next stop Jezzine and the penultimate at the Khardali bridge on the Litani river. Due to land mines, cluster bombs, and roaming paramilitary presence, it was advised we would need to cross by car.

As we had decided to circumvent Rachayya and Hasbaya in the East and head on a south easterly course straight to Marjoyoun, it implied we could actually finish the expedition today as opposed to the next day as planned.

After a hearty breakfast of Ijjeh- a Lebanese omelet with vegetables- we departed at 8 am. Bidding us farewell was the owner of the guesthouse whose scars of war (no upper body limbs) served as an ominous warming of taking unnecessary risks.

From Niha it was a straight climb up to the temple. It took us about 1 hour and 20 minutes to reach the top. The terrain was steep and the bag weighed heavy. Once at the top, it turns out the temple honors the prophet Job- I guess it does take a certain degree of patience to reach it. The view from the top was of the entire Shouf area and quite spectacular.

After a short rest at the temple, we stoically carried on knowing we needed to round two mountains before our descent into the town of Jezzine. The trail was meadowy offering views of beautiful green mountains, which we were told are not very safe. I wasn’t sure, which was more unsafe- the paramilitary presence of those mountains or the bees in the meadows we were walking through. Things would not get any better as we began our descent and Chamoun told us, “Guys, this area was demined but we need to stand in a straight line and try to maintain a single trail following goat shit.” Never in my life have I been as appreciative of goats or their crap!

After a seemingly interminable descent, we began getting a view of the town of Bkessin surrounded by one of Lebanon’s largest pine forests. To its East, one could view the edge of Jezzine. It would take us another hour or so to reach Jezzine passing a well along the way and arriving around 1:30 pm some 5 and a half hours after our departure. The town of Jezzine was smaller than I expected, but had one of the most imposing municipality buildings we had seen so far. The town seemed well organized, although water mismanagement had dried its waterfall. To compensate and keep the restaurants around the waterfall in business, the town had creatively decided to recycle water by pumping it from the valley all the way up and keeping a constant water flow.

In Jezzine, Samer got a well-deserved rest, while Chamoun checked to see how we could get transportation to the Khardale bridge. I took advantage to check the Internet and make reservations in Beirut for the evening and to change our airline reservation advancing it by a few days. Both operations proved amazingly easy over the Internet; and I still found some time to enjoy some ice cream and chit chat with Samer.

Chamoun finally found us a car and what a car it proved to be! A turquoise Renault 12 with grey repaired doors, and a misaligned engine cover. The wheels seemed to hardly hold the direction of the steering; and every time we crossed a bump in the road, one of the spark plugs would come loose, forcing the driver to turn the car off, get out, open the front cover readjust it, get back in apologize for the hassle, and drive on. The experience was harrowing especially on the narrow curves, but memorable nonetheless!

A short distance out of Jezzine we came to an army checkpoint at Kfarhouni. It would be the first time we were asked to show our documents. The officer in charge took Samer’s passport and started asking us questions. After checking our story, he confirmed that it was strongly advised that we not walk in these parts; instead that we go to the river and then hike up to Marjoyoun. We were now in the South of Lebanon. Surprisingly, the drive showed very little war damage. On the contrary, the roads were quite well paved and clean, and towns nicely organized with nice houses- many of which were quite large. “African Lebanese wealth,” explained the driver.

We reached the Khardali bridge which crosses the Litani river about thirty minutes later. After a brief cool-off in the famous river, we proceeded with the climb. It had turned into a hot day, and there were very little trees or construction to offer any shade around. It would be a long climb. While the gravel and paved roads made it a bit easier, the dust and heat reflected from the road made it hotter. And still we climbed … We were about to reach our objective, and nothing would stop us. At this point, something strange happened to me. I looked at my brother, and I saw the effort he was giving- he was giving it his best and that made me very emotional … The years had not been very kind on our family, but Samer had carried on. He had done the same on this expedition; and I was proud of him. In these moments, I looked at my brother and saw that the man in front of me was still the baby I had carried so many years ago, the young boy I used to take to my soccer games, and the handsome young man who tried to find his way in his own way. Life can be harsh some times. It takes heart, effort, and determination to overcome difficulties. On this trip, my brother proved once more he had all of them.

We reached Marjouyoun at 5:05 pm- some 12 days 8 hours and 35 minutes since our expedition had begun.

This expedition was meant to introduce us to our country of birth, Lebanon, its beauty, and people- all of which we had left many many years ago. It did all that and a lot more … It proved that all this time, the country had not left us. Perhaps most importantly, it was a long overdue expedition by two brothers …  While its true meaning may yet be too early to understand or explain, its memories for sure will last us a lifetime.

Photos from Barouk Cedar Reserve

Here are the latest photos taken in the Barouk Cedar Reserve on 08/18/2011:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150256150581862.325829.562431861&l=d8b6525e39&type=1

WLE Day 11 (08-18-2011): Barouk – Maaser el Shouf - Niha

WLE Day 11 (08-18-2011): Barouk – Maaser el Shouf - Niha

Length: Aprox 30 km, 9 hrs

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Sleeping the night at Barouk’s guesthouse was interesting. The venue itself is very nicely renovated and designed, but unfortunately there was no electricity, so I had to cope with a flashlight. It did make me sleep early though at around 9 pm. Unfortunately, the electricity came back on by itself around midnight and all the lights came on (the switches had been on!). As a result, I woke up thinking that it was daylight. In the meantime, an agile mosquito had managed to suck one of my feet dry … With electricity, I was able to reap revenge on the little creature by turning on an electric repellant. Victory is sweet- even over a mosquito … God bless technology!

No technology or alarm needed to wake me up though. Chamoun, who had slept at his place the previous evening after another visit to his mother in the hospital, knocked on the guesthouse door at 6:30 am sharp. Soon after Ziad, our guesthouse host, came in with a baladi breakfast of local cheese, labneh, olives, marmalade, and tea. Knowing the long hike ahead, I filled my tummy as well as my water tanks. We headed out at 7:20. Chamoun’s wife dropped us off at the Barouk reserve’s entrance a couple of miles up the road.

Up until then, I had only seen the famous Bsharre cedar reserve, the Tannourine one, and skimmed the Ain Zhalta one. I was surprised to learn that the Barouk cedar reserve turns out to be the biggest in the nation- some 160 square kilometers. It took us about an hour and a half to walk through it, and my camera shutter worked non-stop. The cedar tree is part and parcel in the Lebanese psyche, but nothing prepares one for its beauty and majestic imposition as a walk through the Barouk. As we had entered the reserve before it was officially opened, we decided to walk up on the paved road, which is easier on the climb- my bag was laden and I did not really fancy flipping backwards on a rough mountain climb. Nevertheless, the paved road offered spectacular views of the reserve (trees lined it on both sides) as well as views of the town below- as far as the Mikhtara some 15 km Southwest. At its highest point, the smell of the air in the park became different- cedar oxygenation at its best. Interestingly, I got to see the seed of the tree, which I had never before. I learned that squirrels are the ones who steel the seed from the branches, and hide them underground. Those that are forgotten, some 5000 years later turn out to be great evergreen trees with multi-trunks some 2 meters in radius, and branches extending more than 7 meters.

Soon after, we began our descent towards Maaser el Shouf and its own reserve, which is separated from its Barouk counterpart by a barren mountain. Maaser is an area famous in the past for its essence and juice grinders- from which the town derives its name. The hike down was fairly steep and the terrain somewhat slippery. Interestingly, this was the first trail that we saw Lebanon Mountain Trail markings (purple and white paint marks on rocks basically). These were supposedly painted all over the trail from the North of Lebanon to the South to guide hikers. These were the first I had seen. I figure they must have eroded since and few if any are still visible unfortunately.

Slowly but surely we made it to the town entrance reaching it around 11 am. As we entered the town, we were greeted by an old man who asked us for advice about some varices he has in his legs. We apologized as neither Chamoun nor I are doctors. The man still introduced us to his family and offered us coffee.  As we moved into the town, it seemed well organized but very quiet. When we got to the central plaza of the town, Chamoun entered a small market store and saluted the old man. Next thing I know, the man offers me a purplish looking juice telling me it is “Great for your lungs, especially if you’re a smoker.” I wanted to answer, “I don’t really smoke,” but knew better. Good decision Wissam! It was one of the best drinks I have ever tried. I asked for another and even drank half of Chamoun’s bottle too! The old man offered to sell me the ingredients in a couple of jars, but due to the weight I was sorry couldn’t take them. I promised I would be back to buy them later on when I have transportation. I definitely plan to!

In the meantime, Chamoun had managed to grab a turtle from two menacing kids. The turtle was the size of the palm of his hand. “Can you believe it? They were trying to kill it!” he told me. There was blood coming out of the side and its shell seemed slightly cracked. He would walk with it in his hand until we were well out of the town. He then laid it in a safe place wishing it good luck.

Before we exited the town, we passed by a small factory run by two people. Turns out it is a candle factory. It seemed like a factory from the turn of the previous century, but fully functional and quite productive. The owner told me it can produce 1300 candles every 10 minutes. They sell these candles to the rest of the country and have even exported it. ‘What a shame it is not advertised as a touristic destination,’ I thought, ‘could make them as much as the candles themselves.’

Chamoun was in a hurry to get moving from Maaser because today was yet another 2 hikes in 1 day. Usually hikers stay overnight in Maaser el Chouf. We wanted to move on to Niha, which was another 20 km or so distant. So on we went. We started uphill on a well-walked but thorny trail. Before reaching the next town, we met a farmer holding a bunch of onions. “Most of this land is for Walid Beyk,” he said referring to Walid Jumblatt, whose family for the most part controls the Chouf.  

Passing the next town of Mrusti, my feet started feeling tired. We had been hiking for close to 8 hours, which I have realized is more or less my comfortable range. The sticks were helping me a great deal. I had become accustomed to holding my camera in my left hand stick; and in the right hand the stick to balance myself. Unfortunately, when we came upon a well shortly after somehow somewhere I lost my balancing stick. I was sad about it because the stick had been with me hiking all over the world. For the rest of the hike, I felt myself a bit out of balance and mad at myself for losing one of the most important pieces of gear any hiker needs … I will have to find a new system for the remaining few days.

We reached the town of Niha at around 4:20 some 9 hours after we had begun our hike. The final stretch reminded me somewhat of our hike in Wadi Jhannam in North Lebanon as it had water running on the side of the walkway- some of which also defied gravity going upwards!

I was tired but happy to see the town, which I found to be pretty impressive- considering it has been the setting for some serious civil strife recently. The roads are wide and lined with trees and flowers and the houses look nice. The good news is Niha does not have much electricity as the rest of the country because “we run on hydro that is supplied to us from Jezzine,” our guesthouse host said. Together with his wife, he proceeded to offer us one of the best home cooked dinners we have had full with Kibbeh, Baba Ghanouj, Lebanese pastries filled with cheese, and some rice with curry. Good replenishment for all the weight I must have lost over the length of the expedition.

On the topic of the remaining days, together with Chamoun, we decided to head straight South to Marjayoun from Jezzine as opposed to East through Rachaya and Hasbaya. This would save another two days but essentially take us to the same destination- the southern town of Marjayoun. Essentially, this would mean that we would have hiked the length of Lebanon in 13 or 14 days- some 6 days less than anticipated. This also meant that we could finish the expedition in the next two days. Not bad … Not bad at all.

But first, I had to discuss it with Samer to see if he would be up to it. I continue to miss him on the hikes, and I am glad he will be joining the expedition tonight. It has not been the same without him.

WLE Day 11 (08-18-2011): Barouk – Maaser el Shouf - Niha

WLE Day 11 (08-18-2011): Barouk – Maaser el Shouf - Niha

Length: Aprox 30 km, 9 hrs

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Sleeping the night at Barouk’s guesthouse was interesting. The venue itself is very nicely renovated and designed, but unfortunately there was no electricity, so I had to cope with a flashlight. It did make me sleep early though at around 9 pm. Unfortunately, the electricity came back on by itself around midnight and all the lights came on (the switches had been on!). As a result, I woke up thinking that it was daylight. In the meantime, an agile mosquito had managed to suck one of my feet dry … With electricity, I was able to reap revenge on the little creature by turning on an electric repellant. Victory is sweet- even over a mosquito … God bless technology!

No technology or alarm needed to wake me up though. Chamoun, who had slept at his place the previous evening after another visit to his mother in the hospital, knocked on the guesthouse door at 6:30 am sharp. Soon after Ziad, our guesthouse host, came in with a baladi breakfast of local cheese, labneh, olives, marmalade, and tea. Knowing the long hike ahead, I filled my tummy as well as my water tanks. We headed out at 7:20. Chamoun’s wife dropped us off at the Barouk reserve’s entrance a couple of miles up the road.

Up until then, I had only seen the famous Bsharre cedar reserve, the Tannourine one, and skimmed the Ain Zhalta one. I was surprised to learn that the Barouk cedar reserve turns out to be the biggest in the nation- some 160 square kilometers. It took us about an hour and a half to walk through it, and my camera shutter worked non-stop. The cedar tree is part and parcel in the Lebanese psyche, but nothing prepares one for its beauty and majestic imposition as a walk through the Barouk. As we had entered the reserve before it was officially opened, we decided to walk up on the paved road, which is easier on the climb- my bag was laden and I did not really fancy flipping backwards on a rough mountain climb. Nevertheless, the paved road offered spectacular views of the reserve (trees lined it on both sides) as well as views of the town below- as far as the Mikhtara some 15 km Southwest. At its highest point, the smell of the air in the park became different- cedar oxygenation at its best. Interestingly, I got to see the seed of the tree, which I had never before. I learned that squirrels are the ones who steel the seed from the branches, and hide them underground. Those that are forgotten, some 5000 years later turn out to be great evergreen trees with multi-trunks some 2 meters in radius, and branches extending more than 7 meters.

Soon after, we began our descent towards Maaser el Shouf and its own reserve, which is separated from its Barouk counterpart by a barren mountain. Maaser is an area famous in the past for its essence and juice grinders- from which the town derives its name. The hike down was fairly steep and the terrain somewhat slippery. Interestingly, this was the first trail that we saw Lebanon Mountain Trail markings (purple and white paint marks on rocks basically). These were supposedly painted all over the trail from the North of Lebanon to the South to guide hikers. These were the first I had seen. I figure they must have eroded since and few if any are still visible unfortunately.

Slowly but surely we made it to the town entrance reaching it around 11 am. As we entered the town, we were greeted by an old man who asked us for advice about some varices he has in his legs. We apologized as neither Chamoun nor I are doctors. The man still introduced us to his family and offered us coffee.  As we moved into the town, it seemed well organized but very quiet. When we got to the central plaza of the town, Chamoun entered a small market store and saluted the old man. Next thing I know, the man offers me a purplish looking juice telling me it is “Great for your lungs, especially if you’re a smoker.” I wanted to answer, “I don’t really smoke,” but knew better. Good decision Wissam! It was one of the best drinks I have ever tried. I asked for another and even drank half of Chamoun’s bottle too! The old man offered to sell me the ingredients in a couple of jars, but due to the weight I was sorry couldn’t take them. I promised I would be back to buy them later on when I have transportation. I definitely plan to!

In the meantime, Chamoun had managed to grab a turtle from two menacing kids. The turtle was the size of the palm of his hand. “Can you believe it? They were trying to kill it!” he told me. There was blood coming out of the side and its shell seemed slightly cracked. He would walk with it in his hand until we were well out of the town. He then laid it in a safe place wishing it good luck.

Before we exited the town, we passed by a small factory run by two people. Turns out it is a candle factory. It seemed like a factory from the turn of the previous century, but fully functional and quite productive. The owner told me it can produce 1300 candles every 10 minutes. They sell these candles to the rest of the country and have even exported it. ‘What a shame it is not advertised as a touristic destination,’ I thought, ‘could make them as much as the candles themselves.’

Chamoun was in a hurry to get moving from Maaser because today was yet another 2 hikes in 1 day. Usually hikers stay overnight in Maaser el Chouf. We wanted to move on to Niha, which was another 20 km or so distant. So on we went. We started uphill on a well-walked but thorny trail. Before reaching the next town, we met a farmer holding a bunch of onions. “Most of this land is for Walid Beyk,” he said referring to Walid Jumblatt, whose family for the most part controls the Chouf.  

Passing the next town of Mrusti, my feet started feeling tired. We had been hiking for close to 8 hours, which I have realized is more or less my comfortable range. The sticks were helping me a great deal. I had become accustomed to holding my camera in my left hand stick; and in the right hand the stick to balance myself. Unfortunately, when we came upon a well shortly after somehow somewhere I lost my balancing stick. I was sad about it because the stick had been with me hiking all over the world. For the rest of the hike, I felt myself a bit out of balance and mad at myself for losing one of the most important pieces of gear any hiker needs … I will have to find a new system for the remaining few days.

We reached the town of Niha at around 4:20 some 9 hours after we had begun our hike. The final stretch reminded me somewhat of our hike in Wadi Jhannam in North Lebanon as it had water running on the side of the walkway- some of which also defied gravity going upwards!

I was tired but happy to see the town, which I found to be pretty impressive- considering it has been the setting for some serious civil strife recently. The roads are wide and lined with trees and flowers and the houses look nice. The good news is Niha does not have much electricity as the rest of the country because “we run on hydro that is supplied to us from Jezzine,” our guesthouse host said. Together with his wife, he proceeded to offer us one of the best home cooked dinners we have had full with Kibbeh, Baba Ghanouj, Lebanese pastries filled with cheese, and some rice with curry. Good replenishment for all the weight I must have lost over the length of the expedition.

On the topic of the remaining days, together with Chamoun, we decided to head straight South to Marjayoun from Jezzine as opposed to East through Rachaya and Hasbaya. This would save another two days but essentially take us to the same destination- the southern town of Marjayoun. Essentially, this would mean that we would have hiked the length of Lebanon in 13 or 14 days- some 6 days less than anticipated. This also meant that we could finish the expedition in the next two days. Not bad … Not bad at all.

But first, I had to discuss it with Samer to see if he would be up to it. I continue to miss him on the hikes, and I am glad he will be joining the expedition tonight. It has not been the same without him.

Northern Random Realizations

I've hiked North Lebanon. That I know. I saw the scenes, smelled the roses, meditated and spoke through nature, was spoken to by nature, and listened to the sound of silence probably for the first time in my life. I've listened to the restless and I've viewed more than one side of 'How things came to be this way' in Lebanese society. I won't judge it because unlike my brother, Wisso, I'm not too familiar with the political haps and mishaps of my country. I am, however, interested in it's history especially since the Phoenicians sailed its seas and roamed the land.
What I do know now is what I'd 'like' from life as far as where to live and hopefully once I have a family of my own, what I'd like us to be doing...
I realize big cities, pollution, and a lot of chatter are just not meant for me. That noise does nothing but distorts the truth of a person's spirit. Mind you I've also come to the conclusion that it's the internal noise that out does the external- every time. I also realize that friends, after family and inner peace, are the most important connections a man can make. They're the only reason I can see myself as I truly am today.
I've felt the love and it is by no coincidence that I've come on this trip, hiked, took two days off to stay at Johnny and Emily's beautiful home, only to find out that my other best mate, Salim- who took a couple of weeks off from Dubai is here in town as well. Tarek Bastane now lives in Beirut with his wife and two kids, Nael is here from England with his wife Angelia and beautiful boy Adrian, and Nadim (Chill McGee) is visiting from Canada as he usually does twice a year.
The only thing that justified me taking a couple of days off from one of the most important journeys in my life, in hindsight, of course had to do with friendship, love, and a connection found nowhere else than friendship.
I would love to live in Lebanon again. Though I have found that electricity, water and sometimes serenity is an issue with the many 'Natives' here, I don't find it to be much of a problem for me. Yet.
I don't want to project but leaving Lebanon's nature will be very hard for me.
Tonight I rejoin my lovely brother to start the Southern leg. I'm alive, so he is, and if you're reading this, so are you ;-')

WLE Day 10 (08-17-2011): Falougha - Ain Zhalta - Barouk

WLE Day 10 (08-16-2011): Falougha - Ain Zhalta -  Barouk

Length: Aprox 27 km, 6 hrs

Difficulty Level: Moderate

I woke up at 5:30 am eager to get the day going. I still had a couple of hours before the car ride up to Falougha, so I decided to blog and check some e-mails. The plan was to have Karim drop me off in Falougha, right next to a water plant by the name of Soha, where I would be meeting Chamoun for the hike. It was Samer’s day off. I was happy for him, but also missed him. This is as much his expedition as mine, but I also understood that after such a long absence from Lebanon, he needed to catch up with his friends many of whom were calling and wanting to see him.

The hike today would take us from Falougha through Ain Dara to Ain Zhalta and finally to Barouk. It was interesting because I had never been in this part of the Chouf mountains before and wanted to see it.

Karim knocked on my door at 7 am and was ready. There were some clothes of mine that had been washed (thank goodness for that) but still needed drying. So Karim helped me by putting them in the dryer for a few minutes. In the meantime, we had a light breakfast of Lebanese black and green olives, cheese, and some marmalade and tea. The house was buzzing with Karim’s brother and father wide awake as well as some of the kids- nothing more blessed than a nice open family environment. We left Dhour by car at around 7:45 and reached Falougha at around 8:15- it took a bit longer than expected because Karim was not familiar with the road. I had hiked this area a few months earlier and liked its vast pine forests. I was glad to be back.

When we arrived, Chamoun was waiting and ready to roll. We began the hike around 8:30. The hike took us downhill over Dahr el Baydar, which is apex of the main road that connects Beirut to Damascus. This part of the country has seen military presence since time immemorial, with Ottoman, French, and Syrian remnants including bunkers and some rusted ammunition still lying around. Once we had crossed Dahr el Baydar on foot, we saw to our left a huge mountain being torn apart by bulldozers and trucks carrying away sand and rocks. Supposedly it is legal. I can’t see how making the land ugly like this can be legal. There must be an organized way of doing it.

On we went in a southerly direction walking in relatively mild terrain, until Ain Dara appeared to our West. Soon we stopped at Boulus’ orchard (Am Boulus is a friend of Chamoun’s) and he offered us some of the best nectarines and plums I have ever tasted. We stayed for a little while, and he told us about his family. His son who has been very unproductive and with little ambition. “Fortunately, I just got him married,” he said.

We soon bid him farewell still licking our lips from the delicious nectarines we had tasted; and we headed towards a water well a few hundred meters away. As we were nearing the well, all of a sudden we heard two consecutive gun shots. We looked up and saw a big black bird falling from the sky. One of the two hunters had managed to make a hit. Unfortunately, as we neared the well we saw a large and deep water storage tank next to it with the bird- a dark black vulture- still alive, fluttering with one wing trying to fly, but unable to get out of the water tank. “How could these people do such a thing to this animal?” asked Chamoun. ‘They are the animals,’ I thought to myself.

We passed Ain Dara on a trail, which for the most part was barren with a few orchards here and there. They were apple orchards for the most part and grown in dry land. “They are trained to need much less water,” explained Chamoun, “and once picked they can last months in a fridge without becoming overly ripe. One farmer we passed along the way showed us a new breed he had transplanted in the trees. “Do you transplant by injection?” I asked innocently. “No he said even easier, you just bring the donor branch, and attach it to the truck. With time it transplants.” Yet another thing I learned on this expedition.

The day was cool and every now and then we would get a nice breeze, which helped keep us cool. We kept a good pace and rarely stopped except for me to take photos. Chamoun walked fifty meters or so ahead of me, which suited me fine as it gave me some time to think and reflect.

We reached the protected forest of Ain Zhalta about a couple of hours later and skimmed it, but did not go in. Chamoun figured it would be best to visit the one in Barouk the next day on our way to Maaser el Chouf. From the outside, however, the forest looked full of lush green Cedar trees, and very nicely organized. We did talk to the ranger who told us that he had had only 4 visitors on this day and they well all foreigners. “The Lebanese do not like to bring their cars to gravel roads,” he said.

The trail from the protected forest to the town of Ain Zhalta was relatively flat but thorny. This generally means shepherds do not pass through here with their goats (who eat the thorns) or that it is not that travelled by hikers. At this point we were still around 1400 meters altitude, and slowly but surely we began to descend (Barouk is about 1150 meters altitude). As we were heading to Barouk, we skimmed the mountain barely getting a glimpse of the town of Ain Zhalta. What was very apparent in this area was all the pine trees with the staple hissing sounds than indelibly accompanies them. Once we rounded this mountain, we started getting a glimpse of the town of Barouk in the distance with its stone houses and orange roofs. It would take us about a couple of hours to get to the town, and as we neared the entrance of the town, pine trees lined paved road to our left. Some of these trees had their trunks peeling and showing a deep red color, giving the impression that tree was bleeding. I had never seen anything like it before.

Paulette met us at the entrance of the town. She had come to pick up Chamoun and take him to visit his mother again at the hospital. I stayed at the guesthouse, and met Ziad its owner. Through funding from USAID, Ziad had managed to fix it very nicely. On the inside, it had traditional Lebanese arches made from old stone. The guesthouse fit around 6 people and had a nice dining room. I highly recommend it for anyone hiking in these parts that needs a place to stay. More impressive still was the fact that the public library (with an Internet connection) is right next door to the guesthouse. Can’t ask for more- well a nice Shawarma to cap the evening, perhaps.

WY

WLE Day 9 (08-16-2011): Baskinta – Dhour El Shweyr (The Literary Trail- Part Two)

WLE Day 9 (08-16-2011): Baskinta – Dhour El Shweyr  (The Literary Trail- Part Two)

Length: Aprox 17 km, 8 hrs Approx.

Difficulty Level: Moderate

By reaching Baskinta, according to my calculations, we would have hiked approximately 195 kilometers give or take. This number though is probably close but not entirely accurate. In fact, if something has amazed me on this trip, it is the inaccuracy of measurement of distances across Lebanon. Very few people who we have asked for directions so far in our expedition have been accurate. To make things worse, there are hardly any road or trail signs; and those that appear merely spell the name and direction of a destination, not how far it is. It is a downside, but not a fatal one. A professional guide should be able to overcome this easily. Chamoun has so far proved this day in day out.

Today the plan was to hike from Baskinta to Mtein; but we eventually changed it from Baskinta to Dhour el Shweyr, which is where I will be spending the night- at my friend Karim Makdisi’s place. Karim is one of my best friends and the family as intellectual as it gets; so I figured wouldn’t it be great to walk straight from Mikhail Nhayme’s (one of Lebanese best known authors and poets) residence in Baskinta to the Makdisis in Dhour. If that doesn’t provide for intellectual stimulation, I don’t know what would be.

The day started off with a great “balady” (meaning country) breakfast, which the monastery nuns had prepared for us. The nuns have been nice and treated us with great hospitality. Joining us early for breakfast this morning were Rany and Nathalie, both of whom had driven up from Beirut for the hike. Rany had hiked with me once before on my previous trip to Lebanon and did great; and Nathalie, his sister, who is a triathlon athlete living in San Francisco wanted to try it. It was great to have them join. Samer immediately hit it off with Rany, while Nathalie quickly proved her athletic stamina.

We started the hike at about 7:45 am a handful of kilometers north of Baskinta and in the house and Mausoleum of Mikhail Nhayme. And what a surprising treat we were in for: The very nephew of Nhayme, an octegarian by my estimate, was there and proceeded to recount to us some of his stories with his famous literary uncle. The stories were very personal and touching, and I was gripped for almost an hour listening to this man and master storyteller. At one point when he was talking about his uncle’s relationship with Khalil Gebran, he was in tears. “I used to love Gebran, and I know he used to love my uncle,” he said … It was all an experience to savor; and I am glad Samer recorded it.

We proceeded to hike down through the mountains. The trail was relatively easy, the houses we passed very charming and with traditional Lebanese village architecture of stone and orange red brick roof. At one point we approached a farm, when a lady came rushing out offering us fruits. I asked her to talk a photograph. She was camera shy, but I stole a photo anyway. Onwards we went and came across two Phoenician temples, one of which had what looked like a once upon a time city around it. Unfortunately, neither was protected nor offered any signage. If anything, they seemed abandoned, uncared for. Simply ruins in the middle of nowhere. I felt it was a great shame … ‘Who would tell their story?’ I wondered.

It took us about three hours to round the mountain facing Baskinta. And then we started ascending towards the next one, which would eventually dip into Mrouj, Bolonia, and finally Dhour Shweir. I noticed Chamoun very disappointed. Upon asking, he replied that the road ahead, which was a foot trail was being paved. Chamoun’s face looked like that of a kid whose toy was just taken away from him. All of a sudden there were trucks, bulldozers and earth levelers everywhere … So much for the mountain trail in this part. So we carried onwards. There wasn’t much water available in these parts. Actually the whole trail did not pass one water fountain or well. But it wasn’t too hot nor too sunny. We crossed the next mountain and could see the villages of Mtein (to the South), Mrouj and perched on the hill Dhour el Shweyr west from our position). We decided to head down to Mrouj and circumvent Mtein.

It took us another hour to reach Mrouj downhill on a paved road. Mrouj is a large village, which is relatively developed with lots of stores on both sides of the road. We reached the center of the town around 2:00 pm some 5.5 hours after we had begun the hike at Nhayme’s house in Baskinta. Once in the center of the town, we all sat to rest. Chamoun’s wife Paullette arrived to take Chamoun for the evening to see his mother in the hospital- who was fortunately recuperating. Rany, Nathalie, and Samer decided to drive up to Dhour taking my hiking bag along with them. I opted to walk the rest of the way to be able to see and picture some of the scenery.

I arrived in Dhour el Shweyr at 3:45 having passed some beautiful houses, mansions, and hotels along the way. Many buildings in the area were still abandoned though- this was an area heavily affected by the civil war and its scars still show. I was so happy to see Karim and the Makdisi family. They take up their summer residence in a beautifully renovated traditional house that overlooks a valley. They provided me with a studio built in a “Akd”, which is a term used described what in the old day was used for storage of food and sometimes animals. They kept the original stone-arched architecture but turned it into a modern studio that has a view of the facing mountain.

The evening was spent with several guests and as usual an intellectual setting like no other. We were joined by the daughter of Antoun Saade, who was once a famous politician, philosopher, and son of Dhour el Shweyr … Oh and thank goodness for the taste of grilled meat (lahme mishwiyeh…) Yummy.

Tomorrow off to Barouk!

WY

WLE: Flora and Fauna Photo Album on Facebook

Here is a new album that we just added that contains flora and fauna pics from our expedition.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150253746451862.325153.562431861&type=1

WLE Day 8 (08-15-2011): Kfardibian – Wadi Karem – Baskinta (The Literary Trail- Part One)

WLE Day 8 (08-15-2011): Kfardibian – Wadi Karem – Baskinta (The Literary Trail- Part One)

Length: Aprox 17 km, 6.5 hrs

Difficulty Level: Easy with two minor difficult climbs

Josephine set us up nicely in her Youth hostel right off the main road in Kfardibian. She tried to set me up with Internet, but unfortunately late afternoon fog in the area seems to have jammed signals. So, I had to walk downhill about 1 kilometer to get to an Internet Cafe. I was wearing my birkies, so it wasn’t too hard on my feet. Even though the night was a full moon, fireworks made it even brighter. It was Virgin Mary day and people were celebrating late into the night. When I went back to the hostel later on, Samer was fast asleep with the window open. As I was trying to sleep, some kids from somewhere nearby were singing their heads off to the tune of the Beatles’ Strawberry Fields Forever …

Lodging has been anything but consistent on this trip adding to its intrigue I suppose. We never intended it to be luxurious nor did we start off with any specific expectations. All the better I suppose as we have spent nights in people’s homes, hotels, youth hostels, environmental reserves’ Bead and Breakfast, empty apartments, and even outdoors. As I write this, we are in a monastery in Baskinta, called Mar Assis (the nun just brought Samer and I some cherry juice). For the most part, all the lodgings have been safe and clean thus far, which is the number one priority. Well that is if we do not count the first night in Qbayyat. The fact that the owner had a Kalashnikov in his SUV did not make us feel the least bit safer- especially when cars kept coming in from nowhere in the wee hours of the morning to talk to our host. Chamoun jokes that every time a car showed up, he thought they had come for our host and that they would get rid of all of us while they’re at it … I was actually more concerned about snakes!

Now the process of reserving these places has been seamless. Chamoun usually calls a couple of days in advance (he knows them) and when we arrive they are usually ready to receive us. Most have offered us dinner around 5 or 6 pm, breakfast around 7 am, and a small lunch box upon departure … The lunch box typically includes either a Zaatar or cheese sandwich and a juice box or a bottle of water. These lodgings do not provide any other services as they are not really equipped to do so; nor do we need them really- although washing clothes would have been a big plus mind you!

So this morning started off at 6:30 with the usual wake up knock from Chamoun. Packing and prepping is typically taking us around 40 minutes. So by 7:10 I was ready to depart the room, when disaster struck. My camera, which had my lens installed- the lens I had borrowed from Karim had been giving me problems with the automatic zoom so I had stored it in the hiking bag- came crashing down splintering the lens beyond repair. I was counting on this lens to cover part of the remaining trip. Disappointed, I knew I had to throw it and re-install Karim’s lens taking extra care because this would be the last lens I have- otherwise no more photos!

Josephine at the hostel had prepared us a great breakfast, and then graciously offered to drop us off at our hike starting-point, which was the town of Bkatuta, some 10 minutes South of Kfardibian. The point where she dropped us off was a monastery and our destination later in the day would also be one some 15 km South-South East. Interestingly the beauty of the monastery would kick off one of the most picturesque trails we had taken thus far. Where Wadi Jouhanna was naturally stunning, and other Akkar trails “quite fruitful”, this trail was charming in all its aspects- gardens, homes, monasteries, …

The trail started downhill (Samer was happy). At the bottom of the first hill, we saw a beautiful little church surrounded with fruit and vegetable fields and water flowing … It was empty; but its bell rope beckoned Samer to try it out. It didn’t work at first, and then all of a sudden gave a grave ring followed by another, which echoed in the valley … “Your ring is that of someone’s death,” teased Chamoun … Samer immediately stopped with an “Oh Shit what did I do look.” We continued on. I could not stop taking pictures as everywhere my eyes turned, I could see a picture. One could hear church bells and praying from another convent on the other side of the valley- no doubt a mass held in the Virgin Mary’s honor.

We soon needed to scale the next mountain to cross to the other side of Wadi Jamajem (the Skull Valley). It was not difficult, but there was no foot trail, so it made the climb a bit more difficult than it needed to be. I lost the rubber footing of one of my hiking sticks in the process, no big deal. We soon reached a large convent and turned the corner to Wadi Karam, which was absolutely sublime. Chamoun met one of his friends, Michael, who offered us nectarine and cucumber. Onwards we went until we reached yet another monastery, housed in a beautiful old mountain house. Monks came out wearing a blue uniform. They were all young and smiling. They offered us water and nectarine and explained that this is their initiation and training, which lasts about 7 years. “Our training is not just from books, but also from life,” said Paolo one of the two monks. Samer made friends with him.

Up another hill again and we started getting a glimpse of Baskinta through a forest of Pine trees with the quintessential hissing sound. Interestingly, we came across a tree which had a rich red trunk and green leaves. Chamoun explained that it is wild and from the cherry family. “Not a lot of people eat from it when it’s in season, but I like it.” The pine trees themselves were also of the edible fruit kind- i.e. they carry pine nuts …  Close by, we saw some boy scouts, the first we have seen throughout the trip. Actually, it has been puzzling in that we have not seen a single other hiker in the 200 or so kilometers we have walked so far. I find this curious, considering the investments that have gone into the marketing of the LMT (Lebanon Mountain Trail- especially its Literary portion, which we were on).

We reached the lower end of Baskinta about 5.5 hours after we had departed and proceeded to go up the mountain to the convent of our destination. It took us an extra hour to get there and the town itself proved to be as charming as its reputation. In the meantime, Chamoun appeared almost like the mayor of the town with so many people saluting him. He stopped at an Ice Cream shop; and the owner gave him some free cones. A bus passing by had a bunch of people disembark and come to say hi to Chamoun. He is definitely a star around these parts. Unfortunately, as we were about to reach the convent, he received a call that his mother had been hospitalized. So we are all now monitoring the situation.

I also received a call from Rany who wants to join tomorrow us with his sister on the second half of the Literary Trail. He will confirm tonight. I hope it works for him as we still have plenty to see in this beautiful part of Lebanon …

I am looking forward to tonight’s meal, which I just learnt includes Hommos, Tabbouli, and Kibbeh Labaniyeh (i.e. Kibbeh with Yogurt). Yummy Tummy …

WLE Day 7 (08-14-2011): Aqoura – Afqa – Hrejil - Kfardibian

WLE Day 7 (08-14-2011): Aqoura – Afqa – Hrejil - Kfardibian

Length: Aprox 28 km, 7 hrs

Difficulty Level: Medium to Difficult

Of course just as I had said that the laundry dries up so perfectly, today it didn’t! Actually, it was all quite wet in the morning. Chamoun as usual was the first to get dressed and he left Samer and I trying to figure out what to do with our laundry debacle while he went to find a ride from Aqoura, which is at the bottom of the valley to the top of the mountain where we would start our hike.

Carrying heavy hiking bags filled with wet clothes, Samer and I grabbed a quick breakfast sandwich, closed the apartment and headed down to meet Chamoun, who we found waiting for us with a Wrangler Jeep and a plump half-asleep driver. We were soon whisked up the mountain to the Afqa cave, which brought back happy memories to Samer from his IC school days. To me it brought a fresh supply of deliciously freezing cold water. With the little I have seen, I could write a book about Lebanon’s water wells, their taste, coolness, abundance … I was telling a friend of Samer’s today that this is the only place in the world that I have seen water flow UPWARDS! Water is so abundant that the water pressure coming down from the upper slopes creates a momentum so strong that it almost defies gravity. The Lebanese farmers know this and you see water canals both descending and ascending to the whim of the landscape. Quite a sight …

So we started our hike upwards- and Samer wondering if there is a hike that ever starts easier. He was right in wondering because during the day, we went from 1400 meters up to about 1700 down to 1300 up to 1900 then down to 1200 … Fortunately the ascent and descent was not steep, but it was long, arduous, and the foot trail unused enough to have grown long bothersome prickly shrubs. The views especially of the Ibrahim Valley were spectacular though, and made it very much worth it.

On the way we met several shepherds, one of whom was a smiley 16-year old called Wassim. He was vibrant and full of stories about his young shepherd life. One of his stories was of him being stuck on a steep sheer and unable to move for three entire days. “If I moved forward or back, I knew I would have died,” he said, “So I stayed put. Finally the army came to my rescue after my parents realized that I had gone missing. That was close,” he smiled. Wassim goes to school but seemed resigned but not unhappy about his shepherd future. He showed us the way and wished us well. “Be careful,” he shouted after us.

On this trail we came across a Phoneician temple close to the Afqa cave, which unfortunately had fallen to disrepair and had bee hive boxes on its grounds. We also saw some Roman signs on rocks that are meant to point the traveller in the right direction and forbid him from cutting down certain kinds of trees. ‘It’s time the country updated these signs, don’t you think?’ I thought.

The farmers around these parts seemed more camera shy than those we had met before. “Some of them are squatters and don’t want their pictures taken,” Chamoun explained. In one farm we passed, there were tomatoes on the ground. As they had exited the farm’s perimeter, Chamoun felt no inhibition and offered me two. I pocketed them and enjoyed sharing them with another local shepherd later on in our journey by a water well.

I have figured out that the mind plays funny tricks when hiking. Or perhaps it is the eternal optimist in every human. Quite simply everything seems closer than it actually is. Perhaps this is a necessary evil to force us to take that very first step. For if we knew how distant something really is, perhaps it would be too daunting to take the first step! At any rate the mountains on this hike always seemed closer than they actually were, and we had to round three of them over the 7 or so hiking hours. The first took us to the left and around the first mountain overlooking Qahmaz. The second took us to the right as we turned this very mountain while ascending. Once we reached the peak it was foggy and cold and I had to put on my wind-breaker. The third took us again to the right, the time on a descent towards Hrejil and the bottom part of Kfardibian. And yet for all the walking and tired feet, as we were passed by some four-wheel mountain bikes, I could not but think, ‘I would not trade what I am doing for a million of these bikes.”

When we finally reached the bottom of the valley to Hrejil and the bottom part of Kfardibian, we were all tired. Samer especially looked spent and eager to head to our hostel in Kfardibian to see his friends Johnny and Salim who were visiting us later that afternoon. So we grabbed a car and hitched a ride to the upper part of Kfardibian.

It didn’t take long for Samer’s friends to arrive to the hostel. We all decided to get a bite. To our pleasant surprise, our cousin Ghadah and her family also showed up to say a quick hello …

Walking Lebanon Expedition Photo Links ...

Hi all,

It has been a challenge to upload photos on this blog with slow internet connections. I think it is due to Blogspot time-outs. Facebook, however, has worked much better and we have posted pics there. For those interested in seeing them, please access either Samer's or my facebook profiles and you can see two albums that we have posted on there.

Here are links for those of you who would like to be forwarded:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150252978226862.324917.562431861&type=1

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150252285251862.324683.562431861&type=1

We will keep posting pics as the Internet permits ... In the meantime, enjoy and thanks for your interest :-).

WY

WLE Day 6 (08-13-2011): Hasroun - Tanourine Reserve - Laqlouq - Aqoura

WLE Day 6 (08/13/2011): Hasroun - Tanourine Reserve - Laqlouq - Aqoura

Length: Aprox 35 km, 9 hrs

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Routine is in now and the team works efficiently every morning. Chamoun is usually the first to get up and wake both Samer and I. Departure times depend on several factors including length of hike, difficulty level, and destination objectives … On average we have been departing around 7 am and hiking anywhere between 7 and 9 hours. We usually wash our clothes in the evening (if not every night every other night). Surprisingly, even though we rope dry, the clothes have been drying stiff by early morning. Everyone tells us it’s because of the consistent wind all night. The problem has been the clothes while clean of sweat and any odor are not completely clean when it comes to the white which is slowly but surely turning to spots of dust brown … Hopefully, soon we will get the chance for a decent wash with detergent to take out some of the dusty spots. One lesson is clear, try not to hike with white- even though it may be the coolest in the summer.

Another routine is showering, which takes place as soon as we arrive. There is nothing that can refresh a tired soul more than a nice warm (or cold) shower- depending on the weather outside.

A third routine has to do with our meals and water. We usually have a quick breakfast of pita bread with cheese or Labneh (dry yogurt), drink some water, and fill our camel bags with water. Some places where we have been have provided us as mentioned in previous posts with hefty breakfast meals, others not. The first may way us down early on in the hike but means there is no lunchtime hunger. The latter will not but will make one hungry come lunch hour. Neither option is perfect as we are in the middle of nowhere around lunch hour without much options. In either case, it also means at dinner time, we are ready to devour whatever comes our way.

So the 6^th day plan was to hike from Hasroun to the town of Upper Tannourine. We all had breakfast at the Karam Hotel- it was one of the hefty ones. Samer complained that he had not slept well because Chamoun had snored the previous evening. We left Hasroun around 7:30 am hitching a ride from the town up to the trail. It took around 10 minutes to get there mostly through unpaved road surrounded by orchards on both sides. The driver was nice and told us all about the town, its inhabitants, and even about his wife. “She’s short, fat, and no longer that attractive,” is all he had to say about her … He had sold his Apple Orchard and bought the Mercedes he drives around as a cab. “I am old and there is no one to work it anymore as my son is in the military, so this is more practical for me,” he explained.

It was a hot day and the trail to Tannourine while not very difficult was made so because of the loss of body fluid. The trail itself was full of orchards. Water wells were not abundant but close enough for comfort. As we went higher, farmland was replaced with barren terrain. Some 3 hours and almost 10 km into the hike, we finally came upon the Tannnourine Cedar reserve, much larger but unfortunately much lesser known that its counterpart north of Bsharre. Paulette, Chamoun’s wife, came to meet us there. She came with her mother and her two dogs. They were excited to see Chamoun. He took advantage of this visit to offload some dead weight in his bag- essentially all the stuff he had not been using since the beginning of our hike. In the meantime, Samer and I talked to the reserve park rangers who recommended some places to see in the park in little time we had. We went in and were impressed by the organization as well as the size and density of the reserve, although quite inexplicably a part of the reserve was named after Dalida- a 1970’s singer (well to be fair they did say she had visited Lebanon several times).  When we came out of the reserve and realizing that we still had about 6 hours left in the hiking day, Samer, Chamoun and I decided it would be a waste to simply stop for the night in the town of Tannourine, which was less than 3 km away. Rather it may be worth a dash on to the Aqoura-Afqa areas. This would save us a day of hiking as we would have done two hikes in one day. The distance however meant that it would be a challenge to Samer, who was already bothered by the heat. He sportingly decided to take our bags in Paulette’s car straight to our destination some 24 km away. Happy to see Samer comforted, I took off following Chamoun.

We needed to maintain a pace of about 5-6 km per hour. The hike took us on the shoulder of the mountain facing the towns of Upper and Lower Tannourine. It afforded some spectacular views. Once we crossed this chain we headed down the mountain into a valley where the farms were rich with water and fruit. One of them offered us right off of her tree some berries (tout). I never tasted anything like them. Another farmer offered us Apples. One offered us water from a well called Freedom (houriyyeh). “Enjoy your freedom,” he said, “And God bless our army.” Then we came upon a wild cherry tree with what ther term “rainbow cherry”. Before I could blink, Chamoun was already up on the tress picking. He has a very strict rule not to ever pick from people’s orchards, but this was in the wild so he uninhibited his (and my desires). I can categorically state, that these were probably the best cherries I have ever tasted in my life bar none. I could not stop and Chamoun had to eventually drag me away from this beautiful wild tree … On we went.

At the bottom of the valley right before we were about to ascend the next and final mountain, Chamoun came to an abrupt stop. I was following a few meters behind and was equally startled. He then put his hand behind a rock and came out with what looked like a snake. “What the hell are you doing Chamoun?” I yelled, “Don’t be stupid. I mean this is no time to show off. What am I supposed to do with you if it bites you?” “Wlik ya Wissam,” he answers, “don’t worry this is just shed skin.” I came closer and saw the skin of 5 foot viper. After taking some photos, I wanted to show it to Samer, so I folded it and took it along for the ride.

It was a blessing not to have been carrying the hiking bags. God Bless my brother. Two exhausting hours later and having climbed what seemed like an endless mountain, we came to a shepherd tent inhabited by an old lady and her husband. It turns out they were from a town in the Bekaa and they spend summers in this tent tending their flock of sheep. The woman insisted we have lunch, but we needed to move on to Laqlouq close to our meeting place with Samer.

It took us a while to get there, but once we finally did, I was very surprised by the houses in Laqlouq- mostly mansions with manicured gardens. One house was absolutely stunning, with green grass the type one is accustomed to see in the US but rarely in Lebanon. Another one had a funky triangular design … Almost all had small ponds storing their water.

Some 6 hours after we had departed, Chamoun and I reunited with Samer at a Café at a fork in the road down to Aqoura. He was bored stiff but very happy to see us. Shortly after we began our decent to Aqoura and were met by our host Hassan, who had driven from the town in the valley to meet us. He drove us to the apartment were we would be staying. So “what is special about this town Hassan?” I asked. “I am not sure,” he said, “we have about 5 stores, and about 45 churches!”

Later on the evening when Samer and I had gone for a walk in the town, Samer looks up at me and says, “You know, I wouldn’t mind a life like this one day …”

WY