Sunday Sept.2, "The Hike"

I'm counting nearly 3 weeks in amazing Beirut.
I got my laptop back, YIPPEE! Eradicated McAfee, and downloaded a new antivirus protector, same one used by the school.  Having trouble getting my photos to load, so still need to get this worked out.

We (about 30 faculty and family members) went out for a moonlight hike yesterday late afternoon.  The bus, complete with A/C, carried us east of Beirut, up through several mountain villages. I noticed that all the hillsides were terraced, top to bottom.  There is a lot of rock for building walls, but I'd guess that we were looking at works of labor, centuries old. We continued up to the trail's head.  From there we walked past boar digs (Yes, they have tusks and you don't want to meet a mommy!) and we saw Lebanon cedars of all ages, some 1500 years old.  The trees are distinctive because their branches grow out horizontally, and cones grow on top of the branches.  I took lots of pics, but you'll have to wait for these.  The trees are protected, but there was no protection of the trees for centuries.  The Egyptians cut them for their sap, useful for preserving the dead.  The Phoenicians cut trees to build their ships. Solomon's Temple is built of Lebanon cedars.  Many cut trees and used them to fire up kilns for pottery, and furnaces for glass making.  The trees are coming back slowly, but they need lots of time to grow.  After much effort to reestablish the trees, they found the best place for baby cedars to grow is in the mother tree's shadow.

Moonlight Hikers

Sunset from Mt. Lebanon, looking over Beirut

Moonrise over Bekaa Valley, looking toward Syria

Close up of cedar cones that grow on top of branches

Top of Mt. Lebanon

Lebanon Cedar trees

We reached summit before sunset.  From there we looked back toward Beirut and the Mediterranean and saw nothing but a sea of puffy clouds. To the east, we saw the Bekaa Valley stretching out in a patchwork of small farms, with another chain of mountains in the distance marking the border between Lebanon and Syria.  As we gazed southeast, we could see a light at the top of Mt. Hermon, marking the southeastern corner of Lebanon, with Israel to the south and the Golan Heights over the mountains.  It was a bit overwhelming for me to take all of that in... just a bit.  PINCH ME!

 Once on top of our mountain, the burning red sun set into the sea of puffy clouds, bringing you a new day.  I thought of you all!  Bottles of Bekaa Valley wine and french bread morsels dipped in chocolate fondu were shared as we reveled in the sheer beauty of the place, up in the clean air, with the world dropping away on all sides.
Next, the full moon rose over the Syrian mountains, and up up up it went.  We were wildly taking pictures. We watched as the great valley below began to twinkle, with heavy sprinklings of lights marking villages.  It appeared so peaceful and beautiful.

Coming down was a bit rough, due to the slippery and rutted limestone path.  Moonlight helped, and best of all, I discovered my little Nokia cell phone had a built in flashlight! I fell once, more embarrassed than hurt. We were down the mtn by 9:30, boarded the bus and were back in our apts by 11:30pm.

Magical?  Yep!  And now I'm ready for bed before my first day, a half day, of school tomorrow.  No holiday here.  Happy Labor Day to all of you back home!