Day one of the road trip we were headed to the close-by city of Byblos. We drove as well as drove as well as couldn’t see any type of indications for it…which isn’t so surprising as we would discover that Lebanon is poorly signed. Bernie, the co-pilot, consulted the map as well as figured we should’ve passed it by this point.
All of the unexpected we ended up in Tripoli, a town about 45 minutes north (1/3 of the country) of where we were supposed to be! Oh well, Tripoli for the day sounded great too. We parked the vehicle downtown (after being showed where to go by a friendly Lebanese/Canadian man) as well as headed to the market. very first stop was to have some fresh OJ being squeezed by a Lebanese guy utilizing an old hand press, delicious.
freshly squeezed OJ, Tripoli, Lebanon
We wandered the market lanes for rather awhile browsing at all the fresh fruits, veggies, meats, sweets as well as breads. We were offered to try different fruits as well as breads for free too, the people were so friendly. However, we did feel a bit hurried along by the locals who were really there to purchase goods! It was a fantastic market without any other foreigners around.
Next stop was the soap section of the market. Tripoli is understood for its natural soaps. They came in all shapes as well as sizes, even a huge bar of soap carved into the shape of the Quran. We were invited for tea in a awesome cave like sitting area at the back of the shop. The tea was so delicious, spiced with cardamon as well as cinnamon! After our tea break we brought on around the market as well as into the streets for a bit of a walk before heading back to the car.
fabric for sale at the market in Tripoli, Lebanon
freshly made bread at the market in Tripoli, Lebanon
goat heads for sale at the market in Tripoli, Lebanon
fresh vegetables for sale at the Tripoli market in Lebanon
friendly Lebanese guys baking fresh bread, Tripoli, Lebanon
The Quran constructed out of soap, Tripoli, Lebanon
us enjoying some tea at a shop in the market, Tripoli, Lebanon
local guy enjoying tea as well as conversation, Tripoli, Lebanon
From Tripoli we headed South to the Jeita Grotto, a competitor for the new 7 natural Wonders of the world contest. It’s a series of caverns full of stalagmites as well as stalactites appearing like mounds of melting ice cream, cauliflower, icicles as well as the ribbed underside of a mushroom. The cave stretches 6kms back into the mountains as well as is unbelievably spacious as well as moist inside.
We took a gondola to the entrance of the cave as well as then to see the lower part of the cavern, we took a boat with it! The experience was surreal. one more one of those moments that’s difficult to put into words. We’ve been inside many caves on our travels however this was the very best so far. We weren’t enabled to take any type of photos inside.
views on the method the Jeita Grotto, Lebanon
It was a fantastic day as well as by the end of it Nick was driving like a true Lebanese. They are the worst drivers ever. Nick had to be constantly on the defensive while being aggressive at the exact same time. There were imaginary 3rd or 4th lanes, driving on the shoulder, vehicles as well as trucks slowly creeping into our lane for no reason, no indications anywhere as well as basically no rules. He was a pro as well as did an incredible job. It was a miracle the vehicle got back to Beirut without a scratch on it. We headed house after the Grotto as well as Bernie as well as Toni came over (walked down the hall, haha) to our location as well as we played cards, drank wine as well as had appies up until late that night.
Toni as well as Bernie having drinks in our space at Pension house Valery, Beirut, Lebanon
The next day Nick as well as I took the vehicle by ourselves for a day trip. We were heading southeast to the Chouf Cedar Reserve. The drive up there was beautiful. The road winded up as well as up with little villages up until reaching the top with a fantastic view of the valley. The Chouf Cedar Reserve contains a quarter of the staying cedar forests in the country as well as the ancient trees are believed to date back 2000 years! These cedar trees were mentioned in the Old Testament. The temple of Solomon in Jerusalem as well as many sarcophagi in Egypt were developed from this wood.Chouf Cedar Reserve, Lebanon
Hiking with the Chouf Cedar Reserve, Lebanon
The gorgeous trees at the Chouf Cedar Reserve, Lebanon
< us as well as our rental vehicle at the Chouf Cedar Reserve, Lebanon[/caption]
There were a few different hiking tracks available to the public as well as we selected one as well as walked for a bit bit before stopping for a lunch – tuna, crackers, cream cheese as well as veggies were on the menu today. We walked for about 2.5 hours reaching a point where there was really a little patch of snow. We headed back down to the vehicle as well as just as we were about to leave, we decided to try one more trail. So glad we did…it was where the actual cedar trees were! We were hiking mainly amongst pine trees however had no idea. We did one more hike for about half an hour as well as saw many beautiful, old cedar trees.
[caption id="attachment_4382" align="aligncenter" width="560"] rel=”attachment wp-att-4382″> Dariece standing under the huge trees at the Chouf Cedar Reserve, Lebanon
It was a fantastic day as well as we headed down the mountain back to Beirut. On the method house we noticed that when we were going about 100kms/hour as well as touched the brakes, the vehicle would begin shaking. seemed quite sketchy so we took it back to the dealership that night as well as Nick went into request a different car, while I waited in the traveler seat.
All of the unexpected the door opened, a fat Lebanese guy jumped in as well as took of at lightening speed…with me in the traveler seat! I looked back to see Nick staring at us with a confused, if not concerned, look on his deal with as we took off, assumption I’m going for a joy ride!
He was hauling ass down the highway to see if the brakes would shudder as well as yep, they did. We had some uncomfortable required conversation as well as then he looped back to the rental agency, all great as well as totally harmless, just a bit unforeseen was all. Headed house after that with our new car, relaxed as well as got a great sleep…road trip day #3 in the morning.
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