SHARING A LEBANON EXPERIENCE

It’s been almost 6w since we have returned from the trip but I guess that our experience may still be useful to someone. LB was an interesting experience with so much turbulent history, varied scenery, different religions and cultures, modernity and tradition packed into such a small place. In 6d we spent there barely managed to scratch the surface of all this. Our itinerary: Damascus – Beirut – daytrips Byblos/Sour/Saida – Deir al-Qamar – Baalbeek – Bcharre – Tripoli – Lattakia. Apart from LB xpats & Arab not many visitors. But already without the visitors country seems to be crowded enough. Locals are helpful and kind but somehow don’t tend to be too interested in tourists; hassle nonexistent. EN or FR normally work but some basic Arabic helps. Weather in late August is quite hot and sticky down at the seaside, very pleasant in the mountains and quite bearable in the Bekaa. Traveling around by public transport is fairly straightforward as long as you keep to the main routes. Driving in LB esp. Beirut is an experience. Rules are simple: when there is a will there is a way; stopping is a clear sign of weakness; if a car was made to go 150 km/h then it has to go 150 km/h. SY or TR drivers seems to be shy and reserved compared to LB ones. Security: army checkpoints all over but didn’t feel insecure at any time. Prices: certainly not as cheap as SY but if you avoid top hotels and posh restaurants, and use public transport it’s bearable. Currency: officially LBP but you can use USD almost everywhere. Specific about our itinerary:
DAMASCUS-BEIRUT: service taxi for 17usd/800syp pp (waited 1hr). Service taxi stand is a bit chaotic as the drivers fight for customers; some drivers even wait at the main road to “steal” prospective customers - it can be a bit cheaper but you may wait even longer for the car to fill up. The ride to Charles Helou takes about 2hr30m if you cross border quickly (as we did); lots of traffic after Chtaura; taxi to Hamra 6usd. Got a visa for free – according to the border guard it was a “ramadan special” ;-))
BEIRUT: one of those places where knowing locals seems to be almost essential to get to know the heartbeat of the town. Town itself is modern, lots of new buildings, loads of stylish boutiques and shops, hedonistic lifestyle (of some), chaotic traffic. It seems as if people are living for here and now since nobody knows what tomorrow will bring. Stayed at Cedarland hotel in Hamra - nice location, big rooms, easy-going and very helpful staff (53usd for a double w. a/c, no breakfast).
BYBLOS: service taxi from Dawra (7000lbp pp), minibus on the way back (1500lbp pp, stops on motorway not in town). Ruins are nicely located close to the sea but the whole experience is a bit disappointing. Harbour – the same story. And then it’s more or less finished. Ate at Feniqia – nice food, moderate prices.
SOUR: service taxi from Cola (10000lpb pp, we flew there – literally – in 1hr). Al-Bass and Al-Mina are both worth seeing, about 30min walk from each other. Friendly and very laid-back place, nicely situated next to the sea, light years away from the Beirut’s hustle and bustle. Unfortunately not that much to do once you see the ruins.
SAIDA: big bus from Sour (2000lpb pp, very slow). Very likable place, extensively renovated old town, pleasant souqs. Took a mini bus to Cola (3000lbp pp). Done both Sour and Saida in a daytrip - advisable to start very early in Beirut.
DAYTRIP BEIRUT-DEIR ALQAMAR-BAALBEEK-BCHARRE: charted taxi for the whole day for 140usd – not cheap but saved us lots of time. Reserved it by phone once in LB (http://www.dailytaxi.com). Our driver Mohammed was a perfect companion and a good driver, he knew the places we were going to and never rushed us. Started at 8am, first stop at Deir al-Qamar (lovely main sq but not much else to do there), then continued across the hills dotted with Druze villages to Zahle where we visited Ksara winery (busy, rather impersonal, nice cellars, free tasting). Ate at restaurant Raymond on the way to Baalbek (very busy, good food & service, nice prices). Baalbek was glorious – take at least 2hr to do it justice. From Baalbek by mountain road to Bcharre (1hr30 without stopping); road until the top is rather bumpy but wonderful views over the Bekaa. Great vantage point on the top – Bekaa vs the mists over the Cedars ski ground. Small stand of (rather youngish) cedars under ski ground (taxi from Bcharre shouldn’t cost more than 20000lbp incl. waiting time). Arrived to Bcharre at 7pm.
BCHARRE & QADISHA: stayed at Bauhaus (30usd, big room, shared bathroom and kitchen); Tony was very helpful with trekking and transport advice, speaks only French though. Bcharre has a gorgeous location over Qadisha; a bit weird place though; not much to do in the evenings; locals quite reserved. But trekking to Qadisha is a reason enough to come - a highlight of our LB trip. Did the whole loop to Hawka and back (8h30min incl. stops). From Bcharre you walk around the valley to the other side (great views of Bcharre) and head down to Deir Mar Elisha. The road is twisting and turning all the way to the bottom where there’s another monastery – nothing special, very touristy. From the very bottom you continue along the dirt road on the right hand side of the river. After 1h15 you arrive to lovely Deir Qannoubin. Another 40min along a narrow path to Deir Saydet Hawka; beautiful scenery and rewarding views; most interesting monastery in the valley – perched high under the cliffs, two cave churches, so gloriously peaceful, loved the place. From there steep stairs lead out of the valley and to the Hawka village (30min). From there it’s a 2hr30 walk to Bchare on the asphalt road – very little traffic, no public transport, either you hitch or order a taxi from Bcharre.
TRIPOLI: by bus from Bcharre (4000lbp pp, 1h15). Stayed at Koura hotel (60usd for an excellent double w. private bathroom, a/c, good breakfast, very central). Unlike in Beirut, here you really feel like being in Middle East. By far the most authentique souq in LB, great sweets at Halab, beautiful Taynal mosque. Liked the town a lot.
TRIPOLI-LATTAKIA: service taxi Tripoli-Tartus (400syp pp, 2hrs, waited for 2hrs in Tripoli for the car to fill up); bus Tartus-Lattakia (85syp, 1h20). Couldn’t find neither a direct taxi nor a bus going to Lattakia; the night before we got offered a place in a service taxi directly to Lattakia though (500syp is the going rate). Border procedure was quick and hassle-free (already had SY visas).
Happy travels, Bostjan & Rie