Lebanon

Up in the mountainous region of Lebanon hides the Qadisha Valley, a UNESCO heritage site filled with caves carved in the rocks and once inhabited by Christian monks. During my last day in Lebanon, I went hiking in this surprising part of the country and also took the opportunity to visit the Tannourine Cedars Forest Nature Reserve and the striking Baatara Gorge!

At at the foot of the fertile Bekaa Valley, a renown wine region of Lebanon, stands the Phoenician city of Baalbek. Known as Heliopolis by the Greeks, Baalbek is one of the best preserved ancient cities in the Middle East, and its impressive constructions are one of the best examples of the Imperial Roman architecture.

During my last visit to Lebanon, I decided to explore this UNESCO Heritage Site, and visit on the way the Château Ksara, one of the most famous wine wineries of the Middle East. 

Located only 10km away from the Syrian border and famous for being a stronghold of Hezbollah, is it really safe to visit Baalbek?

First inhabited over 5,000 years ago, the port city of Byblos is one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world. If you want to explore the Phoenician past of Lebanon, you can't miss a visit to this ancient city! 

Lebanon always gets a very bad press due to its stormy recent past as well as the ongoing conflicts in the neighbouring countries.

However, what I found is a very modern country with an incredibly interesting capital, mixing Middle Eastern and European styles. For a good reason, Beirut is known as the 'Paris of the Middle East'!

If you're curious about what this city has to offer, check out this post!