Yesterday drove down the coast 20 miles, South of Damour, where the river comes out of banana plantations, the ruined village and the biggest unfinished concrete projects I've ever seen. Throughout the 80's Damour was completely destroyed by factions of Druzé who believed one of their leaders was assented by Christians in Damour. (Interestingly, 10 years later, with the village totally gone except for the few stone houses still remaining, and the rebuilding going on like crazy, the Druzé leadership recanted the accusation that their leader was assented by anyone from Damour, and the village is left alone - without the Druzé and without the Syrians.) We swam for a few hours with the group of 20 at John's Beach, a small resort well south of the development and rebuilding, under paloma style umbrellas, and lounged and visited with people we won't see for awhile, if ever. Hot, dry but breezy enough to make me believe I am in Lebanon, the place people believe anything can happen.
Today we drove with Samir to Baalbeck. Jesus, what an amazing thing. Left Beirut on Beit Mary road, up the mountains and broke down in Sturra, a very small village but with the remarkable Maktalib Hotel and Restaurant where we took coffee until the second bus arrived. Then finished climbing out of the mountains and dropped into the most fertile Bekaa valley, the one that fed the many empires that have owned Lebanon over the centuries. Once in the valley we drove on the Bekaa plain across red dust, through potato fields and Hezbolah gates, finally lifting onto the high point where Baalbeck is. Baalbeck (Heliopolis to Greeks) is a suite of temples to the god of the Bekaa (Baal is God in Phoenician) It is so difficult to describe here. It was truly awesome. I've posted some pictures that might tell a little of the story. We had a guide, Charbel, a Marionette Christian whose father and grandfather were guides, who told us fascinating tales of the Baalbeck and the temples. The temple of Venus is the largest Roman temple on earth, and the temple of Bacchus is the most well preserved acropolis in the world. So much huge stone, and flood of "how in hell did they do that" echoes everywhere. And then of course the stories of who did what to whom, the Romans taking over from the Phoenicians, the Greeks taking over from the Romans, then the Muslims, the Assyrians, the Ottomans, the Turks, then the French, the English, and of course the Syrians. But massive stones, limestone quarried within a few miles, and the 20 meter tall, 2 meter in diameter granite pillars quarried in Aswan Egypt, sailed from Alexandria to Tripoli, the rolled overland on cedar logs into the Bekaa. "How in hell?" 300 years and thousands of slaves. Jeeze...
We left at 2 and drove up the mountain to Zahlé, a village with the Latini river running through it, and ate at Arabia, a restaurant with a river running through it... and heard Samir, the driver talk and talk about these villages, his village, and more tales of the Syrian occupation.
Tomorrow we travel to Syria - Damascus, Palmyra, Aleppo, and the Crac des Chevaliers for 5 days. Funny, we just watched Orlando Bllom save Jerusalem in a movie all about where we are and where we're traveling. I hope to find a connection there.
Wow. Wish I was still there. Happy travelling! LarsW
Posted by: Lars | June 21, 2005 at 06:34 AM
Hello everybody!!
What an incredible family experience and adventure. I love reading the posts and following the fambly Hunt vicariously, great stuff Clifford. I also would like some of those dames to share their voices...how bout it femmes? You are missed and loved by all. Godspeed. xoxxo~SD
Posted by: Susan Dupre | June 30, 2005 at 10:49 AM