Greetings from Byblos - a city that has evidence of being inhabited as far back as 7000 BC - which is some going & makes it older than Damascus, i think.......

Byblos was an important port - becoming the busiest port on the Mediterranean by around 3000 BC - and flourished as demand for Cedar wood from Egypt grew. The Greeks ruled from around 333BC and named the city Byblos (it is also known today as Jbail); then the Romans took over - the Crusaders even held it for a spell - so the place has seen some comings & goings......

What you see today centres around the restored 12th century Crusader castle but other parts date from around 3000BC to 4th & 5th century and Romain remains - quite an interesting mix.

To get to Byblos from Beirut you have to drive and while it isn't actually very far it does mean you have to suffer the driving of what must be the most selfish and ignorant drivers in the world. The Lebanese have total contempt for lane discipline; red lights; one-way streets and think nothing of simply stopping in the middle of the road for a chat or pulling out without looking - simply awful. They use their horns all the time, too - noisy monkeys. But i've only seen one accident so far - so in all the chaos....plus my driver is taking it all very calmly & serenely & doesn't seem in the least bothered - finding some of the antics amusing, in fact.....

Lebanon is the equivalent of the elephant's graveyard for Mercedes and BMW - i've never seen so many decrepit old wrecks that were once the pride of Munich & Stuttgart... - i even saw a Henschel lorry today - that might give you some idea - talking of which, you see lots of Mercedes "L-series" bonneted trucks around the Middle East - they were built from 1958 to 1995 and you see them everywhere.....

Aparently now most second-hand cars are imported from the USA as the dollar is relatively weak versus the euro - so you see lots of American cars & i guess all the fancy 4x4's are all ex-US models. The police drive around in Dodge Chargers - which is quite sweet - but makes them seem a bit desperate in a "look at us!" kind of way - lots of armed police around, too........

After Byblos - which is indeed worth visiting - we went to the grotto at Jeita - calling it a grotto sounds a bit demeaning as it is simply amazing - absolutely astonishing. You can walk for about a kilometre into the upper grotto but i believe it extends to around 6km - you cannot take a camera in, though - you have to put any cameras you have into a locker at the entrance - the lighting is very subdued but works very well and the formations of the stalagtites and stalagmites are incredible. There is then a short walk (outside) down to the lower grotto - in which you get on a boat that whisks you around - quite eerie and pretty much how i expect crossing the Styx would be - anyway, at least now i know what lies ahead for me when i die - "No, sir, you are marked down for the red boat..." and as you sit back and stare up at the stalagtites and look around at the stalagmites you can imagine images of your life flashing by - the trip only takes just over 5 minutes so you do get the edited version (well, in this life anyway) (might need sharpening up) (talking of scythes)..............

After that - a quick stop in the valley of the River Dog where there is a Phoenician bridge and various plaques carved into the rock... - then back to the city to walk around the down town area that has been/is being restored and visited the Mohammed al-Amin Mosque - which, unusually, is decorated in reds & golds inside and adjacent is a memorial housing the tomb of Rafiq Hariri and those of his associates are on display. The National Museum was restored after the war & reopened in 1999 - quite a lot of the exhibits are from Byblos - very good with a neat introductory video - they overdo the dramatic music a bit but gives a good background..........

Another night in Beirut - wandered up & down Hamra Road - the Oxford Street of Beirut & also wandered along parts of the Corniche, too - despite the chaotic & noisy traffic - Beirut is still a nice place to wander around.

Cats. There are lots of cats roaming the streets. Strange but quite sweet - they obviously get fed as they don't look mangy.........

So - two nights in Lebanon and didn't see a single Cedar. My guide was also concerned for the future of another tree - one with yellow berries - apparently they used to give the leaves to cows to get rid of flies & ticks in their mouths - the leaves being bitter the cows spat them out along with the parasites (they looked like Rowan trees to me)....