The Lebanese culture is ubiquitous in the UAE, so we have wanted to visit the country for some time. This region of the Mediterranean has a very long history. It was the home of the Phoenicians - a maritime culture that flourished for almost three thousand years (3200–539 BC). 

 

We used Beirut as our base and ventured out on two great day trips.  Firstly, we drove the Bekaa Valley, which borders Syria, visiting the Roman ruins of Baalbek.  Here we walked through the largest Roman temple ever built - the Jupiter Temple. The columns alone are thirty metres tall. On this day we also visited a winery (Chateau Ksara) and a very nice native Cedar reserve.  Our second day trip included: a boat ride through Jeita Grotto, scaling Our Lady of Lebanon (that sounds a bit wrong), a trek in the Valley of Monasteries, and dinner at the lovely coastal town of Jbeil (Byblos).