Lebanon

It is difficult to get long-term visas to volunteer in Israel. I am, therefore, here on tourist visas, which generally last 3 months. In order, to stay for 6 months, I had to go on a trip in order to come back and renew my visa. Around the time that I needed to go, a couple of my friends, Peter and Mike, were going to Lebanon. I, thus, embarked on a week long trip to Lebanon from April 12 to April 20. I'm not going to write much about this trip. Instead, I am going to do a picture album of a few of the photos I took during this trip. Needless to say, Lebanon defies all stereotypes of the Middle East, with its sandy Mediterranean coast, Snow-covered mountains, and European architecture, and the bounty of Dunkin' Donuts and Pizza Huts along the way.


The Obelisk Temple at the ancient ruins of Byblos. The known history of Byblos, a city on the Mediterranean coast, goes back to 6000 BCE!


A European Looking lane in the Old City of Byblos from the Crusader period.


A picture from the harbor of Byblos of the ruins of the Crusader Castle lit up at night.


Needless to say, it wasn't heavy tourist season, so we were the only people at the King George Hotel, which was about 10 minutes from Byblos. The hotel owner, George himself, showed us some Lebanese hospitality by treating us to a king-style breakfast on the patio of the honeymoon suite.


The views were spectacular as we drove along back roads through the Tannourine Valley. The scenery consisted of snow-capped mountains and deep ravines.

href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTPc3l77cUT0V81NTG8tCXhMkeIk6rM3mSK9Esx8cVtloZ-zizX47As3TWrVx-93xojTLLYbqpb4oPP7mir-qk4p0vHoCVnstH8dcAu5K2mhy2NZJ5vA9T8Nc0u2eXg_5-ScbxrWcNe7rO/s1600-h/IMG_2823.JPG">
Me in front of the scenery as we wandered through the Tannourine Valley.


Although we saw spectacular views in the Tannourine Valley, we were a little lost. Numerous times we stopped to ask for directions, trying to piece together the little Arabic we knew. We learned that the meaning of dughri, meaning straight in Arabic, in Lebanon meant follow the curvy road that looks most like the main road. At one point, I asked an old man with a gap-toothed smile for directions. He wasn't much help, but he gave me a rotten apple as a gift. Later in the week, a man in the market also gave me a bruised banana. I don't know if it is common, but for me, I learned that old men in Lebanon must give you rotten fruit if they think you are pretty.


The Cedars of Lebanon. Unfortunately, the park was closed because of snow, so this is a picture from the distance.


After the Tannourine Valley and the Cedars, we explored the Qadesha Valley, one of UNESCO's recommended spots to visit in Lebanon. It was truly stunning, with huge bluffs, waterfalls, and lush greenery. Here's a picture of the light hitting a waterfall just right, so that a rainbow formed.


We met a family who invited us for coffee. Afterwards, the son took us to a little known spot to catch a view of this spectacular waterfall in the Qadesha Valley.


The next day we headed to the South of Lebanon. Our first stop was the Crusader Sea Castle in Sidon, or Saida in Arabic. We also went to Tyre, or Sur in Arabic, to see the most well preserved Roman Hippodrome in the world, but somehow I don't have pictures of this.


Whereas the North has mostly a Maronite Christian population, in the South the influence of Hezbollah was seen in numerous signs of Hezbollah propaganda.


More European style architecture was found as we made our way through the Chouf Mountains. Here is a picture of a quaint town called Deir al-Qamar.


Some places we went had very interesting stories. One man's dream was always to live in a castle when he grew up. As a child, one of his teachers mocked him for this dream. This mocking, however, made the man even more determined. When he grew up, he was able to realize this dream by building this cartoon looking castle, which helped him win the love of his life. Part of the castle is made into a museum. In the other part, the man who built it still lives to this day.


We stopped at the Beiteddine Palace, and Ottoman style palace. Ottoman architecture has intrigued me since I took a class on the Ottoman Empire a few years ago at North Park.



The Bekaa Valley, in the East of Lebanon, near the border of Syria, is rich with vineyards and wineries. We stopped for a tour and wine tasting at the Ksara Winery. Ksara is Lebanon's oldest winery. They store all of their wine in an extensive network of caves discovered by the Jesuits, who ran this winery for many years. Ksara also produces Arak, an Anise flavored liqueur typical of the Middle East, and especially of Lebanon.


We couldn't miss a trip to Baalbek. Baalbek is the location of massive Roman ruins containing two temples. The largest one is the temple of Jupiter. Look at the size of these pillars as compared to me!


This is a picture of the Temple of Bacchus. This is the smaller of the two temples in Baalbek, but it is still larger than the Parthenon in Greece.


These lion heads are decorations from the temple of Jupiter. They have fallen down, but they are still extremely well-preserved!


Baalbek is also home to the largest stone in the world. It was made into a tourist sight by one lone man, who created a park and still runs a souvenir shop. He offers "welcome coffee" to everyone who comes.


We stopped in Aanjar to view some Umayyad ruins. The Umayyad caliphate was the first Islamic dynasty in the Middle East. Here is a picture of what is left of the sultan's summer palace.


Back in Beirut, look at the clear, blue water of the Mediterranean Sea.


At a Restaurant overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, we enjoyed some traditional Lebanese Mezze (salads).


The multiculturalism of Beirut is evident as people flock to walk along the Corniche, a boardwalk area on the coast. This is also the place of the Hard Rock Cafe, one of the few in the Middle East.


Another view of the Corniche, with the mountains just beyond Beirut in the background.


People hanging out on some rocks along the coast of the Mediterranean.


Bikers show off their skills along the Corniche.


The Clock Tower at the center of the main square in the Center of Beirut. This is the hip place to leisurely eat a meal at one of the sidewalk cafes or enjoy some European style shopping.


Even amidst all of the new and fancy construction of Beirut, evidence of the civil war and the Israeli bombardment of 2006 show. Here is a building which still shows evidence of bombing along the Green Line in Beirut, the line between battling factions during the Civil War.

This ends my photo album of Lebanon. I hope you have a picture of the beauty and diversity of Lebanon.

Holy Week

This post is incredibly late, but I was on a trip to Lebanon (pictures to come later), so I didn't have time to write about Holy Week yet.
It was definitely an interesting experience being in Jerusalem for Holy Week. It was often hard for me to realize the magnitude of it all. Many people dream there entire lives of being in Jerusalem for Holy Week. They look forward with anticipation to this pilgrimage. Yet, I happen to be here in Jerusalem during this time without even intending it.
In Jerusalem, there were two holy weeks, one for Western Easter, the next for Orthodox Easter. This year, the two Easters happened to be only 1 week apart, which meant celebrations happened for two weeks. I was here for Western Easter, but not for Eastern Easter due to my trip to Lebanon.
I will therefore, tell of some of the events of Western Easter.

Holy Week started out with Palm Sunday. Every year, for Western Palm Sunday, there is a huge procession in Jerusalem. It starts near the current day area of Bethany and Bethphage. We started there on a hot day and headed down to the gates of the Old City of Jerusalem, as Jesus did in the Bible. There were thousands of people at the procession. Waving palm branches and olive branches sold by the local children. The procession began with the scouts from the local Palestinian churches leading. Following were pilgrims from all over the world, some singing and playing musical instruments. It was a definite celebration and easier to imagine what it would have been like when Jesus was here. My favorite part was being able to see so many people from all over the world meet together in one place.
On Maunday Thursday, I joined the Lutheran church for a service in the Old City and a procession to the Garden of Gethsemane. Again, another time walking in the footsteps of Jesus.
Friday morning, at 6 am, I attended another procession with the Lutheran and Anglican church for a walk on the Via Dolorosa (the stations of the cross. It was a nice walk. I had done it a week earlier with Sabeel for what they have created called "The Contemporary Way of the Cross". I preferred the Contemporary Way of the Cross as it reflects on Jesus steps to crucifixion, but ties them to current day sufferings of the Palestinian people.
Sunday morning came with a sunrise service at the Mount of Olives. I had not experienced a true sunrise service outside since living in Florida. It was even more breathtaking as the sun rose during the sermon over the Judaean Desert.
I enjoyed Holy Week, but I kept thinking that it is still hard for me at times, to understand what Jesus' death and resurrection means, much less feel the weight of it when I am in the place that it happened. It was also hard for me to see so many pilgrims coming because this place has such significance for them. They come, however, and only see the holy sites and often fail to see the conflict here and how it affects people daily. How can somebody be interested in the two thousand year old stones representing Jesus life, while failing to live his life to the people who are here in the present day? The Lord's prayer says, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". To me this means that we are to live out his kingdom, a kingdom of compassion, mercy, and peace, now, not just remember it in the past and wait for it in the future. Yet, even as I write this, I realize how short I fall and wish I could do better.

Sderot

Since I am working for a Palestinian Christian organization, most people I encounter are within this community. I, therefore, try to take advantage of every opportunity I can to encounter different views. Once such day, was last Friday. I was able to go along with a tour to Sderot. Sderot is the town that receives most media coverage for being in range of the Qassam rockets being fired by militant groups from Gaza. At least 7 people have died due to the rocket attacks. Others have died in surrounding villages. Sderot, however, is the largest city near Gaza, at roughly 3 km, so it gets the most media coverage.

It was a day of a wide range of experiences. We first met with an organization called "Other Voice". The goal of this organization is to facilitate dialogue and promote non-violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The founder of Other Voice, Eric, told us about the weekly electronic conference calls held between community members of Sderot, with friends in Gaza. It is impossible for them to see each other, because of the wall around Gaza and permits granted to those living usually only for extreme medical emergencies. The conference calls, however, create dialogue between the two communities and succeed in "humanizing" the other side for both conflicts. One of the biggest successes of war is the dehumanizing of the enemy, so you cease to think of them as human beings. Other Voice wants to stress the common humanity on both sides. Eric, as well as Nomika, another facilitating member of Other Voice, talked about their opposition to Israel's offensive on Gaza. Nomika expressed the stress and trauma of living in a city under rocket attack, where every building has a safe room where you must flee if the siren goes off. She, however, acknowledged the immense suffering of Gazans during the offensive and how violence on both sides was not the answer. I really like this organization. They seemed to have a very balanced perspective.

Other Voice has become famous since the war on Gaza, because of their efforts to raise another voice in an Israeli society, which was largely supportive of the war. Read Nomika Zion's article, which was circulated around the world: War Diary from Sderot. Also check out their website.

Next we met with a group of students at Sapira college in Sderot. This is the largest college (not university) in Israel. It has a well-known media program. The students with whom we met were the founders of a recycling center based at their college. Their main goal was to help Israeli society become responsible with their garbage. In the political realm, they sought to create ties between themselves and the bedouin community of the Western Negev. The bedouin communities in the Western Negev make up some of the Arab population within Israel proper. It is neat that these students would want to bridge the gap between themselves and a community that is largely overlooked by Israel and has many cultural differences. This group of students also provided humanitarian aid from their recycling center to victims of the war on Gaza and also people in Sderot during the war.

The third and final person with whom we met, was Noam Bedein, the creator of Sderot Media Center. Noam was on the complete opposite side of the spectrum and in full support of the war. With the creation of his media center, he hoped to publicize the psychological trauma of those living in Sderot under the threat of Qassam rockets. His description of the fear people must have when they have to deal with the threat of rockets was very legitimate. His approach, however, was so one-sided that it was hard for a group of 20, all working in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, to appreciate. Although we tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, because his message was so one-sided, it lost credibility with us very fast. While describing the pain of the people in Sderot, he would not acknowledge at all that Palestinians had gone through any sort of pain. He would only call people in Gaza terrorists, instead of acknowledging the fact that both terrorists and civilians lived on the other side. He even went so far as saying that the Israeli government needed to fix the problem in Sderot, and their recent offensive in Gaza, "did not go far enough" in fixing the problem. He also would not directly address any of our questions which challenged his argument. He simply repeated the same argument over and over.

Anyone who supports violence as a means to peace, I cannot agree with. According to the Other Voice organization we had met earlier, Noam's views sadly reflect about 90% of the people's views in Sderot and a majority within Israel proper as well.

(Picture 1 - Nomika Zion of Other Voice. Picture 2 - Noam Bedein showed us a bomb shelter at a playground designed as a worm.)

A Weekend in the North

I seem to always be about a week behind on these things. Last weekend, I went on a trip to Nazareth. My coworker, Peter, and I went to stay with a friend, Miriam, who had been volunteering in Nazareth. Miriam volunteered at Nazareth village, which is a mock 1st century village in the middle of the city of Nazareth. It attempts to show what it would have been like when Jesus lived there. The first day we were there, we went to Nazareth village. We first embarked on a tour that Miriam was leading. After lunch, there were a couple more tours, one of which Miriam was leading. Because she had the "in", I was able to dress up as a character for the tourists that were coming through. It was fun, I kind of felt like I was in a church play again. Although the props were way more extensive!

After our fun at Nazareth village, we went to the Basilica of Annunciation. It is an absolutely beautiful church. It is said to be the place where Mary received the message from Gabriele that she was going to have Jesus. Around the courtyard of the church, are numerous mosaics created by different countries throughout the world. Each country was asked to send a piece of artwork meant to represent the virgin Mary. I love seeing many different countries coming together in one place (even if it is just artwork)!

That night, we went to see an extremely good Oud player in Nazareth, named Wisam Gibran. The Oud is an instrument, sort of like a guitar, but shorter and with a big round belly (if that's what you call it). It is a typical instrument used to play Arabic music. Earlier in my trip here, I learned that they even use completely different scales to play Arabic music!

The next day, we ventured to Akko. Akko is a city on the Mediterranean Sea. We spent the day roaming through an underground Crusader castle, an old Turkish bathhouse turned into a museum, walked through Templar tunnels, and through the souq (market) of the old city of Akko. We looked out over the huge crashing waves of the Mediterranean Sea from the Old City walls of Akko. We ended the day with a feast of fresh fish and calamari, that we had cooked for us. We ate it right off the bone on a pier overlooking the Sea. It was probably the best fish I've ever had.

The next day, we came on home from a lovely weekend exploring different parts of Israel, since I have mostly been traveling in the West Bank up until this point.