Travel

Lived there 81-85.

How are you travelling? There's good public transport, either busses or taxis (shared or otherwise). Beirut is mostly fairly cosmopolitan but get off the beaten track you can get into areas where people will be suspicious of foreigners - esp. south Beirut but Christian areas too.

Will you go to the mountains? Can be lovely or pouring down in September, to to go to Faraya and B'charre ,there's some nice walking there and I think they've been demined now.

You can get an alcoholic drink in both east and west Beirut - nobody calls them that anymore - but an area called Gemmayze is most well know for bars/nightlife. Nowhere will be particualrly cheap though.

Good local beer and wine. Yuo can go wine tasting in the hills, a nice afternoon out.

What wlse do you want to know?

We're probably going to fly as we only have 7-10 days for the trip. I looked into getting a ferry from Cyprus but from what I can see all that's doing the route now are cargo ships. I couldnt find another way to get there. If you know something I dont please pass it on !

We hope to travel into the mountains but we wont be hiking, more travelling through the villages and towns.

Regarding drinking, it has to be said we will enjoy a beer if we can get them but to be fair we're mainly going to see the country and the culture. We can have a beer anytime back here in Ireland. I see no point in travelling to a country just to go on the lash for a week.

Regarding the sightseeing, I have read all about the "must " see's. Is there anything from your time there that you would reccommend that wouldnt be high on many tourists lists but is still worth checking out ?

Oh, and living there from 81-85. Im sure those were interesting years to be in Lebanon.

Thanks for your help Atlas.

Well, Baalbeck is worth seeing if you can get there - it is in the heart of Hezbollah territory so if you go, go with a local who can interpret what is going on. Otherwise Anjar - an Armenian area has similar ruins.

Just to the north of the Madhaf (museum) crossing from east to west just off a major north south road (and I can't remember the name of the road) but near to a statue of Camille Chamoun they have left a couple of bullet chewed buildings of you want to see what large areas of the city used to look like.

The area rebuilt on Martyr's Square is in a beautiful honey coloured stone and thetre isa very pretty mosque there.

Maybe catch the cable car (telefrique) from Jounieh up to Harisa, reasonable views as I remember but probably changed now with so much building going on.

Byblos, a very pretty little port with great fish restaurants around the port (and I don't even like fish!) expensive but you won't eat there every day. Good Roman and crusader ruins there too.

A very good little local Lebanese restaurant off the sea end of Hamra street in West Beirut, I'll try to find the address. Tiny and good food reasonably priced.

Really you should go to Syria and/or Jordan if history is your thing, great castles and roamn ruins in both countries.

 There's a crusader castle to the right of the road as you go north from Beirut before you get to Chekka, I don't know if you can visit it though. 

If you visit Geita Caves by Jounieh (where the Christians stored ammo during thre civil war) the top cave system is way more impressive than the bottom one which you visit by boat and if you are pressed for time is kind of dumpy compared to the top caves. Nearby at Nahr alCaleb (Dog river) you can see the plaques carved into the rocks by Napoleon's troops.

81-85 was fascinating, not healthy but fascinating.

Edit: I'm sure there will be some passanger ferry traffic from Cyprus to Lebanon, or you'd be able to go on a cargo ship but the thing to do would be to go to Cyprus and look/ask around. If you don't have a lot of time you may spend several day doing this so I guess flying would be the best bet.