Lebanon is famous in the world for its great food. While writing this blog, I asked a friend of mine what he associated Lebanon with and told me he only knew about its amazing food. It’s quite sad that most of the people barely know anything about Lebanon beyond its cuisine and, maybe some older people, beyond the Syrian occupation during the civil war. This is why in this post I am going to show you another side of Lebanon: the ancient one. This side tells the history of the country and its beautiful remains.
.. But also ‘history keeper’
You might not know but Lebanon has been conquered by quite a few empires back in the day: Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans and more. In more recent times it was conquered by the French from which they gained independence after World War II. So, Lebanon has had an interesting history and it would be a pity not to admire what is left of it today.
Where?
Baalbeck is one of the most beautiful archaeological sites in Lebanon. It features roman temples and ruins. Once a year the Baalbeck International Festival is organized. The festival combines history with music, theatre and opera. Baalkbeck is just 65km away from Beirut and it can easily be reached.
Another great site is the Sidon’s Sea Castle. Sidon was an ancient Phoenician city 40 kilometres south of Beirut. The Castle was constructed as a fortress during the 13th century Crusaders. Today, only ruins are left of the fortress but these are amazing.
My last tip is to visit the Tyre ruins. Tyre, also known as ‘Queen of the Seas’ for its mercantile and seafaring activities, is located 80 km south of Beirut. It was founded in the Bronze age and was still standing when the Romans arrived in 64BC. The city survived all these years until Israel invaded Lebanon in 1978 and Tyre got heavily damaged. The ancient ruins can be admired in the heart of the modern city, an opportunity to visit both.
Didi's voyages 