Lebanon: A Globe-trotters GuideI planned my trip to Lebanon from December 26th to January 5th. The mountainsin Lebanon are covered with snow and I thought this would be the most beautiful time tovisit the Middle East. The round-trip airline ticket should cost approximately $2,160. 00.
I also found a hotel in central Beirut, The Holiday Suites Hotel, which should rangebetween $350 and $750 for the entire stay (travelocity. com). Also, there must be takeninto account the cost of meals which should be no more than $300 total for the entire trip. I will also be carrying at least $1000 for souveniers, ski rental, and lift tickets, as well astaxis and other public modes of transportation. . Lebanon is very beautiful, due to its four-season weather, beaches, and skiingmountains.
Lebanon has a commonly Mediterranean climate. The Lebanese peopleexperience hot, dry summers and mild to cool, wet winters. The Lebanese mountainshowever, experience heavy snows for the duration of the winter months. Lebanon is apredominantly mountainous country merely the size of Connecticut. The fertile BequaaValley separates the Lebanese mountains from the Anti-Lebanese mountains on theSyrian-Lebanese border.
The official language of Lebanon is Arabic, but French is widely spoken. Someminor languages throughout Lebanese culture are Armenian and English. There are threerecognized religions in Lebanon; Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. There areapproximately seventy-one percent of the Lebanese people whom practice Islam, whiletwenty-nine percent practice different denominations of Christianity and the remainingcitizens practice Judaism.
(middleeastnews. com)Lebanese culture varies within families, and varies even greater in respect to ageand wealth. A large majority of Lebanese women wear long gowns with a scarf wrappedaround their heads, and a jacket over their clothes. However, older Lebanese womenwear a long and baggy black dress and use a scarf tied behind their neck to hide theirhair. The fashion of men however is much more revealing, as with most Middle Easterncultures. The older men in Lebanon wear baggy trousers that are wound tightly aroundthe cuff.
They wear open-necked collarless shirts, and they sometimes wear a hat calleda Turbish (Wormser 181). As a westerner, I will not be required to wear the traditional Lebanese dress. SInce I am planning a skiing trip, bringing lots of sweaters, and ski bibs will beappropriate for this time of year. I will also need a ski parka, a hat, gloves, and a scarf. Iwill probably bring some jeans to explore the tourist attractions in.
While visiting Lebanon, one would expect to enjoy traditional Middle-Easterncuisine. Some Lebanese dishes include Baba Ghanoush, which is a dip made frompureed roasted eggplant as well as garlic and other Meditteranean spices. AnotherTraditional Lebanese dish is Kibbeh Arnabieh. This dish is made of traditional LebaneseKibbeh in a tangy orange and tahini sauce.
Stuffed vine Leaves, which are similar toGreek dolmas, are also a widely consumed culinary delight. There are many ancient sites to be visited while in Lebanon. Among them are theRuins at Ajar. This once was a Pheonician city, which now rests very near theLebanese-Syrian border.
Echmoun is a second Phoenician site that should be visited. Another interesting thing to visit in Lebanon is the Baalbeck Roman Ruins, which are inthe North end of the Bequaa Valley. It is a massive complex with the temples of Venus,Jupiter and Bacchus. The Hippodome, a stadium for chariot races, is also an excitingtourist attraction that any westerner should encounter (www. mninter. net).
The Lebanese Republic is a traditional republican government. Its roots werederived from Ottoman law, Canon law, Napoleonic Code, and Civil Law. Theirconstitution, which was originally created on May 23, 1926, has been amended manytimes. Lebanon has five Administrative divisions which consist of Al Biga, Al Junab,Ash Shamal, Bayrut, Jabal, and Lubnan. The Lebanese President is Emile Lahoud.
Thecurrent Speaker of Parliament is Nabih Berri, and the Prime minister is Rafik Hariri. Since Lebanons devastating sixteen-year civil war which ended only in 1990, a newgovernment has finally taken hold and gained some sort of control of the county (Middleeastnews. com). Politically Lebanon is governed by many different sectarianpolitical groups.
Most of these consist of individual political figures and their followers,who are motivated by their individual religious beliefs, clan, and economicconsiderations. So, in conclusion, Lebanon is a very interesting place to be. There is ancientruins to visit, and mountins to ski on, food to enjoy, and marvelous scenery to take infrom all angles. Works Cited1. ) http://www.
middleeastnews. com/lebanon. html2. ) http://www.
mninter. net/~engelst/mideast. htm3. ) Wormser, Michael D ed.
The Middle East. Fifth Edition. Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1981.
