Middle East - Anthony Ham [379]
Not far from Zahlé, Chateau Kefraya (08-645 333/444; www.chateaukefraya.com; Chateua Kefraya, Zahlé) is Lebanon’s largest wine producer. If you’re here between 25 August and 1 September, you’ll witness the annual grape harvest. At other times, don’t miss lunch at the stylist Dionysus restaurant, with French cuisine to complement the winery’s best vintages.
Call in advance to experience a feast at the trendy Massaya & Co ( 03-735 795; www.massaya.com) vineyard’s Le Relais restaurant, then stroll the vines overseen by Sami Ghosn, an LA architect-turned-winemaker.
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Orientation & Information
Baalbek is small and easily tackled on foot. The main road, Rue Abdel Halim Hajjar, is where you’ll find the town’s two banks, a number of ATMs, the ruins and the Palmyra Hotel. Note that neither of the banks cashes travellers cheques, and no hotels appear willing to accept credit cards.
Post office ( 8am-5pm Mon-Fri, 8am-2pm Sat) Heading along Ras al-Ain Blvd, it’s up a side street before the Riviera Restaurant.
Network Center ( 370 192; off Rue Abdel Halim Hajjar; per hr LL3000; 9am-1am) Up a side street between the Palmyra and Jupiter Hotels.
Sights
BAALBEK RUINS
The very best time to visit the site ( 370 645; admission LL12,000, under 8yr free; 8.30am-30min before sunset) is during the early morning or – even better – late in the afternoon, when the light’s great, the crowds thinnest and the temperatures cooler. It’s highly recommended to take an accredited guide at the entrance to the site (around US$14 for an hour) who will really bring the stones to life.
The first of the two greatest temples at the main site is the Temple of Jupiter, completed around AD 60. Built on a massive substructure around 90m long, and incorporating some of the largest building blocks ever used, it was originally approached by a monumental staircase that rose high above the surrounding buildings. Today its remaining six standing columns (themselves also some of the very largest in the world) are a massive and spectacular reminder of the size and majesty of the original, ancient structure.
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THE PARTY OF GOD
You’ll probably hear far more in the world media about Baalbek’s local Hezbollah party than you’ll ever hear about its temples. From its roots as one of dozens of militia groups fighting during Lebanon’s civil war, following a Shiite doctrine propagated by the Ayatollah Khomeini, Hezbollah has risen to become what many consider a legitimate resistance party, with its own radio station, TV network, countrywide network of social services, and 14 democratically elected seats in the Lebanese parliament.
Upon its foundation, the party initially aimed to bring to justice those accused of war crimes during the civil war (particularly Phalangist Christians), to create an Islamic government in Lebanon, and to eradicate ‘Western colonialist’ influences within the country. Since then, however, Hezbollah has given up on the second of these aims, replacing it with the desire to destroy the ‘unlawful entity’ that is present-day Israel. Regular vicious attacks on Israel’s northern border attest to its attempts to carry this out.
Often represented to the outside world as a bloodthirsty and brutal organisation only interested in bombings, kidnappings and mayhem, Hezbollah nevertheless does far more than simply amassing arms and planning raids against Israel and potential aggressors. Its network of schools, hospitals, garbage disposal plants, training institutes for farmers, fresh water distribution points and childcare facilities are unsurpassed in Lebanon, bringing crucial aid to thousands of Lebanon’s poor and needy. The money for all this, says the group,