Mary Jane Walker

Lovely Lebanon Mary Jane Walker

I didn't know much about Lebanon before I went there. And am I glad I did! It's a little country with a big history, from the biblical cedar groves to bustling Beirut. Layers upon layers of history, from Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans to Crusaders, Saracens, Turks and French, have built up this country, which is also the world's second most densely populated outside Bangladesh (small city-states like Singapore excepted). Yet it also has plenty of wild nature. From a hostel next to the historic Spanish Steps of Beirut, a city styled as the Paris of the Middle East, I explore the countryside, the ancient ruins, the birthplace of the poet Kahlil Gibran, and speak to representatives of Hezbollah, the militant group that controls parts of the country's interior. Lebanon is a fragile country, still getting over a 1975-1990 civil war and with its southern border the scene of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. But don't let that put you off visiting the country. And if it does, you can still read my book!