Beiteddine, a small village in the mountains of Lebanon

Palace of Beiteddine, one of the best examples of early 19th Century Lebanese architecture, was built over a 30 year period by Emir Bechir El Chehab II, who ruled Mount-Lebanon for more than 50 years. The palace was later occupied by the Ottomon Empire and then the French.
One of the several arched pathways in the palace.

Beautiful doors are made of wood on the inside and iron on the outside.

Mosaics are found in many of the gardens.

Boutrous Karami Room with it's marble mosaics and scultured wood and copper walls and ceilings. In this room the Emir received complaints from his subjects.

Another meeting room in the palace.

The Hammam or "Baths".

In one of the courtyards, children on a field trip discovered some Americans. The girl in the purple spoke French to us, so we could communicate a bit. The boy in front proudly spoke a few words of English and we all knew how to smile, hug and say our names.

Another group of children discovered the fountain.

Driving back towards Beirut, we meet a herd of goats traveling in the same direction.

A friendly goat herder coaxing his goats down the mountain.

In Mount Lebanon is comprised of steep mountains and valleys. To farm in these areas, the farmers terrace their land.

Photo taken from the restaurant where we had lunch.

Bourj Hammoud, a little bit of Armenia in Lebanon

Bourj Hammoud is the Armenian section of Beirut. The streets of Bourj Hammoud are lined with shop after shop of jewelers, shoe stores, clothing stores, textiles, and shoe repair stores. Nothing is priced, so everything is negotiable. The American accent doubles the price, but being Armenian takes a little off that elavated price. We are slowly developing our bargaining skills.

Rue d'Armenie, the main street leading into Bourj Hammoud is also called Yerevan Highway, depending on which map you are using.

Arax Street is closed to traffic, therefore this is the safest place to walk in all of Beirut. Little shops line each side of the street waiting for your business.

A stop to buy Schwarma, Paul's favorite for lunch.

(a Lebanese sandwich made with chicken or lamb, vegetables, yogurt and rolled in flat bread)

Our own "family" jeweler. For those who don't know, my granny's maiden name was Balabanian.

The best Armenian restaurant in Beirut, Mayrig ( "mother" in Armenian), is located in this building. We can't even begin to describe the food. It's out of this world.

Inside view of Mayrig.

Grandparents surprise

We are so excited, Mason will be a big brother around September 2nd.

We are so excited.

Freeport, Grand Bahamas (January) Just what we needed, family time.

Mason finds a conch along with sand, rocks, coconuts and seagulls.

Jeremy, Bri & Mason relaxing in the hammock

Jessica & Adam trying to open the coconut that Adam knocked out of the tree

Auntie Jessi reading one of many stories to Mason. We all now know all of the words to "Llama, Llama, Red Pajama"

Mason hits the waves.

Jeremy & Paul head out to snorkel

One of many stingrays that we saw

A wonderful time and a beautiful sunset to remember

A trip to Cairo, Egypt

A taxi cab ride from the airport to our hotel. The car had trouble starting and we prayed and crossed our fingers during the 30 minute ride, but at least the price was good.
Egypt is 80-90% Muslim and there are hundreds of mosques in Cairo. Daily prayers are done everywhere, even in the middle of a busy street in Cairo.

On our 35th wedding anniversary, we're riding a camel around prymids that were built over 5000 years ago. The pyramids are truly amazing.

"Mr. Paul, I'll give you 100 camels for the wife. She's good, yes?" Not kidding, he made this offer. Paul counter-offered for 150, but he thought that was a bit high.

"I'm a poor man, only 1 wife right now. We'll have fun, yes?" These are his words, not mine.

The Sphinx, a combination of the wisdom of man and the power of the lion,

protects the 3 pyramids of Giza.

The Khan el-Khalili Bazaar is one of the world's oldest markets. It was called the Turkish Bazaar during the Ottoman Empire. Now it is comprised of many crowed streets in old Cairo.

Bringing their goods to the market on carts.

Spice, herbs and essential oils are still sold at many locations. We tried lotus, frankincense, myrrh, Egyptian oregano and many other spices. The bargaining continued over a cup of tea.

Overloaded carts are pushed through the busy streets of Cairo on their way to the Bazaar.

"Yes, we can fit it into my Taxi."

The view of the Nile from the balcony of our hotel room.

A trip to Baalbeck

Baalbeck is 53 kilometers Northeast of Beirut. The journey through the mountains and into the Bekaa Valley takes about 1-1/2 hours.

After traveling over Mount Lebanon, we reach the Bekaa Valley. The northern part of the valley is used for grazing sheep, while the more fertile land is used to grow vegetables, fruits, grapes for the many wineries and of course, hashish.
A Bedouin camp in the Bekaa. They are a nomadic Arabic group who work in the fields. We saw satellite dishes on several of the tents.

A stop at Chateau Kefraya for a light lunch and a wine tasting. We felt like we were in Sonoma or Walla Walla.

The road leading into Baalbeck. You see a little bit of everything. Notice the middle lane is left open for passing, in both directions and often at the same time. The two lane road then becomes a four lane highway.

The streets of Baalbeck.

We have arrived in Baalbeck. Mari gets her first close glimpse at a camel under the watchful eye of his master.

Baalbeck (formerly Heliopolis, meaning City of the Sun)

The temples located in Baalbeck are not only the largest roman temples, but also the best preserved in the world. The Baalbeck International Music and Dance Festival is held in these ruins.

The Temple of Jupiter was built around 54-68AD. These are the 6 remaining columns of the original 54.
We are standing at the base of one of these massive columns, which is 7 feet in diameter and 70 feet high.
The columns supported an entablature lying horizontally on these columns. This is a piece of the frieze from that structure.
The Temple of Bacchus (Roman god of wine) was built during the 1st half of the 2nd Century. It was a temple of celebration, even including a wine cellar.

Intricate carvings of grapes and poppies on the main entrance of the temple. The inner chamber of the temple is richly carved with scenes from the life of Bacchus.