Becharre & the Cedars - March 21

Hometown of author/poet/artist Gibran Khalil, Becharre was the first stop after Tripoli. We skirted the Qadisha Valley (which apparently is studded with monasteries and shrines to various saints cut into the sides of the mountains), and arrived to breathtaking views from the top of the mountains.
To the left is the huge bust of Gibran at the museum built in his honor and housing his tomb.
Above is a Phoenician tomb and monument which I actually didn't hike up to (but Dirk did). I was (as usual) too busy trying to find a rest room... which incidentally were clean and had paper in all locations in Lebanon.
Above and below are the Qadisha Valley which resounded with the sound of church bells, not as in Tripoli with the call to prayer.
And finally, we reached the Cedars... a popular ski resort and home of the last of the ancient forest of Cedars represented on Lebanon's flag.
After lunch and a bit of time playing in the snow, we headed on to Baalbek... only to be turned back... AGAIN! This time, not by soldiers at a checkpoint, but by snow. The roads (which were clear all the way through the mountains to the Cedars were completely snowed in and for a second time, our attempts to drive inland to Baalbek were foiled!