Bridget, RJ, and I had a really fantastic trip to Bcharre, a Christian village high above the stunnning Qadisha Valley. We rented a car, which turned out to be fun. I was much more comfortable driving than when I drove here in 2002.

We stayed in the same hotel in which Ethan and I had spent Christmas back in 2002. Mr. Chbat is an excellent host. He looks a bit like Sean Connery and is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to hiking in the area. At the end of our stay, he presented us with a huge jar of homemade apricot jam to take home. The hotel itself is sort of a 50s lodge, rather cozy and funky.

We dropped off our belongings and drove to a hermitage down in the valley (narrow road with plenty of blind curves and hairpin turns). The monastery is embedded in a cliff and is utterly peaceful inside.

Afterward, we checked out a grotto with octopus-like stalactites and then wandered among the ancient cedar trees for which Lebanon is famous. Driving back to Bcharre from the Cedars, we stopped to gaze at/photograph the layer of clouds that had rolled in far below us.