Day 3 Photo Album

We successfully use the public bus system to get ourselves to Byblos. We walk down from the freeway in to town & stop at this convenient restaurant for coffee & directions. Folks are so friendly & helpful here we decide to return here later (see below).

On our walk towards the sea, we take this photo of the souk (or old shopping) area with the famous Byblos Crusader Castle in the background.

As we near the Mediterranean on Blvd. al-Mina, we think how nice it would be to spend more time in this area. We wonder if we could rent a room here for a while (nice fantasy).

As we come to the coast we are almost overwhelmed with the beauty of the water here. Patrick decides he must find a bathing suit & return for a swim.

Our walk back to the shopping area of town brings us to the wonderful Old Port. Here the Castle & area of ancient ruins can be seen again in the distance on the right.

Climbing the hill, we look back down on the Old Port and have a good view of the ancient Fortified Tower guarding the port.

We are not exactly sure just where or what this is, but this arch and old rock work make for a very pleasing photo.

Keith takes this photo as Patrick takes some pictures through the gate of the UNESCO International Center for Human Sciences. This is where a couple of fellows asked us for directions to the local mosque. We were proud to be able to give correct directions.

Now with newly purchased swimming trunks beneath his trousers, Patrick is ready to hit the beach. Keith makes him pause here for this photo of contrasts.

It doesn't take Patrick long to head in to the beautiful blue-green sea.

With only his head showing, Patrick enjoys the pleasant temperature of the water.

Such enjoyment can't last for ever - it is now time to get out of the water.

Before leaving the area, Patrick gets this telephoto picture of two lovely ladies on a cross between a small boat & a surf board.

Here Keith sits on the beach with the many others enjoying this pleasant area. We notice that the beach is composed not of sand, but of small round pebbles.

As we walk again back from the sea, we come across another old church. We believe this one is the Greek Orthodox Church.

A little further up this road we come to the Church of St. John the Baptist. The building of this church started in 1115 AD. Ancient columns & mosaic floors can be found here.

Here Patrick poses to the west of the Crusader Castle which is the most dominant feature at this important archaeological site. The Castle was built by the Franks in the 12th century.

Here is the view from the Castle entrance of the mosque and old town to the north.

Our guide book tells us that the Castle was built "out of monumental blocks, no doubt pillaged from the classical ruins. Some of the blocks are the largest used in any construction in the Middle East (apart from one or two at Baalbeck)." (Lonely Planet, p. 153.)

From the top of the castle, Keith looks over the archeological sites to the south.

This view from the top of the Castle is towards the west, with its Roman Colonnade, Royal Tombs & the Roman Theater.

This view from the Castle is toward the east and the newer part of the city as well as the area where the remains of the ancient city gate have been found.

Keith stands in the reconstructed Roman amphitheater with curved seating to left and stage area to right. We believe the red topped building in the background is called the Ottoman House.

Leaving the archeological site, we pass through this archway and in to the old souk area.

By now the temperature was getting hot & we stopped for an ice cream cone at this wonderful little pastry shop. In addition to this great photo, we also got some most delicious Lebanese pastry!

While Keith made our purchase, visited & took the previous photo, Patrick was holding his cone with its quickly melting ice cream. Without worrying about finesse, Keith starts to work on this whipped cream topped delight.

Having had our dessert, it was now time for lunch. We returned to our favorite eatery here, the Nakrouchy. This is a pie shaped, 3 story restaurant - a cafe on the bottom, an enclosed air conditioned restaurant on the 2nd floor, with the 3rd floor being open air.

We chose the open-air floor. Here our waiter, computer college student & new friend, Fady, joins Patrick for this photo at our table. We took several photos here. Check them all out along with a copy of the menu by going to the Nakrouchy Page.

We regretably had to leave Byblos & head back to Beirut. This time we take the Mini Bus along the frontage roads & views of local life. Here is a nice photo of a market that Patrick got from the moving bus.

Later Keith captures this view of the sun setting over the Mediterranean Sea with an old 3 mast sailing ship to the left of center.

Now time for another pleasant evening in the Beirut Central District. Here is a busy open-air restaurant with the clock tower prominent in the background. Some of the large photographs from the French LaTerre Vue du Ciel exhibit can be seen at left.

Nada again treats us to a very pleasant evening & Lebanese meal at another open-air cafe. Keith & Patrick also get to experience the now very popular & "sophisticated" hubbly-bubbly pipe. For more of our photos from this evening, go to page 2 of our "Beirut at Night."

Leaving the restaurant to catch a cab back to the hotel, we meet a group of young men. One asks if we would take his photo & we oblige. His friend gives us an e-mail address to send the photo, but when we get back, the address doesn't seem to work. Can anyone help get this photo to the right person?

Day 3 - September 13 - Byblos (or Jbail) & Beirut Night