The Cedars Resort in Bcharre, Lebanon

Filed in archive Hidden Gems on October 27, 2008

If you're looking for someplace exotic, someplace with both beauty and history, you may be looking for The Cedars Resort in Bcharre, Lebanon.

History and mythology are something not easy to parse. The story of the Cedars of Lebanon - the oldest know piece of literature in the world - is a good example.

There was a king about 4500 years ago in the ancient Sumerian city of Uruk - in what is now Iraq, about 140 miles from Baghdad. The king longed to be great, to be famous. And so he undertook a task that he felt would define greatness for others: he entered into the vast forest that once carpeted Western Asia and began to cut down its huge Cedar trees. He did this even though he knew that Humbaba, the guardian spirit of the forest, would come and fight with him. The king struggled with that demon and killed it.

Today you can still visit what is left of the cedar forest that made Lebanon the envy of kings around the world - here, at the Cedars Resort. But you can also simply enjoy the scenery, snow ski in season, or take a day trip to the coast and swim in the Mediterranean. It's a beautiful place...


Photo courtesy of iStockphoto, Image# 395643