165. Beirut, Lebanon

165.

Beirut, Lebanon:

This seems to be a modern, fast-paced city.

I check in at the Central YMCA and spend a few days walking the streets and getting my gear organized and in good repair.

I am weary. My diet has been very poor. My money supply is low and I am not half way around the planet. It is too easy to feel depressed. What I need is a vacation from traveling!

At the YMCA I meet an Australian traveler who knows of a valley near Beirut where I can simply camp out. But before he takes me there, I go in his car with him to Baalbek, the “City of the Sun”.

On the highway crossing the mountains inland from the seaside city of Beirut, we pass a few tanks and military trucks with “UN” markings. These are evidently “peace-keepers” withdrawing from the Syrian/Israel border. The local people expect more conflict because, as they say, “When the teacher leaves the room, the naughty boys fight.”

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