SAVED BY SERBIA - The Rocky Road Back to The Real World

.......seems such a long time ago! Our previous blog post from Lebanon......

At the end of February, after our time in Lebanon, we moved on to visit family in the UK, blissfully ignorant of what was to come in the following months. Our train trip to Scotland was rather less grand than last time. It was brilliant to see Rich's family, but Sal was left wondering why she had suggested coming in February! The scenery from the train was stunning, with snow all around in the mountainous areas, but the reality of actually being out there in it was less than enthralling! One particular rural walk had us taking shelter from a snow blizzard in a disused phone box- Sal fuming, Rich just enjoying the day!

Flying back from Lebanon to Britain

Aberdeenshire scenery

Coos, Scotland

Unprepared and freezing, Dingwall, Scotland

Train through the Cairngorms, Scotland

A long awaited visit to see old travel buddies saw us crossing the Irish Sea to County Clare, Ireland. After spending a few days reminiscing and catching up, eating and watching the constant rain, we decided on an early exit from the Emerald Isle, mainly due to unfolding global events.

The Fairy Forest, Clare, Ireland

Reflected winter beauty, Clare, Ireland

The ensuing months in Cambridge were a struggle, with little to anticipate except when we could begin to travel again.

Around Cambridge town, UK

River Cam, Cambridge, UK

Empty streets, Cambridge, UK

After what felt like an eternity, in June we found a travel life-line in Serbia- one of the first countries to open to outsiders, and one that would accept both of us (we have different passports). There were apparently no entry requirements such a health check, and we could (just!) afford the cost of travel there. As we'd been interested in visiting the Balkans for some time, we tentatively booked a ticket from London, and kept a very close eye on the situation with flights and updates every day for the couple of weeks leading up to our departure.

Even as the day arrived, we were not convinced we would reach our destination. With circumstances changing daily, and often with no notice, we were half expecting not to be allowed onto the plane, or to be refused entry on arrival into Belgrade. Thanks to the Travel Gods, the trip went smoothly, with the immigration officer at Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Airport not even giving us a cursory glance, let alone an interrogation.

After such a tense time during the previous few months, we were in a strange frame of mind, and were extremely lucky to find ourselves in one of the best hostels we have ever stayed in. After such a long time with mainly only each other for company and conversation, we were both chomping at the bit to get back to our usual routine of exploring new places and chatting with fellow travellers and interesting locals. Because of the current global situation, there were very few fellow guests at the hostel, but the small number of people there and the wonderful staff and their friends made us feel extremely welcome, and seemed just as keen for some new conversation as we were! We spent most afternoons or evenings learning about Belgrade and Serbia, exchanging stories and planning what we would do whilst in the country. We ended up spending longer in Belgrade than we expected, just calming down and feeling like we could breathe again.

Hostel garden, Belgrade

Our hostel room, Belgrade

Having rather a lot on our minds leading up to going to Serbia, we had done very little research about the background of the country. And what a lot to catch up on! Reading the history of how Serbia became an independent country is complicated and full of unfamiliar names, rulers and changing borders. Belgrade has been governed by the Franks, Bulgarians, Byzantines and Hungarians amongst others over the past 2000 years, but it was the Ottoman Empire who arrived in the 14 and 15th centuries who ruled over the area for centuries. There seemed very little cultural evidence left from this era in Belgrade. The Habsburgs and Austro-Hungarian Empires who came later appeared to have made a more lasting contribution, especially in architecture. Of course, Belgrade tragically lost much of it's physical history during more recent years.

Richard in the city, Belgrade

View of Belgrade from the bridge

The first thing we noticed was how "European" Belgrade was. We had preconceived ideas that it might be similar to the Caucasus countries or Central Asia, and were surprised with the feeling of a familiar culture. Such things as building designs, social structure, people's dress, and the way we were treated (ie. just like anyone else) were recognizable from the UK or Western Europe. There's approximately 1.4 million residents, predominantly Slavic, and roughly 90%  of them are Christian or Catholic. Except for the Romas, not much ethnic diversity was evident on the city centre streets. Despite the situation, people were busy going about their business, drinking in bars and cafes, going to the beach, using public transport, eating fast food.....it all felt "normal", in a lovely, familiar way.

Roma kid busking, Belgrade

Cobblestone cafe street, Belgrade

One typical stereotype of Eastern European culture is that the people are not friendly. We found that while we occasionally came across a grumpy service person or attendant, mostly people were simply no nonsense and kindly helped us when they could, just without any fuss.

Of course, things such as food, prices, language and local habits were new and different to us to some extent, and we enjoyed the feeling again of getting to know a new city, and get a idea of what makes it tick. Having barely scratched the surface, we now looked forward to exploring our surroundings further!!

There a lot of graffiti around Belgrade

Book stall, Belgrade

Us, happy

.......our first whole month in Belgrade, Serbia up next.........

WHAT HAVE THE ROMANS EVER DONE FOR US?- In and Around Beirut, Lebanon

....see our previous blog post wandering around pyramids in Egypt here.....

Stormy day at Baalbek, Lebanon

Although we have always been very attracted to Middle Eastern culture, and Lebanon had long been on our travel radar, we always thought it was too expensive a country for us to visit. Researching flights between Cairo and London, we discovered it wouldn't cost that much extra to stop in Beirut for a couple of weeks on the way. A quick look at Air B and B confirmed we could afford to stay in the capital and explore parts of Lebanon as day trips. So, we went for it! Unfortunately, we didn't look into the weather very thoroughly, assuming it would be the same as Cairo. This was somewhat idiotic, as the climate in the mountainous little country in winter is completely different to the desert climate of Egypt, and somewhat scuppered our travel plans.

Fixer on Beirut streets

Street art in Hamra, Beirut

Overgrown window, Beirut

Sal's favourite choccies! Beirut

Happy kids, Beirut

Our arrival at Beirut airport was incredibly smooth. A modern place, there were few lines or crowds, no visa or arrival card needed, no delay picking up luggage and no pressure. The only downside was the painfully expensive taxi into town, but we had been pre-warned about this and were prepared.

We had booked an Air B and B in a central Beirut suburb, Mazra'a, and after checking out our cozy room, we were ready to take our time exploring a new place. During the first week the sun was shining every day, and even though the wind at times was cold, we were easily able to find places to keep warm. We did our usual thing of walking around different areas of the city, finding the central part to be clean, attractive, quiet and friendly. Regardless of a city's cultural and historical interest, the first few days in a new place are always absorbing. Beirut was different from any other city we had visited, and we enjoyed simply observing and soaking up the environment. There seemed to be a calm vibe out on the streets (but then, we had just arrived from manic Cairo!), with less traffic and more relaxed pace.

Our room in Mazra'a, Beirut

Typical residential street, Mazra'a, Beirut

Relaxing in the street, Beirut

Magazine stand, Hamra, Beirut

Many lovely steps in Beirut

There was definitely more of a European feel rather than Middle Eastern in many ways in Beirut. Most women dressed in modern "Western" clothes, and people were slightly more reserved upon seeing foreign tourists. The look of people was totally different to Egypt, and we were mesmerized by many resident's fair skin and green eyes. People we met seemed very well educated indeed, with almost everyone speaking English as well as Arabic- apparently French is also spoken with ease as a third language (a left over from when the country was a French Mandate). Interestingly almost all signs were also in English or French as well as Arabic, even official and government buildings.

Busy main street, Mazra'a, Beirut

Painted residential block, Hamra, Beirut

Cute little shop, Gemmayzeh, Beirut

Signs in French and Arabic, Beirut

Beirut was a pleasant city for walking, with proper footpaths in most areas, and slow travelling traffic in the small back streets. This was our preferred method for exploring. It's a residential city, full of apartment blocks rather than office blocks. Due the turbulent history of Beirut, there are a myriad of architectural styles on display, and we found even the more modern styles were pleasing and attractive aesthetically. Many remaining bombed out buildings still showed bullet marks from the Civil War (which finished 30 years ago). We also came across a fair few banks that had been defaced and smashed up during the current demonstrations.

One of many defaced banks, Beirut

Building full of bullet holes being restored, Beirut

Sal's favorite areas for walking (poor Rich was less enthralled due to knee pain that day) were Gemmayzeh and Monot. Many buildings of differing eras remained in these suburbs, and although the suburbs were obviously home to affluent sorts, with ritzy shops and restaurants, there were also many quirky parts with street art, funky shops, stone stairways and secret gardens amongst the decrepit buildings. Upon seeing an open gate to a magnificent old mansion, we wandered in, only to find it was actually a private residence with a tour in progress (well, we weren't to know!). Fortunately for us, the tour guide only had the key for the exit gate, and we had to follow the tour around lovely grounds until they exited the property (trying not to be obvious in listening in on the history and story about the premises!)

Cool building, Gemmayzeh, Beirut

Nice colours on old building, Gemmayzeh, Beirut

Wonder who painted these steps? Gemmayzeh, Beirut

Street art, Beirut

Ottoman influence, Gemmayzeh, Beirut

Inside Gemmayzeh church, Beirut

Typical street scene, Beirut

Lebanon's history is so extremely turbulent and complicated, we won't go into too much detail here- there is plenty of information online for those with an interest. The most important eras in Lebanese history were the Phoenician rule from about 1200 BC, followed by the Romans around 64 BC. When the Byzantines subsequently took over in about 500 AD, huge earthquakes destroyed all of Beirut, and made way for the various fights for the area by the Muslim Mamluks and Christian crusaders for the next few hundred years. The 15th century saw rule by the Ottomans until the 18th century when the French, British and Turks fought it out, and France eventually establishing a mandate in 1920. This is obviously an extremely simplified version of historical Lebanon, but just a bit of background.
More recently, Lebanon has had to contend with Palestinian refugees and the PLO after wars with Israel, and the devastating Civil War which lasted a heartbreaking 15 years from 1975 until 1990. A revolution to get rid of Syrian interference, more war between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel, and now the current unstable situation with sometimes violent protests to rid the present government, have all had an overwhelming effect on the country. The people's spirit must be incredibly resilient.

The infamous "Green Line" which separated Muslim and Christian factions during the Civil War still exists as a normal road, and the city is still pretty much split into Muslim and Christian majority areas as a left over from that time, although we didn't hear or feel anything about tensions between the two these days. We stayed in each area and found people to be equally nice to us!

Church interior, Beirut

Church down a lane, Beirut

Monument, Martyr's Square, Beirut

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We usually travel with some kind of guide book, but since this was a last minute and a quick visit, we winged it in Lebanon, reading a few articles on the internet and listening to advice from locals. A direct result of this was a wonderful surprise in the port town of Saida. The coastal road our bus took to reach the town, south of Beirut, was a mix of fancy beach clubs and small scale agriculture in green houses- mostly bananas and tomatoes. After disembarking the bus, we admired and explored the 13th century Crusader Castle which had been protecting the shore for hundreds of years, before wandering along the seaside path and browsing the fresh fish at the small markets.

Arriving at the Crusader castle, Saida

View to Saida from castle

Relics of centuries ago, Saida

Crusader castle, Saida

Saida, through an archway

Fishmonger, Saida

Little did we know that behind the main road was a labyrinth of ancient covered streets, little shops with dwellings above, old souq areas, courtyards and mosques. It was quite charming, and all the better because we weren't at all expecting it. We absolutely loved the way the old part of town had been restored, but still added onto over the years in a sympathetic and practical way in a pleasing blending of styles. People here were lovely, and we had kids shyly speak to us and ask for photos.

Exploring covered streets, Saida

Quiet moment, Saida 

Saida's backstreets

Little boy in Saida laneway

Lovely old town, Saida

Friendly local family, Saida

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Back in Beirut, the weather very suddenly changed. Literally, the day after we walked along the delightful corniche by the Mediterranean Sea, watching fishermen, sunbathers and people (men) swimming in the sea, sever storms began with heavy rain, wind and even snow in some areas. We cancelled our plans to spend a few days at Baalbek after forecasts of snow and temperatures well below zero forecast. As well as not knowing anything about whether roads might be closed in extreme weather, we certainly didn't fancy walking around the site  in sub-zero temperatures!! It wouldn't be the best time to appreciate the highlight of a trip to Lebanon!

Beautiful day on Beirut's Corniche

Pigeon Rocks, Beirut

Weather changing, Beirut beach

Snow in the hills near Beirut

We changed location to an Air B and B in another part of Beirut, Geitawi, and were happy to find a young, talented jazz singer as our host. We bunkered down for the worst of the weather, and stayed in the spacious and funky apartment catching up on photos and blog things and trying to keep warm with copious cups of tea. When Sunday arrived, our host and her family invited us to their family Sunday lunch, which we were thrilled to attend. We were immediately made to feel at home by her wonderful parents and brothers, and spend an pleasurable and informative afternoon at their home. The meal was incredible, and for us a chance to try homemade Lebanese food- we were in our element. On the table was baba ganoush (smoked eggplant dip), hummus (chick pea dip), bread, fattoush salad, pickled beetroot, spiced potatoes, lentil soup, chicken fragrant with subtle herbs and roasted almonds, and a dish with mushrooms, cauliflower and sweet potato. All of this was accompanied by delicious Lebanese red wine, and finished off with orange blossom tea and Lebanese coffee!! We could hardly move afterward, but apparently it is a weekly event for them.

Our room in Geitawi, Beirut

Wonderful Lebanese-style family meal

The conversation was as good as the food, and in perfect English. Many Christians in Beirut are schooled in French and study university in English, as well as speaking their main language, Arabic, at home. We learnt a lot that afternoon, especially about the current protests and why people aren't contented with their lives in Lebanon. There are for sure many aspects that are less than satisfactory such as the daily three hour power cuts and the expense of paying extra for generators to continue life when the electricity is cut off. The cost of education is another issue, as is the 50% unemployment and lack of basic old age pension. Corruption is a huge problem in politics (where isn't it?), and business are closing left right and center. Lebanon also experiences a huge "brain drain", as the best educated people leave for other countries where life is easier. Of course, this is understandable, and we met several people who personally had this plan for their future. The current protests have been occurring since October and will continue until people get the change they are demanding.
While we were out and about, we didn't see any protests or large gatherings, although we did visit Martyr's Square, the hub of the bulk of the demonstrations. Mostly, it was empty, with a heavy military presence, and many camps set up with hot drinks and food to service demonstrators when they appeared. There was much damage in the immediate area- buildings with smashed windows and graffiti everywhere.

There's a lot of wealth in Beirut, and we weren't entirely sure where the money came from (we were told much of it comes from money laundering). Luxury items abounded in the shops, and plenty of bling was on display everywhere. The number of luxury cars on the road was simply astonishing. Literally every second car was a Porsche, Audi, BMW or Mercedes, with Jeeps and Hummers also very popular. (We did receive a lift in an Audi sports car- a first for us!)
Another sign of a wealthy nation was the huge numbers of foreign workers- most obviously Bangladeshi and Filipino, who seemed to work in many blue collar jobs, such as maids, nannies and hotel staff. We came across a Sunday market in the city, which catered to Filipino workers on their day off and was full of second hand clothes, Asian food and paraphernalia, and excited chattering Filipino women.

Nearly!

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After a few days, we had to make a decision about Baalbek. We did our best researching the weather, and decided we simply had to go for it if we were to see the site. We set off from Beirut as early as possible and after finding the correct minibus and waiting for it to fill up, we were finally on our way. It was cold in Beirut that morning, but we were totally unprepared for the weather on route. Baalbek is in the far east of Lebanon in the Bekka Valley. Although only 85 kms from the capital, in order to reach it we had to cross the Mount Lebanon Range. As we ascended, more and more snow appeared, both on the ground and from the sky. The minibus stopped to fit snow chains. Eventually, a thick covering blanketed everything in sight in the high mountain range. It's definitely the most snow Sal had ever seen! Luckily, we were warm and snug inside the bus and enjoyed the prettiness outside the window.

Driving conditions, Beirut to Baalbek

Lovely to see the snow from inside the warm bus! Beirut to Baalbek

Stepping out of the bus at Baalbek, we gasped slightly at the intake of freezing air into our lungs! We had literally all our clothes on, but the temperatures were severe. That morning the forecast was -8 degrees, feeling like -14 degrees with the wind chill factor! Although by the time we had arrived it must have warmed up slightly, it's not the sort of temperatures we are used to at all! The setting was stunning, though, with snowy mountains all around- and the wind blowing in off them!

Beautiful, but windswept site, Baalbek, Lebanon

Glimpses of Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Grandeur of Baalbek, Lebanon

Mountains all around (spot Sal), Baalbek, Lebanon

This was all put to the side when we got our first glimpse of the Baalbek ruins. We haven't seen a lot of Roman ruins in our travels, but we started with a cracker. The best preserved Roman ruins in the Middle East, and some of the largest in the entire Roman Empire, Baalbek was truly awe-inspiring.

 

We entered into the Jupiter Temple complex, and it was almost too overwhelming to take in the size and sheer magnitude of the ruins. There were huge carved stones and fallen gargantuan smooth columns lying everywhere creating a great wonderful muddle of rubble. The base of the temple comprised of hundreds of humongous stones, reportably weighing 1000 ton each, and may be the heaviest stones every used in construction. The structures that were still standing were incredible with 30 meter high columns, and we forgot how cold we were and slowly walked around with our heads up and mouths open.

Sal in the middle of Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Looking in wonder, Baalbek, Lebanon

Difficult to see the scale, Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Piles of history everywhere, Baalbek, Lebanon

Huge stones around Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

View of Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Almost too much to take in, Baalbek, Lebanon

Details on fallen stones, Baalbek, Lebanon

Cold columns, Baalbek, Lebanon

Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Rich inspecting the outside of Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Snow hanging about, Baalbek, Lebanon

The highest columns, Jupiter Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Trying to image how it was, Baalbek, Lebanon

Roman beauty, Baalbek, Lebanon

The second great temple was the Bacchus Temple, and this was incredibly preserved for its age. The carvings and friezes inside the temple were beautiful and detailed, and even some mosaics remained. It seemed to us very little restoration work had been done on either temple, and we appreciated the originality. There is a theory this temple may have been protected and preserved by the rubble of other fallen buildings of the complex. After thousands of years in these windy conditions it was hard to believe anything at all would be left of the temples. Luckily, some wonderful treasures found on the site were on display in the informative (but under lit) museum on site. The other amazing thing (or perhaps not, considering the weather!) was the presence of only one other tourist at the Baalbek temples.

Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Detailed frieze, Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Some of the clearest engravings, Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Giant Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Exploring Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Detail at the top of the columns, Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Inside the imposing temple, Bacchus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Stunning torso inside museum, Baalbek, Lebanon

The third temple was the so-called Venus Temple (none of the temples have conclusive evidence to show who exactly built them, or why or when they were built). This was less impressive, and the ravages of time had not been as kind as to the other two.

Venus Temple, Baalbek, Lebanon

Baalbek became a Roman town somewhere around 50 BC, apparently due it's position near two rivers and it's proximity to the trade route. The temple complexes were apparently built on an earlier mysterious unknown cult site and are thought to have been finished around 60 AD. The most interesting part is that the Jupiter and Bacchus Temples are bigger than most in the Roman Empire, including any temples in Rome. It's very mystifying why they would have built such an enormous complex at Baalbek. We were both very immature and from time to time couldn't help yelling out "Biggus Dickus" or "Welease Wodger"- it just seemed so natural considering the surroundings!

We were taken with this fallen column.....

.....and from another angle

A little way from the main Baalbek temples was the site of the ancient quarries, which included what was allegedly the biggest cut stone in the world- estimated to be up to 1,600 tons.

World's largest cut stone? Baalbek, Lebanon

On the road to and from Baalbek, amongst the acres of agricultural land providing fresh food to much of Lebanon, we saw shabby and pathetic little camps, that were later confirmed to us to be Syrian refugee's dwellings. This is yet another huge problem for Lebanon, with 1 million refugees living in a country where the entire population is only 4 million. It obviously puts a huge strain on the country, and as the government doesn't/cannot help, there is little hope for the refugees long term.

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Costs

Prices were high for food and accommodation in Beirut, especially compared with Cairo. Transport was our one savior, with all bus rides being very affordable.

We never ate in restaurants in Beirut, instead indulging in delicious wraps from amazing sandwich shops- Lebanese bread filled with garlic, hummus, salad and kofta (minced lamb), shish tawook (grilled marinated chicken pieces) or beef shwarma meat. Once when buying boiled egg sandwiches for a breakfast picnic, we were asked "Would you like mint, basil and rocket?"! We were in herb heaven! For other meals we bought ingredients from the many fantastic supermarkets, which were actually more like what we would call delis in Oz. The range of cheeses, yogurts, pickles, meats, freshly baked breads, dips and fresh produce was varied and affordable, and we were more than happy with our picnics. Fruit of all kinds was available, presumably mostly imported. We normally spent about 10,000 LBP/US$5 for a simple meal.

The cafe scene was a bit disappointing. There were plenty of places selling coffee, often with just a couple of simple chairs and tables out the front. But the Lebanese prefer a mad strong espresso, and we often had trouble ordering a weaker long coffee. Fresh milk was not available at these places. The sheeshas were a bit pricey, but we indulged a couple of times. There wasn't quite the same relaxed feeling of the Egyptian ahwas we had loved so much.

We wouldn't have been able to visit Lebanon without Air B and B. Even in winter, with political protests dissuading tourists from visiting, budget hotels were still a minimum of US$40 a night. We were able to find places on Air B and B for US$20 a night, with the added bonus of staying with locals.

As mentioned transport was cheap with bus fares around Beirut at 1,000 LBP/US$0.50 a ride and the most we paid for a day trip fare being 7,000 LBP/US$3.50 for the two hour trip to Baalbek. The draw back with the buses was that they were infrequent, slow, and difficult to find the routes for.

A return visit to Lebanon will be very tempting, especially to see the country in warm weather- it must be stunning. The only negative factor is cost- we'll see what we can do!
As we were only in Lebanon for two weeks, we hardly scratched the surface in terms of getting to know the place. The thoughts expressed in this blog post are only our first impressions, and no doubt, had we been able to stay longer and better familiarize ourselves with the culture, politics and people, we would have more in depth opinions. If any of the history or politics is incorrect or contentious, we humbly apologize.

......next up, interesting times in 2020 UK and a Serbian escape.......